Until We Touch (Fool's Gold #15)(45)

Larissa grinned at the teen. “Technically that’s true, but why would I? Jack’s my boss and my friend. I don’t want to torture him.” No, what she had in mind for Jack had nothing to do with torture and everything to do with...

She cleared her throat and her mind. Focus, she told herself. No wayward sexual thoughts, especially not with Percy in the room. That would be too weird and icky.

Percy studied the calendar. They were in her office and she was explaining what her job entailed. Part of Percy’s education was to understand the workings of Score.

“Still, he has to really trust you, right?” he asked.

“Uh-huh. That’s part of the relationship.” She pointed to the different events. “It’s all color-coded. Speaking engagements, appearances for charity. Regular meetings.”

“Golf is a charity event?” Percy asked.

“It can be. There’s going to be a Pro-am here in a few weeks.”

Percy frowned. “What’s a Pro-am?”

“Professionals and amateurs playing together, only the amateurs are mostly celebrities.”

“Jack plays professionally?”

She clicked on the square in the calendar, expanding it to show all the information. “This is golf where he’s considered an amateur. It’s a fund-raiser for a local charity. Professional golfers come play with people from TV and the movies, along with some other athletes.”

“Like Jack.”

“Exactly.”

“Will you play?”

“I don’t like golf. Plus, the amateurs are really kind of famous in their own right.”

“Like Jack, Kenny and Sam.”

“Uh-huh.”

The teen leaned forward in his chair. “That makes sense. ’Cuz if people are going to pay to watch you play golf, you’d better be somebody they admire or something.” He gave her a shy smile. “But you’re prettier than Jack.”

“Thank you, Percy.”

He turned his attention back to the calendar. “You do a lot of massages.”

They were in purple on the calendar. She clicked a tab, which shifted the screen to her weekly schedule. “I do less than I would if that was my full-time job,” she told him. “But that’s okay. I like the variety.”

“Did you have to study to do massages?”

“I did. I had to learn about muscles and how the body works. Once I’d completed my instruction, I had to practice by giving massages. There are a certain number of hours required to be certified.”

Which she wasn’t, she reminded herself. She had the paperwork, the hours and the education. She really needed to get off her butt and send in the paperwork. Not that it would change her life at Score, but it would be nice to know she was employable anywhere.

Percy looked around at her office. “Even this is nice,” he said, then cleared his throat. “I mean the other offices are really big.”

“Tell me about it,” she said with a grin. “You could practically go bowling in Jack’s office. I’m fine with something a whole lot smaller.” Besides, this was just for scheduling and making calls. Her real work was done in the massage room.

“I never knew businesses were like this,” Percy told her. “All fancy and high-tech. It’s nice.”

“Maybe you’ll get a job in a place like this,” she told him. “After you go to college.”

“I’d like that. Only college is a long way away. First I have to get my GED.”

“And you will. Then you’ll go to college.”

His expression was doubtful. “Everyone here keeps talking about college, like everyone should go. But it’s not like that. Where I’m from, you did what you had to so you could get by.”

Life in the inner city. She had no frame of reference for that, Larissa thought. No moment to bond over.

“College gives you opportunities. Choices. You’re right—not everyone has that in their future. But you do now. I hope you’ll take advantage of the chance.”

He shifted on his chair. “I don’t know anyone who went to college. Not ever. My grandma didn’t get past the seventh grade. None of my friends where I grew up were going to do much more than join a gang.”

She’d been born and raised in Los Angeles, she thought. Probably not thirty miles from where Percy had spent most of his life. Yet they had very different world views.

“Change is hard,” she admitted. “This is big change for you.”

“But a good one,” he said. “I know I got lucky when you found me in the park.”

She smiled at him. “We’re happy to have you here.”

“You’re nice. Everyone here is. Sam’s kind of quiet, but he was explaining what he did. With the money and stuff. And Taryn’s tough on the outside, but inside she’s real soft. But she doesn’t want anyone to know. Kenny’s a good guy, but there’s, like, a wall.”

Larissa did her best not to react. Percy’s assessments were more accurate than she’d expected. Impressively so. “What about Jack?” she asked.

Percy grinned. “You boss him around.”

“I don’t!”

“Yeah, you do, and he likes it.”

* * *