by Tara Randel
“Me too. Starting my own business is rather nerve-racking. But if we work together...”
“I’m still considering all my options,” Jenna said. “Besides, I have faith you’ll get the client. And thanks for the ride home from the airport.”
Before Nealy had a chance to leave, Bridget came around the side of the house. “Did you tell her yet?” she asked Nealy.
“To be honest, I was trying to avoid it.”
A sense of foreboding settled over Jenna. “Tell me what?”
Bridget’s eyes went wide. She turned and dashed back the way she came.
“Um, about your plans to put the brakes on Wyatt?”
Oh no. By the guilty look on Nealy’s face, this could not be good. “What did you do?”
“Not me. Bridget invited Wyatt to dinner tonight.”
“Tonight?”
“I’m so sorry.”
Jenna narrowed her eyes. “You are so not sorry.”
“It’s not so much I’m sorry as I knew you wouldn’t be thrilled. Bridget invited him before I had a chance to intervene. She caught us both off guard.”
“And neither of you told her no?”
Nealy shrugged, an unrepentant smile curving her lips.
“Is that why she was asking about dinner tonight when we were in the car? Why didn’t you say anything sooner?”
“I’m telling you now.”
In panic mode, Jenna glanced at her watch, realizing she only had a few hours to come up with a menu, shop for the ingredients and cook a meal before Wyatt showed up. Her heart pounded. From the pressure of coming up with a special meal? Or the prospect of seeing Wyatt again? A little of both, maybe? No, definitely more about Wyatt.
So much for her calm, cool, collected plan to avoid him. Maybe she could call him and postpone the evening, blaming jet lag. But then she’d disappoint Bridget. She didn’t want to do that either.
“This is too much,” Jenna quipped. “These girls have us wrapped around their little fingers.”
Nealy grinned. “And I don’t expect that to change anytime soon. Get used to it, Mom.”
“Mom. Right.” Jenna shook off the trepidation. She could do this for Bridget.
Nealy drove away, leaving Jenna to enter the house, or rather, the home she’d created for Abby and Bridget. She opened the back door and yelled, “Girls! Front and center. We need to talk.”
* * *
WYATT STOOD ON the doorstep, staring down at a hastily purchased bouquet of daisies, mentally arguing how sensible it was to actually show up tonight. Along with his dog. Not sure what to wear, he’d thrown on a black polo shirt and jeans.
Sure, he suspected Jenna wouldn’t be happy about him coming over for dinner, especially since she’d been out of town when Bridget extended the invitation. He should have declined, but he was finding it increasingly harder to refuse the wide, pleading brown eyes of the little girl. What she’d wanted was Wyatt to come by for dinner and bring Cruiser with him.
What Wyatt wanted was to see Jenna again. Despite all his arguments to himself about not getting involved, the bottom line was he needed to be around a woman who brought the sunshine back into his life, despite his insistence he didn’t want that.
So here he stood in spite of the fact that he and Jenna continuously rubbed each other the wrong way.
He closed his eyes. Erased the image of Jenna’s surprise when they collided in the pool, the feel of her soft skin against his.
Change that to constantly at odds.
Cruiser whined from his position beside his master.
Wyatt opened his eyes. “Give me a minute, buddy. This isn’t as easy as it looks.”
The dog stared up at him. If Wyatt didn’t know better, he’d have sworn the animal shook his head in disgust.
“Easy for you, everybody loves a dog.”
To which Cruiser responded by thumping his tail.
Before reason could take over, he rang the doorbell and braced himself for the night ahead.
The sound of scrambling feet came from inside and the door burst open to reveal two smiling faces.
“Mr. Wyatt!”
“Hi, girls.”
Bridget grabbed his hand. “Come in.”
He chuckled as the girls dragged him down a tiled hallway to the bright kitchen. Jenna turned around from the stove, the savory aroma of sautéing vegetables spicing the airy space. “You’re here.”
She smiled, her face rosy and gorgeous, but he didn’t miss the hint of wariness. Only a few days apart and he’d missed her sparkling green eyes. She looked great in an aqua tank top and long flowing skirt in shades of yellow, green and blue.
“I am.” He held out the flowers.
“Oh, my.” She removed the pan from the burner and turned off the stove. Her hand brushed his as she accepted his gift. His gaze shot to her wide eyes. “How nice. Thank you.”
He forced himself to keep from staring at her. Act natural. “It’s the least I can do. It smells good in here.”
Jenna shrugged but didn’t hide her pleasure. “Let me put these in water.”
She reached up to open a cabinet, removing a cut crystal vase. Once she filled it with water from the tap, she cut the stems before arranging the daises. “Lovely.”
He continued to stare at her. “Yes.”
She cleared her throat. “I didn’t have a lot of time to prepare, so I marinated chicken to grill.”
“Sounds great.” He stuck his hands in his pants pockets. “It was nice of you to plan dinner, since you just got back from your trip. You could have rescheduled.”
“And let Bridget down? She’s looking forward to tonight.”
Fair enough. Jenna didn’t want to disappoint the kids. He got that, so was she just putting up with him for Bridget’s sake? It was one thing to do something nice for your children, another to have dinner with a man she might be interested in. Since Jenna wouldn’t meet his eyes and hurried about the kitchen in a flurry of activity, he wondered which category he fell into.
With a nod, she finished with the flowers, placing the vase at the center of the table. Then she scooped the vegetable mixture into a bowl, covered it and set it aside. “Let’s go out back,” she said, gesturing him to follow. On the back patio, the lid of the grill was already open.
He gazed around the backyard, his heart suddenly heavy at the homey sight. Picturesque best described the scene. Lush grass, blooming flower beds with insects buzzing from bud to bud, a new privacy fence. The heat still held the day hostage, but also set free the rich scent of the earth. Bridget and Abby giggled as they raced around, Cruiser barking at their heels. He swallowed hard, knowing he’d never share simple family moments like these with his son.
“Oh, please.”
He switched his attention back to his hostess. “What’s wrong?”
She pressed the ignition button on the grill numerous times. “This grill is finicky. I turned on the gas, but sometimes it won’t light.”
“Let me give it a try.”
Wyatt checked the control panel, twisted the dials to adjust the gas pressure and pressed the ignition button again. With a whoosh, a fire sprang up along the burners.
“Here you go.”
Her mouth gaped open. “Unbelievable. The only reason it worked for you is because I primed it.”
He grinned. “Right.”
“Let me get the chicken.”
While Jenna ventured back inside, Wyatt wandered the backyard. The neatly cut grass cushioned his steps. Coral-hued honeysuckle laced the back fence, the nectar emitting a sweet scent from the tube-shaped flowers. A distracted grin curved his lips. The floral scent reminded him of Jenna. Dodging the girls as they ran past, he came across a long, wide box. Under closer inspection, he noticed
a picture glued to the top. He crouched down, to find a picture for an elaborate swing set.
“Jenna is gonna build that for us,” Bridget informed him as she ran over. “We picked it out.”
“It’s pretty awesome.”
“I know. I like the playhouse. It’s going to be our castle.”
“Where we wait for our prince,” Abby said as she joined them. “Who is probably Cruiser.”
Wyatt laughed. “I’m sure he’ll be honored.”
“But Jenna has to build it first.”
He glanced at the picture again. The set included a small off-the-ground playhouse, swings and a slide. Jenna planned to assemble this alone?
“Hey, what are you looking at?” Jenna called from the patio where she held a platter.
Wyatt rose and walked to her. “The girls were showing me the swing set. Pretty ambitious project.”
“I can handle it.” She shrugged. “Go big or go home, I always say.”
“Do you plan on building it yourself?”
“Sure, why not?” Her eyes narrowed. “You don’t think I can do it?”
“I’m not saying that. I have no doubt you can do anything you put your mind to.”
“But...”
“If you want to get the set built so the girls can use it in this lifetime, you could use some help.”
She frowned, her eyes changing to a deep shade of green and flashing with indignation. “Because women can’t build things?”
“No, because with all the pieces, it’ll take you forever.”
“I’m good with tools,” she told him, her voice tight. “I’ll get it done.”
Yeah, he’d stepped right into it, suggesting she couldn’t tackle the swing set on her own, but he liked the fiery challenge in her eyes. “I’d love to hear all about this.”
“And I’d love to regale you with my talent for tools, but right now I have to get the chicken on.”
Platter in hand, she turned back to the grill.
He silently sighed. He’d made her angry, again, without really trying. While he liked the attraction between them, he warned himself to back off. Reminded himself he wasn’t looking for anything between them.
He ran a hand through his hair. So much for tonight being stress free.
“Not again,” Jenna muttered from her place beside the grill.
He joined her. “Another problem?”
“The fire went out.”
She placed the platter on a small table and stepped closer to examine the dial. “This thing came with the rental house but I am so going to buy a better model.”
“For right now, let’s figure out what’s wrong with this one.”
Wyatt knelt down to inspect the fuel line, which seemed intact. He stood to fiddle with the dials again. Jenna hovered, her floral perfume drawing his attention from the task. He tried to concentrate, but the warmth of her body had his thoughts going from the grill to the fact that she made his heart race. He turned, a mistake, when he found his face mere inches from hers.
“What do you think?” She bit her lower lip.
That I want to kiss you.
No, no, no. “I’m not sure what the problem is.”
They stood staring at each other for a drawn-out moment before Jenna blinked. Wyatt mentally shook off his lapse of sanity and pressed the ignition button again. Nothing.
“This is ridiculous,” Jenna muttered.
Before he had a chance to respond, Cruiser started barking. The girls squealed. Wyatt glanced up to see a cat streak across the top of the fence, heading in their direction. Cruiser followed the fleeing cat, running past a surprised Jenna, his tail whopping Wyatt on the leg before rounding the table with the platter. In his haste to catch his prey, the retriever knocked the table over, sending the chicken into the flower garden. Then he proceeded to trample over it. The dog ended his quest with his front paws on the fence. The cat jumped into the neighboring yard.
“Cruiser,” Wyatt shouted just as Jenna cried, “our dinner.” She hurried over to look at the dirt-covered chicken.
“Eww. We aren’t going to eat that,” Abby told her as she hovered nearby.
“Just rinse it off,” Bridget said.
Jenna frowned at her.
“What?”
“I don’t think the five-second rule applies when the food is covered with dirt and dog prints.” Jenna picked up the chicken with the tips of her fingers and dropped it onto the platter.
Wyatt pulled Cruiser from the fence and pointed to the far end of the patio. The dog slinked off, tail between his legs, dropping down at the appointed stop. His tongue lolled out of his mouth as he caught his breath after all the excitement.
For a minute, Wyatt watched Cruiser, then turned to meet Jenna’s eyes. The grill ignition button suddenly popped and a flame scurried across the burners. Wyatt couldn’t help it. A grin formed, spreading to an all-out smile. Before he knew it, they were laughing at the fate of their dinner.
“Definitely getting a new grill,” Jenna said drily.
After turning off the phantom grill, he followed Jenna into the kitchen, where she dumped the contents of the platter into a plastic trash bag.
“So much for grilled chicken.” She headed to the refrigerator. “I’ll find something else to make.”
“Let’s just get take-out.”
She opened the door and studied the choices inside. “No, I’m sure I can find ingredients to whip up something else.”
“Look, I appreciate the gesture, but my dog destroyed dinner. Let me order a pizza.”
“But, I—”
Wyatt gently took hold of her arm, pulled her from the refrigerator and pushed the door closed. “No arguments. Just give me the number of your favorite place.”
She blinked. “I don’t have any numbers. We don’t get take-out.”
“Never?” If he didn’t have half a dozen numbers programmed into his phone he’d starve.
“Never. I always cook.”
“Wow. Nice.” He pulled out his phone. “I’ll call a place I like and have them deliver. Sound good?”
“Wyatt, you don’t have to.”
“I want to. Leave it to me.”
She bit her lip, sending his pulse skyrocketing again. “Okay.”
He made the call while she put away the vegetables and cleaned up the kitchen. By the time the two pies arrived, she had plates set out on the table, cold tea poured in tall, ice-filled glasses.
Placing the boxes on the counter, he opened one containing plain cheese that he knew the girls would like, the other a specialty Hawaiian pie he’d come to favor.
Jenna considered her options before a smile crossed her face. She opened the fridge door, took out the vegetables she’d cooked earlier, warmed the bowl in the microwave and spread the mixture over her cheese slice. “Not bad,” she said after her first bite.
“Must be a chef thing.”
She laughed. Had to be the best sound he’d heard in ages.
After they finished eating, Abby looked at Jenna, her little face solemn. “This is really good. Why don’t we ever order pizza?”
“You know I like to make my own.”
“Yeah but your pizza doesn’t taste like this.”
“Thanks.” Jenna laughed. “I have to say, this has to be the best pizza I’ve ever eaten. I don’t think I could have made my own version as good.”
“I doubt that,” Wyatt weighed in.
Cruiser rubbed his nose against the glass sliding door, letting loose a whine. The girls went outside to join him.
“Coffee?” Jenna asked him.
“If you’re having a cup.”
“After the day I’ve had, all I want to do is sit on the patio and enjoy the evening.”
>
“Sorry for making your day more difficult.”
She waved away his worry as she scooped coffee into the paper basket. The rich aroma reached him as she filled the machine with water.
“It’s not you. It’s a little something called twins. I swear, I never thought my life would be so hectic.”
Wyatt gathered up the glasses from the table and carried them to the sink. “Good or bad hectic?”
She glanced out the kitchen window. “Both. They have me stretched in so many different directions.”
They worked together to clean up the kitchen. When the coffee had brewed, they each took a mug and moved outside to the patio chairs. Wyatt sat back in one.
“So, to carry on the thread of our conversation, how are you dealing with your life being hectic?”
Jenna cradled the mug with both hands, watching the girls running around with Cruiser.
“I’m not sure what I expected. I mean, I always planned to have a family of my own one day. I’d been so consumed with my show and my busy schedule of endorsements that I only saw Carrie and the girls every so often. Until the girls came to live with me, I never really considered what having them 24/7 would entail.”
“Kids change your life.”
From the corner of his eye, he saw Jenna take a quick peek in his direction. “I can’t even imagine how it must feel to lose a child.”
He supposed he should hate that comment, but when Jenna made it, he didn’t mind responding. “He may not be here physically, but Jamie definitely lives in my heart.”
Jenna shivered despite the warm night air. “I don’t know how I’d cope if I lost Abby and Bridget. They’ve totally changed my life.”
“I hope you never have to find out.” He stared out to the backyard, his voice tight. “No parent should have to watch their child being taken away from them, knowing they’ll never see or touch or comfort that child again.”
She seemed to hesitate, then spoke anyway. “What happened, Wyatt? If you don’t mind my asking.”
He clenched his teeth. “I don’t talk about it.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean−”
“But maybe I should.” He took a moment to compose himself. “We were out on my speed boat. Marcie and I started arguing—we did that a lot back then. I took my eyes off Jamie for a split second it seemed like. We hit a big swell and the next thing I knew, he tumbled overboard.” He swallowed. Pulled it together. “He went under. I dove after him, but the life jacket didn’t work properly and...”
