“She’s a smart woman.” And a saint. One of the few people who didn’t treat Teo like he was broken after Amy died. Deja was sympathetic and kind, but without the pity. Of course, she probably had an idea that their marriage wasn’t good, so maybe she sensed Teo wasn’t lost without Amy because he’d been alone long before shedied.
“The requests for interviews are rolling in, and I haven’t been able to set the phone down. People want to see the single-dad footballstar.”
A sick feeling settled in Teo’s gut. “No, E. My kid is not a publicitystunt.”
“It’s not like that, T. There are other people out there going through what you’re going through. You can be a symbol of hope for them. You are for me. If Deja died, I’d be in a ball foryears.”
Even though Elijah was trying to help, his admiration only made Teo feel worse. He didn’t say that,though.
Elijah continued. “Just think about it. We could do a private photo shoot at your house and release a story from ouroffice.”
“I don’tknow.”
“T, I know you’re confident in your two-year contract, but you need to lay the foundation for a favorable trade or negotiationnow.”
“I’ll think aboutit.”
“Thanks.”
Hearing Elijah’s voice reminded him of another item they needed to settle. “Hey, while I have you, I should be able to film the deodorant commercial on Thursday and Friday. I hired ananny.”
“Fantastic.”
Teo’s thoughts jumped back to when Cedar kissed Akoni’s head. “Yes, she is.” He drove in silence for a bit, content with his thoughts on Cedar, before he realized Elijah hadn’t said anything. “E?”
“I’m—ummmm.”
“What?”
“It’s nothing. I just thought I heard something inthere.”
“What?” Teodemanded.
“Forget it. I’m glad you hired someone. We need to meet about those investment opportunities we talked aboutbefore.”
“Sounds good.” They said goodbye and disconnected the call just as Teo pulled into the parking lot of the store. The lot was small and there were only a couplecars.
Teo hadn’t been joking when he told Cedar that miracles happened. Meeting Elijah was one of those miracles in his life. His agent was more than an agent; he was also a financial coach. Teo kept tabs on his money, but he appreciated and trusted Elijah’s guidance. The man’s business practices were as transparent as awindshield.
He considered the strange feelings Cedar stirred inside him. Talking with her was easy, like conversations had been before marrying Amy. He used to see himself as a social guy, but Amy sucked more and more of his time and attention until she was his whole world—and then she’d turned onhim.
Akoni screamed to be let out of his seat. Having napped for the short ride, he was full of vim and vigor. “Okay. Okay.” Teo hopped out to rescue his son from the car seat monster. He was grateful for the distraction from his spiralingthoughts.
While he shopped, he wondered if he should get some foods Cedar would like. He bounced his hands on the shopping-cart handle as he walked down the aisles. When he’d walked them all, he huffed in frustration. He had no idea what she liked, but he wanted to. He wanted to make her happy, and the thought scared him. In the end, he decided she could bring her lunch or order in. She was the nanny, an employee, and not his responsibility, no matter how much he liked the way her hair brushed her forehead or that she’d played along with his interview. She may be fun and beautiful and all sorts of wonderful things, but he couldn’t let all those things into hisheart.
He couldn’t take a beating—notagain.
Chapter 11
Cedar didher best not to ogle Teo’s muscular back as he showed her into his home. But come on! He wore a tight workout shirt without sleeves and every line, bump, valley, hill, bulge, and curve wasright thereat eye level. As it was, she was proud of herself for keeping her gawking at eye level when there was so much more to take in below in a pair of loose workout shorts. The shortsmayhave had the team logo across the top of them. Her peripheral vision could make out a “T,” but that was all she was willing to let it identify in that region. With her luck, Teo would turn around right as her gaze dropped and catch her in the act of reading hisbackside.
This was her first day on the job. She needed to appear professional, because she was a professional. The way her stomach fluttered and flipped when he opened the door had nothing to do with his amazing physique paired with those adorable dimples. Nothing atall.
Her obvious attraction for her employer wasn’t doing much to calm the anxiety she had about taking this job in the first place. She should have held out for something in her field, but financial security was an addiction she wasn’t willing tobreak.
“This is the kitchen.” He waved his handslightly.
“Hmm,” Cedar managed, tearing her eyes away from the real-life sculpture before her and taking in the gorgeous kitchen. Themessygorgeous kitchen. The white cabinets had silver knobs and drawer pulls. The black granite countertop was covered in crumbs and books and water bottles and fruit. The stainless steel sink was full of dishes and the far counter, accentuated with a cut glass backdrop, was covered in dirty pots andpans.
