Teo left Akoni dangling between them. He kicked his legs and grinned. “I can’t take him on the field,” he offered by way ofexplanation.
“Sure you can. You justdid.”
An older woman wearing a Titan’s polo shirt and slacks and a guy with smooth hair and too-big teeth approached. “What’s going on?” asked the woman as she tipped her head towards the intern indicating she should answer and answer quickly—there were things to do. Her nametag read Facilities Director. As in, the person incharge.
The intern ran her delicate hand over her hip. “I’m not sure,” shereplied.
Teo found his we-just-won-the-game smile. “I’m sorry. My nanny quit this morning, and I really want to be a part of the camp, so I brought Akoni along, but now that I’m here, I don’t think he should be out there with me, and I was hoping the lovely Miss …” He nodded herdirection.
“Bell,” she said ratherreluctantly.
His heart did a summersault. Miss Bell. The name was as beautiful and strong as the woman standing before him. He couldn’t remember where he’d heard it, but he thought Bell meant Beauty. If he could have picked a name out of hundreds for her, it would have been that very one. “Bell?Really?”
“Yes, really.” Her arms lowered and her thick lashes brushed hercheeks.
For a moment, Teo forgot they weren’t alone. His heart pounded hard against his ribcage, and he couldn’t feel his feet. If coach had chosen that moment to tell him to take his place on the line, he wouldn’t have been able to get there because all there was in this world was her thick, soft, lashes brushing against her cheek. Her soft cheek, round like a peach. “That’s …”Fitting. He shook his head and tugged his gaze away from her face. She’d rung his bell, that was for sure. “Pretty.”
“Thank you?” Her eyebrows went all squiggly. She turned to her boss and lifted a hand, silently asking what she shoulddo.
The guy standing behind the boss spoke up. “If the only way to get the league’s best offensive tackle on the field is to hold his baby, then what do you do,Miss Bell?” He cuffed Teo in thearm.
Teo resisted the urge to cuff him behind the head. He’d never liked lackeys. Several players kept them around, enjoying their yes-manattitudes.
Miss Bell’s sucked in a sharp breath and whipped around to face Teo. She wasn’t smiling, but she wasn’t angry at him either—more likedeterminedmixed with a healthy dose of knowing how to make the best of an imperfect situation. She reached forAkoni.
“I’d be happy to compensate you for your time,” Teo offered hoping to make the deal a little sweeter forher.
The jerk jumped in. “That won’t be necessary. Miss Bell is on a paid internship. Besides, she is loaded with motherlyinstincts.”
Miss Bell’s jaw flexed. She settled Akoni on her hip like she carted kids around on a daily basis. This guy was being a world-class bully, but Miss Bell didn’t lower herself to his level by arguing or hurtling insults. She was entitled to, though. Teo remembered being the freshman on the college team, forced to clean up towels and wash uniforms. He hated being pushed around, but he’d had to take it or risk being ostracized by the older players. He saw Miss Bell make the same decision, only she wasn’t worried about being socially cut out, she was protecting her job—erinternship.
Which made him feel like a brute for putting her in this situation. He narrowed his gaze at the jerk and cocked his head to the side. Sending a silent invitation. If this guy wanted to take it to the mattresses, he’d be willing to see it through—and see his smug smile wiped across theAstroTurf.
The boss, who had been dividing her attention between this situation and several others, pointed to the water station. “Darrin, go make sure the water jugs arefull.”
Darrin frowned and slunkaway.
“Are we okay here?” she asked Miss Bell andTeo.
Akoni clutched Miss Bell’s flowing shirt in his tiny fist. He laid his head on Miss Bell’s shoulder, and she patted and rubbed his back. Teo may feel like a stinker, as his mom would say, for asking her to watch his kid, but a strong sense of peace washed over him knowing Akoni was in her capable hands. “Yep.” He started backing away. “Thank you,” he told Miss Bell, trying to express his sincerity in hisvoice.
Miss Bell was talking to Akoni and not looking at him. He spun on his heel and clapped his hands for Brady to throw him theball.
He’d have to figure out the nanny situation, and soon. Not only did he have meetings with his agent, workouts, and a slew of other responsibilities, the season started in eight weeks. Without someone to watch Akoni, he’d be forced into earlyretirement.
He dreaded the interview process that came with finding a nanny. The nanny service he’d used to find Tiffany had sent him ten women who weren’t right, and each interview ended with him more discouraged than the last until Tiffany had shown up in sweats and a messy ponytail. She had no idea what football was and didn’t care that he played as long as his checks didn’t bounce. He thought having a woman around who wasn’t trying to impress him was a good thing, but he should have looked for someone who cared—at least a little bit—about what he thought. If he had, he might have had two weeks’ notice to find another nanny instead of being dropped at the lastminute.
“Mr. Parata?” asked one of the reporters. He’d ventured into their territory, and now he was open prey. He mentally scrambled to get into the interview mindset where every wordcounted.
“Cassidy Stone. It’s nice to meet you. Can you tell us how the offensive line isdoing?”
Teo hooked his thumb into his pants pocket. “We’re committed to being in the best shape of our careers for the upcoming season.” He took a step back. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to the camp. I don’t want to keep the kidswaiting.”
“Because you’re a father too,right?”
Teo lowered his eyebrows. Akoni was not acceptable interview material. “I am. I’ll see you later.” He hurried off, all the more determined to find a new nanny so he could leave Akoni at home and out of thespotlight.
There was someone out there who would work for both him and Akoni—he just had to find her. In the meantime, Miss Bell was the perfect solution. Sometimes things just workedout.
