Until We Touch (Fool's Gold #15)(29)
“That could be because of the medical center,” Tad pointed out.
“Yeah, it could,” Jack said easily. “Except every one of those people know they’re the UCLA Bruins and the USC Trojans and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. You don’t learn that from a medical school.” He paused. “Or a tennis team.”
Tad started to rise from his chair. Jack was kind of hoping the man wouldn’t have second thoughts because every now and then a fight seemed like a good idea. Of course, that belief only lasted until he landed the first blow—which always hurt like a son of a bitch.
“Am I going to have to separate you two?” the university president asked.
Jack grinned. “Probably a good idea.”
She surprised him by smiling back. “All right, Mr. McGarry. Convince me you’re right. Tell me all the reasons Cal U Fool’s Gold should have a football team.”
Jack nodded slowly. “Sure thing. How much time do you have?”
* * *
LARISSA WALKED INTO the project room. It was a big open office with long tables pushed together to form a square. There were huge dry-erase boards on two walls and corkboards on the other two. A screen could be pulled down for computer presentations. Low cabinets held every kind of office supply and craft material. Because the project room was where the magic happened. Mock-ups began here, as did the brainstorming sessions.
Percy sat at one of the long tables, stacks of magazines in front of him. He had one open and was carefully measuring a page with a ruler.
“Whatcha doing?” she asked as she approached.
He glanced up and smiled at her. “Hey, Larissa.”
“Hey, yourself. I see Taryn already put you to work.”
“She did.” He pointed to the magazines. “There are client ads in each one. I’m making sure they’re the right size and in the right part of the magazine.”
He showed her the cover sheet for the ad approval form. It listed the size of the ad—full page, half page and so on—the name of the magazine, the issue number and the page number the ad should be on. At the top of each cover sheet was a small picture of the magazine itself, making the referencing easier.
“The pictures tell me which magazine to look for. Then this number is the page number and the size of the ad is right here. When I’ve checked it all, I put my initials in this box here.” He pointed to the form.
He sounded proud of the work he was doing, she thought happily. “You like working here?”
“Yeah. It’s real interesting. I’ve had jobs before, but not in a place like this. I’m usually sweeping up or cleaning the bathrooms. I worked for a moving company for a few months.” He wrinkled his nose. “This is better.” His smile returned. “Kenny came by a little bit ago and introduced himself. He’s a big guy.”
“He is.”
“He’s taking me to lunch. He said there’s a Mexican restaurant with enough food that I won’t be hungry for hours.” His expression turned wistful. “That’s a nice feeling, not to be hungry.” He glanced at her, then away. “Not that I care about that kind of thing. But some people do.”
Her heart cracked a little as she wondered how many times the teenager had gone to bed without anything to eat that day.
“You’ll like Kenny. He’s a great guy.” She pulled out a chair and sat next to Percy. “I hope you’ll think about what you want to do for your future,” she said. “Maybe college.”
Percy turned his attention to the magazine in front of him. “Jack talked about that this morning. I need to get my GED first. He’s, ah, gonna help me with that.”
“Good.”
“Are you two, like, engaged?”
Larissa jumped to her feet. “No. Of course not. What a silly question. Why would you ask that?” Before he could answer, she was heading for the door. “I’ll check in with you later,” she called over her shoulder.
Engaged? That would never happen. Jack didn’t want a permanent relationship and she wasn’t interested in one now, either. Certainly not with him. Jack was the kind of man who...
She walked down the hallway. Jack was nice enough, she reminded herself. Good-looking. Successful. He cared about people and she trusted him. But he was also into his bimbo of the week. His idea of an in-depth relationship was one that lasted two weeks. She would know. She bought the parting gifts he gave his lady friends.
Her and Jack? Ridiculous. They were friends. Good friends. Good friends who had kissed that one time, she thought with a sigh.
She wandered into Taryn’s office only to see her friend jump in her chair.
“What?” Taryn demanded. “Why are you here?”
Larissa held up both hands in a gesture of surrender. “Why are you crabbier than usual?”
Taryn sighed. “Sorry. That was guilt.”
Larissa looked at the computer. “Seriously? Are you on a p**n site or something?”
Taryn turned the computer to show Larissa the display. “No, wedding gowns.”
Larissa stared at a beautiful dress that was fitted to the waist, then flowed down in a cascade of fabric and lace and flowers. “If there’s rain we can all take cover under the skirt.”
Taryn’s mouth twitched. “Shut up. You don’t know anything about fashion.”