Nanny and the Beast
Sophia Stanton has worked too hard building a thriving nanny-placement service to risk it and try juggling career and family. But when single dad Michael Taylor fires three of her nannies in quick succession, Sophia decides to confront the Beast (that's what her employees call him) directly by temporarily acting as nanny for his baby girl….-Having been badly burned by his precious daughter's shameless mother, Michael has every Reason to distrust women. But as Sophia enters his home and gently endears herself to his daughter, the walls around his stone heart start to crumble. Awed by her beauty and caring, Michael wonders if his heart can be trusted now to make a wrong right…
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If Sophia made a big deal of being close to him, she’d only succeed in allowing him to see…well, that this was a big deal to her.
He wrapped his arms around her waist, picked her up and twirled her around in a circle. “What was it you said?” Michael’s chocolaty eyes lit. “That my parents would be dancing-a-jig happy?”
“I knew they’d be pleased.” Sophia hoped the breathlessness she heard in her words was a figment of her freaked-out imagination.
“If you hadn’t spoken up,” he whispered, “I don’t know how long I’d have waited to tell them they had a granddaughter.”
“I can see that.” She sighed, swiftly getting caught up in the vortex that seemed to spin crazily around them.
“I want you to know how grateful I am.”
She was going to utter his name sharply. She was going to plant her hand on his chest. She was going to lean away from him.
But she did none of those things.
Dear Reader,
This month seems to be all about change. Just as our heroines are about to have some fabulous makeovers, Silhouette Romance will be undergoing some changes over the next months that we believe will make this classic line even more relevant to your challenging lives. Of course, you’ll still find some of your favorite SR authors and favorite themes, but look for some new names, more international settings and even more emotional reads.
Over the next few months the company is also focusing attention on the new direction and package for Harlequin Romance. We believe that the blend of authors and stories coming in that line will thrill readers and satisfy every emotion.
Just like our heroines, my responsibilities will be changing, as I will be working on Harlequin NEXT. Please know how much I have enjoyed sharing these heartwarming, aspirational reads with you.
With all best wishes,
Ann Leslie Tuttle
Associate Senior Editor
For Joy with love
To Dad
You have shown me the meaning of joyful and wholehearted dedication to God and family;
You have fostered my faith; And you continue to teach me, by flawless example, how to be a loving and supportive parent.
Thank you.
Books by Donna Clayton
Silhouette Romance
Mountain Laurel #720
Taking Love in Stride #781
Return of the Runaway Bride #999
Wife for a While #1039
Nanny and the Professor #1066
Fortune’s Bride #1118
Daddy Down the Aisle #1162
*Miss Maxwell Becomes a Mom #1211
*Nanny in the Nick of Time #1217
*Beauty and the Bachelor Dad #1223
†The Stand-By Significant Other #1284
†Who’s the Father of Jenny’s Baby? #1302
The Boss and the Beauty #1342
His Ten-Year-Old Secret #1373
Her Dream Come True #1399
Adopted Dad #1417
His Wild Young Bride #1441
**The Nanny Proposal #1477
**The Doctor’s Medicine Woman #1483
**Rachel and the M.D. #1489
Who Will Father My Baby? #1507
In Pursuit of a Princess #1582
††The Sheriff’s 6-Year-Old Secret #1623
††The Doctor’s Pregnant Proposal #1635
††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
“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.”
