Page 47 of Nick: His to Claim

“Yup,” he informed her as he went to the stove and pulled the garlic bread out of the oven. “I got some stellar advice from your parents today when I picked up the kids,” he continued, a wicked gleam in his eye.

“Your Ma said I needed to woo you. Take you on dates, send you flowers, buy you trinkets, that sort of thing. She said if I did it properly, I could probably get you to come around, even though you’re a stubborn wee lass.”

Nick held his hand up before Maggie could erupt.

“Her words not mine,” he qualified, taking off the oven mitts.

“Oh, she did, did she?” Maggie questioned slipping off the stool at the counter where she’d been admiring her roses. “I’m afraid to ask what my Da told you,” she told him crisply, planting her hands on her hips.

“Ah… ” he said with a grin. “Now your Father had quite a different approach in mind,” he informed her as he steadily advanced on her until he was able to snatch her off her feet and twirl her around. “He told me I should give you a good licking for keeping Jason from me and tote you off to see Father O’Connor, over my shoulder if necessary, and not to put up with any of your nonsense.”

Maggie squealed and buried her face in Nick’s shoulder, mortified that her father would say such a thing.

“I must admit, although I have no problem following your Ma’s advice, I do think your Da’s advice has a great deal of merit,” he whispered in her ear as he set her on her feet, keeping his arms firmly around her waist.

Maggie was in full blush as she slapped him briskly on the arm.

Nick laughed and kissed her nose.

“Hmm… funny, that’s exactly how your Ma felt about it. Now go get cleaned up for dinner,” he told her turning her toward the door and delivering a smack to her backside. “I’ll get the kids.”

* * *

And so the wooing began. On Thursday she came home just as the carpet cleaning company was finishing up. They managed to get the stain out, and Maggie was very thankful not to have to replace it.

Nick reached for his wallet, but she snapped up the bill for the cleaning and immediately wrote the check. Even the eyebrow didn’t deter her this time. It was her carpet, her wine, and her vomit, she informed him. And he just threw up his hands and walked away, swearing softly.

Maggie had to admit it was nice to come home to a clean house with dinner ready and happy kids. She no longer spent hours each night arguing with Todd to get his homework done. Apparently, the eyebrow worked on him too, although certainly not for the same reason. Nick only had to tell him once “no gaming until your homework is done”, for Todd to decide he should do it as soon as he got home from school.

Jason seemed a little quiet, and she often felt him watching them. He and Nick got along well; they were so much alike, it was uncanny. At times, Maggie had the feeling that Jason was waiting for something to happen. When she mentioned itto Nick, he just smiled and told her she was imagining things. Maybe she was.

Her life had been turned upside down. Nick was everything a woman could hope for. Attentive and kind, he seemed to take great pleasure in caring for her, rubbing her feet, brushing her hair, holding her on his lap while they watched TV. Several times she fell asleep there, and he’d carried her up to bed, tucking her in gently and kissing her goodnight.

On Friday night Nick took them all out to eat, followed by a movie. Maggie took Caitie to see the latest animated feature, and Nick took Todd and Jason to an action film. It seemed to work out, and Maggie really enjoyed the girl time with her daughter.

Try as she might, she could find no fault with Nick. Well, almost none. When the power company disconnected her for paying late, he was not a happy man. When he found out that the money for the bill had been paid to the carpet cleaners, he was downright furious. Not only did he pay the electric bill, he had to pay a reconnect fee, and all because of her stubborn pride.

On top of that, Caitie was so upset about sleeping in the dark, as the power company could not restore service until the next day that Nick sprang for a suite at a downtown hotel. After the kids were asleep, Nick escorted Maggie from the sitting room into his connecting room, where he promptly sat on the bed and pulled her over his knee. Maggie howled her distress and apologies into his pillow.

Things calmed down a little after that night. School let out for the summer, and against her expressed wishes, Nick hired a part-time housekeeper/nanny. Maggie came home early, not feeling well. Unlocking the door, she let herself in and stopped dead in her tracks. At the sink was a young woman singing at the top of her lungs. Long, glossy black hair fell past her waist, and her butt wiggled with the beat as she rinsed a pan in the sink.Her jeans were worn and seemed to be much too large for her small frame.

Maggie approached cautiously and gently touched the woman’s shoulder. A piercing scream rattled the windows, and Maggie was so startled that she screamed too. Backing up and away from each other, Maggie could see that she was quite young. Wide, dark eyes stared at her as the girl struggled to catch her breath, ripping the ear buds from her ears. Her hand clutched her chest as if she was trying to keep her heart from bursting out.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” she stammered, her eyes pleading as she gulped in air.

Maggie was leaning on the counter, sucking in air too. Intending to get the girl’s attention, she had not been ready for such a vocal reaction.

“Who are you?” she asked, trying to keep her voice even and not alarm the girl further.

“I am Theresa… Tess. I’m sorry I screamed like that, but I thought I was alone,” she answered softly, still clutching her chest.

“What are you doing here, Tess?”

“I am the new housekeeper. I am supposed to come every day at noon to clean and watch the children until Mr. Nick gets home.”

“Mr. Nick? Is that who hired you?” Maggie asked gently. There was no sense in scaring this poor girl any more than she already had. It wasn’t Tess’s fault that she had a high-handed so-and-so trying to take over her life.

“Yes, well… it was Rory… Detective O’Malley, who got me the job. He said it would keep me out of trouble, but I don’t think it has so far. I am so sorry, Miss… ?”