When We Met (Fool's Gold #13)(29)

He pressed his fingers to her mouth. “Don’t apologize. I know what you meant.”

She leaned into him. He pulled her close and held her. “I’ll always love you, big guy,” she whispered.

“I’ll always love you, too. Even with your bony ass.”

“My ass is not bony. I’m trim. I do Pilates.”

“You’re such a girl.”

“Which makes our sexual past easier for you to explain.”

He chuckled, then released her. He pointed to the clock on the wall. “You’d better hurry or you’ll be late.”

She followed his gaze and groaned. “I already am. You know where the FWM hut is?”

“Not a clue.”

* * *

OKAY, ANGEL THOUGHT. He was willing to admit it. Nothing had ever terrified him as much as facing eight seven-year-old girls at his first FWM meeting.

It was Tuesday at three and there were two very, very long hours to fill. He had a handbook, a box of supplies and a large open room in the FWM hut not too far from the Hunan Palace restaurant.

The girls sat in front of him on the carpeted floor. They were wide-eyed and eager, dressed in jeans and T-shirts. They’d been dropped off by the parents and told to have fun. Expectation filled the air and he had no idea what on earth he was supposed to do to fulfill those expectations. Once again he wished Mayor Marsha were forty years younger and a guy, so he could take out his frustrations in a way that made sense to him.

“Hello,” he said, conscious of the door only a tantalizing few feet away and the beckoning freedom beyond. “I’m Angel.”

They stared at him. He swore silently. Old lady or not, he was going to have to assassinate the mayor.

Just then the door to the hut opened and Taryn walked in. She wore jeans and a silk blouse tucked in to the tight waistband. Instead of athletic shoes, as the girls favored, she had on black boots with four-inch heels.

As she shut the door behind her, she laughed. “I got lost. Can you believe it? Everybody talks about how small Fool’s Gold is, but not to me. There I was, down by the park, looking for a hut. This isn’t a hut, by the way. It’s a building. Why did anyone say it was a hut? And it’s sure not by the park.”

She walked to the front and sank gracefully to the floor. “Okay, what did I miss? Oh, I’m Taryn, by the way. Did we already do names?”

Angel felt himself start to breathe again. The girls stared at Taryn with amazement. He knew just how they felt. She was larger than life and simply being around her caused a person to feel something good was about to happen.

“We didn’t do names yet,” one of the girls said.

“Excellent.” Taryn smiled at her. “Why don’t I start? I’m Taryn. I’m friends with Angel. I’ll be helping out for our season. I have never been in the FWM, so I’m really excited to learn all about it.”

Each of the girls said her own name. Chloe went last and spoke quietly. Taryn didn’t seem to pay any more attention to her, but Angel had called to explain about her special circumstances, so he knew she was keeping track of the girl.

Taryn shifted to her knees and bent over the box of supplies. “I read my handbook last night and I believe we’re supposed to have a project today.”

“We play get-to-know-you games,” a little girl named Allison said. She was blonde with glasses perched on her nose.

“You’re right,” Taryn said. “Don’t you love games?” She looked at him. “We’re supposed to divide into two groups,” she began.

“Or we could do one big group,” he said quickly.

Her mouth twitched. “Is this where I make the clucking sounds?” she asked quietly, before smiling at the girls. “Okay, there should be a ball in here.”

She pulled out a big red ball, then motioned for everyone to get in a circle. “I’m going to roll the ball to someone. When she catches the ball, I have to say her name. If I get it right, I get to ask a question. Once she answers the question, she’ll roll the ball to someone else, and so on.”

She shifted onto her butt and sat cross-legged, then waited while the girls formed a circle around her. She rolled the ball to the girl directly across from her.

“Charlotte, who prefers Char,” Taryn said. “Right?”

Char Adelman, a petite brunette, nodded vigorously.

Taryn grinned. “And I get to ask a question. Do you have any twos? Oh, wait. Wrong game.”

The girls all laughed. Angel didn’t get it. Chloe, who had ended up sitting next to him, leaned close.

“It’s Go Fish,” she told him. “A card game.”

Chloe was tall and thin, with bright red hair and equally vibrant freckles. When he looked at her, she ducked her head.

“Thanks,” he said in a whisper.

She nodded without looking up.

“My question,” Taryn said slowly. “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”

Char wrinkled her nose. “Two brothers and they’re both older. They tease me a lot and try to make me cry. When I get bigger, I’m going to be strong enough to beat them up.”

Angel started to say he could help her with that, but before he could speak, Taryn put a hand on his arm, as if urging him to be quiet.

Good idea, he thought. He probably shouldn’t offer lessons like that. At least not on the first day.