Partners in Crime (Gambling on Love Book 4) Read online

  “Nora, help has arrived,” my sister Zoe calls out. She stops at the bottom of the stairs and scans the room, finding all of my boxes have been packed. “I forgot you are Miss Organized.” She chuckles. “I guess I will just watch you finish packing your suitcase.” She plops down on my bed and lets out a yawn. “By the looks of it you are excited about starting your new job.”

  “Excited doesn’t even begin to describe how I’m feeling right now. This is my dream nanny job, Zoe. I get to live by the beach, and the pay is amazing. Colby is the sweetest, most well behaved child I have ever met. And Hank.” I pause, letting out a blissful sigh. “He is an amazing hands-on, caring father.” The flush rises in my cheeks.

  Zoe leans in close to me and examines my face. “Oh my God, you have a crush on the dad,” she says, lightly hitting my arm.

  I push her back on the bed. “I do not,” I lie.

  “You so want to do the dad, that’s why you are so excited to get moved in. Nora and Hank sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g,” she sings. She twenty-two and still acts like a five-year-old. Colby is more mature than Zoe.

  I grab a shirt off my pile of clothes and throw it right in her face to shut her up. “I admit he is kind of cute.” Another lie.

  Zoe tosses the shirt back in my direction, it whizzes past my head and lands on the floor. “Nora, you are such a liar,” she exclaims. Out of all of my siblings, Zoe knows me the best and can see right through me. We’ve had a close bond since Zoe was a baby. I was the only one who could get her to settle down when she was crying by sleeping on the floor next to her crib. One of her first words was Nona, she couldn’t say her ‘R’s’ very well. We can tell each other anything and she’s my best friend.

  “Okay, fine. Hank is the most gorgeous man I have ever laid eyes on,” I admit. I fall back on the bed with a sigh. “He’s my boss, but all I can think about is fucking him into oblivion. Maybe if he was an asshole I wouldn’t feel like this, but he’s so nice, and he has these sad soulful eyes, which, of course, makes me want to take the sadness away. And his smile could make panties melt from a mile away.” I pick my pillow up, lay it over my face, and let out a frustrated scream.

  “Wow, you have it bad,” she says, lifting my pillow.

  I glare over at her. “No shit Sherlock.” I rise back up and continue to fold my shirts. “But he’s my boss and he has a girlfriend.”

  “He has a girlfriend?” she asks.

  “I don’t know if he really does or not, but that is what I am telling myself so as to not jump his bones. This job is perfect for me, and I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize it.”

  “You guys are going to have so many babies.” She laughs as I push her off my bed.

  “How about you shut your trap and help me load up my car.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  Hank

  “DADDY, WHAT TIME is it?” Colby shouts from the living room. She’s been camped out on the couch since she got up this morning, waiting for Nora to arrive. I couldn’t even get her to come sit at the table to eat her breakfast. I haven’t seen her this excited about anything since her first day of preschool. All she could talk about for the past three days is how much fun it’s going to be to have Nora living here with us, and how she can’t wait to show Nora the beach and all her toys.

  She isn’t the only one who hasn’t been able to stop thinking about Nora. Her intoxicating laugh, sparkling brown eyes, and the way she would blush whenever I looked at her has flooded my memory. But at night, when the world is dark and quiet, my imagination drifts into the deepest, dirtiest parts of my mind. Images of Nora naked and breathless beneath me. Her body covered in my mark. My name on her lush, full lips while my cock owns her tight, sweet pussy. It always ends with me waking up hard as steel and covered in a cold sweat. One encounter and this woman has thrown my world upside down. I’m inviting chaos into my house.

  I have to keep telling myself that Nora is my employee, and she is off limits. Now, if only I can get my dick to stop taking control of my brain.

  “It’s not time yet,” I call out from the kitchen as I pour my mother a cup of coffee. “You know mom, you don’t need to be here.” I made the mistake of telling my mother when Nora would be moving in. Of course, she would have to butt in and be here to give Nora the third degree.

  “This woman is moving into my son’s home and is taking care of my grandchild. I have every right to be here,” she snaps.

  I roll my eyes as I pour the creamer into her coffee. “Don’t you roll your eyes at me my dear boy. You may be a grown man, but I will still take you over my knee.” Funny how now she’s playing the disciplinarian. Where was this attitude when I really needed it? There are days, like today, where I have to remind myself my mother isn’t the same person she was when I was a kid. She turned a blind eye to my behavior because that was all she knew. In the world I grew up in the parents let the nannies handle the raising and discipline of the children. The only time they would intervene was when a check needed to be cut to get their kids out of trouble.

  After seeing the hell I went through to get myself clean, so I could be a stable, present parent for Colby, it opened her eyes to what it’s like to sacrifice for your child. She regrets not being there for me, but sometimes she goes a little overboard.

  “You can stay and meet Nora, but just know your opinion of her won’t change the fact that I think she is the perfect nanny for MY child.”

  Before my mother can come back with her rebuttal Colby shouts with heavy excitement. “She’s here, she’s here!”

  I walk around the corner into the living room where Colby is jumping up and down on the couch, squealing and clapping. You’d think Tinker Bell was moving in with us with how excited she is. I glance out the window just as Nora is bending over to pick up a box, giving me an eye full of her ass. It’s firm, plump, and just waiting for me to sink my teeth into. Fuck my life.

  Colby flies off the couch and heads straight for the front door, which opens with a bang against the foyer wall, and Colby is halfway down the walkway by the time I reach the entryway. My mother follows me out to the front porch.

  “Now I see why you hired her.” She smugly grins.

  “Give me some credit mother, I did not hire Nora because of her looks,” I reply. It was only half of the reason why I hired Nora. “Nora is a more than qualified nanny and, as you can see, Colby adores her.”

  “Whatever you say, son.”

  I meet Nora at the bottom of the steps. “Hi Nora, here let me help you with that,” I say, taking the box from her hands. My fingers graze her hands causing a slight blush to rise in her cheeks. Damn, she’s adorable when she blushes. “Nora this is my mother, Caroline. Mother this is Nora Cunningham,” I introduce them. My mother shakes Nora’s hand and immediately goes into mom mode, asking Nora a million questions about her job qualifications. I mouth an ‘I’m sorry’ to Nora. “Hey Mom, why don’t we continue the interrogation inside and give Nora the grand tour.” I step aside and let the girls go up the steps first.

  My mother stops in front of me and says, “Oh son, she is absolutely lovely. She’s going to be perfect for Colby. I’m sorry I ever doubted you.”

  “Thanks Mother.”

  “I think Nora is going to be good for the both of you. I will leave you to get Nora settled in. Give Colby a big hug and kiss for me. Goodbye, my sweet boy.” She kisses me on the cheek then turns to walk back to her car. She really must like Nora to concede so soon. I wish I would have found Nora sooner.

  “Come on, Miss Nora, let’s go see your room.” Colby takes Nora’s hand and leads her up the stairs while I follow close behind, trying not to watch Nora’s ass the entire way up the stairs.

  “Down there is Daddy’s room. This is my bathroom.” She pauses and looks up at Nora. “I guess now it’s our bathroom,” she corrects herself then continues the tour, pointing out her room, then she comes to a stop in front of the guest room door. “This is your room, Miss Nora.” She opens the door and
guides Nora inside.

  I follow after them and set the box down on the bed. “I’m sorry it’s not much, but feel free to decorate it anyway you’d like,” I say as I watch Nora examining the small space. We don’t get a lot of guests at our house, so I never took the time to properly decorate the guest room any further than just putting a bed, nightstand, and dresser in.

  “This is an improvement from the basement room I was living in at my parents’ house. I have some ideas on how to make it a bit cozier,” she says, running her hand over the dresser.

  “I will go bring in the rest of your stuff. Colby, why don’t you finish showing Nora the rest of the house,” I suggest.

  “Okay, Daddy. Come on Miss Nora, I’ll show you my fairy garden.”

  * * *

  Walking up the stairs with the last of Nora’s boxes, I hear giggles coming from Colby’s room. I stop and take a peek through the doorway. Colby and Nora are sitting on the floor playing with the fairy garden I made for her. Colby looks so carefree and happy with Nora. It warms my heart to see her so happy. I think having a woman around the house is going to be good for her. I think it’s even more imperative that I get my dick in check. If I can’t give Colby a mother, the least I could do is make sure she has a strong female role model in her life. “Nora is off limits,” I whisper to myself.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Nora

  THE PANCAKE BATTER sizzles in the hot butter as I shape it into a butterfly. It’s a little wonky but it’s as good as a butterfly pancake is going to look for someone who learned how to make them an hour ago. My excitement to start my first day as Colby’s nanny overtook my need to sleep in. At five a.m. my eyes flung open and wouldn’t close, so I climbed out of bed and decided to make Hank and Colby breakfast. I spent a good thirty minutes on Pinterest looking up the perfect pancake recipe, as well as a recipe for monster fruit shakes. It’s not part of my job to cook for Hank and Colby, but I wanted to do something to say thank you for all their help with moving me in and giving me this job.

  Colby was a good a little helper, unwrapping pictures, and helping organize my sewing supplies. Hank would pop his head in to make sure Colby wasn’t in my way. I think it was more of him not knowing what to do with himself with Colby distracted with me. If I was him, and was the main entertainment of my daughter, I would feel a little lonely too. He got his daddy-daughter time back when it came time to put Colby to bed. I could hear him reading her a bedtime story through my wall. It made my heart go all warm and fuzzy when he did all the voices for all the characters. His Arial interpretation could use a little work, but his Sebastian the crab was dead on.

  I turn around to flip the pancake onto Colby’s plate. Out of the corner of my eye, I see a little face peeking around the corner. “I see you little Miss Colby,” I say with a grin.

  Colby lets out a sneaky giggle as she steps further into view. “Good morning, Miss Nora.” She greets me with a smile as she climbs up to her chair at the kitchen island.

  “Good morning Colby, are you ready for some butterfly pancakes, fruit flowers, and monster juice?” I ask, sliding her plate across the island. Her eyes light up when she gets a glimpse of her plate.

  “I love pancakes, thank you Miss Nora,” she says politely. She starts to reach for a piece of watermelon with her fingers when Hank comes walking into the kitchen.

  “Use your fork, Colby,” he instructs. Hank walks up behind Colby and gives her a kiss on the top of her head and hands her the fork sitting next to her plate. He looks over in my direction and gives me a warm smile. “Good morning, Nora.” His deep, soothing voice sends a calming warmth through my body. I’d want him to read me bedtime stories, too, with a voice like that. I’d rather he whisper dirty things in my ear.

  “Wook Daddy, Miss Nora made me butterfly pancakes.”

  “They look delicious,” he replies. Speaking of things that look delicious, Hank is looking positively yummy in his black suit and crisp white shirt. The dark fabric hugs his muscles perfectly. His thin black tie brings visions of me tied to his bed dancing in my head. A cold shower will definitely be in order today.

  “I made you some too. Sit and enjoy breakfast with Colby,” I order, sliding him a plate of pancakes.

  “Thank you. You didn’t have to do this.” He looks down at his plate, licking his lips in anticipation as I pour a drizzle of syrup over the warm cakes.

  “I wanted to do something to say thank you for helping me get settled in yesterday.”

  “So, what do you girls have planned for today?” he asks, taking a bite of his pancakes.

  “First, we are going to head to the beach for the morning, then later this afternoon my sister is teaching a class down at the ballet academy I thought Colby would have fun trying,” I reply.

  “What time is the class, I might be able to sneak out of work to come watch,” he says before taking another bite of his breakfast.

  A drop of syrup trickles down his chin. I instinctively reach out and wipe it off with my thumb. A shockwave of electricity rocks through my body. He must have felt it too because the next sound that comes out of his mouth is a soft moan. I quickly pull my hand away, wiping the syrup on the towel sitting on the counter in front of me. “You’re making a mess.” I grab the towel then step around the island. “Wouldn’t want you to get syrup on your suit.” I grin, tucking the towel into the collar of his shirt. His eyes lock on to mine. Breath deepening as he breathes me in. The heat radiates between us. I nervously pull my lower lip between my teeth. My fingers lingering along the exposed skin of his neck. Intensity in his eyes darkens. It feels like, at any moment, he could throw me over his shoulder, carry me up to his bed, and devour every part of me.

  “Daddy has a bib.” Colby’s giggles pull us out of our trance. My hands return to my sides, still shaking from the morsel of contact.

  “Sometimes even Daddy needs a bib.” He uses the towel to wipe the rest of the syrup off his face. His attention returns to me, the darkness in his eyes softens. The beast inside him calms again.

  I shyly smile and return to making more pancakes. I need the distraction because, once again, Hank has completely melted me. I don’t know how I’m going to survive living under the same roof with this man. This is only my second day here, and I’m already stepping over my own boundaries, finding ways to touch him, and having wildly inappropriate thoughts about my boss. I need to refocus. I’m here to take care of Colby and her needs, not Hank.

  * * *

  Colby and I make our way down to the beach. The tide is going out, making the perfect conditions for looking for sea glass and shells. Colby holds tight to my hand while holding her bucket in the other. Her little face beams with excitement to go search for fairy crystals. I explained to her that the fairies love this beach so much they leave their crystals here to bring good luck to those who find them.

  The sun is shining, the sky is bright blue above us, and a cool spring breeze dances off the water. We walk a little way down the shore, past the rockier terrain to the soft sand. I lay out our towels and dig out the shovels from my beach bag.

  “Let’s go find us some fairy crystals,” I exclaim. Colby lets out a little cheer as she takes my hand while we walk down to the water’s edge.

  Two hours and one bucket full of shells and sea glass later, I kneel next to Colby, holding her second bucket while she digs through the rocks and sand looking for more. This girl is on a mission to clean this beach out. I must feel a little like my dad did when he would do this very activity with me. It’s been fun sharing this with Colby. We’ve both had smiles on our faces the entire morning.

  “Miss Nora, wook I found a blue one.” She holds the shard of dark blue glass for me to see.

  “Lucky girl, you found the rarest of all fairy crystals. Legend has it that if you make a wish with a blue crystal, your wish will come true.” I tell her the same story my dad told me when I found my first blue piece of sea glass.

  “Really?” she asks.

 
I nod and place the glass in the palm of her hand and close her fingers around it. “Close your eyes and open your heart, then make your wish.”

  Colby squeezes her eyes shut and holds her fist with the glass in it over her heart. A good minute goes by before her eyes open again. “I think my wish is coming true.” She grins confidently from ear to ear.

  “Oh, do you now?” I ask, cocking a curious eyebrow up.

  “Yep.” Is all she says before she goes back to digging.

  Now I’m even more intrigued to know what she wished for. “What did you wish for?”

  “I can’t tell you, otherwise it won’t come true.” She shoots me a look that reads ‘don’t stupid Nora’.

  “I’m sorry, I forgot. How about we take a snack break and go get some hot cocoa and cake pops,” I suggest.

  * * *

  “Colby, this is my sister, Zoe. She has been nice enough to let you join her class today.”

  Zoe kneels in front of Colby and holds her hand out to her. “Hello Colby, it’s very nice to meet you.”

  “Hi Miss Zoe.” Colby confidently shakes Zoe’s hand.

  “Colby, why don’t you go put your stuff in the cubbies and get your slippers on,” Zoe says.

  She takes her bag from my hand then joins the rest of the girls on the other side of the studio.

  “Oh my God, she’s so freaking adorable, and Miss Zoe. I love that.” Zoe snickers.