Chapter 4
Girls’ night had been exactly what the doctor ordered after the past few days. How it was only Thursday made me wonder if I had slept through an entire week. Then again, I’d spent the majority of my workday dissecting Jimmy’s social media and taking over his account.
He had over a million followers, which could definitely be used to promote the team in a positive light. I started to go through his posts. For the most part, there were pictures of him during games, a couple of his family, and then one with him holding a little girl, whom I knew to be Remington Thorne’s daughter.
“What is it about men and babies?” I asked no one as I turned into the parking lot for Jake’s Pub. Thankfully, I found a spot in the crowded lot not far from the entrance.
Thanks to Utah’s altitude, the air wasn’t filled with humidity, which meant my hair wouldn’t become a frizzfest. I very rarely, if ever, left it curly. Anytime I visited the East Coast in the summer, I’d usually wear it in some sort of updo so I didn’t instantly resemble a clown.
I pulled open the heavy door, and the familiar scent of aged wood and alcohol enveloped me as I stepped inside. The buzz of chatter blended with the country music piped in through the jukebox in the corner.
Thanks to being a Bennett and affiliated with the Hawks, I prompted my share of stares wherever I went. I hadn’t bothered mentioning that to Jimmy since there really wasn’t a comparison between my level of popularity and his. Let’s face it, I had a million fewer followers than he did.
I scanned the room, searching for the familiar faces of my friends. After a few nods and quick hellos to strangers, I found my girls in our favorite corner booth. Sarah, Annie, and Lila all waved to me.
Annie jumped up from the booth, arms open wide for a hug. “Sommer, I’m so glad you made it.”
She had always been the most animated of the group, but tonight seemed to top that. “Hi,” I replied, feeling the warmth of friendship wash over me. “You’re in a good mood.”
She slid back into the booth next to Lila, and I sat next to Sarah. “So what’s going on? Why are we out on a Thursday?”
Before anyone could answer, a server appeared with four Aperol spritzes and disappeared just as quickly. I glanced around and got the feeling everyone knew something I didn’t. Before I could question them again, Annie thrust her left hand in front of her face. A sparkling diamond made my mouth drop.
“I’m engaged!” she shrieked.
“Oh my God! When did this happen?”
“Yesterday. Rick surprised the hell out of me. One minute, we were watching a quiz show, guessing answers, and the next, he was down on one knee. I was stunned. I mean, we’ve talked about it, of course, but he shocked me.”
I picked up my glass, and my friends did the same. “To Annie and Rick, may you have a wonderful life together.”
“Hear! Hear!” Lila shouted as we all clinked our glasses before taking a sip. For the next hour, our booth became a hub of laughter and shared stories, each of us catching up on the week’s triumphs and my tribulation—Jimmy Hall.
“I’d be happy to take that,” Sarah announced. “Sommer, he’s hot as fire. Have you honestly looked at the man? I know you’re around athletes all day?—”
“Such a hardship,” Annie added with a wink. When I glared at her, she laughed and took a sip of her third cocktail.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about. The man is arrogant, annoying ...”
“And here,” Lila said, pointing toward the bar.
In an instant, my head snapped to where her index finger was aimed. As luck—or, in my case, misfortune—would have it, he turned at the same time and caught my eye. He gave me a wide smile and started heading our way. Naturally, several people stopped him, giving me time to gather my thoughts ... not many of them positive.
“Introduce me,” Lila said, smoothing down her hair.
Sarah followed suit. “Oh, me too!”
“And me!” Annie exclaimed before adding, “Rick loves him. Can he sign something?”
Sarah giggled. “He can sign my boob! Not for Rick, of course.”
They all laughed while tiny beads of sweat coated the back of my neck. “I think you ladies should calm down. He’s not that special.”
“You’re hot-guy blind. I bet he’s good in bed.” Lila sighed.
My friends were going to be the death of me. Before I could scold and instruct them not to drool over him, he arrived looking as confident and cocky as ever. Jimmy’s masculine cologne, mixed with a clean smell I remembered from our meeting, wafted around me. Why did certain men smell so good?
“Good evening, ladies.” Then he looked at me. “Miss Bennett, how are you today?”
Lila sprayed her drink all over Sarah, who sat across from her. “Miss Bennett?” She laughed and handed Sarah a few napkins, mouthing I’m sorry as she wiped down the table.
Not missing a beat, Jimmy’s deep voice brought all eyes back to him. “Yes, that is what she’d like me to call her. Isn’t that right, Miss Bennett?”
Much to my dismay, my traitorous friends giggled, and my eyes narrowed on the giggle-inducer.
“I’m Jimmy Hall.” He extended his hand to Annie first.
“I’m Annie.”
“She just got engaged,” Lila happily revealed before introducing herself.
Jimmy nodded. “Congratulations, Annie. He’s a lucky man.”
“Damn straight he is. I’m Sarah,” my jovial friend announced with a hair flip.
“Very nice meeting you all. I don’t want to interrupt your celebration. I just came to pick up dinner. Jake makes a mean burger.”
While everyone chatted, I sat there wondering if I’d entered an alternate universe. I also couldn’t believe my luck—or misfortune, depending on how you looked at it. Jimmy was the epitome of charm and allure. Undeniably gorgeous, tall, with a strong jawline covered with the perfect amount of stubble and piercing blue eyes that seemed to see into my thoughts. He was the kind of man who turned heads wherever he went.
But what made my heart race wasn’t just his looks; it was the fact that he didn’t seem affected by me at all, and I didn’t mean that in a sexual way. You’d think that after our meeting, he’d tone down his sexiness, but while I thought there was tension and could barely smile, his pearly whites lit up the room.
There had been zero doubt in my mind that if he wasn’t him, and I wasn’t me, my single friends would be all over him. As it was, Lila and Sarah both looked as though they could melt into their seats.
A few minutes later, a very pretty female server walked up to him with a brown shopping bag.
“Here you go, Jimmy. Is there anything else you’d like?”
She eyed him up and down, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from rolling. There had been no disguising the innuendo that hung on to the end of that question. Or the way her red-tipped fingers gripped his forearm. I tried to focus on anything else other than him, but his presence made it impossible to ignore the fluttering in my chest.
Then, an image of them popping up on social media had me almost barking, “He’s all set.”
Jimmy’s brows shot up to his hairline before giving me a smirk. He turned toward the young woman. “Yes, like the lady said, I’m all set. Tell Jake thanks for rushing this.”
She glared at me before spinning on her heel and stomping away.
“Wow, that was impressive,” Annie said, giving me a nod of approval.
“Yes, very impressive, Miss Bennett.” He leaned down, and his warm breath caressed my neck. He whispered loud enough for only me to hear: “I wasn’t going to ask her for anything. I’m being good, just like you asked. But I must say that you almost sounded jealous ... possessive even.”
I reared back and practically knocked heads with Lila, who had been leaning toward me, no doubt to hear what he had to say. God love my friends for wanting to know everything happening in my life. For months, they’d been telling me to get out there and date. But I hadn’t wanted to. I would bet my life that they would want me to break my no-dating-a-player rule after meeting Jimmy.
“Hardly.” I stood and excused myself from the table, then motioned for him to follow me until we were outside. Turning, I crossed my arms and tipped my head back to look at him. Despite knowing there had been no chance they’d heard him ... this time. I needed to nip it in the bud. “Please don’t say things like that to me in front of my friends. I love them, but I don’t need them speculating about us. Nor do I need anyone at the bar thinking we’re anything other than colleagues. It’s bad enough that I spent the better part of my week cleaning up your social media accounts. Speaking of, we need to go over who you follow. Are you available tomorrow?”
“My apologies. I’ll never whisper in your ear again unless you ask me to. And tomorrow doesn’t work. I have practice in the morning, then a team meeting. I’d suggest tomorrow night, but I’m babysitting Remington’s daughter, Ariel.”
An image of Jimmy playing with a little girl did weird things to my belly. Things that had no business being there. “That’s nice of you.”
“Since we leave for Omaha on Sunday, Rem and Meg are having a date night. Plus, their daughter, Ariel, loves me. Hey, why don’t you come over? She’ll be in bed by eight. They won’t be home until much later. They’re going to dinner and then to a play in the city. It was a gift for Meg’s birthday. Then we can discuss things.”
“I don’t know if that’s such a great idea.” Those damn blue eyes. I had a feeling they were to blame for getting him both in trouble and out of it.
“All right, then we’ll need to wait until I get back home. We have back-to-back road games.”
I knew that. I also knew that I didn’t want to wait another week to go over everything. It had been clear that he didn’t know that I’d be traveling with the team. But the sooner this assignment was over, the better. “Fine, I’ll meet you tomorrow night.”
Without hesitation, he grabbed his phone and began tapping on his screen. In a matter of seconds, my cell beeped.
“That’s his address. I figured you could get it, but I also gave you a barcode for the gate. Why don’t you come over around seven? That way, you’ll get out of Ariel’s system. If you come too late, she’ll want you to play all the things and never go to bed.”
“Sounds like you know her well.”
“I do.”
Silence stretched between us for a few long seconds. “I’m going to get back to my friends. And your dinner is getting cold.” He looked down at his hand as though he’d forgotten about it. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Once again, that smile appeared. “See you tomorrow, Miss Bennett.”
On a nod, I pivoted toward the door and, without a backward glance, headed inside, where I knew my friends were ready to pepper me with questions. None of which I’d change my answer to. They knew me better than that. Work was my goal, not hooking up with Jimmy Hall.
* * *
Remington and Meg’s home was beautiful. The exterior was a mixture of stone and brick, perfect for the mountain backdrop behind it. I couldn’t help but smile at the small pink Adirondack chair next to three red adult-sized ones. Adjusting my messenger bag’s strap on my shoulder, I rang the doorbell, suddenly wondering if I should have knocked instead.
The door whooshed open, and my eyes widened. In an instant, my lips rolled between my teeth as I looked at Jimmy’s bright-pink lips and blue eye shadow. My guess had been the little girl in his arms, who held a pink unicorn purse, had been responsible for his makeover.
I instantly liked her.
“Hi.”
“Hi,” I replied, looking at the little girl. “You must be Ariel.”
“I put makeup on Uncle Yimmy.”
“Yes, you did,” he agreed before shaking his head. “Come on in, Miss Bennett.”
The door closed, and I turned to look at him once more before bringing my attention to Ariel. “Hi, I’m Sommer.”
“Really?” Jimmy grumbled. “She gets to call you by your first name?”
Ignoring him, I added, “I love your purse.”
“Uncle Yimmy bought it for me. I wuv it.”
Jimmy kissed her head and set her down. “We need to get cleaned up and get your pajamas on. It’s almost bedtime.”
“But I wanna pway wit Sommer,” she whined.
Not wanting to interfere, I remained quiet and waited to see how he handled her.
“I know you do, but if you want time for a snack and a story, then you need to get ready for bed. You know the rules.”
Her tiny bottom lip protruded a bit before she sighed. “Okay.”
“That’s my girl.” Jimmy kissed her cheek, stamping pink lips on it. Ariel giggled, and he laughed along with her, and I couldn’t help but smile at them. “We’ll be right back. Make yourself at home. There’s soda, iced tea, and water in the fridge. Unless you’d like coffee, then you can have that too. Everything for that is on the coffee bar. I don’t drink while I watch her, but if you’d like to, there’s wine and beer. Help yourself.”
“Thank you. I’m fine.”
“Okay. We’ll be right back.”
I watched him go up the stairs, set my bag down on the sofa, and took a moment to look around. The living room was designed around a floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace that matched the facade of the home. Despite the vastness of the room, it felt cozy ... homey. It reminded me of my granddad’s house, except he didn’t have pink toys scattered about.
After several minutes, footsteps coming down the stairs grabbed my attention. When I turned, Jimmy had Ariel in his arms. Neither of them had a trace of makeup on, which I’m sure made him happy. Although, come to think of it, he didn’t look upset by it. Another side of him that I clearly didn’t know.
Ariel looked adorable in her bright-pink pajamas with little white polka dots. Her damp blonde hair clung to her cheeks, most likely from where Jimmy had washed her face. When they stepped into the living room, she ran over to the cubby next to the fireplace and pulled a book off the shelf before scurrying over to us.
“Dis one, Uncle Yimmy!” She enthusiastically handed him a book, and he chuckled.
“I think you might have this one memorized.” He looked at me. “She loves stories about princes and princesses.”
He sat on the couch, and she hopped up on his lap. “Mommy said they’re faiwy tales.” She looked up at him. “Does that mean they don’t come twue?”
Jimmy kissed the top of her head. “No, it doesn’t mean that. Fairy tales can come true.”
For too long, I stood and stared at the two of them, wondering how the cocky player who had arrogance running through his veins as though it were blood could be so sweet. It didn’t escape me that if women saw this side of him, they’d melt like an ice cube on hot asphalt.
His eyes met mine. “Right, Miss Bennett?”
I blinked a few times. “I’m sorry, what?”
“Fairy tales. I told Ariel they can come true.”
Swallowing the cotton ball in my mouth, I nodded. “Yes, of course they can. Remember, you make your own happily ever after. You don’t need the prince.”
“Miss Bennett is right. You don’t need a prince to be happy. But you don’t want to miss out on all the fun a prince could bring you.” He shot me a sexy wink. “I’m going to go warm up your milk. I’ll be right back.”
For the next twenty minutes, I listened to Jimmy read to Ariel until her milk was gone and she was asleep in his arms. Like a pro, he set the book down, then the bottle, before getting up without waking the sweet little girl.
That time, when he walked away, I decided to watch how his loose jeans hung perfectly on him. His ass looked grabbable, and his army-green T-shirt stretched across his defined back. Add those attributes to the way he cared for the little girl in his arms, and I could have easily been a goner. Maybe even tell him to call me Sommer.
Except I couldn’t fall for his charm.
He reappeared and began cleaning up the room, putting away toys and the book. Wanting to help, I sprang up and brought the empty bottle into the kitchen, where Jimmy met me.
“Thank you. I noticed you didn’t get yourself anything to drink. Would you like something?”
“Water would be great.” He nodded and grabbed us two bottles out of the refrigerator. He cracked them open and handed me mine. “Thank you. You’re really great with her.”
“Thanks. I love that little girl. She reminds me of my sister when she was a toddler. I’m her favorite babysitter too.”
I didn’t doubt it. Putting all images of him with kids out of my mind, I walked into the living room and grabbed my bag. Once I pulled out my tablet, I went on to explain all I’d done with his social media accounts. Then asked the question I’d had on my mind: “Do you personally know all the people you follow?”
“Um ... I’m not sure. Why? Did someone send something? Boob shot?”
“Sorry to disappoint you, no boobs.”
He chuckled. “I was just kidding.”
We sat down at the table. I brought up his account. I’d saved the photo of him and the two girls. “I noticed you followed one of these girls—” Before I could expand on my thought, he offered up some information.
“That’s Monica and Rachel. They’re sisters ... and jersey jumpers.”
“Monica and Rachel?” I scoffed.
“Their parents were fans of the show.”
I couldn’t help but jokingly ask, “Where was Phoebe?”
“She was hanging out with McManus.”
“Seriously?” Then, deciding I didn’t want to know, I clicked the “Unfollow” button. “The only people who can tag you are those you follow. I can’t prevent hashtags, but this will help for now.”
“Fine. Look, it’s not my fault women find me irresistible.”
“Not all women,” I mumbled.
“The night’s still young, Miss Bennett.”