The Nanny (The Fabulous Dalton Boys Book 1) by Kirsten Osbourne Read Free Book Online Page B

grinning at his frown.
    "This is serious."  He took a sip of water, suddenly nervous.  He'd never talked to a woman about this before, and wouldn't be now if the baby wasn't involved.  At least, he didn't think he would.  "Becoming a father has thrown my life all out of whack."
    Ashley frowned.  "I can see why it would, but it's not Baby Dalton's fault.  He's the sweetest baby in the world, and you shouldn't complain about him!" 
    Barrett frowned.  "I'm not complaining about the baby.  No, I'm saying he's making me see things differently than I ever have before.  You see,  I thought I'd spend my whole life alone.  My father left a lot to be desired, and my mother died from complications of having triplets." 
    "Okay."  Ashley was clearly puzzled.  "So how are you seeing things differently?"
    "The baby needs a mother," Barrett told her.
    She nodded solemnly.  Yes, the baby did need a mother.  So why did she feel so sick at the mere idea of him marrying someone? 
    "In my whole life I'd never met anyone that I felt I wanted to spend my life with.  Hell, I've rarely spent an entire night with a woman, let alone any real time."  He took another swallow of his water, trying to find the right words for what he wanted to say.  "I've finally met someone that I think I could spend my life with, and who I think would be a wonderful mother to Baby Dalton."
    "Are you firing me?" Ashley asked him.  "'Cuz if you are, just spit it out.  I can fly back to New York and live with my aunt."
    "No, I'm not firing you!  I'm trying to ask you to marry me!"  He practically yelled the words, and realized that yelling a marriage proposal was unlikely to have the desired effect.  He took a deep breath.  "I think you'd be a good mother to Baby Dalton, and I want you in my bed.  I even like you when we're not kissing.  Please, would you do me the honor of being my wife?"
    She studied his face for a moment before she burst out laughing.  "Oh, that's a good one."  She wondered how long he'd been planning to ask her that.  How silly to think she'd fall for it.  "You know, I haven't been in Texas long, but I didn't arrive on the back of a turnip truck," she said, using one of her aunt's expressions.  Sometimes it was nice to have strange sayings to draw on, and her aunt was just chock full of strange sayings.
    "I'm serious.  I want you to marry me.  It's the perfect solution.  You already love my son, and you like me."  His eyes traveled down her body. "I like you, too."
    She shook her head, still laughing a bit.  "And do you ask all the girls you like to marry you?"
    He shrugged.  "I don't know that I've just ever liked a girl before.  In school they all looked down on us, because we were so poor, even though we lived in this massive house.  In college, I was working too hard to finish to notice girls existed.  And since college, after we found the oil all over our land, I've been fighting girls off with a stick, but none of them was interested in me, Barrett.  It was more of a 'I want a rich man, and you'll do' kind of thing.  I don't want that.  I want someone who is nice, who I can genuinely like."
    "You can't be serious."  She studied his face.  He sounded serious, but she was waiting for him to burst out laughing at any moment. 
    "I can be serious, and I am.  Look, me getting married would solve several things.  Number one, I'd have a mother for Dalton.  Number two, the gossip, at least about me, would slow down.  Number three, now that I'm a father, I don't want to bring women around my kid.  Being married, I wouldn't need to, because I'd have sex readily available.  See?  It makes all kinds of sense."  He beamed at her, glad he'd finally been able to explain it in a logical manner.
    Ashley put her fork down on the side of her plate.  "Ready sex? Are you kidding me?  What do I get out of the arrangement?  Huh?"
    His lips quirked into that grin she was coming to like so much.  "What do you