Twins Times Two!

Five minutes. She had five minutes before…

Before what? She had already decided to take Grace’s advice. There would be no late-night confessions. As long as she kept her cool, Ross Gifford would remain blissfully ignorant of the hospital’s mistake. Until then…

Until then nothing would happen. Nothing whatsoever.

But as she pressed a trembling hand to her chest, she realized a part of her wasn’t completely convinced. Her heart was racing as if she’d run a mile.

The whir of the garage-door opener disturbed the stillness of the house. Her heart leaped in her breast, then seemed to sink into the pit of her stomach.

Keep your cool. Just keep your cool.

Suddenly galvanized into action, she hurried around the nursery, repacking her supplies and stuffing them willy-nilly into the duffel bag. As soon as she’d said her goodbyes, she would go home. Once there, she could reassure herself that her own twins were safe and well and tucked into their own beds.

“It’s quiet.”

Ross’s voice caused Cara to jump, and she whirled to face him, her pulse racing more than ever.

“You startled me,” she gasped, then wished she’d remained silent when her voice sounded slightly frantic even to her own ears.

A crease appeared between Ross’s brow, but other than that, he didn’t seem overly concerned by her reaction. “Sorry. I thought you would have heard the car.”

She caught his gaze only momentarily, then returned her attention to the toys.

“How was your evening?”

“Fine.”

So much for chitchat. Ross turned away from her, moving from one bedroom to the next checking on the girls. She waited in tense expectation as if simply by seeing the twins he would guess that something was wrong.

“They look no worse for wear.”

Cara didn’t know how she was supposed to react to such a remark. Insulted, probably. He made it sound as if he’d been expecting the worst.

“They’re beautiful children.” Just as her own children were beautiful. “You must be very proud.” Just as Cara was inestimably proud.

She bit her lip. Maybe she shouldn’t have said anything. Had a note of fondness crept into her tone? One that she felt for her own children?

To her dismay she realized that all of the toys were packed away and the room was tidy. As her heart seemed to sink into her stomach, Cara realized that she had no other option but to look him square in the eye.

She could only pray that he wouldn’t look at her and know her life had been shaken to its very core.

Chapter Three

Cara felt a jolt of something akin to electricity shoot through her system when their gazes locked, but she quickly dismissed the reaction, knowing that her nerves were strung as tightly as a tennis racket.

“I’m impressed at the way you were able to get them to bed so easily,” Ross said. “Usually the girls are very fractious with a new sitter.”

Fractious. Cara was sure that she’d never heard anyone use the word in a sentence before. But she shouldn’t be so surprised. Ross Gifford was obviously very educated and sophisticated. He probably said and did a lot of things that were beyond her daily realm. He belonged to the same world as her ex-husband. One filled with pomp and ceremony and an overwhelming interest in appearances. Hadn’t she learned that lesson more than once where Elliot was concerned? He’d been so consumed with the need to look and speak the part of a cultured man of the world that she hadn’t known what a bastard she’d married until she’d discovered that he was spending most of his time with another woman.

“In fact, I usually have problems with the girls even if I leave them with someone with whom they are acquainted.

She shrugged. “Surely they’ve done well with Melba. She must be used to their routines by now.”

“Yes, but even when she visits, they won’t go to bed as easily as you’ve said. If Melba manages to convince them to sleep, they wake up as soon as they hear the car in the garage.”

“Like I said, maybe they were tired out. They didn’t give me a bit of trouble all night.”

One of his brows lifted. “Really?”

He seemed so surprised that Cara asked, “Were you expecting a riot?”

He took a deep breath and seemed to consider his words. “Frankly, judging from past babysitting experiences, I was expecting crying, screaming and tantrums that would continue unabated for hours on end.”

Cara couldn’t help quipping, “From the children or their baby-sitter?”

His lips tugged in the faintest hint of a grin—one that made her breath catch in her throat.

“Both, actually.”

“Why? They seem like perfect angels to me.”

“Then they were definitely on their best behavior.” His eyes narrowed and she felt him studying her. Her heart knocked against her ribs when she wondered what he saw there. Could some hint of the shock she’d experienced still linger on her face despite her efforts to remain calm?

Ross’s gaze was intent but not suspicious. Instead, he looked at her the way that…

The way that a man looked at a woman when he was interested.

No. Cara immediately pushed the idea aside. She was overreacting, that was all. Her thoughts and her emotions were off-kilter. She was confused and unsettled.

So why was she lingering when the time had come for her to leave?

“I…I should go now,” she said. “I’m sure you’ve had a long day.”

Ross offered her a curt nod and tugged at his tie, making her overtly conscious of the lean strength of his fingers and the slight dusting of hair on the backs of his hands.

“It has been a long day, but I tend to get a little wired after one of these evenings. Will you join me for some coffee?”

No. Absolutely not.

But even as the inner voice warned her, she was so startled by the invitation that she found herself saying instead, “Sure.”

“Good.”

He dragged the tie free from his collar and released the top button at his collar. Then a second button. A third.

Cara found her gaze latching on to that vee of flesh exposed against the crisp white of his dress shirt. He really was a good-looking man.

Perhaps a little too good-looking.