Fair Catch (13 page)

“Need some help?” someone asked, making her nearly drop the bag of grass.

 She looked up, appalled to see she had an audience. Nick and his guests stood on the edge of his front yard, staring at her. From the look of the crowd gathered, they probably didn’t know people who actually cut their own grass.

Nick smiled at her, his hands in his pockets, looking extremely handsome. He was surrounded by a couple of gorgeous women who looked like they were sneering. The other good-looking man Ellie recognized from television. Alec Lawson, was it?

Nick started toward her and Ellie took out the ear buds, hoping she didn’t look as bad as she felt. She hadn’t showered before mowing the lawn. What was the point of looking good while doing yard work?

“Sorry. Did I disturb your party?”

“Of course not.” Concern flashed in his eyes. “My guests and I were done with dinner.” His eyes crinkled and he gave her a soft smile. “I told my associates how nice all the neighbors have been to me and they wanted to meet you.”

The warmth in his eyes made her stomach quiver. It had been so long since seeing him last, and he looked good.

Mr. Lawson moved forward, pulling Ellie’s gaze from Nick. The guy was gorgeous with smoldering eyes and a rakish smile. His brown eyes slowly scanned the length of her. “Nick does have
nice
neighbors.” He offered his hand to Ellie. “I’m Alec, Nick’s business manager.”

Feeling her face go hot, she shook his hand. “I’m Ellie. It’s nice to meet you.” Alec kept a firm grasp, his eyes dipping down again. Was he looking at the stain or something else? He just went from gorgeous to creepy.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ellie noticed the muscle in Nick’s jaw tense as his eyes followed his agent’s movements. She withdrew her hand and placed it at her side, tempted to wipe it across her pant leg.

“The pleasure’s all mine, Ellie,” Alec said, his eyes coming back up to meet hers.

Uncomfortable with the look in Alec’s eyes, she shifted her gaze to Nick. He scowled at his manager and almost looked…jealous?

A stunning woman, wearing a formfitting gold dress, laced her arm through Nick’s, demanding his attention. Nick’s eyes locked on Ellie before he tore his gaze away and offered the woman a tightlipped smile.

The woman peered adoringly into Nick’s eyes. “Nicky, I hate to leave you in this simple town.” She slanted a glance at Ellie, who understood she was the
simple
part. “When you’re in L.A. again, I insist on you staying with me.”

Nicky?
Was this his girlfriend?

Nick gave a light laugh and pulled slightly away. “Sorry, Miranda, but if I’m in California, my mother would kill me if I didn’t stay with her.”

Miranda pouted and glared at Ellie.

Then as if remembering himself, Nick straightened and said, “Forgive me for not introducing you. Ellie, this is Miranda Hawkins. She and her husband are generous contributors for
Kids Come First
.”

Was it Ellie’s imagination or had Miranda just frowned at the mention of her husband?

Nick motioned with his hand to the redhead wearing a very immodest dress and a smirk on her pretty face “This is Miranda’s friend, Kara…” He paused, clearly not knowing the woman’s last name.

She smiled and filled in the blank. “Worthington.”

Ellie’s eyes flitted back and forth between the two women and felt shabby in her jeans and T-shirt. “It’s nice to meet both of you.” Neither woman replied.

Okay, the shows over
. Ellie reached down to lift the grass bag. “I better finish—”

Alec took a step forward. “Ellie, would you like me to hold the trashcan lid open for you?”

Nick’s eyes narrowed, the muscle in his jaw clenched tight. “Alec, I don’t want you to miss your flight. Traffic can sometimes be horrendous.”

Alec looked at his watch. “I’ve got time.”

Cade chose that moment to make an appearance. “Mom, can you make me Mac and Cheese? I’m hungry.”

“I’ll be right there, sweetie.” Ellie looked over her shoulder, hoping Cade would stay inside. If she remembered correctly, the shirt he wore had cherry Icee stains on the front.

Miranda’s plump lips curved up into a condescending smile. “How sweet. You’re a mommy.”

Her sugary delivered sarcasm rankled Ellie. “Thank you. I’m lucky to have seven healthy children.” She grinned wickedly. “They keep me so busy that mowing the lawn is actually the highlight of my week.” The woman gasped at the outrageous number Ellie had just lied about. Nick looked like he was biting the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing.

“Well, I better get inside to feed my crew. If they get too hungry, it can get really ugly.” Ellie took a step backward. “Nice to meet you all.” Abandoning the lawn mower, she held her head high and marched back inside her house.

Just before she closed the door, Alec said, “Man, she’s pretty hot for having that many kids.”

Once inside the house, Ellie leaned back against the closed door and let out a big breath. Was that the kind of woman Nick liked? If that was the pond he fished in, no wonder he was still single.

Feeling a little grumpy, Ellie went to the kitchen, filled a pan with water, and placed it on the stove to boil. She opened a box of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese and dumped the pasta in the water. As she stirred the noodles, she wondered if Nick’s friends were still outside. Then she wondered why she even cared. He obviously lived in a different world. How long before he grew tired of Pleasant Wood and moved on?

As she finished making Cade his dinner, she also wondered if Nick Coulter was still willing to take them to Disneyland. After meeting his peers, it seemed even more ridiculous than before.

Cade was tired and had gone a week without watching SpongeBob, so she allowed him to eat in front of the television. She felt guilty about his dinner and promised to make him a smoothie after she finished mowing the lawn. Nick and his friends were not going to stop her from doing her yard work.

Before going back outside, she got herself a tall glass of ice water. She had guzzled it halfway when she heard the sound of a lawnmower engine. Placing the glass on the counter, she wiped the back of her hand across her mouth and went out front to see Nick Coulter mowing her lawn. He wore basketball shorts, a snug T-shirt and had a ball cap on backwards. Emotions whirled inside her stomach like the inside of a smoothie maker. The man was too gorgeous… well, for a man.

It didn’t take him long to fill the bag. She silently watched him as he hefted it over to the trash can and dumped the grass clippings inside it. Just when she thought she had finally figured him out, he had to go and do something nice again.

The trashcan lid slammed shut and he lifted his eyes. A slow smile tipped one side of his mouth. “Hi.”

Good heavens. The man’s smile positively made her knees weak. “What’re you doing?”

He cut the engine to the lawnmower and brushed his hands against his shorts as he walked toward her. “Mowing your lawn.”

“I can see that. The question is why?”

“Because I wanted to.” He paused just below the porch step. “And my guests were rude to you and I don’t want that to ruin our friendship.”

He didn’t want to ruin their friendship?
Swallowing, she glanced across the street and noticed his car was the only one parked in the driveway. “So they’re gone?”

“Yes. I really am sorry.” His voice was soft and sincere. “They were getting ready to leave and Alec insisted on meeting you.”

“Me?” She laughed out loud. “Why on earth would he want to meet me?”

Nick’s eyes darkened. “Because, Ellie Garrett, you are a very beautiful woman.”

Uh huh
. Like she could compete with the women from Hollywood. She looked down at her faded jeans and the white T-shirt that now had a couple of grass stains on the front. “Yeah. I look stunning right now,” she said dryly.

His eyes narrowed a fraction. “That’s what Alec thought.”

Remembering how Alec had looked her over made her squirm. She shoved the tips of her fingers into her jean pockets. “Does he come around very often?”

Nick’s mouth lifted at the corner. “Only when he has to. But I promise the next time he comes, I’ll personally hire six siblings for Cade and let them all run wildly through my house.”

Ellie giggled. “I’m sorry I lied, but she was so obnoxious.” Then she sobered and tipped her head to one side. “Are you dating her?”

Nick pulled a face that looked like Cade being asked to eat cauliflower. “What? No! Of course not.” He put his hands on his hips. “You really think I would date someone like her?”

No. Typically he dated young, beautiful women. She shrugged. “I guess not.”

He squinted, his mouth compressed into a thin line. “I don’t date married women.”

What about previously married women?
“I forgot you mentioned she had a husband.”

“Unfortunately, Miranda likes to forget she has a husband also.” He pulled his ball cap off and then slapped it back on the right way. “She has a thing for me, but I’ve never encouraged her.”

Poor guy. If only he knew how many women had a thing for him. She fidgeted uneasily because she just might be one of them. “I’m sure you haven’t.” She stepped off the porch and walked past him. “I’ll take over the yard now.”

For someone so big, he moved pretty fast. “No. I’ll finish it.” He took a hold of the handle possessively.

“You don’t have to do that.” She grabbed onto the handle and nudged him out of the way with her hip. “I can do it myself,
Nicky
.” She shouldn’t have added that last part. It made her sound jealous.

He didn’t budge. Ellie raised her eyes and watched as a slow smile curved his mouth. “It’s Nick.” He placed his hand over hers. “I know you can do it, but I want to do this for you.”

Ellie wanted to argue, but she was rendered speechless. In fact, she might not even be breathing. How could one touch from this man make her whole body feel like it was on fire? She stepped away from him just so she could think again.

“Really, you don’t—”

“Nick!” Cade shouted, cutting off Ellie’s protest as he raced across the yard. “I missed you.” He threw his little arms around Nick’s bare leg, covered in dark hair.

Something tugged at Ellie’s heart at the glow of pleasure shining in Nick’s eyes. “Hey, Cade.” He patted him on the head. “I missed you too.”

Cade tipped his face up to the football player. “Can you play?”

Nick’s eyes flickered over to look at Ellie and his mouth lifted into an overconfident grin. “Not right now. I’m going to finish mowing the lawn for your mom.”

Ellie didn’t refute the offer this time. It would be pointless. “Thank you.” Her heart melted at the tenderness Nick showed her son.

Cade grabbed a hold of Nick’s hand and started jumping up and down. “My mom said when she finished the lawn she would make me a smoothie.” Cade looked up at Ellie. “Can you make one for Nick too?”

Two sets of blue eyes were focused on her, waiting for her reply. She moistened her lips and nervously settled her gaze on Nick, trying to see if he was okay with the invitation. He almost looked more hopeful than Cade. “Sure. If he wants to.”

Another grin crept across his face. “As soon as I’m done, I’ll take a quick shower and come right over.”

Ellie wanted to rescind the invite when she remembered how messy her house was. Plus, she still had to take a shower. “Okay. We’ll see you soon.”

She figured she had approximately forty-five minutes to clean up and get ready. As the lawnmower started up again, she slipped inside her house, feeling an unexpected surge of happiness.

And hope.

* * *

The doorbell sounded just as Ellie wiped down the countertop. She tossed the paper towel in the trash and glanced at the clock. If that was Nick at the door, he’d finished the lawn and showered in record-breaking time. Only thirty minutes had passed since she’d dashed into the house. It was a good thing she’d showered first. Although her hair was slightly damp, at least she had on clean clothes and had touched up her makeup.

She tugged on the bottom of another one of her new T-shirts as she crossed the kitchen floor. Cade beat her to the door, opened it and launched himself against Nick’s jean-clad leg.

“Hey, Cade.” Nick’s eyes slid over to look at Ellie. “Hi.”

Every time he did that, her heart fluttered, making her breath catch. “Hello.” She wondered if she should peel her son off of his leg. “Cade, will you please run upstairs and put on your pajamas? When you come back we can make smoothies together.”

A smile split his adorable little face. “Okay. I’ll hurry.”

He better. He was her buffer against the quarterback.

Suddenly the entryway seemed to shrink and the air thinned as her eyes perused over the man standing only a foot away. His hair was damp from a recent shower and a faint shadow of whiskers darkened his jaw. He wore another tight fitting T-shirt that emphasized his broad shoulders and chest. He smelled really good, a spicy clean scent that drifted all around her.

“What?” he teased. “Don’t I match?”

Great
. She had been staring at him. “Uh, no.” Ellie tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “I was just trying to figure out what color your shirt is.”

He looked down at his shirt and then back up at her. “I believe they call this color blue.” He took a step closer. “What color did you come up with?”

It
was
blue. Now what? “Uh, I think it’s more like sapphire.” She lifted one shoulder and looked away. “It’s nice…and matches your eyes.”

He obviously didn’t believe in personal space as he drew a little closer. “You think my eyes are like sapphires?”

Her gaze returned and she stared into his oh-so blue eyes. “Well…yes, you have nice eyes.”

A slow smile spread across his face. “Thanks. Wasn’t it Mr. Darcy who said Elizabeth had fine eyes?”

She stared at him in disbelief. “You’ve watched Pride and Prejudice?” Okay, this man
was
perfect.

“My mother is obsessed with the show. I could probably quote a few more lines if it will impress you.”