Nanny and the Beast

†† (#litres_trial_promo)The Doctor’s Pregnant Proposal #1635

†† (#litres_trial_promo)Thunder in the Night #1647

The Nanny’s Plan #1701

Because of Baby #1723

Bound by Honor #1797

Nanny and the Beast #1828

Silhouette Books

The Coltons

Close Proximity

Logan’s Legacy

Royal Seduction

DONNA CLAYTON

is a bestselling, award-winning author. She and her husband divide their time between homes in northern Delaware and Maryland’s Eastern Shore. They have two sons. Donna also writes women’s fiction as Donna Fasano.

Please write to Donna care of Silhouette Books. She’d love to hear from you!

Dear Reader,

Nannies (and stories featuring nannies) have always held a place near and dear to my heart. You see, my sister-in-law, Joy, trained and worked as a nanny. From her, I learned that the amazing women (and, I’m sure, a few men) who choose to become nannies have a special love for and devotion to children.

Joy was born and raised in a small town in Kansas. She left Lebo to attend nanny school and earned her certification. Joy then moved to Washington, D.C., where she lived with and worked for a family with two children. She loved her job and was dedicated to those children. After a few years, she met my brother and is currently experiencing her very own “happily ever after.”

Joy’s experience as a nanny prepared her to become the most nurturing of mothers. Her children are loving and mannerly and kind and smart as can be! She’s done an amazing job of raising them, and I hope she knows how very proud I am of the job she has done. I also hope she knows how much I love her and that I’m happy to call her sister. (Thanks for answering all my nanny questions, Joy!)

I hope all of you enjoy reading Sophia’s story as much as I enjoyed writing it!

All the best,

Donna Clayton

Contents

Chapter One (#u0d9a151a-be33-50bb-8efe-8fe88be81e65)

Chapter Two (#u627e8d72-c0c0-5260-9a9d-8960bbf10bf3)

Chapter Three (#u7a84746c-3a63-5595-b4cf-c0c37078f12d)

Chapter Four (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Five (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter One

“It’s him! It’s him! He just pulled up out front.”

Sophia Stanton refused to let the tension in Karen’s voice rattle her. Her part-time assistant was easily flustered.

“Him?” Sophia asked, placing her pen on the desktop and glancing toward the doorway. “Him who?”

Karen’s eyes widened and her voice lowered to a whisper. “The Beast.” She reached up and plucked at the short, spiky locks behind her ear. Then she craned her neck to look out the front window. “He just took his baby out of the back of his SUV.” She sucked in a tight breath. “And Lily just got out, too. Her face is four shades of red.”

Sophia stifled a groan. She didn’t need more aggravation this morning; two of her girls had called in sick and replacements were yet to be found. But knowing the track record of Mr. Michael Taylor, aka “The Beast,” she steeled herself for the worst.

When it came to providing care for his month-old daughter, the man seemed impossible to please. He’d fired two of Sophia’s nannies in the past three weeks. The young women had come back to the office reporting that he was demanding and inflexible, so much so that everyone at The Nanny Place was certain he must sport horns and a spiked tail. One thing was certain—Mr. Taylor was fast becoming a beastly pain in Sophia’s butt.

“Okay,” Sophia told Karen, inhaling deeply to prepare herself. “Let’s just stay calm. Keep Lily out there with you, and show him in here immediately. And then I need for you to get in touch with Terry. Ask her if she’s able to cover for Isabel today.”

“Terry lives below the canal,” Karen reminded her. “She’ll never reach the city in time for Mrs. Schaffer to get to work on time.”

“I’ll call and explain.” Sophia gathered up the paperwork on her desk and set it to one side. The Beast would be here any second. “And I’ll find someone to fill in for Paula, too. Just as soon as I take care of this problem.”

Karen tugged at her hair again, the pen curled between her fingers nearly poking her chin. “They’re here.” Trepidation rippled through her whisper. “Good luck,” she added, before disappearing from the doorway.

Sophia stood, smoothed her hand over the skirt of her dark suit and then paused long enough to take one more deep breath, the kind she’d learned in her yoga class. Her instructor swore yoga could help in every aspect of her life and right now she was willing to take all the help she could get.

Michael Taylor didn’t just walk in to her office, he stormed in, closing the door firmly behind him. Anger honed his handsome features and seemed out of sync with the awkward gentleness with which he cradled his baby girl.

His most striking feature was his gaze. Those deep brown eyes flashed with extreme intensity—irritation, yes, but something else, too, some powerful force emanating from within. He had the kind of good looks and trim, athletic body that made a sensible woman think thoughts she shouldn’t, and consider doing things she normally wouldn’t. Sophia wouldn’t have been the least surprised to learn that females who passed him on the street routinely broke out into appreciative wolf whistles.

“Good morning, Mr. Taylor,” Sophia greeted, infusing a bright friendliness into her voice while completely ignoring the palpable ire radiating off the man.

“There’s not much good about it, I’m afraid.” Annoyance sharpened every word.

Oh, yeah, women might whistle for his attention, but all they’d get for their trouble was a rumbling growl.

“I fired Lily this morning,” he told her.