She couldn’t help a startled laugh, shocked that he would reveal something so personal to her.
“Did I just say that out loud?” he asked ruefully. “I must be more tired than I realized. I don’t believe I’ve ever shared that with another human being on the planet. Or articulated it so clearly, even to myself.”
She knew perfectly well she shouldn’t find the man appealing here in the quiet hush of the night when the rest of the world slept, but this evidence of past vulnerability made him seem less like a mythical, larger-than-life personage and more like someone who had weaknesses and insecurities.
“Don’t worry, Mr. Caine. I’m good at keeping secrets.”
He made a face. “I told you to call me Aidan. When I divulge embarrassing secrets to somebody, I usually insist they call me by my first name.”
It felt strange but she did her best. “Aidan, then.”
“Eliza,” he mused. “It’s not a very common name anymore.”
“My mother’s name was Elizabeth and everyone called her Betsy. She wanted to be called Eliza but nobody ever did so she decided to give the name to me. I always thought it was old-fashioned. My friends in school called me Ellie but it seemed a little young-sounding as I grew up.”
“I like it. Eliza. It fits you, somehow.”
They lapsed into a not uncomfortable silence. She knew she should probably muster the energy to go back to her bedroom but she couldn’t quite manage it. She found something strangely appealing about sitting in this darkened hallway with him, talking softly about nothing in particular while the storm raged outside.
“I hope the snow stops soon or it will be an interesting drive back to Boise in the morning.”
He rubbed at the side of his head. “I’m glad you brought that up, actually. I intended to wait until the morning to talk to you about this but the time somehow seems right.”
“Oh?”
He gave her a long look. “How would you feel about staying here longer than just one night?”
“That’s very kind of you,” she said, choosing her words carefully, “but I’m afraid I don’t have the luxury of an extended vacation. I need to return to Boise and start putting my life back together. I need to find a job.”
“I actually had a great idea earlier tonight.”
“What sort of idea?” she asked, with no small amount of wariness.
“You could work for me.”
Her mind seemed to spin in a hundred different directions. She wasn’t exactly a Luddite but her technological skills were limited to remembering that email password she had mentioned earlier and knowing how to reboot her laptop.
“Doing what?”
“I told you my entire family is coming for Christmas. This is the first time we’ve all been together for the holidays in years, for various reasons.”
“That will be lovely for you.”
“I hope so. It’s important to me that everything is perfect for them.”
“You don’t ask for much, do you?”
“My family has suffered some tough things in recent years. My brother nearly died fighting in Afghanistan. In the middle of all that, my other brother’s wife
did
die of pregnancy-related complications. We’re finally finding our way back from all the heartache. I’ll admit, I haven’t been there for my family during everything. Not really. I was always too busy and figured they didn’t need one more Caine brother getting in the way.”
He rubbed the side of his head again, just behind his ear. That must be why his hair was a little rumpled there, she thought. It was actually a rather endearing habit, one she wasn’t sure he even realized he was doing.
“These last few months, I’ve...come to realize how necessary that connection is to me. I’ve missed it. I have this new house this year that’s finally big enough to fit us all. We’ve had several new marriages and a lot to celebrate and I want to do my best to make the holidays amazing, you know? Memorable.”
She found that endearing, too, though she knew she shouldn’t. “And how would I fit in to help you with that?”
“Sue has been doing her best to get everything ready. She’s wonderful in the kitchen, don’t get me wrong, but with twenty houseguests, she’s going to have her hands full with all the meal planning and cooking. She just can’t do everything herself. She and I were talking earlier about hiring someone to help her. As I see it, with your hotel management experience, you’re the ideal candidate.”
“Me?”
“I have a confession here. I called the owner of the Lake Haven Inn after you and Maddie went to sleep.”
“You called Megan?”
“Right. Megan. Hamilton. She seemed nice enough. By the way, she was horrified to find out you were hurt today after you spoke with her. She wanted to rush straight here to fuss over you but I assured her you seemed to be doing all right and we are keeping a careful eye on you. She confirmed my suspicions, that you are just the woman I need.”
His words sent a completely inappropriate little shiver rippling through her. For the job. He was talking about a
job.
She forced herself to get a grip as she struggled to take in the completely unexpected twist.
“You want me to come work for you here? I was the assistant manager of a small three-star hotel. What do I know about providing luxury hospitality services in a private home?”
“If you knew my family, you would understand the Caines don’t need luxury. You won’t find more down-to-earth people anywhere. I think you’ll like them and I know they’ll like you and Maddie.”
How was she supposed to respond to a job offer extended in the middle of the night when she was wrapped in a
blanket,
for crying out loud?
“It can’t be that much different from what you would have been doing as the manager at the Lake Haven Inn, just on a smaller scale. As I see it, the goals are the same—making everybody feel welcome and keeping them happy. All you have to do is make sure Pop stays out of the kitchen, find entertainment for the little ones and make sure the teenagers have enough to keep them busy and out of trouble.”
“That’s all?” she said faintly.
“I just want everyone to enjoy the holidays together, whatever it takes.”
“You basically need somebody to play hostess to your family.”
“Wow. In a manner of speaking, I suppose that’s exactly what I need.”
What he needed was a wife. But of course, she could never say that.
“Look, I’m the first to admit, I have many bad habits,” he said. “One of them is a single-minded focus on whatever project I’m working on. I can get a phone call and forget everything else but solving whatever problem is on the other end. If that happens, I would love to know somebody else is here besides Sue to make sure my family doesn’t feel ignored.”
She wanted to suggest he just turn his phone off but, again, it wasn’t her business.
“The job would include room and board for you and Maddie as well as a salary I think you’ll find more than fair,” he said, naming a gulp-worthy sum that made actually made her palms begin to sweat.
“That’s entirely too much.”
“I promise, you will earn every penny of it. My family is great but they’re crazy and wild, too.”
She didn’t know how to answer him. On the one hand, this would be an answer to her prayers. Working and staying at Snow Angel Cove through the holidays would give her a little breathing room, time to send out some feelers about who might be hiring and to really plan out her next step instead of jumping out of desperation into a job that might not be a good fit.
In addition, the compensation he was offering for only a few weeks would provide a much-needed financial cushion to tide them over for several months.
She wasn’t a fool, however. Was Aidan making this offer because he genuinely needed help or was it driven by his guilt over hitting her with his SUV?
Could she really afford to let that matter to her?
“It’s late,” he said after a moment. “You don’t have to make a decision about this right now. Think about it overnight. I do think Maddie would have fun playing with my niece and nephew. Carter is just about her age. He’s a real character but fun. His sister, Faith, is a few years older and one of the sweetest girls you’ll ever meet. The other kids are older but they’re all really decent human beings.”
“I will think about it,” she said, even though she already knew what her answer would be. She wasn’t particularly thrilled about working for anyone connected to Caine Tech, especially not the founder and CEO, but she had to be pragmatic. For room, board and a salary like that—not to mention the chance to give Maddie a safe, comfortable, welcoming place for Christmas—she would be a fool to refuse.
The past three Christmases had been tough, all the way around. Trent had died in November three years earlier. That year the holidays had been a blur of shock and pain and sorrow. The past two years, Maddie had been in the hospital.
The chance to spend the holidays here in this lovely home where her daughter could experience a genuine family Christmas was too choice to pass up.
She climbed up from the window seat, doing her best not to wince at her various and sundry aches and pains. “We both need to try to sleep tonight. Thank you for checking on me. As you can see, I’m perfectly fine.”
He rose as well, his T-shirt clinging again to those unexpected muscles. “I’m glad,” he said with a slow, sexy smile that made her toes tingle.
Oh, for crying out loud, she chided herself. The man was a gazillionaire who probably had his pick of any hot-bodied bimbo he wanted. He would never be interested in someone like her, a frazzled mom wearing pajamas she bought at a big box store and wrapped in a blanket.
Even if he
were
interested, for some unfathomable reason, she certainly wasn’t. Right? Not in Aidan Caine, who was brilliant and gorgeous and
dangerous.
“Good night,” she murmured quickly and hurried to her room before he could even answer.
When she slipped back into the cool covers, her daughter made a tiny sound in her sleep but didn’t awaken. Eliza lay in the darkness while the storm flung snowflakes against the window, listening to the miracle of her daughter’s breathing, as she had done so many times before.
While she might be reluctant to stay at Snow Angel Cove for a plethora of reasons, she would do it for one reason only. Her child.
CHAPTER SIX
S
HE
ACHED
IN
every single joint and muscle.
Even her eyelids hurt—though she had no idea why. It seemed a good enough excuse to keep them closed, even though her internal biorhythms sensed daylight.
She wanted to roll over and try to go back to sleep but even that seemed like too much effort right now.
With great exertion, she managed to wrench her eyes open, only to find a curious little face about an inch and a half away from hers.
“Mama! Are you awake?”
“Mmmph,” she mumbled. Even that hurt.
“Come on. Get up. It snowed
so much
last night! You have to see!”
Maddie bounced on the bed in her enthusiasm, unleashing a whole host of new aches and pains. Eliza swallowed her groan and opened her eyes fully. Maddie beamed and bounced on the bed again.
Her delight in the world around her, how she embraced each day with excitement and joy, filled Eliza’s heart with a little burst of joy, even when the rest of her hurt.
“Good morning, Miss Maddie.”
“It snowed so much!” she repeated eagerly. “You have to see. Hurry, Mama, before it all melts!”
Eliza had a feeling she wasn’t going to be hurrying anywhere for quite some time. She drew in a deep breath and pushed away the blanket then swung her legs to the floor.
Maddie waited eagerly while she wrapped the throw over her shoulders again and dutifully padded over to the window. When she looked out, a small laugh escaped her. Wow. Maddie wanted her to see the snow before it melted. Judging by the scene outside the window, that happy event wouldn’t be until April, at the earliest.
Maybe not even until May.
The snow covered everything in heavy, deep mounds. Even the pines wore thick white coats, with hardly a bit of green showing through.
As she expected in the night, the view from the house was spectacular. The vast lake—her research before deciding on the move to the area had taught her the lake was seven miles across and fifteen miles long—gleamed a bright, vivid blue in contrast to the blinding white snow everywhere else. The raw, dramatic mountains rose up almost from the water’s edge.
“Isn’t it pretty, Mama? Don’t you just love it? I want to build a snowman
right now!
Can we?”
Yeah, that wasn’t happening at the moment, when she could barely walk. “Why don’t we go look for breakfast first and then we’ll see how things go?”
“Okay. I am
hungry.
”
“We need to get dressed first. Can you find some clothes in your suitcase?”
Maddie nodded and unzipped her case. “Can Bob and me visit the horses today?” she asked as she was pulling out her favorite sweater which, not surprisingly, had a horse appliqué sewn on the front. “Mr. Aidan said I could if you let me.”
“That would be fun. You have to do some homework first before we do anything else right? While I’m in the shower, finish changing out of your pajamas and try to finish a worksheet or two.”
Maddie, predictably, made a face at that but agreed.
Eliza had decided not to enroll her into a new kindergarten class until after Christmas so her daughter didn’t have so many transitions at once, especially since school would be breaking for the holidays only a week after she moved to Haven Point.
She had worried a new apartment, new schedule and new school all at the same time might be too difficult for Maddie. In this whole mess, that, at least, was one of her own decisions she didn’t doubt.
While Eliza showered—oh, the wonder of those jets—and finished dressing and fixing her hair and makeup, Maddie quickly finished several of the worksheets her teacher in Boise had given Eliza to carry Maddie through the end of the year.
When she was done, Maddie entertained herself by playing her favorite game on Eliza’s tablet and watching the snow steadily falling outside.
Eliza considered it nothing short of a blessing that her daughter entertained herself so well. Maddie hardly ever complained she was bored. Give her a few art supplies or a couple of favorite toys and she could amuse herself for hours, something Eliza definitely appreciated for long waits in the doctor’s office or during lengthy hospital stays.
After she was dressed—finally conceding she had done the best she could with her limited makeup tools and skills to conceal the bruises from the accident—she pulled Maddie’s hair back in a ponytail and the two of them set off to try finding the kitchen again.
They walked hand in hand through the gorgeous house, with those honey-colored logs that glowed glossy and warm in the shafts of sunlight streaming through the windows everywhere.
A gas fire flickered cheerfully in the great room fireplace but no one seemed to be in sight. That huge tree looked even more barren and forlorn in the daylight.
From somewhere close by they heard someone singing “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” in an off-key twang. Sue. Eliza followed the sound to a big, well-appointed kitchen with gorgeous professional-grade appliances, granite countertops and a work island in the middle as big as a decent-sized children’s swimming pool.
“Good morning,” Eliza said.
Sue whirled around from the sink. “Hello! I wondered when you two might show your faces this morning.”
“Sorry we slept so long.”
“No need to apologize, darlin’. You had quite a day yesterday. It’s barely nine o’clock, anyway.”
On a normal day, Eliza was usually up by six so she could work out, get in a load of laundry or take care of bills before Maddie awoke.
“How are you feeling this morning?” Sue asked.
She forced a smile. “Much better,” she said. It wasn’t a complete lie.
“Aidan told me to let the two of you sleep as long as you need.”
“Did he?” She wondered where he might be, but she didn’t want to ask—nor did she want to think about the heated dream she had about him.
Sue answered her unspoken thought, anyway. “He and Jim are out trying to clear the driveway. They’ve got the plow on the pickup truck and the tractor going, too.”
She tried to picture sexy brainiac Aidan Caine driving a tractor and couldn’t quite make the image jell.
“He mentioned last night that more snow was expected throughout the day.” Right now the sun was shining but she knew that could change in a blink.
“Oh, yes,” Sue said cheerfully. “We’re supposed to have loads and loads of it, at least for another day or two. Guess you’re stuck with us.”
“Yay!” Maddie said. “I like it here.”
“And we like having you, Miss Maddie,” Sue said. “I’ve got some breakfast waiting for you. I’ve just been keeping it warm.”
She pulled a couple of plates out of a warming oven, layered high with scrambled eggs and sausages. “Have a seat, my dears. It won’t take me five minutes to add some pancakes to these.”
As they wouldn’t be able to eat half of what she had already prepared for them, Eliza started to tell her that pancakes weren’t necessary but Maddie spoke up before she could.
“Oh, I
love
pancakes!” Maddie declared. “My mama makes the
best.
Sometimes she even pours them into a heart.”
Sue smiled at her. “Well, I don’t know if I can handle a heart since that takes some serious skills. I’ll see what I can do, though. You two have a seat and I’ll set you up.”
“You don’t have to serve us. I can help.” It seemed strange to let Sue fuss over her when they were basically fellow employees now.
“Suit yourself,” she said as she fired up the griddle. “There’s juice and milk in the refrigerator or coffee if you want it.”
Eliza settled Maddie on one of the stools around the huge granite-topped island that dominated the kitchen space, found silverware for both of them in a drawer Sue indicated and then poured her a small glass of milk and another of juice.
“Aidan said you might be staying,” Sue said after a moment.
Eliza flashed a look at Maddie and saw she wasn’t paying them any attention.
“Did he?” she asked, trying for a casual, noncommittal tone. The whole job offer seemed so perfect, she still couldn’t quite believe it was real.
“You would be saving my hide if you take him up on his offer, I’ll tell you that much. Twenty guests, coming in just over a week and I’ve not even had time to decorate yet. You wouldn’t believe how crazy the last three months have been, trying to make the house ready for guests. I never thought we would make it before the holidays but when Aidan sets his mind to something, nothing can sway him. Even from his hospital bed, he would call me with suggestions for this and that.”
“Hospital bed?”
Sue looked horrified for a moment but quickly hid her reaction behind a cough. “Er. Forget I said that. No hospital bed for him. He’s healthy as a horse. Why, he’s healthier than some horses I know.”
Was he? Eliza thought of those lines that looked fairly new around his mouth and the way his shirt the night before had looked a size too large. Had he been ill? And if so, why couldn’t Sue just tell her? Why the big secrecy about it?
“I’ve met Aidan’s family a time or two,” the older woman went on quickly, as if trying not so subtly to change the subject, “and you’ll never meet a nicer bunch. Every last one of them.”
She decided not to press her about their employer’s health, for now. It wasn’t her business, anyway. “That’s good.”
“They’re just regular folk. I know you’ll like them.”
“That will make the job a little easier.” She sipped at her coffee as Sue flipped the pancakes on the griddle.
“As nice as they are, just thinking about a whole week of preparing three meals a day for twenty people—and then having to run the rest of the house on top of that—wears me right out. I don’t mind the cooking, it’s the rest of it that is a struggle. If you can handle all the details of throwing a big old-fashioned house party, you’ll be a real lifesaver, darlin’. For me and for Aidan.”
She had wondered if he were inventing a job merely to make amends for the accident the day before. Listening to Sue, she wondered if her services might genuinely be needed at Snow Angel Cove.
“If I agree to the job, where would Maddie and I stay? I didn’t have the chance to ask Aidan last night. I certainly don’t want to continue taking up one of the guest suites. By the sound of it, he will need all the space he can find for his family.”
“Don’t you worry about that. We’ve got the perfect space for you and your little one.” She pointed to a hallway. “Matter of fact, it’s right through there. Cook’s quarters.”
“But you’re the cook.”
“This cook likes to lay her head next to my husband’s—I guess I’m funny that way—and
he
likes to stay close to his horses. We’re in a cozy little house just off the barn that used to be the foreman’s cottage, which means the cook’s quarters are completely available for you and Maddie. It couldn’t be more perfect. After you finish breakfast, we’ll go take a look and see if the rooms might work for you.”
Sue was right. So far this job offer seemed made to order for her particular circumstances, she thought, as she and Maddie ate the hearty breakfast—complete with pancakes that were so perfectly heart-shaped, Eliza didn’t know how she ever again would have the guts to make her own paltry attempts.
Maddie chattered away about her other favorite foods and other delicious pancakes she had tried, which led to a conversation about the berry pancakes she had eaten when the two of them had driven to the Oregon Coast during the summer and how she had chased a hermit crab around the beach and had looked at tide pools and touched a starfish.
Eliza would have tried to divert her attention in some way but Sue seemed to enjoy whatever conversational detour Maddie meandered down, watching her with a kind, indulgent expression.
When they both had finished breakfast, Sue took their plates and loaded them into one of two gleaming stainless-steel dishwashers Eliza could see.
“Should we go take a look at the cook’s quarters?” she asked.
She nodded and slid away from the table. Sue led the way to a door just down the hall from the kitchen. As Eliza looked around at the comfortable space with twin beds, a basic but well-equipped bathroom and even a sitting room, she had to fight the inappropriate urge to laugh.
Call her a pessimist, but she had to wonder about what fine print she must be missing. The position seemed almost too good to be true—a jaw-dropping salary, a beautiful home in which to spend the holidays and the ideal apartment for her and Maddie. It was better, even, than the slightly larger but more outdated space they would have shared at the Lake Haven Inn.
Who would have guessed that being hit by a car might turn out to be a lucky break?
She was still shaking her head at that irony when she saw movement outside the window and spotted Aidan, bundled up against the cold, heading for the outside door that led into the mudroom.
He stomped his boots off on the mat outside the door and brushed snow from his coat, then pulled off a wildly colored knit hat, leaving his dark hair sticking up in tufts. Oddly, seeing him like this, slightly wild and tousled, made him seem somehow more human and approachable than the carefully groomed executive who appeared on the business magazine covers.
“What do you think?” Sue asked.
She thought the man was too darn gorgeous for his own good. Or hers.
“It should work very nicely,” she managed to answer.
“You and the little one will have all your meals with the rest of us, of course, so you needn’t worry about having a kitchen of your own. As you can see, you’ve got a microwave and a little refrigerator in here. If you have something special you’d like to fix in the kitchen, of course you would be welcome to. I’ll also set aside space in one of the refrigerators for you to keep things of your own that might not fit in here.”
“Great. I appreciate that.”
“When we have a minute, I’ll sit down with you and find out a few favorite foods you and Maddie might enjoy.”
“That’s not really necessary. We can eat anything. But thank you.”
They headed back out into the mudroom, to find Aidan taking off his coat.