The Nanny Bargain

Falling for the Boss

Concerned for his orphaned twin brothers, outdoor-gear shop owner Sawyer Banks urges new employee Tori Janner to apply for the nanny position their grandparents are advertising…and spy for him. With plans to start over in Hunter Ridge and dreams of reviving her quilting business, Tori takes the job—but refuses to report to Sawyer unless the boys’ welfare is in danger. But soon it’s her own heart that’s in jeopardy. Because after spending time with the committed bachelor, she starts to see the depth behind his easy charm—and begins to imagine herself as his wife.

“My little brothers think the world of you.”

“I don’t know when my heart has ever been won over to children so quickly. They’re so sweet. So loving.”

“A lot like you in that respect.” He looked down at her, his expression tender.

Sensing his intentions, her heartbeat quickened in anticipation. But she couldn’t let him kiss her, could she? Not until she discovered if Therese was wrong in her assumptions about his long-term level of devotion to the twins. To her.

As she well knew, the enticing feelings of “love” held little meaning if not built on a solid foundation of lasting commitment. But Sawyer had yet to speak of love. Shouldn’t that fact alone put her on her guard?

Reluctantly she pressed her hand firmly to his chest and attempted to step back.

But he held her fast, his gaze intent. “Tori, I think you need to know that—”

With a reverberating clang the cowbell above the main door startled them apart.

“You were starting to say?” Tori encouraged.

He shrugged, avoiding her gaze. “Maybe it will come to me later.”

GLYNNA KAYE treasures memories of growing up in small Midwestern towns—and vacations spent with the Texan side of the family. She traces her love of storytelling to the times a houseful of great-aunts and great-uncles gathered with her grandma to share candid, heartwarming, poignant and often humorous tales of their youth and young adulthood. Glynna now lives in Arizona, where she enjoys gardening, photography and the great outdoors.

The Nanny Bargain

Glynna Kaye

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience.

—Hebrews 10:22

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.

—Deuteronomy 31:8

To Maridor Keck, who loves God with all

her heart. Thank you for your friendship, encouragement and prayers as I continue on this writing journey.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

About the Author

Title Page

Bible Verse

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Epilogue

Dear Reader

Extract

Copyright

Chapter One

“That’s all there is to it,” concluded Sawyer Banks from where he sat behind a weathered oak desk. He looked quite at home in the decidedly masculine-flavored office of his outdoor-gear shop, Echo Ridge Outpost. Leather. Wood. Wildlife prints on the knotty pine walls. “Piece of cake.”

Easy for him to say. Victoria “Tori” Janner folded her hands primly in her lap, determined to hear him out. But if her best friend, Sunshine Carston, hadn’t vouched for the rugged, blue-eyed outdoorsman, she wouldn’t be sitting here one minute longer on this snowy February afternoon. What he’d outlined during this interview was troubling, at the very least.

“Apply for the childcare position,” he recapped, his steady gaze holding hers, “and if you get it, I’ll not only employ you here at the Outpost part-time, but behind the scenes I’ll throw in an additional dollar an hour on top of whatever wage you agree on with the Selbys. Does that sound fair?”

More than fair. Suspiciously so.

Tori lifted her chin slightly, determined he wouldn’t detect how uneasy his proposition made her feel. She needed the job—desperately—if she intended to remain in the mountain country community of Hunter Ridge, Arizona. Going “home” to life in Jerome was no longer an option if she could help it.

“If I’m understanding correctly, what your offer boils down to is if I get the childcare job, you want me to spy on the grandparents of your younger siblings and report back to you.”

“Spy?” He shook his head with a laugh, his longish sun-streaked blond hair brushing the collar of his gray plaid shirt. Fine lines creased at the corners of his eyes. “That term’s extreme for what I’m asking you to do—which is to provide a weekly update on activities and exercise, diet, moods and misbehaviors, and—”

“All that detail on the boys, or their grandparents, too?”

He stopped short, then laughed again. “I don’t much care what Ray has for breakfast. Unless, of course, it negatively impacts Landon and Cubby in some way.”