He's Back: A Second Chance Romance

by Aria Ford

  A low chuckle touches my ear from behind. “Come on, man. Quit fooling. Something’s bothering you, or you wouldn’t be pacing around like a hungry bear before a meeting like this. I think I know you well enough to recognize the signs. What happened to throw you off?”

  I pace back the other way with my hands on my hips. I want to keep quiet and tell him nothing’s wrong, but when I get near him, it just sort of jumps out of my mouth by itself. “It’s Jade. She’s up to her old tricks. She just called me up to say she’s coming after Ivy again.”

  Connor stiffens. He’s not my best friend for nothing. “Holy crap.”

  I nod and pace back the other way. I look all around the room, but I don’t see anything in front of me. “We got this new nanny coming in this morning. She’s home with Ivy right now.”

  Connor brightens up. “Oh, so you’re covered. You have nothing to worry about.”

  I fly at him with both hands waving. “That’s just the thing. I called her to warn her about Jade coming around, but she didn’t listen. She didn’t take it seriously. I can’t trust her to keep Jade away if she tries something. I’m going crazy about what might be happening at home.”

  Connor frowns. “That’s not so good, is it?”

  “What am I gonna do?” I hiss. “I can’t go through with this meeting. I can’t concentrate. I have to get out of here and make sure everything’s okay.”

  “You can’t leave, man,” Connor returns. “You’re the chief, and these clients won’t hear the figures from anyone but you. You would have to cancel the meeting and reschedule it.”

  “I know that!” I cry. “That’s the whole problem.”

  Just then, the clients start filing into the room. I compress my lips, but my mind roils in torment. This can’t be happening to me. I can’t lose it in front of them or I’m sunk.

  Connor drops his voice to a whisper. He slices his finger toward the door. “Get out of here, man. I’ll cover for you.”

  I brace my shoulders. “No. I’ve got to do this.”

  The clients walk up to us, and the chief sticks out his hand. “Good to see you again, Mr. Gibbs. I’m so looking forward to working with you, and I hear you have some exciting figures to share with us today.”

  I force a smile and shake his hand. “Thank you, Sir. I certainly hope you’re as happy with the figures as I am. Now if you’d like to take a seat, we can get started.”

  He withdraws. Connor leans toward me. “You’re the man. You can do this.”

  I grimace through my bared teeth. “I’ll kill her for this. I swear to God I will.”

  He slaps my shoulder. “It’ll be all right. She just called you. She won’t try anything the same day. She’s not that evil.”

  I nod, but I’m too worked up to answer. I can’t speak at all, so how in the blazes am I gonna get through this flamin’ meeting?

  The clients arrange themselves around the chief. They sit in a semi-circle facing me. They smile and chit-chat while they wait for…something. My own people come in behind them, and they sit around watching me, too. Everyone hangs on what I’m gonna do next. Now if I could only figure out what I’m gonna do next, I’d be all set.

  I take a deep breath. I’ve got nothing left to do but start the presentation. I just have to put Jade and Ivy and Kira Malone and everything else out of my mind. I turn aside when Connor lays his hand on my arm. He murmurs into my ear. “Hey, man, how would it be if I zip around to your place, just to make sure everything’s under control?”

  My eyes pop open. “You can’t do that. You’ve got to be here for this meeting, too. We planned this for weeks.”

  He shakes his head. “I don’t have to be here. I’m just gonna sit around and listen to you, but you can email me the figures and I can go over them later so I’m up to speed. This is more important. You stay here and deliver the presentation. I’ll go to your house and make sure the nanny is okay. If Jade shows up, I’ll make sure she doesn’t leave until you come home.”

  Blessed relief washes over me. All my anxiety pours out through my feet. “Would you really do that, man?”

  “Of course.” He’s already turning away. “Don’t think anything more about it. I’ve got it under wraps. You handle this end, and I’ll take care of Jade.”

  I stare at him, and a lump sticks in my throat. I can barely get out the words. “Thanks, man. I really appreciate it.”

  “Forget it. What are friends for?”

  He starts to walk away, but I can’t stop myself from grabbing him and pulling him into a bear hug. He slaps me on the back and laughs. Then he pushes me away and walks out the door.

  I’m just as choked up now as I was before, but I’m so happy I can’t even speak. I fiddle with my notes to cover up the feelings. At least there’s one person in the world who still knows what’s what. I’m not completely alone, even if it seems that way sometimes.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Kira

  Jade jumps out of her chair. “I know! Why don’t we all play a game of Monopoly? What do you say, Ivy? How about it, Kira? Sit down here on the floor. Let’s play. That will be fun.”

  Without waiting for anyone to agree, she sits down on the floor and crosses her legs under her. She sets out the board and starts counting the money. I’m not sure what to do until Ivy sets down her violin and comes over to sit across from her mother. She still doesn’t speak or look up at anybody, but she takes her money and her game pieces. She goes through the motions of the game, so I might as well do the same thing as long as it lasts.

  I sit down, too. I sit Indian-style and organize my bills while Jade natters about the rules of the game. I’m still not certain how this is going to work out with Ivy in a coma over there, but at least these two are sitting in the same room together. They can’t get into trouble playing Monopoly, and nothing dangerous is gonna happen.

  The doorknob clicks again, and Jade whips around with a gasp as a tall man steps into the room. He’s taller than Isaac by a head, but not as burly around the shoulders. His gelled hair curves around from a cowlick on his forehead to hang over one eye.

  He breaks into a wide grin. “Well, isn’t this a cozy scene? It looks like I’m just in time. Deal me in.”

  Ivy bursts to life. She jumps to her feet and upsets her stack of money. “Connor!”

  She rushes over and hugs him around the leg. Her grin spreads from ear to ear. I can’t believe she reacted that way when she wouldn’t look sideways at her own mother. The man rubs her back and smiles down at her. “Hello, baby girl. How’s it hanging?”

  He grins at me and sticks out his hand. “How are you doing? You’re the new nanny, aren’t you? I’m Connor Armstrong. I’m a friend of Isaac’s.”

  “I’m Kira Malone. Nice to meet you.”

  “Don’t beat around the bush, Connor,” Jade breaks in. “You’re Isaac’s best friend. You’re his partner in crime and his chief henchman.”

  I look back and forth between the two of them. Jade bares her teeth at him and her eyes flash fire, but Connor only laughs. “I guess that’s one way of looking at it.” He drops into the nearest chair. “So what are you ladies up to this fine summer day?”

  “Well, we were about to play a game of Monopoly,” I begin.

  Jade throws her money on the board. “Oh, forget it. We can’t play with so many interruptions.”

  Connor smiles at her. Then he turns to me. “Isaac said he hired a new nanny. I was expecting another Croatian matron, not a hottie like you.”

  I blush and look away. “I’m nothing special.”

  “Oh, you’re something very special,” he counters. “Where can I get a nanny like you to come live in my house? What service do you work for?”

  I can’t help but smile, but my cheeks burn. “I don’t think you can get that kind of nanny from the service I work for.”

  Ivy attacks him and pounces on his lap. “When are you going to teach me some more of those card tricks, Connor? You said you would teach me how to palm co
ins, too. I’ve been practicing the one you taught me. I need another one.”

  She strokes her fingers through his hair and pets his cheek. She gazes up into his face with an adoring smile. Connor blushes. “Oh, all right. If you insist, you better get the cards out, but I didn’t bring any coins.”

  Ivy leaps to her feet. “I’ve got coins. This is going to be so great! I can’t wait to learn all your magic tricks.”

  She races out of the room. Connor grins at me and calls after her through the open door. “Don’t think I’m going to teach you all my tricks. That would be giving too much away. You wouldn’t think I was so interesting if I did.”

  I can’t stop myself from smiling back at him. He’s very attractive, and his laughing eyes and glowing cheeks would flatter any woman he chose to look at.

  Jade stands in front of the window. She props her hands on her hips and glares across the room at him. Connor looks sideways at her. “So where are you living these days, Jade? I heard you were taking a medical transcription course. Did you finish it yet?”

  Jade spins away and mumbles to the window. “No, I didn’t finish it yet.”

  “It’s great to see you getting back into the employment market,” Connor goes on. “How much longer do you have to go before you finish the course?”

  Jade growls something inarticulate under her breath, but at that moment, Ivy returns. She runs breathless into the room and shoves the deck at Connor. “Here it is. Show me that one you did last time, the one where you hold the card under the deck like this.”

  She fumbles with the cards so fast she loses hold of them. They scatter around Connor’s feet, and he laughs again when he gathers them up. “Ho ho, settle down, girl. All in good time. The most important thing to remember when doing magic tricks is to put on a smooth, confident exterior for your audience.”

  He handles the deck with expert fingers. He flashes me another grin and stretches his arms in front of him. Ivy takes her place on the floor at his feet and stares up at him with goggle eyes.

  He drops his voice to a theatrical rumble. “Now, ladies and gentlemen of the audience, watch and be amazed as the mystical master Alakazar the Great performs the greatest magical feats known to man.”

  I swallowed a chuckle, and his eyes twinkled up at me. “I will now get my beautiful assistant to choose a card from the deck.” He spreads the cards like a fan and holds them out to Ivy.

  The girl gazes up at him in awe. She draws a card from the deck and clutches it to her chest while she steals peeks at it.

  “My assistant will now replace the card within the deck, and I will shuffle the deck to hide the card.”

  Jade’s snarling voice rumbles across the room. “Oh, stuff it, Connor.”

  I glance over at her. She’s not enjoying the show as much as I am. She purses her lips and glares at Connor in obvious hatred. I can’t figure her out, especially since Ivy worships him. Jade and Connor know each other. That’s for sure. They know all about each other, so why do they hate each other so much?

  Connor shows Ivy one card trick after another. He laughs and jokes until I can’t hold back. I share his jokes, and he finally turns to palming coins.

  “Don’t you think it’s time you went back to work, Connor?” Jade hisses.

  He flashes his wicked grin. “Oh, no. I’m trying my hardest to get fired so I can collect my severance package. It pays much more than my regular salary. If I just skip work three days a week for the next six months, they’ll have no choice but to fire me.”

  “You’re lying,” Jade growls. “Isaac would never fire you.”

  He laughs in her face. “Of course, he would. He cares a lot more for his business than he does for me. He would never stand for that kind of behavior from anyone. He’ll fire me, and then I’ll never have to listen to his boring meetings again.”

  “You love his meetings,” Jade returns. “You work together to make them as boring as they can be. You don’t really expect us to believe you’re trying to get fired.”

  He looks around the room at nothing. “Oh, I don’t know. I was thinking I’d spend the rest of the day hanging around with you kids. What about it, baby girl? What do you want to do today? Maybe you and your nice friend here could go for a walk with me in the park. We could swing on the swings and slide down the slides. Does that sound good to you, Kira? Then we can all go to the library and read books. I hear they have kids story reading hour at three o’clock.”

  “No one wants to go to the library for kids story reading hour, Connor,” Jade snaps.

  He shrugs. “You don’t have to go. I’ll take Ivy by herself if Kira doesn’t want to go.”

  “I don’t know,” I hedge. “I don’t know if Isaac would approve of that.”

  “Call him and find out,” Connor tells me. “I’m sure he would be happy to hear what’s going on here.”

  Jade smacks her lips and spins away. What’s she going on about? The longer Connor hangs around, the more annoyed she acts, but he hasn’t been anything but kind and friendly since he showed up.

  Ivy jumps up and down. “Yay! The library! I’ve never been to the library. Can’t we please go, Kira? Please, please, please?”

  “Come on, Kira,” Connor urges. “It’ll be fun. Isaac won’t mind. Just ask him.”

  “Yeah, Kira, ask him,” Ivy chimes in.

  “What about you, Jade?” I ask. “Do you want to go to the library?”

  CHAPTER SIX

  Isaac

  I race up the stairs two at a time. When Connor didn’t come back to the office, I feared the worst. I rush down the landing and burst into Ivy’s room. The door smashes back, and my worst fears come true.

  There stands Jade, as big as life. My hands ball into fists and I barge into the room. “What do you think you’re doing here?”

  Connor stands up from his chair across the room. “Here he is. Now we can all ask him what he thinks.”

  “Isaac…,” Kira begins.

  I ignore her and charge across the room at Jade. “Get out of my house! You’ll pay for this. You witch! Don’t you ever set foot in my house again. I’ll rip your head off.”

  I rush at her with both hands stretched out to grab her by the throat. I can’t see anything but red. She retreats toward the window, but Connor steps between us. He plants one hand on my chest. “Chill out, brother. It’s all over. She didn’t do anything.”

  I lunge at her. “I’ll kill her! Do you know what she’s doing? She’s planning on stealing Ivy! I’ll tear you limb from limb if it’s the last thing I ever do.”

  Connor grabs my around the shoulders to stop me getting to her. “Hang on there, Champ. Whatever she planned, she didn’t do it. We were just sitting around playing Monopoly and…”

  “Monopoly!” I thunder. “Do you think she came here to play Monopoly? Do you know she’s doing here?”

  He murmurs into my ears. “You don’t have to tell me.”

  Jade draws herself up to her full height. “You can’t keep me away from Ivy, Isaac. I’m her mother. I have every right to see her and have her in my life.”

  “Mother!” I bellow. “A fine mother you turned out to be. How would you like to explain to a judge that you broke into my house when I wasn’t home so you could see Ivy? I’m sure that would look fantastic on your permanent record.”

  She narrows her eyes at me. “You wouldn’t dare.”

  “Wouldn’t I?” I cackle in hysterical glee. “Watch me.”

  Connor pushes against my chest. “Back off, man. Let her walk out of here on her own two feet.”

  I struggle again his hands. “Just give me two seconds alone with her. Just two seconds, and I’ll…”

  Connor presses me back. He calls over his shoulder at Jade. “I think you better go now. It’s been great to see you again, and I sure hope you get that medical transcription course finished soon.”

  She takes him at his word and sets off for the door. She passes Kira, but right before she leaves, she veers off toward
Ivy standing off to one side. The poor kid watches this whole scene in stunned horror.

  Jade bends down to put her arms around Ivy. “Good-bye, darling. I hope you have a nice trip to the library.”

  She slips her arms around Ivy’s shoulders. This is too much for me. I can’t stand by and watch this. I rip past Connor and rocket across the room. On the way, my hand lands on the first weapon I can find. I snatch up the iron poker from the fireplace and swing it at Jade’s head. “You wretch! Get away from her or I’ll cave your stinkin’ head in.”

  I whirl the poker in a wide arch and bring it down in a whistling streak toward Jade’s head. She ducks away just in time, and the poker embeds its hook into the tabletop. Jade beats it out the door and vanishes down the stairs.

  The minute Jade disappears, Kira jumps forward. “What are you doing?”

  Raging fury erupts out of me at anybody in sight. I round on her. “This is all your fault.”

  “My fault!” she splutters. “I never did anything.”

  “I warned you not to let her anywhere near Ivy,” I tell her. “Do you think I called you up in the middle of the work day just to blow smoke out of my ass? What do you take me for? I told you she was dangerous and to keep her away from Ivy.”

  “Dangerous!” she cries. “She’s not dangerous, but you certainly are. You want me to believe she’s the devil incarnate. No one could be that bad. She looked perfectly normal to me.”