Page 41 of The Slapshot and the Single Mom
“Honestly, I doubt we’d get that much attention. Maybe a few people would recognize me and ask for my autograph, but I could wear a hat and some sunglasses. No one would expect me to be there. We’d probably be entirely left alone.”
Her laughter subsides, but she’s still smiling. “I suppose that’s true. Don’t you want us to be seen together, though? I mean, thatwasthe whole point of you taking me out every weekend.”
“Originally.” I add, though that’s not entirely true either. “And it wasn’t thewholepoint. It was just part of the reasons I gave you.”
She narrows her eyes at me, her lips still curved in a slight smile. “Okay, fine. Still, though. It’s working, isn’t it? I know people are talking about us.”
I’m not sure if it’s something in her voice or what, but that has me drawing my brows together. “Wait. What happened?”
She shakes her head. “Nothing.” A sigh. “It’s nothing, really. Just … Brock mentioned that he’d seen an article about the two of us.”
“Is he giving you trouble over it?” That hadn’t occurred to me before. Why would her boss have trouble with her dating me anyway? Or dating anyone? As long as she continues doing her job, why should he care about her romantic life?
She shakes her head, but her expression isn’t convincing. “Seriously. It’s not a big deal. Don’t worry about Brock. I know how to handle him.”
Of all the things she said, the last one is what I believe the most. If he said something, it’s some kind of deal. But I believe that she knows how to handle him. “Okay. Fine. But if you need anything from me where he’s concerned …”
She rolls her eyes. “I won’t, but I appreciate the thought. So. Back to this weekend.”
“While I don’t mind if people see us and we get talked about, it’s never been my goal to force us into the public eye. The ball game last weekend is because I knew you’d like it. The press coverage wasn’t something I considered at all.”
“Okay. So … parks and rec league softball? And concession stand snacks for dinner?” She laughs when I wrinkle my nose. “Okay. What else?” Picking up her phone, she scowls at the screen. “Fuck,” she whispers, then looks at me. “I’m sorry. I thought I could extend my lunch a little bit today, especially after the morning I had, but Brock seems to be having a meltdown and I need to get back. Call me later, though? We can figure out our plans for Friday after Liam’s in bed tonight.”
“I can handle that,” I say, standing along with her. When she moves to pick up her trash, I wave her off. “I’ll take care of that. C’mere.” Standing next to our booth, I hold out my arms, wanting a real hug.
She seems to hesitate for half a second, then steps into my embrace, her hands reaching behind my shoulder blades and clinging to my shirt like I’m some kind of lifeline for her. And hell, based on her description of her morning, maybe I am.
What is it about this woman that rouses every one of my latent protective instincts? I hate that I have to release her to go back to a man who Iknowtreats her poorly. I’d hate it anyway, but knowing that douchebag’s on the heels of her deadbeat ex …
I want to go punch his teeth in. For me. For her. For people everywhere who’ve had to deal with his brand of smug, entitled, assholery for far too long.
She lets out a heavy sigh, pulling back and looking up at me.
I brush a soft kiss over her lips before releasing her. “I’ll talk to you tonight,” I murmur, stepping back.
Her lips part like she wants to say something, but at the last second she just nods. “Thanks again, Jack,” she whispers, then she grabs her bag and disappears.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Maggie
“Are you ready to go?”I call down the hall to Liam.
He comes bounding out of his room, backpack bouncing, an overstuffed grocery tote practically dragging along behind him. “Ready!” he yells.
I smile at his excitement, hoping my apprehension doesn’t show through. His dad called yesterday and asked to have Liam for the whole weekend. I said yes, of course, and Liam was thrilled when I told him. But Kyle’s track record is so shitty, I can’t help wondering if he’ll last more than twelve hours.
The plan is for me to drop him off at Kyle’s, then I’m heading over to Jack’s place, and from there we’re going to dinner and finishing the evening at the Chihuly Garden and Glass museum. I went once years ago, and I’ve always wanted to go back. It’s one of those things that I’ve wanted for so long that I’d almost forgotten about it. After I got home from work the other day, I sat down and made a list of things I want to do—something I’d said I’d do ages ago but never got around to—so I’d have someideas for when I talked to Jack that night to figure out our plan for today. Of course, that got changed slightly with Kyle popping up.
That tends to happen with Kyle. Things will go smoothly for a while, and then he’ll crawl out of the woodwork and throw a wrench in things.
Changing plans to take Liam to his dad’s isn’t such a big deal. But knowing how Kyle operates, I’m worried about the rest of the weekend. Will I even be able to finish the whole date tonight, or will Kyle decide Liam’s too much by the time they’re done with dinner?
Will he feed Liam dinner?
God, I hope so. And by dinner, I mean more than a meat stick and a handful of Cheez-Its. There’s been more than one occasion where that was what Kyle fed our son.
I shove aside my apprehension and wrap Liam in a big hug. “I can’t believe how big you’re getting. What happened to my little baby?”
