CHAPTER THREE
When Hazel walked into Jake’s on Saturday night, she felt a little jittery. She’d heard Mike was back in town, and she was hoping for an indication that he and Ross had reached a positive decision about a job offer.
She went to the back tables reserved for her and her friends and saw Ross and Melissa sitting with Mike and a dark-haired beauty, along with some other group members.
Ross looked up, saw her, and waved her over to a chair next to him, across from Mike.
She greeted everyone and sat down.
“I’m glad you could make it,” said Ross. “As you can see, Mike is back in town. And this is Tracy Rodriguez. She’s going to be working in our tennis program this summer.”
Tracy smiled at her. “Hi, I’m with Mike.”
Amused by how Tracy had staked her claim on him, Hazel held out her hand. “Nice to meet you.”
As they shook hands, Hazel noted how strong Tracy’s fingers were and realized how fit she was.
More people arrived, and Hazel resigned herself to the fact that there would be no job discussion in this setting. She turned to Dani and began talking to her about the hardware store.
Because it was the weekend, people stayed longer than on some nights. By the time the group began to break up, Hazel was more than ready to go home.
As she walked out of the restaurant, Ross caught up with her. “Come see us tomorrow. We can talk. How does two o’clock sound?”
Hazel heaved a sigh of relief. “Perfect. Thanks. I’ll see you then.”
As he left, Whitney came up beside Hazel. “You’ve got an interview with Ross? I know how much you want this.”
“I’ve been pretty open about not wanting to return to teach under Nolan Deere. Hopefully, there’s a job for me at the Sports Center.”
“If that doesn’t work out, I’m sure we can all help you find a job somewhere in town,” said Whitney, giving her an encouraging pat on the back.
Hazel went to her car and climbed in, feeling optimistic.
###
The next morning, Hazel sipped coffee and nibbled on a piece of toast as she sat in front of her computer researching the Sports Center.
Their website was very helpful, showing a map of the layout of the entire project.
Ross Roberts and Mike Dawson were the majority owners with a few other investors.
Very little was said about them on the website, but Hazel looked them up online.
She knew a lot about Ross’s background, growing up in New Jersey and playing baseball since he was a kid. He’d been a standout all his sporting life. Now, he was married to Melissa Hendrickson and living in Lilac Lake. Ross was easy-going and open as he made friends in town.
Mike was another story. He was a Florida state champion in tennis who’d gone professional, had grown up in northern Florida, and had run a tennis camp year-round for several years.
The facts about him were pretty lean. Mike didn’t live in Lilac Lake, and though he was pleasant to everyone when he was visiting, he was guarded when it came to talking about himself.
Mike and she had dated one time, but Hazel lost any interest when she realized Mike had a female friend in Florida.
Though she and Mike saw each other from time to time, they kept their distance.
Now, she was in a difficult position because she needed his support to be able to work at the Sports Center.
###
As Hazel dressed for the interview, her instinct was not to fuss too much with her appearance.
She doubted any job at the Sports Center would require more than very casual clothing.
On the other hand, her training and her pride made her do her best with her hair, use a little makeup, and put on her favorite pair of slacks and a bright, floral, summer sweater.
She carried a leather folder containing two copies of her revised resumé. This updated version listed some of the work she’d done before she began her teaching career—things like the summer she worked as an administrative assistant, and the summer she worked at a children’s camp.
Hazel drove to the Sports Center, parked, and got out, interested to see some activity on the baseball field. She went to the main entrance and spoke to the person behind the reception desk. A pretty young girl who wore a T-shirt with the high school logo on it.
“I have an appointment with Ross Roberts,” she said. “I’m Hazel Belmont.”
The girl looked down at some paperwork on the desk. “Oh, I see a note here that says you’re to meet with Mike Dawson in the office.” She gave Hazel a quick smile. “You’re lucky. The office is to your right, first door on the right.”
“Thanks. I know,” said Hazel, feeling her fingers grow cold. Just her luck. Ross wouldn’t be there to support her.
Hazel walked down the corridor rehearsing pleasant things to say.
When she got to the office door, she knocked.
“Come in,” said a deep voice from inside.
Hazel opened the door and stared at Mike, who was talking on the phone. At his indication, she sat in a leather chair facing his desk.
“Okay, gotta go,” said Mike. “I’ll talk to you later.
” He hung up the phone and stood, showing off his trim, muscular, sun-kissed body that would make any woman between the ages of twelve and ninety-two drool.
His light-streaked brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail.
But it was his green eyes that captured her as the corners of them crinkled from the smile on his handsome face.
“Well, Hazel, I was surprised when Ross told me you were interested in working here. Let’s talk about that.”
Hazel had felt uncomfortable in the principal’s office. This was even worse.
Gathering herself, Hazel said, “Hi, Mike. I understand that you’re back in Lilac Lake at least for the summer.”
“Yes. It was nice to be able to leave Florida’s summer heat and come here.”
Hazel handed him her resumé. “This will explain some of my qualifications.”
He took the paper and set it down on his desk without looking at it. “I heard you quit teaching. Why?”
“It wasn’t a matter of quitting. The principal needed to find a new home for one of his third-grade teachers, and because I was the last hired, he told me he’d have no room for me in the coming year. Rather than move to a different school, I chose to leave.”
“That sounds pretty straightforward. Won’t you miss the kids? I thought you liked teaching,” Mike said.
“I do and I don’t. I certainly didn’t like working for Nolan Deere, the principal. He and I had different ideas about teaching methods. It became a sort of sick joke.”
He studied her. “Why would you choose to work at the Sports Center?”
“Actually, Misty Owens suggested I look into it. She’d heard Ross was looking for someone to help out.”
He shrugged. “Fair enough. What kind of help can you offer us?”
“If you look at my resumé, you’ll see that besides working with people of all ages, I can do administrative work.
I enjoy helping a business run smoothly.
I did that one summer in college as an assistant and liked it.
But my parents wanted me to get my teaching degree, and it seemed like the wise thing to do, a worthy profession and all that. ”
Mike’s gaze settled on her. “But if you worked in an administrative capacity here, you’d have to accept taking orders from both Ross and me. How would that work?”
Hazel twitched in her seat and then straightened. “I’ve never had a problem teaching or working for anyone before dealing with Nolan. It’s a personality clash. He even asked me to come back to teaching, when there was an increase in enrollment.”
“So, why aren’t you back?” asked Mike.
Hazel sighed and decided to speak the truth. “Haven’t you ever had a moment when you knew that a change in your life was the right thing? As soon as I was forced to look at what my life was like, I knew I wanted to try something new. This was an opportunity, not a loss.”
Mike’s lips curved. “Sort of like lemons and lemonade?”
Hazel returned his smile. “I guess you could say that. At any rate, I’m excited about the chance to work at the Sports Center.
I’ve been reading about it online and speaking to Ross.
It seems you could use someone to handle the administrative facets of the business, so you and Ross have time to work with your students. ”
Mike sat back in his chair and gave her a thoughtful look. “What would you do or change?”
“Okay, I’ve thought about this and will be honest with you. I think the person at the front desk should be wearing one of the Center’s T-shirts, make no personal comments about other staff, and take the effort to show visitors to their proper locations. It was just a quick observation.”
“We’re really casual here,” said Mike, a little defensively.
“I don’t see anything wrong with that, but a matter of training can go a long way.
I think it’s smart to hire high school students.
This is a community setting, and though I understand the Center is for the benefit of the entire region, I like the idea of presenting a positive image of Lilac Lake’s participation. ”
Mike just stared at her.
Hazel stopped talking, realizing she might have sounded too forceful about it.
“Are you always so enthusiastic about your job?” Mike asked.
“I try to be,” Hazel said, thinking she’d blown it.
“Let me look over your resume, talk to Ross, and he’ll get back to you,” said Mike. “He’s busy with a baseball clinic, or he would’ve been here.”
He rose, and Hazel followed.
“Thank you for coming in.” Mike flashed her a wicked grin. “Can you find your way out?”
Feeling her cheeks grow warm, she said, “I think I can manage.”
She left, unsure of how the interview went.
###
Instead of going home to sit and wonder about it alone, Hazel went to the Lilac Café for a late lunch. If Jake’s was the place where people in her crowd went in the evening, the Café was the place where they met during the day.
Hazel parked the car and went inside. Several people were sitting inside in booths or at tables. She checked the patio and saw an empty table outside.
As she stepped onto the patio, she noticed Taylor Gilford Walker and her husband, Cooper, sitting outside talking to an unfamiliar man.
Taylor saw her and waved her over. “Come sit with us.”
Glad for the company, Hazel walked over and joined them.
“This is Henrik Larsen, Cooper’s lawyer,” said Taylor. “He’s in town for a work visit, but we’re hosting a party for him tonight at the cottage. I hope you’ll come. We’re sending out last-minute invitations.”
“It sounds delightful,” said Hazel.
“Have a seat,” said Cooper. “We just ordered.” He waved a waitress over to them.
Hazel ordered her favorite chicken salad and a glass of iced tea and then sat back.
“Henrik, this is Hazel Belmont, a transplanted southern belle from New Orleans,” teased Cooper.
“Now, Coopah, y’all know that’s a bit of exaggeration,” said Hazel, playing along.
The newcomer was a handsome man who looked to be in his late forties or early fifties. He had light-brown hair going gray at the temples, beautiful blue eyes, and rosy cheeks that went well with his quick smile.
“I’m pleased to meet you,” said Henrik. “What do you do in town?”
“At the moment, I’m not sure. I’m a third-grade teacher who may be moving on to something else,” said Hazel. “If you’re Cooper’s lawyer, do you live in New York City?”
“Yes, but when I got the chance to carry on business here, I quickly accepted, eager to see the town I’ve heard so much about.”
“I love living here,” said Hazel. “It takes some getting used to the quirks of small-town living where everyone knows your business, but I’m at home here.”
“As exciting as New York City is, I like being part of both worlds,” said Taylor.
“I’m finding myself here more than there. As long as I can do my job anywhere, this is where I want to be. Of course, some of my work has to be done in the city,” said Cooper.
Their food came, and conversation was intermittent as they enjoyed their meal. At the end of it, Hazel politely excused herself with the promise to bring some of her fudge brownies to the party.
At home, pleased to have something to fill her afternoon as she waited for a phone call from Ross, she got out the ingredients for her brownies.
When she hadn’t heard from Ross by the time she was ready to leave for the party, she told herself that no news wasn’t necessarily bad news and headed out.