“I’m Clare,” I say.
“She’s Airplane Girl,” Amelia chimes, licking her fingers clean of chocolate, but her face is quite messy.
So much for cleaning up the table. The kid is wearing more chocolate than cookie.
“Airplane Girl?” Connor asks with a chuckle like he’s somehow part of the joke. “I like it. I like her,” Connor says, jabbing a finger at me. “And let me guess, young lady, you must be Amelia.”
The little girl sits up straighter and holds out her messy, sticky, chocolate-covered hand. “How do you do?” she asks.
Connor cracks up laughing, quite amused by her attitude, or maybe it’s her cuteness. Already, she could be a little version of Levi, and they’ve only just met. Imagine her mannerisms after a few months of living with him.
I just hope his grumpiness doesn’t rub off on her.
“Amelia,” Levi says, “this is your Uncle Connor. He’s my younger brother.”
“And the better-looking Luxenberg in the family,” Connor chimes.
Amelia’s face scrunches and shakes her head. “Nu-uh.” She points at her father.
“Maybe we should leave the tie-breaker down to your new nanny,” Connor says, and winks at me. “I’ll bet she has amazing taste in men.”
I’m grateful that I didn’t eat a cookie, or my stomach would be bringing it back up. How do I get out of this one? Connor isn’t the least bit attractive to me, and Levi, well, I can’t admit that he’s hot.
He’s my boss. And a grumpy one at that! There’s no way I’d want him even to suspect he could turn my head.
Nope.
I shrug and laugh. “I only date women,” I say. “You both look like men. I can’t really judge the opposite sex.”
Levi brushes past me, grabbing Amelia’s dirty plate. “Cop out,” he whispers under his breath. His body lingers for a second longer than it should, and I swear he’s trying to get a reaction out of me, proving that he’s the hotter brother.
But he doesn’t push the question or the boundaries between us any further.
“Wow. Girls, huh?” Connor says with a wry smirk. “Ever add a guy into the mix?”
“Are you seriously asking my nanny if she’ll have a three-way with you?” Levi seethes. I swear there’s steam coming from his head. His jaw is tight, and he’s washing the dish by hand with a sponge that I think might disintegrate at any moment.
“What’s a three-way?” Amelia asks.
“Okay, that’s enough chatter about my love life.” I warn both boys to watch their mouths, pointing at Connor and then at Levi.
“What did I say?” Levi asks, his mouth agape.
“Just don’t start.” I know he has a knack for panty thievery. I’m not sure what he’s up to, but I don’t trust that he won’t get my heart racing at the most inopportune time.
Amelia climbs down from the chair, and I wipe the sticky mess from the table and the little girl’s hands and face.
Levi’s jaw is tight, and his hands bunch into fists at his side. “Can I have a word with you in private, Clare?”
The way he says my name sends a shiver down my spine. “Yes, of course, sir.” He pulls me out into the hallway, but the entire time he has sight of Amelia.
“I think it would be best if you took the rest of the day off.”
“I’m sorry. Did I do something to offend you?” I can’t fathom what I did to irritate Levi, but it doesn’t take much to turn him from Panty Thief into Panty Grump. Maybe that should be his new nickname.
Levi’s jaw is tight. He doesn’t answer my question. “You can borrow one of my cars and spend the afternoon shopping.”
“Shopping? Do you need me to get you groceries or something?” He has a fully stocked fridge, but maybe he needs me to pick up some things like conditioner and whatnot for Amelia.