Since then he’d only dated women who knew the score and had just as much to lose as he did. Starlets who needed someone on their arm for a film premiere, and models who needed an escort that wasn’t prettier than they were.

But in that moment, when he’d seen Raina on the ground with those big wounded eyes aimed at him, he’d experienced an almost startling sensation of longing. In the past three years no other woman had tempted him to break his no-strings rule. And none had roused the instinct to comfort and protect. Until now. Until Raina.

Which meant she really had to go.

He walked down the hall to his sons’ room where Nicholas was helping Chris with one of his toy robots.

“Daddy, look at what Uncle Nick did. He fixed my robot. It lights up and everything!” Chris held up a robot toy that had been broken for weeks.

Jackson looked at his brother, shocked. “I’ve been trying to fix that one for ages. What did you do?”

Nicholas grinned. “I hit it. Hard.”

Chris picked up the toy and flew it around the room making beeping noises.

“Figures.”

His phone chirped and he pulled it out to see there was a message. “Hopefully, this is the locksmith.”

He hit the button to play his messages.

BEEP

“Um, yes, hello. This is Linda Taylor-Whiting. I’m scheduled to interview for the nanny position this afternoon.” She paused and cleared her throat a few times. “I was reading the agency’s notes on your children and it mentioned that one of your boys particularly likes insects. I’m not sure I would be the best candidate in this circumstance.”

Jackson shook his head as she stumbled through an apology before hanging up. He’d been blessed for years because Cynthia’s mother had been able to care for the boys during the day. But she’d recently gotten remarried and moved to Massachusetts.

The boys hadn’t made it easy to find a replacement for the grandma they’d adored. He was proud of his children but also completely aware that they weren't choirboys. Between Chris’s penchant for playing practical jokes and Jase’s current fascination with insects, they definitely didn’t make his task any easier. He hadn’t met a woman yet who could deal with them for more than a few hours at a time.

“Damn. Another nanny bites the dust.”

He just needed someone who could watch the boys during the afternoons while he was working, at least through the summer. Once the school year started, Chris would be in kindergarten and Jase would be in preschool. He’d be able to get by on his own, then. Of course in an ideal world he’d find a caregiver he could retain all year, maybe even one who could also run errands, such as grocery shopping, for him.

Nicholas looked up. “You still can’t find a nanny?”

“Every time I think I have a candidate there’s a catch. The first one was excellent at running a household, but stiff with the boys. She didn’t even last a whole day. The one after her was more interested in babysitting me than the kids. Her skirt barely covered her ass.” 

He knew that type and avoided it like the plague. Gold diggers and groupies were a part of life in the music business but he’d learned his lesson about needy women. His ex-girlfriend had made sure of that.

He hadn’t realized when he started looking for nannies how difficult it would be or that there were women who’d apply for the job hoping to catch his eye. If he had, he would have asked his mother to handle screening the candidates.

Although, considering how much his mother wanted him to remarry, that might not have been the wisest plan either.

“Then there were the two after that who looked more like convicted felons than Mary Poppins. Now we have the one that I was sure was perfect, who was scheduled for this afternoon but just canceled.” He hung his head in defeat.

Nicholas shook his head in sympathy. “I don’t envy you. Unless you need someone to interview the ones with the short skirts? No? Okay, well just keep me in mind.”

Jackson clapped his hands until he had both boys’ attention. “Aren’t we having fun with Uncle Nick? As a matter of fact, who wants to spend the night at Uncle Nicholas’ house?” Jackson asked in a singsong voice.

Jase, who’d been watching his brother from his perch on the bed, took his thumb out of his mouth and yelled, “Me, Me, Me!” while Chris danced in the background in excitement.

Nicholas shot him an evil look. “Seriously? I have a date tonight. And she is…” He cut a glance at the two boys watching them avidly. “Constructed like a solid outdoor restroom facility.”

Jackson crinkled his brow in confusion and then almost choked with laughter at his brother’s child-friendly version of built like a brick shithouse. It took him a few minutes to compose himself before he could answer.

“Well, I’m going to be busy tonight and I’d feel better if the boys were with someone I trust. You can just bring them back when you come on Monday for the cookout.”

His brother laughed knowingly and slapped him on the back. “I was starting to get worried about you for a minute there, but I should have known you had plans for later. The player is back!”

Jackson grabbed him by the arm and pulled him into the hallway.

“Nick, I’m not talking about a date. Raina’s here, remember?”

“So? You don’t think she’s trying to hook up with you, do you?”

Jackson narrowed his eyes. “Even if she was, so what? I know you aren’t going to give me a lecture on morality. What are you always telling me?”