Yours for Christmas (Fool's Gold #15.5)(17)
CHAPTER SIX
KENNY WAVED JACK into the office. His business partner sat down and waited until Kenny hung up the phone.
“You make your calls?” he asked.
Jack nodded. “They mostly don’t care. For some reason they think you can do as good a job. Idiots.”
“You’d be happier if they were threatening to leave the company?” Kenny asked with a grin.
“You know it.”
Jack was leaving Score at the end of the year. Although he’d been a founding partner with Taryn, he’d been offered a coaching job at Cal U Fool’s Gold. And not just any coaching job. He was going to start the football program, from the ground up. A challenging project, but one Jack would see to the end. Kenny was confident the Cal UFG Warriors would have a winning season within three years of their first game.
In the meantime, Jack was contacting all their clients and letting them know he was moving on. Kenny followed up to assure them that he was committed to staying with Score. So far no one had minded about the change.
“It’s going to be strange not to be here anymore,” Jack told him. “But I’m excited about what’s ahead of me.”
“Let me know if you need any help.”
“You want to coach?”
“No,” Kenny said with a laugh. “But I’m happy to listen and offer advice.”
“Sam said the same thing,” Jack admitted. “You’re good men.”
Kenny held up a hand. “You’re not going to turn into a woman, are you? And start talking about your feelings?”
“No. Sam and Dellina and Larissa and I are thinking of going up to Henri’s for a fancy dinner.” Jack rolled his eyes. “Larissa says they decorate the whole resort and she wants to see it. Dellina agrees. Sam and I are going along because we love our women. You two want to join us?”
Kenny frowned at his friend. You two? As in...
“You and Bailey,” Jack clarified. “Before she left, Taryn mentioned the two of you were working on the toy drive together. She’s fun, right?” He shook his head. “Or is it a problem because of Chloe?”
Because Jack knew about Kenny’s past and how he avoided single mothers.
“We’re friends,” Kenny said. “I could ask her if she’d like to go.”
“It’s up to you. You could fly in one of your models. Of course the dinner would be wasted. Doesn’t it bother you how they only fake eat? No actual food passes their lips.”
“Just because you’re engaged to a regular woman now, don’t pretend you didn’t date models in your day.”
Jack’s smile turned smug. “I dated everyone in my day. I’ve matured and I know better now. I have the best woman on the planet and I’m going to do everything in my power to make her happy for the rest of her life. That and win a national football championship.”
“As long as you have your priorities,” Kenny said. “I’ll talk to Bailey and let you know what she says.”
“Good.”
Jack rose and left.
Kenny tried to return his attention to his computer, but what he saw instead of the screen was Bailey. He would like to take her to the dinner. As long as they were both clear on the rules.
* * *
BAILEY WATCHED KENNY carefully tighten her daughter’s skates. There was something so sweet and sexy about a big guy helping a little girl, she thought. Those large hands and those little skates. Not that this was anything but friends getting together, she reminded herself. Kenny was a good guy. Good enough to warn her that he wasn’t interested in her romantically.
For a brief moment, she allowed herself to fantasize about telling him she didn’t need the romance. That an hour or two in his bed was all the holiday cheer she needed. But as fun as that sounded, she knew it was completely unrealistic. She’d only been with one man in her life. And that was her husband...after the wedding. She was old-fashioned.
As much as she might miss the things a man could do to her body, she couldn’t do those things lightly. She might not have to be married the second time around, but she knew she would have to be in love. And falling for Kenny would be an emotional disaster.
So she would simply enjoy the sight of him kneeling on the ice while Chloe tried to stand on the slippery surface, all the while balanced on a blade.
Her daughter hung on to his hands as she got her balance. Bailey finished with her own skates and stood. She wobbled a bit, then found her center of gravity and moved toward Chloe.
Her daughter stared at her. “Mommy, you can skate!”
“Sort of. It’s been a while, but it’s coming back.”
She moved to Chloe’s side and held out her hand. “Let’s try moving. It’s easier than standing still.”
Kenny stood. He, of course, had no problem skating. He moved with a grace and sureness that she admired. At the same time she wondered what it must have been like to be so physically gifted. Not that she would ever know.
He was on Chloe’s other side. Her daughter took his hand and together the three of them started across the ice.
The rink had been set up at the far end of the resort’s parking lot. There was a canvas structure with sides that could be rolled up when the weather was cold enough—like tonight. The temperature had to be in the twenties. They could see their breath and the stars overhead. So far it had been cold, but they hadn’t gotten snow.