Teo’s chest went all warm and fuzzy. He wanted Akoni to feel as though he belonged. Guys on the team gave out nicknames, too. Some of them stuck and some of them faded away. He wondered what kind of name she would have for him. The idea that his family could have that kind of camaraderie enticed him. “You can make up all the nicknames youlike.”
“Thanks.” She looked down at Akoni; he never did quite drift off with them talking in his room. His eyes were heavy, though. “For what it’s worth, you’re wonderful with Akoni,Teo.”
Teo felt his cheeks lift in a smile, and his ears warmed under the praise. “Thanks.”
Akoni popped up at his name. He looked between them. “Da!”
“That’s right.” Cedar cupped his face in her hands. “That’s your daddy.” She pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Are you ready for asnack?”
Akoni grew serious as he worked his way off her lap and headed for the door. Snack was a word Teo’s son knew well. The kid was an eater—just like hisdad.
Cedar got to her feet and hurried to offer her hand to Akoni for support. He’d been walking for a month, but going all the way from his room to the kitchen was a hike forhim.
“So.” Teo jumped up to follow them. “Do you have any moregames?”
“Oh, I got game,” Cedar said over her shoulder. “But you’re not getting the playbook—not on my firstday.”
Teo laughed. “Then I’m going to make a few phonecalls.”
Cedar nodded. “I’ll feed Akoni and get him down for a nap, and then maybe we can go over a schedule. I brought mycalendar.”
Of course she did. “You’re like an executivenanny.”
“That’s the best kind.” Shebeamed.
“Yes, you are.” The words were out before Teo could censor them or the quiet admiration in hisvoice.
She waved before disappearing into the study, which wasn’t the fastest way to the kitchen, but she’d find iteventually.
He made his way to his home office and sat behind the desk. This room wasn’t anything like Elijah’s office. There was a desk bought at an office supply store, a rolling chair, and bare walls except for his rookie jersey that was signed by the team and framed. He really should make an effort to hang some of his photos and buy shelves for his mementos instead of letting them languish in the corner in boxes and plasticwrap.
As he scrolled through his email, he wondered over all he had opened up about with Cedar. He probably should have kept his mouth shut. He didn’t know her that well. She had connections in the press—he’d seen her talk and be friendly with several reporters at the camp. She could sell him out in a heartbeat and he’d be the next big story.Football player glad his wife died.A headline that would sell forsure.
It was just that with Cedar, he was content with himself and with talking. Which was strange considering she hadn’t liked him all that much on Monday, and he’d practically had to beg her to come work for him. She wasn’t wound as tight today, though. Today she was comfortable… relaxed even. Which allowed him torelax.
A man could get used to that feeling. Coming home to a home filled with giggles and games and even a sink full of dirty dishes was better than coming home to a hollow emptiness any day. Too bad Cedar could only commit to two months. There had to be a way to get her to stick around. They needed her.Heneededher.
The thought terrified him. He’d been doing well enough on his own. Surviving but not thriving. No. Thriving included laughter, and Cedar was the one who brought that back to his day. A smile crept from cheek to cheek. He felt every millimeter of muscle movement in his face, like a door—shut long ago with rusty hinges and slightly swollen from disuse. Smiling shouldn’t be a foreign feeling. As a general principle, he was a happy guy—he just needed to tell hisface.
And spend some more time with Cedar. She made being happyeasy.
Shaking off the introspection, he dove into answering email and focusing on the business side of managing his brand instead of the intensely personal feelings that came when he thought aboutCedar.
Chapter 13
Over the nextcouple of weeks, Cedar, Teo, and Akoni fell into a rhythm. Cedar would arrive at seven in the morning and wake Akoni. Teo would chat with the two of them for a few minutes before disappearing into his home gym for a couple hours. After that, they would have lunch together, and then either she or Teo would go off to a meeting or take care of business. Cedar’s days weren’t cluttered, and she was getting used to seeing Teo on a daily basis. Used to seeing him? Yes. Unaffected by him? No. She hadn’t quite mastered that skillyet.
Teo managed to keep the house clean, or at the very least, the dishes washed. He must have spent hours that first night putting the kitchen in order. Things were never perfect, but they weresanitary.
Cedar did her part, washing a bathtub or dusting as she saw a need. She’d not set so much as a pinkie toe in Teo’s private suite. That was considered forbidden territory. Not because Teo had decreed it as such, but because she needed to keep some professional boundaries between them. They worked so well together, managing both of their schedules and Akoni’s needs that she could easily believe she belonged here with the two of them. Only by maintaining a physical distance from Teo could she keep from admitting her admiration and attraction for him grew on a dailybasis.
This morning, Cedar was folding a basket of Akoni’s clean shirts while Akoni toddled around the huge laundry room, putting mismatched socks in the drawers. She was going to have to fish them out later, but he was happy and busy so she didn’t stophim.
Teo appeared, taking up the whole doorframe. His house had been built with twelve-foot-tall walls and vaulted ceilings. It was big, but then so was he, so it fit, right? Nevertheless, it often surprised her that he filled a doorway with his bulk. The woodsy smell of his cologne drifted her direction, and she savored the scent that was all Teo before checking her reaction and hiding the weak knees his colognetriggered.
He leaned his shoulder against the doorway and crossed one leg over the other. “How’d your exit interview go with the graduation counselor?” He took a sip of his post-workout shake. For some reason, he showered in the gym downstairs and dressed before coming back up each day. While she appreciated his attention to personal grooming, she had this fantasy of him all rough and tumble after a workout that she couldn’t seem to get out of her head. Just once, she’d like to catch him post-workout and see if the real thing measured up to herimagination.
Clearing her throat and her thoughts, she replied, “Good. I’m all set to graduate. He’s sending me a few contacts at companies that might behiring.”
