Steal My Heart (Bachelors & Bridesmaids) (3 page)

"No worries. Work?"

"Yes, I had to catch up on a few things before I leave tomorrow."

"Where exactly are you going?" Andrea asked, pouring Liz a glass of wine.

"Playworld Amusement Park."

Andrea raised an eyebrow. "Why? You hate roller coasters. They make you want to throw up. And sometimes you actually do throw up. Remember the
Fearsome Flyer
ride at the boardwalk?"

"Don't remind me," she said with a groan. "My company is competing for the Playworld account, and the owner of the park told me that I have to go on every ride and visit every concession stand before I write up my pitch. That includes the monster roller coasters."

"How are you going to do that, Liz?"

"I have no idea, but I can't let a roller coaster take me down. I need this account. If I can sign Playworld, I'll be bringing in millions of dollars. I'll be able to call my own shots at the firm."

"Maybe get an office with a window?"

She nodded, knowing that Andrea understood office politics better than anyone. "Yes, but that's enough about me. How is Alex and the love story of the century?"

Andrea smiled. "It
is
a pretty fantastic love story, I have to say. I never thought that much about falling in love until Alex knocked me off my feet. I certainly wasn't looking for love when I went to interview him two months ago."

"But that's exactly what you found. It's good to see you happy, Andrea."

"It feels good. Now, I want all of my friends to fall in love."

Liz smiled. "Well, unless Alex has six terrific brothers, that may take some time."

"Unfortunately, he's an only child. Grab some pizza and we'll go join the others. Laurel finally got her wedding albums back from the photographer, and she made up albums for each one of us."

Liz took a slice of pizza and followed Andrea back to the living room.

For the next hour, she ate pizza, drank wine and listened to Laurel talk about her first six wonderful weeks as a married woman. It was fun to see both Andrea and Laurel in love, but Liz was in no hurry to join the happily-ever-after crowd, at least not until she got her career under control.

"Look at this, Liz," Laurel said, holding up a photograph. "Your expression is hilarious."

Everyone laughed at Liz's shocked look as she caught Laurel's wedding bouquet.

"I thought you were going to throw it to Andrea," she said defensively.

Laurel gave a helpless shrug. "I was trying. But I guess I was stronger than I thought."

"So this means you're the next bride," Kate said.

"I'm going to have to find a man first," she said dryly.

"Is there anyone you're interested in?" Julie asked.

She hesitated as Michael Stafford's image flashed through her mind.

"There is someone," Kate said, jumping on her pause with a question in her eyes. "Who is it?"

"It's no one."

"You were thinking of someone a second ago," Kate said. "So talk."

"I was thinking of someone, but he's not a love interest."

"Who are we talking about?" Andrea asked.

"A guy I went to high school with."

Julie straightened. "Our high school? Who?"

"Michael Stafford."

Julie's eyes widened. "The high school quarterback? The guy that beat you out for student body president and pretty much everything else you ran for?"

"That's him. I ran into him today at Playworld. He's no longer a pro football player. He apparently runs his own public relations firm, and he's competing against me for the Playworld account."

"Just like old times," Julie said with a gleam in her eyes. "Michael used to really annoy you. I don't think I ever heard you rant about anyone the way you did about him."

"He's still annoying."

"Is he still hot?" Julie asked.

"He's all right," she muttered, seeing the smiles spread across her friend's faces. "I am not interested in him. He's a rival. I don't want to date him. I want to beat him."

"You will," Julie said confidently. "He's a football player. He can't be as good as you are, not in the world of PR."

"I hope not," she said, but she couldn't help thinking that underestimating Michael Stafford had been her downfall before. She would not make that mistake again.

Chapter Three

Liz walked through the gates of Playworld just after ten on Saturday morning. She'd already checked into the adjacent hotel and was eager to start her research. It was certainly a nice day for a trip to the amusement park. Despite the fact that it was mid November and Thanksgiving was only a week away, the temperature was already around seventy degrees.

She stripped off her sweater and tied it loosely around her waist, then paused in front of a large map to get her bearings.

The park had been built in the shape of a teddy bear, another sign of Charlie's insane desire to replicate every childhood fantasy. Each part of the bear provided a different experience, and she considered her options. She could take a ride on a roller coaster, spend some time under the sea or rocket through outer space. She could visit worlds of nightmares and fantasies without ever closing her eyes, or go back in time to the wild, wild West and the jungles of prehistoric man. Danger and adventure lurked around every corner.

She sighed, wishing she had the thrill-seeker gene, but she'd never loved the idea of heart-pounding, palm-sweating, stomach-dropping excitement. Maybe she could work her way up to the big rides, start with something easy.

Turning her back on the screeching cars of the roller coaster, she walked toward the carnival game section. Throwing darts at balloons, she could handle.

As she walked toward the first booth, the attendant gave her the typical carnival call. "Step right up," he sang out. "Bust the clown's nose and win a prize."

It wasn't his words that made her stop, but the sight of Michael Stafford preparing to throw a dart at a large clown's nose. The clown face was whirling around on a fast wheel, making the challenge that much more difficult. Dressed in faded jeans and a t-shirt, he looked like the guy from her youth, and her heart unexpectedly skipped a beat.

Michael tossed his dart and just missed the nose. A large buzzer went off. Michael frowned. "I thought I had that one."

"Try again," the attendant said. "You might get lucky this time. Only two dollars for five more tries."

As Michael dug into his pocket for his wallet, his gaze caught on Liz. Too late, she realized she'd lost her chance to slip away.

"Lizzie," he said cheerfully, waving her over. "Have you tried this one yet?"

"I just got here."

"Then it's your turn. My treat."

"I can pay my own way."

"Relax, it's two bucks," he said, handing the money to the attendant. "And I took it out of the cash Charlie left for us."

She nodded. "All right then." While most of the rides in the park were included in the entrance fee, the games here were set up like a true carnival, cash games with stuffed animals as prizes.

Michael handed her the five darts. "Here you go. I have to tell you it's harder than it looks."

"I'm surprised you would say that. You're a quarterback. You should know how to throw something at a target."

"You'd think," he said dryly.

She looked back at the spinning wheel, took aim and launched her first dart. It missed the clown's face entirely, way too short of a throw.

"At least I hit the target," he said mockingly.

"I'm getting warmed up."

She tried again. Her next three shots struck various parts of the face and head but came nowhere near the nose. She was down to her last dart, and she had the really strong feeling that beating Michael at this simple game would set the tone for the rest of the week. She picked up her dart and tried to time the spinning wheel.

"You might have to accept that you're not good at everything," Michael said.

She frowned. "You're trying to distract me."

"Just preparing you for disappointment."

"I don't plan on being disappointed."

"You always were overconfident."

"That was you, not me." She focused her gaze back on the clown, drew her arm back and threw towards the target. She was almost as shocked as Michael was when the clown's nose burst and bells rang.

"A winner. We have a winner here," the attendant shouted, drawing the attention of a group of nearby tourists. "Step right up. Everybody wins."

"I don't believe it," Michael said in unhappy surprise. "You got lucky."

"If that's what you want to think. Which prize would you like? The pink panda or the yellow bunny?"

"Very funny."

"I think I'll take the pink panda. It will go with your red face."

"Try again, lady, you can win the lion," the attendant advised.

"I'll stick with the panda." She tried to hand it to Michael, but he crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"No, thanks. You won it; it's yours," he said.

"Are you sure? I'm happy to share because…well, because I won."

A smile curved his lips. "I forgot about your tendency to gloat."

She could have told him that it wasn't possible he'd forgotten, because she had never had the opportunity to gloat. Back in high school, she couldn't remember a time when she'd actually beaten him. Hopefully, the panda was a sign of things to come. She smiled back at him. "What's next? Maybe we can find a game you'll do well at."

He laughed. "You're different, Lizzie. I don't remember you laughing much in school."

"Probably because I wore braces for six years."

"Your teeth look perfect now."

"They should. My parents practically had to mortgage the house to get them in this condition."

"How are your parents?"

Her smile faded at his innocent question. "Actually, my dad is battling cancer."

"I'm sorry," he said quickly. "I didn't know."

"Why would you? Anyway, he's a fighter so we're hoping for the best."

"You must get your fight from him."

"I think so. What about your parents? I know you said they were divorced, but are they well?"

"Yes, everyone is healthy. "My dad is still working, still traveling, very caught up in his new wife and his new life. My mother has become a quilting fanatic. I now have enough quilts to last me a lifetime, but it seems to keep her busy, and she loves being creative."

"That sounds nice. Has she remarried?"

"No, I think it pains her a little to see my dad with his much younger wife, but what can she do? Luckily, we don't run into him all that much."

"That's a drag. I can't imagine my parents breaking up. That would be really hard."

"I'm a little surprised you ended up working for your dad's firm. What happened to your art, Lizzie?"

His question sent a wistful zing down her spine. Her art seemed like a very long time ago. "It was just a hobby."

"You were really good. I remember that mural you painted in the front hallway of the school. It was amazing. I always thought you'd do something with art."

"It's hard to make money with art," she said. "My dad really wanted someone to go into his company. My brothers weren't going to follow in his footsteps. Tom is a dentist and Greg is an accountant, so it was up to me."

"Why did anyone have to follow in his footsteps? Why not follow your own dream?"

"I like what I'm doing," she said defensively. "And I'm good at it."

"I don't doubt that. But it's not your passion—is it?"

"Does it matter? I know PR is not your passion."

"True, but I went after my dream. Unfortunately, it ended on an operating table."

"Do you miss football?" she asked, seeing the shadows in his eyes.

"A lot," he admitted. "Especially now that it's football season again. It was easier not to think about it during the off season."

She could understand that. She felt a wave of compassion for his far-too-short career. Michael had been a great football player. It was sad that he couldn't play anymore. And she was getting way too friendly with him, she realized. She needed to get her focus back. "I should get going."

"Where are you headed?"

"I thought I'd go to the theater and hear Charlie's story."

"I'll go with you."

She wanted to send him on his way, but there was no danger in watching the movie together. After that, she'd go it alone. She had no interest in revealing her fear of roller coasters to her competition.

On the way to the theater, they passed a mom dealing with a squealing toddler who was apparently very unhappy about something. Liz paused. "Any chance your little girl would like this panda?" she asked.

The girl's sobs immediately quieted.

"Thank you," the mom said with heartfelt sincerity. "She just dropped her ice cream cone, so this helps a lot."

Liz smiled and handed the girl the bear.

"That was nice of you," Michael said.

"I thought she needed it more than I did."

Five minutes later they sat down together in a small theater of about two-dozen seats. There were no other guests in the auditorium, so they took seats in the middle of the second row.

"This attraction doesn't seem to be bringing in the crowds," Michael commented.

That was certainly true. And being alone with Michael in a dimly lit theater now didn't seem like the brightest idea. "Maybe we should come back later."

"It says it's starting in five minutes. Might as well get this task out of the way."

"I guess."

"So do you see any of the old crowd from high school?" he asked.

"Just Julie Michaels. We ended up being college roommates. I don't know if you remember her."

"Sure," he said with a nod. "Her father was a baseball star."

Of course Michael would remember that about Julie. "He was," she agreed. "But not a star at being a husband or father. He cheated on her mother," she added at his questioning look. "And he had another kid with his long-time lover. It was really hard on Julie. I don't think she even talks to him anymore."

"That's rough," Michael said.

"Not an uncommon story when it comes to pro athletes," she murmured.