“I don’t want a nanny. I’m too old for one.” Sammy made a face.

“After today’s shenanigans with that display, I beg to differ,” Harry disagreed.

Elise bent forward, her face close to Sammy’s. “If you’re too old for a nanny, prove it.”

Sammy’s elfish smile exposed the gap from a missing tooth. “I do what they ask until I forget.”

Her lips quivered as Sammy’s words almost echoed some of her own at his age. “Try harder next time. Now go get your things; your father’s here to collect you.”

With Harry’s aid, Sammy returned the mace to its original position, then scampered off to get his belongings.

Harry came up alongside her and leaned close, his breath feathering the hair near her ear. “That was a lousy kick, Taylor. Your form’s terrible.”

Her heart slapped to attention at his nearness. “Effective though, wasn’t it?” she answered breathlessly. “You went down, Benson, just like a tree.”

His eyes combed her face and zeroed on the racing pulse in the hollow of her throat.

She shifted away from him, uncomfortably aware of her matted hair and clinging cover-up. “Rule number one: always take your opponent by surprise.”

Harry’s eyes slid to her lips and remained there. “I intend to next time, Agent Taylor. I do indeed.”

Everything inside her quivered with need. She clenched her hands into fists, the nails digging into her palms. If he kept at it, her resolve to remain detached would crumble. That couldn’t happen. Harry deserved more than she had to offer.

Chapter 15

Elise marched upstairs without a backward glance, her head held high. The nerve of that man. Once again, Harry had tied her in knots, and she wished him heartily to Jericho for doing it so easily.

Her objective was Maeve, she reminded herself, not the immensely appealing Agent Harry Benson. She didn’t want to think about Harry’s beautiful gray eyes with those deep blue flecks or that crooked incisor that disrupted her heartbeat whenever it appeared. She had better things to do—like focusing on the silly twit responsible for her interrupted swim.

She found Maeve folding linens upstairs just outside the state closet, where the china sets were kept. Elise wasted no time getting to the point.

“Maeve, are you or are you not being paid extra to mind Sammy?”

“Aye, Lady Elise. The wee bairn is so fast that I couldnae keep up with him. He slipped away like one of my father’s greased piglets.”

“In future, when the lad goes missing, I am not to be interrupted.”

“But, Lady Elise, we looked everywhere—”

“Look harder next time. I was in the middle of a swim, as you can see.” Elise splayed her fingers and emphasized her wet attire.

Maeve took in her damp, straggling hair and cover-up. “Aye, my lady.”