She strode into the room, gliding into it as if she had every right to be there. Ignoring him, she crossed to where the little girl was lying on the bed, one toe in her mouth, the other foot waving around as she waited for a diaper. Grabbing a diaper bag, Kaitland pulled out the wipes and then quickly, efficiently cleaned and diapered the child.

Max couldn’t get over how good Katie looked as he knelt there in the middle of the powder-caked floor.

It had been five years. She hadn’t aged, just gotten more graceful. Her honey blond hair was now straight instead of permed, but it was more beautiful, swaying to and fro with every step she took. She’d filled out a little, was more rounded, softer-looking, not as coltish as he remembered. Long, graceful hands worked quickly and expertly to diaper and dress the girl in a pink romper that was in the bag she’d pulled up onto the bed.

Her high cheekbones were slightly flushed with color and her lips were puckered as she made cooing noises to Maddie. Maddie laughed and kicked both feet in approval to whatever Kaitland had said.

And those eyes.

Her green eyes still sparkled like jewels when she laughed.

Five years and he’d thought never to see her in his house again…His eyes widened. “What are you doing here?” he blurted out, realizing he was seeing her in his house and had no idea why.

Kaitland glanced over her shoulder, a sardonic brow lifted. “I’m changing a diaper, Max. Don’t tell me you’ve never seen a diaper changed.”

Chagrined by her answer, Max opened his mouth to tell her he knew exactly what she was doing and that was not what he’d meant, but Kaitland continued, “The girl doesn’t look much like you, but now the boy…My, Max, he could be your twin, but you already have one of those, don’t you?” Her light tone was in contrast to her sudden intense stare at the child.

“They’re not mine.”

“Oh, really?” Kaitland asked, lifting Maddie in her arms. “And what is this one’s name?” she asked, bouncing the little girl on her hip.

“Madeline Renée.”

“And the boy?”

“Maxwell Robert,” he replied, suddenly realizing how Kaitland would take the fact that the boy’s first name was the same as his own.

“And he’s not yours,” she said so falsely that Max flushed. She was always able to goad his temper.

“No. They are not!” He enunciated each word.

“I see, little Max,” she said, winking at the boy.

“I’ve been calling him Bobby.”

“Bobby?” Kaitland asked before giving Maddie a peck and letting her down on the floor.

“Well, it would seem rather odd to call him Max, now, wouldn’t it?” Max demanded as she crossed the room.

“I don’t know,” Kaitland mused aloud, pausing to tap her chin as if in deep thought. Then, for the first time, she pierced him with those deep green eyes. “A lot of people name their firstborn son after themselves.”

“He’s not my firstborn son!”

“You have another?” she asked, all innocence.

“I don’t have any son,” he growled, then took a deep breath. “Look. It’s hard to explain. I woke up to what I thought was a cat brawl and found these two at the bottom of the balcony steps near the kitchen.”

“I see.”

“No. You don’t see. I have no idea who they belong to. Though it’s probably someone who reads those stupid rag magazines and believes I’m out to populate half of Louisiana.”

“You sure it’s not the other half that believes you’re Mr. Perfect?”

He frowned at her words.

“I’m sorry, it was only a guess.”

“I don’t know,” he finally said, brushing off his pants. “It doesn’t really matter. All I can figure out is some woman dropped off her kids hoping I’d give them a better life. For all I know, Max and Maddie aren’t their real names.”

Both children turned at those words. Kaitland laughed. “I’d say that’s their correct names, all right Now, as to their parentage—”

“They’re not mine!” he said so forcefully that Kaitland’s eyes widened.

“I wasn’t going to say that.”

“You’ve already said it twice.”

“No. I said the boy looks like you.” She smiled. “But if the shoe fits—”

“Things aren’t always as they look,” he muttered.

Kaitland suddenly lost her smile and even paled slightly. “Don’t I know that,” she murmured, the air in the room suddenly charged with memories, a time when things hadn’t been like what they’d looked.

Max remembered that time with clarity, and remembered the irrefutable proof that he’d produced to show her he knew she had been lying to him. Pain that he thought long dead and buried resurfaced, grabbing his heart and giving it an unexpected squeeze. Longing swept through him. If it could only have been different. If you hadn’t lied to me, had even just trusted me a little. But that was in the past, the best place for it to remain. These children were the present. And Katie’s presence in his house.

Kaitland walked over to the door where he only now realized Sarah stood. “Someone needs to sweep up here, Sarah,” Kaitland said. “Will you see to it?”

“Of course,” his housekeeper replied, and with an infinitesimal nod turned crisply on her heel and strode off down the hall.

“Thank you,” Kaitland called out and then returned her attention to the room as she surveyed it through narrowed eyes.

“Wait a minute,” Max protested as Kaitland looked around as if the room were a bug under a microscope. “You can’t go ordering my servants around.”

Max stepped away from the bed, attempting to disengage Bobby from where the child hung on to his pant legs. Looking down, he realized the child had drooled all over his trousers. “Aw, no,” he moaned. “These are two-hundred-dollar slacks.”

Grimacing, he pulled the child away and then, not knowing what to do, he lifted the boy into his arms.

“Have they had lunch?” Kaitland asked as she went around the room, picking up objects on lower tables and moving them to higher places and rearranging other things.

Max stared in disbelief, unable to figure out just what she thought she was doing. The baby suddenly grabbed Max’s paisley tie and jerked. He tried to disengage the choke hold Bobby had on him. Looking distracted, he glanced away from the deceivingly cherubic bundle in his arms. “What?” he asked, already forgetting what Kaitland had said.

“Lunch, Max? Have you fed the children yet?” Kaitland looked downright exasperated with him. “I don’t remember you having a memory or hearing problem. Has that changed lately?”

Max growled low in his throat, managed to disengage the child’s unnaturally strong grip then snapped rather curtly, “No, Katie. That hasn’t changed. I’m a little overwhelmed at the moment. I’ve never been around kids before, and never two at once…Watch out!”

He went running across the room to where Maddie had just grabbed a tablecloth and pulled. Potpourri spilled everywhere. “No, no, Maddie, che’rie,” he said. “Don’t put that in your mouth.”

Kaitland strolled over and picked up the cute little girl, easily removing the dried rose petals from the child’s mouth. “This room is definitely not meant for children. Where are you keeping them?”

“Um…” He looked around the room, then shrugged sheepishly.

“Oh, Max. They can’t stay in here. They need baby beds, and there are no child protectors in the plugs—”

“Child protectors?” He looked thoroughly confused.

“And those lamps won’t last an hour. Kids tend to gravitate toward the forbidden. You need to get your staff up here and have them baby-proof this room right now. Get rid of all these tablecloths that hang down and replace them with shorter ones. The kids look to be about fifteen months, is that right?” Kaitland stared at him expectantly.

“I don’t know.” He felt like a helpless green recruit in an army full of generals—or one general in particular, he thought sourly, eyeing Kaitland with a suddenly wary eye.

She shot him a reproachful look, and he had the vague thought that she was thoroughly enjoying his discomfiture. This was the first time cool, debonair Max had ever been less than the perfect sophisticate in front of her.

“Well, that’s about the right age,” she continued. “They can walk, but still use things to pull themselves up.”

Bobby began to fuss and Max looked panicked.

“Bounce him gently on your hip, like this,” Kaitland instructed.

Max watched Katie bounce Maddie, then imitated her.

Bobby immediately threw up. “Ugh!” Max hollered and thrust the child out at arm’s length.

“What did you feed them for lunch?” Kaitland demanded, instantly setting down Maddie and gathering Bobby to her.

Max looked at the brown stain with revulsion. “Cookies.”

“And?” she asked when he didn’t say anything else.

“And milk.” What did she want? A whole list down to the bug Maddie had tried to eat from the floor the last time she’d gotten out of the chair that he’d had to sit her in every two minutes.

“That’s all?” Kaitland’s eyes widened.

“They seemed to like it,” he added defensively, realizing belatedly that his mother had never allowed him cookies for any meal when he had been a child…or, come to think of it, as an adult, before she’d died.

“They’ll both have tummyaches,” she warned.

As if out of sympathy with her brother, Maddie suddenly tossed her own cookies, all over the green carpet. Kaitland gathered her up in her free arm. “There there, little one,” she comforted as the baby began to whimper.

“Well, this room is definitely out for a while. Find me a nearly empty room for these two…maybe your library, and bring some blankets. It’s nap time. I need to put them down and then we’ll talk.”

“Talk? About what?”

“Why, their schedule. What else?”

“Their schedule? You make them sound like army recruits.”

“You really don’t know anything about babies, do you?”

Max ran a weary hand through his hair. “You know I don’t. But I’ve sent for someone from the agency. I was assured they’d have someone out here by this afternoon.”

Max’s eyes suddenly narrowed. “Which brings me back to the original question I was going to ask you before you sidetracked me. What are you doing here?”

“Surprise,” Kaitland said brightly and headed toward the door.

“Surprise? What does that mean?” he asked, grabbing the diaper bags and starting after her.

“It means, Max, that I’m the new nanny.”

The thud of the bags hitting the floor could be heard all the way out in the hall.

Chapter Three

“No! No way! You’re not staying.”

Kaitland winced at Max’s adamant tone. However, that didn’t stop her from heading down the stairs. She refused to stand there and argue, with two sleepy kids in her arms.

“Katie, are you listening to me? I said no way!”

“I’m not deaf, nor do I even pretend to be,” she replied, entering the library. “Oh, my, have you changed this into an office?” Papers covered the tops of two desks and new equipment had been added.

“Rand and I do a lot of day-to-day work here. I tend to go into the office only two or three times a week.”

Ignoring him, she went to the plush tan sofa. Setting the children down on their feet, she quickly pulled the throw blanket off the back—this used to be Max’s favorite spot to relax when she’d known him, and he always kept a blanket there—and spread it over the leather. Picking the children up, she lay them down one by one and tucked the blanket around them.

“No!” Maddie yelled, then immediately stuffed two fingers in her mouth, closing her eyes.

Bobby whined, then, grabbing the blanket, he curled it against his cheek and with a shuddering sigh was out.

“They were exhausted,” Max whispered, stunned, absently handing Kaitland the blanket he’d grabbed on his way out the bedroom door.

“I imagine they’ve had a full day and night,” Kaitland murmured softly, putting the blanket and some throw pillows as padding on the floor next to the sofa in case one of them accidently fell off.

She heard Max inhale and knew he was about to blast her. “Shh,” she said, and motioned toward the door.

Max nodded curtly and went into the hall. With the door pulled almost closed, she turned to him. “It’s been a long time, Max.”

Looking disconcerted, Max stared for a moment then sighed. “Yeah, Katie, it has. Long enough that I had decided I’d never see you again.”

He started toward a small sitting room where the family gathered at night to watch TV.

“Surely you knew someday we’d see each other again, Max?”

“I hadn’t expected it under these circumstances,” he muttered.

Kaitland laughed. “You were expecting these circumstances?”

“Of course not,” Max said curtly, then apologized. “I’m sorry for snapping. But you could have given me a warning you were coming.”

“What would you have said if I’d called and told you it was me the agency hired?”

He scowled.

“That’s what I thought.”

“Surely you don’t want to work for me, do you?”

Kaitland’s smile turned wistful. I’d like a lot more, she thought. “What do you think?”

Inside the cozy room he went straight to the phone and dialed the agency.

“Max, wait,” she pleaded.

His gaze turned tortured for only an instant before hardening. “Yes, this is Max Stevens,” he said to the person on the other end of the phone. “When I called this morning, I asked for an older woman, Christian, fifty or so, the grandmotherly type.” He paused. “I see.” There was another pause. “There’s no one else?” Casting a harassed look at Kaitland, he replied, “Thank you.”

Kaitland stared at Max, waiting for the ax to fall. When he didn’t speak, she took hope and pleaded her case. “It’s not going to be that bad, Max. The kids won’t be any trouble. And as you’ve said, you don’t know the first thing about them. Besides, I’m an emergency foster parent. I’m used to dealing with kids in stressful situations.”

“What happened to your job at the day-care center?”

“You know about that?” She had been his secretary years ago, before the incident, but hadn’t realized he knew anything about her life after they’d broken up.

He shrugged. “Jake talks about his church.”

“I still work there. I’m on a leave of absence.”

“What happened? Why?”

It was her turn to shrug. “I had an accident with a belligerent parent My pastor thought it best to keep me out of the spotlight Especially if my cheek bruises.”

Max’s gaze sharpened and he came forward. “You were hit?” he demanded, taking her face in his hands and tilting it toward the east window.

His hands felt good. His touch awoke old memories in her, memories of when he’d held her tenderly within his embrace and kissed her good-night, leaving her with his own reluctance to part for even so short a time. Longing, deep and painful, filled her chest. His scent was still the same, spicy, musky. Oh, Father, how can I stand this? she silently asked.

Max’s thumb ran over the slight swelling that her hair almost concealed. His breath fanned her face as his thumb stroked back and forth. Suddenly, realizing what he was doing, he released her and stepped back.

“I wasn’t hit,” she replied, just a little husky, despite her accelerated heart rate. “A table fell on me when the man and I tripped.”

He said nothing for a moment, then, “I don’t see how this can work, Katie. There’s just too much past between us.”

Panicked, she decided to play her trump card. Max was a good man despite his unwillingness to forgive her so many years ago and his determination in suspecting her of lying. She didn’t want to tell him this, but seeing him now, she realized there was something still between them, something that had to be settled one way or another. And if he wasn’t willing to make the effort, she suddenly was.

“I need the job, Max. If I can’t get a new one within the month…” she paused. Should she tell Max she’d lose her house? No, she decided, it seemed too much like begging. She had some pride, after all. “I’ll have some serious problems,” she concluded.

Max whipped around to stare at her. “But why? Your stepbrother—”

“Refuses to help me,” she replied before he could remind her how rich her stepbrother was.

That was a sore point she’d not quite gotten over in reference to her grandmother’s health. Her grandmother had disowned Robert just before she fell ill with cancer. Kaitland was never sure why. Her grandmother never told her the cause of it. Somehow her grandmother had her will changed without Kaitland knowing it. When it was read, Kaitland was stunned to find out the house and almost all of the money that was left belonged to her. What little money there was ran out before the hospital bills and funeral were paid for.

“If you need money—” Max said, interrupting her thoughts.

“Don’t even say it,” Kaitland warned, her eyes narrowing. “After what has gone on between us, it would be wrong if you offered me anything.”

“But you’ll work for me.”

Kaitland flushed just a little. “Yes.”

She knew it didn’t make sense to Max. They had almost married, which should have made her more amenable to accepting a loan, but for her it was just the opposite. No, it would be easier to work for him and not feel indebted.

“You aren’t making this easy for me, Katie,” he finally said, running a weary hand through his hair.

“I hope not,” she replied brightly, despite the tension.

He shot her an exasperated look. “Fine. You have the job. But, before you celebrate, I want to lay down some ground rules. The past is the past. We leave it there. This is strictly an employer-employee relationship. Your job is to take care of the children, see they are cared for and want for nothing. You only need to tell me what to get and it’ll be done. Is that under-stood?”

“Yes, Max.”

“Well, good.”

She hid her smile. Max looked as if he thought he’d lost the battle but couldn’t figure out why. She knew why. Just by being in the same house, the past was going to creep up until it was dealt with and taken care of.

“First we’ll need cribs for the children. With that they’ll need sheets and bumper pads and a couple of light blankets. What about some clothes? Do you want me to run over to the church and check their clothes closet—”

“I can certainly buy anything the children need,” Max replied, affronted.

Kaitland paused, then asked the question that had been burning in her since she’d first arrived. She’d known the kids weren’t Max’s. He lived by the moral code of his faith. She took his word, too, for Max also didn’t lie. “Why do you insist on seeing to this problem? You could call Child Services and the children would be taken away and you’d never have to be responsible for them again.”

“But I am responsible.”

Her eyes widened in shock, thinking she had misjudged him.

“Not that way,” he replied, clearly exasperated. He dropped wearily onto the couch. Leaning his head back, he closed his eyes. “Someone left them on my patio with a note addressed to me. I don’t know if the person was a crackpot or someone who really thought I could help the children. But whoever it was put their trust and faith in me. I won’t palm that off on some overworked agency that would probably separate the children out of necessity.”

Kaitland nodded. That would probably happen. Though Child Services didn’t like to do that, they had to find somewhere for the children.

“I have plenty of money,” he said. “Enough to last two lifetimes. And this house is big enough to hold forty or fifty people. So there’s plenty of room. It won’t hurt to keep them here.”

She smiled, gently, doing her best to hide the misting of her eyes. “You’re a good person, Max Stevens.”

“No, just practical,” he argued gruffly, refusing praise as he always did. “I’m going to call one of the investigative people we use in our business. I’ll put him on the case and see if he can find out what happened to the mother. After all, how hard is it going to be to track down a set of twins that were born about…fifteen months?” At her nod, he continued, “About fifteen months ago.”

“I honestly don’t know. I imagine easier than tracking down a single child.”

“My thoughts exactly. So, I figure within a week, maybe two, we’ll have this all cleared up.”

She hoped they had more than just that cleared up, but she didn’t say so. “Are you going to order the cribs and clothes, or do you want me to go shopping. I should warn you, if I go shopping, the children will be left here with you.”

His eyes widened. “I’ll call my store immediately. It’s nice owning a large chain of retail stores.” He suddenly grinned. “I’ll have my secretary at the office go downstairs to the store and find someone who knows about babies and send over everything they’ll need. Two of everything,” he amended. “That should work.”

Kaitland shook her head in disbelief.

“Now, about my office. When do I get it back?”

Kaitland shrugged. “I imagine when the kids wake up, which could be anywhere from an hour to two hours.”

“But I’ve got a lot of work to do,” he began.

“Bring it in here,” she replied.

Grumbling, he stood and walked out of the room, listing to her or himself, she wasn’t sure, what he needed to accomplish today.

Same old Max, except she didn’t remember him taking quite this much interest in the business five years ago.

She headed up the stairs to the room where the children had been. She found the maid, Lavina, in there finishing cleaning up the mess. “You’ll need to get someone up here to take all the knickknacks out of this room, Lavina. They’ll also need to remove the bed. Mr. Stevens is turning it into a nursery for the twins.”

“I’ll get Tim from the stables to help me this afternoon,” the maid said.

“You’d better go ahead and do it now,” Kaitland told her. “Mr. Stevens is ordering cribs and I imagine they’ll be here in an hour or two. Also, do you know which room I’m staying in?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Miss Summerville. Sarah told me to put your bags in the room across the hall, unless you want the one across from Mr. Stevens?”

She knew Max’s room was next door to the babies’ room. The one next to her would be across the hall from him and larger than the one she was in. “No. This is fine. I need to be close to the children. As a matter of fact, if you could find a small twin bed I might just sleep in here.”

“Oh, no, ma’am. Sarah wouldn’t approve of that at all. She was telling me how much she likes you and has missed you around here. She’d be very upset if you weren’t completely comfortable while you were here.”

Kaitland grinned. That sounded just like Sarah. “Very well. Thank you, Lavina.”

“And Darlene is to help you with the babies whenever you need it. Sarah said those two are too much for one person. She said of course Mr. Stevens, being a bachelor, wouldn’t know, nor would he remember how much of a handful he and his brother were. She said that he deserved a taste of what he’d put her through growing up. I think she’s quite excited about having the little mites in the house.”

Kaitland’s grin turned into a full-blown smile. “I’m glad. You tell Sarah I’m sure Max is going to get a great big taste of what it’s like to have two toddlers underfoot. Now, go on. I need to unpack.”

She walked across the hall to her suite. Pushing open the door, she immediately smiled in pleasure. Light mauves and browns decorated the space. There were no balcony doors like the room across the hall, but the shutters on the large window made it possible for her to keep the room as bright as day or dimly lit A large overstuffed, floral-print couch sat near two armchairs, creating a comfortable sitting area. A polished oak armoire held a TV and VCR, as well as a stereo. A low bookcase held a collection of interesting titles. She knew the door to the right was the bedroom and bathroom.

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A Father's Love

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