by Lucy Gilmore
All the things he’d accomplished in his career, the heights to which he had risen, paled in comparison to holding that perfect, squirming bundle in his arms. Mia had been so tiny and had wailed so loudly that the nurses were forced to put in earplugs before they came into the room. Just a few minutes into life on this planet, and she’d been making herself heard.
That was a real accomplishment. That was real life.
He’d felt the same way on the elevator yesterday. Dogs gave birth to puppies every day, obviously, but there was something extraordinary about witnessing it firsthand. Even in the company of a woman who would have preferred being trapped with anyone else.
“With you, for example,” he said, seeing his friend as if for the first time.
Garrett must have sensed something in Cole’s voice, because his hands came up in a gesture of surrender. “I didn’t do it.”
“Not yet, you haven’t. But you will.” For the first time since he’d walked into the weight room, Cole felt a genuine smile cross his face. He didn’t know why he hadn’t thought of it earlier. Nothing could be better calculated to get Hailey to agree to his plan—or to make her turn pink with embarrassment. At this point, he wasn’t sure which motivation was stronger. All he knew was he wanted to be part of the Puppy Cup.
And bizarrely, he wanted to see her again.
“What are your plans tomorrow morning?” Cole asked.
“The same plans I have every morning” came Garrett’s prompt reply. “This. Why do you want to know? And why are you looking at me like I’m a Christmas ham?”
“She likes you,” Cole repeated, a smile creeping across his face. “She might be able to resist me, but you’re Garrett Smith. She’ll let you right in, and you won’t even have to shed tears to do it.”
Chapter 5
“I brought you a latte. Almond milk, two Splendas, and a dash of cinnamon, right?” Jasmine pushed the door to Hailey’s office open with her hip, a steaming paper cup in each hand. Without waiting for Hailey to respond, she slid the larger of the two cups across the desk. “Where’s your dog today? And her babies?”
Hailey stared first at the cup and then at her boss. Instead of Jasmine’s usual white pantsuit, she was in one that looked an awful lot like Lumberjacks teal.
“I left her at home,” Hailey said, still warily eyeing the latte. Jasmine didn’t bring coffee. Jasmine never brought coffee. In fact, nine mornings out of ten, Hailey was the one who got sent on an office-wide caffeine run. Apparently, they all liked the way she organized the cups.
“And those little darlings of hers?”
“They’re too little and too darling to haul around just yet,” Hailey replied, her heart thumping. She might not be the smartest person in this office, but she was no fool. The coffee, the teal pantsuit, the unprecedented show of concern for her foster pups…they could only mean one thing.
“That’s a shame. I was hoping we could get the photographer in to snap a few shots. I thought you might be able to get Mr. Bennett to come in for some quick promo.”
And there it was. Hailey knew it had been a bad idea to tell Penny about yesterday’s visit from Cole and Mia before she got any of the details confirmed, but she’d had to talk to someone about it. The only other option was Mrs. Magda, and she was even less discreet.
Jasmine further unbent to take a seat on the edge of Hailey’s desk. “You were going to tell me about his offer, right?”
Hailey plastered a smile on her face and nodded, using the coffee as an excuse for not answering right away. The latte was delicious and exactly the way she liked it. Jasmine must have either asked around or gone to the place on the corner where they knew her order by heart.
“Of course,” Hailey said. “I was just waiting for you to get in.”
“You must have made quite an impression on him.”
Hailey almost choked on her mouthful of coffee. If by impression Jasmine meant a complete and utter fool of herself, then yes, she’d done an admirable job.
“Hiya!” Penny breezed through the open door with yet another latte. “Do you know what kind of coffee Cole likes? I was going to grab him a cup, too, but… Oh, Jasmine. Good morning. You beat me to her.”
“Yes, I did. It’s one of the benefits of getting to work on time.” Jasmine looked pointedly at the clock. Penny barely had time to do more than stammer an apology before Jasmine waved her off and returned her attention to Hailey. “Do you know what kind of coffee he likes?”
She did, actually, but not for the reasons her boss supposed. She’d read an article a few years ago about the dangerous amounts of caffeine that some football players consumed, and it had mentioned Cole’s preference for extra-dry cappuccinos. So it was a totally normal thing to know about a stranger.
“It doesn’t matter, because he’s not here,” she said. “They started training and practice at six this morning and go all day.”
“Oh. Right.” Jasmine’s lips formed a moue of disappointment. “We’ll have to get a copy of his schedule so we can work around it. Can you get on that, Penny, and have it forwarded to Hailey and me?”
Hailey could only stare at her. When it came to doling out menial tasks, Jasmine never looked to Penny. For six long years, that had been Hailey’s role. Making coffee, sending faxes, calling the IT guy and listening to him condescendingly tell her to turn the computer off and back on again… At this point, she was the only person in the office who actually knew how to use the copier.
“I want this to be your entire focus,” Jasmine said with a warm smile. “We’ve doubled the budget and pulled a few guys from the animal cops show—they’re yours to order about as you see fit. From what Penny tells me, you’ll need access to all the old footage to pull together the promo materials, so here’s the key to the archives. And I’ll see what I can do about getting you producer credits. I can’t promise there will be much of a raise, but—”
“Are you sure you don’t want to wait a few days first?” Hailey asked. As thrilled as she was at the prospect of all this professional glory, she couldn’t remember actually agreeing to anything. Cole had just smiled and promised to be in touch before whisking his niece off, like a fairy godmother who couldn’t get out the door fast enough. “Maybe he was only being polite. Maybe all he wanted was to check up on Bess, and I misunderstood—”
A knock sounded. Hailey had no idea who else could possibly be stopping by—or who else could fit inside her small office—but the bouquet of flowers that appeared in the doorway offered a few clues.
“Oh dear,” she murmured, her heart leaping to her throat. That wasn’t just any bouquet. It was a ridiculously oversized bunch of lavender. And it wasn’t just any delivery boy. It was—
“Is one of you Hailey Lincoln?” The flowers were pushed aside to reveal yet another football famous face. Like the last one that had appeared unannounced in her office, his was just as handsome in profile and as easily recognizable to anyone who lived and breathed in the city of Seattle. “I was told to deliver these in person to Hailey—and only to Hailey. Upon pain of death.”
“Ohmygod.” Penny’s voice practically bounced from the corners of the room. “This can’t be happening. Not again. My heart can’t take it.”
Hailey’s heart was holding up, but her body temperature wasn’t doing so well. She dropped her head to her hands to hide the sudden rush of heat to her cheeks. “Garrett Smith,” she moaned. “I can’t believe he sent me Garrett Smith.”
Luckily for them all, Jasmine took one look at the six-foot-four frame, rich chestnut skin, and shoulder-length locs of the second most famous Lumberjack and rose to the occasion. She slid off the desk and took the flowers, nothing but polite interest on her face. “Wasn’t that thoughtful? We were just discussing the changes to our program. I’m sorry Mr. Bennett couldn’t come himself.”
“Mr. Bennett sends his regrets and apologies,” Garr
ett said, equally precise. Through her fingers, Hailey thought she could detect a smile playing about the corners of his mouth. “But he had a hot date with a cold tub. Coach’s orders.”
That got Hailey to look up.
“I knew pulling those elevator doors open couldn’t be good for him. I warned him not to do it.”
Garrett’s smile deepened. He didn’t have Cole’s signature dimple, but that didn’t make it any less effective. There was something about these football players—these huge, brawny men—giving in to something as simple as amusement that made her heart stutter. “He said you’d say that.”
Her cheeks burned hotter. “I need to know for my fantasy league, that’s all. If he’s going to be nursing an injury, it would be nice to know so I can unload him before the weekend.”
“He said you’d probably say that too.” Garrett reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. Hailey couldn’t think of any way of refusing it without appearing rude, so she gave in.
“What’s this?”
“The address to his sister’s house. You’re invited to go over there to watch the game on Sunday. They’re expecting you.”
Hailey dropped the paper and watched as it fluttered to the floor. She might have left it there, but Penny was quick to snatch it up and smooth out the wrinkles. For all the wonder and delight on her face, she might have been reading a proposal of marriage.
“What a wonderful idea,” Jasmine said, once again stepping into the breach. “Put that in Hailey’s calendar for her, would you, Penny? And, Hailey, if you need one of the company cars, clear it with Charles, and he’ll have one sent over to collect you.”
Penny showed no signs of dismay at being reduced to Hailey’s assistant—or jealousy at her access to one of the town cars. They’d spent many a bitch session lamenting the injustice of a system that gave the wealthiest company employees free transportation while the rest of them had to fork over toll fees and bus fare on a meager pittance.
“Sure thing, boss.” Penny paused long enough to mouth another ohmygod at Hailey before whisking herself out the door. She didn’t bother to hide it, either, which meant Garrett got a clear view.
“Oh, and if you’re worried about leaving the puppies at home, you can put a pet sitter on an expense account,” Jasmine added. “I’ll head down to accounting now and open one for you.”
Hailey was momentarily bereft of words. Since she couldn’t find it in her to breathe, either, she was also momentarily bereft of oxygen. The world started to get a little wavy around the edges before she finally remembered how to function as a living organism, but by then, it was too late. Garrett had already nudged her into a chair by the door and gently pushed her head between her legs.
“Breathe in,” he urged. “Breathe out. There you go.”
“I’m fine,” she said through the wall of hair that surrounded her downturned face.
Either Garrett didn’t hear her or he didn’t heed her, because he held her in place. “A few more—in and out, in and out.”
To be fair, Hailey did feel a lot better once she took a few deep breaths and paused a moment to collect herself. It would have been better if the air hadn’t been scented quite so strongly with lavender, but that couldn’t be helped.
It seemed that Cole had been serious about the offer to help her with the Puppy Cup—and about the offer to work by her side. She’d lain in bed last night replaying the entire conversation in mortifying detail, but it hadn’t made any more sense at two o’clock in the morning than it had at noon.
Yet here she was. Breathing on Garrett Smith’s command. About to change the lives of thousands of dogs across the country.
That was the thing she needed to focus on, to remember despite her personal fears that the rug was going to be pulled out from under her at any moment. She hadn’t been kidding yesterday when she told Cole that the Puppy Cup had been started as an adoption ploy. After Christmas, when families unloaded the puppies they’d bought as gifts and subsequently regretted, when the cold and wet weather made it difficult for strays to stay warm, the shelters were flooded with unwanted animals—most of them destined for a life behind bars. All it took was a few minutes of screen time, and the bulk of America jumped to open their doors and their homes. For the fifty puppies they showed during halftime, it was a chance at a new life, a real life.
For the thousands of abandoned animals across the country, the story was a similar one. People adopted more pets after the Puppy Cup aired. They donated more money to their local shelters. The unwanted stragglers, the twelve-year-olds who’d been cycled through so many homes they no longer held out hope of anything more, found someone to love.
Something in Hailey’s chest lurched and clamped. They would find someone to love. She’d make sure of that.
“Send Mr. Bennett my thanks but also my regrets,” she said with genuine feeling. “I’m more than happy to accept his help with the Puppy Cup, but I have plans this weekend.”
Garrett’s brow went up, but his expression remained otherwise neutral. “Plans? During a Lumberjacks playoff game?”
The heat that had been starting to dissipate flushed up to her cheeks again. Clearly, Cole had prepped his teammate about her slight fixation. No one with an original Lumberjacks football on display would miss a game this close to the Kickoff Cup.
“It’s a party,” she lied, thinking fast. “A bunch of people are coming over to watch with me. I can’t just abandon them.”
“That would complicate things,” Garrett agreed. “Hang on.”
Hailey had no idea what she was supposed to hang on to, so she made a valiant attempt at holding on to her sanity. It was difficult when Garrett pulled out her office chair and seated himself in it as though that were an everyday occurrence.
“Mind if I use your phone?” he asked.
Hailey shook her head and watched as he picked up the receiver and punched a series of numbers. It was like flipping through the pages of a trashy magazine. They’re just like us! Making phone calls from stranger’s desks. They’re just like us! Swiveling around in circles because a bolt is loose.
“Hey, Cole. It’s me.”
“Wait… You’re calling Cole?” Hailey dived for the phone, but there was a reason Garrett was one of the highest-paid wide receivers in the American Football Club. His reflexes were like lightning.
“Yeah, I’m here. Yeah, I found her.” Garrett ducked and weaved, making it impossible for Hailey to reach the button that would end the call. “But she doesn’t like me nearly as much as you said she would. She’s trying to wrestle the phone from my hands.”
Hailey bit back a moan. This was it. This was the end. She was going to go down as the only woman in the world to literally die of mortification.
“Well, obviously not. She barely comes up to my shoulders. I think I can handle her.” Before she could fully absorb this remark, Garrett held the phone out to her. “He wants to talk to you.”
“I can’t,” Hailey said.
“You’ll hurt his feelings.”
“He’ll get over it.”
Garrett paused and held the phone against his chest. Like Cole, he sported the same classic, dressed-down style that professional football players made look so easy, but Hailey noticed that his shirt wasn’t nearly as tight as Cole’s. “You’d better talk to him and get it over with. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but he can be a bit of a drama queen when he doesn’t get his way.”
Hailey pulled her lower lip between her teeth, something perilously like a giggle threatening to escape.
Seeing it, Garrett pushed harder. “You’d be doing me a real favor if you just played along. Please? Seattle is counting on you.”
With a shaking hand, Hailey accepted the phone. She was being manipulated, obviously, and by a pair of men who only had to smile and flex to have the world falling at their feet, but what
else could she do? Think of the puppies.
She spoke without preamble. “I can’t believe you told Garrett what I said about him.”
“Hailey! What a delightful surprise.”
“You know what? I can believe it.” A man who could fake that much excitement at the sound of her voice was obviously capable of anything. “What’s next? Is the mayor going to come pick me up for lunch? Are you buying the production office and taking over operations from here on out?”
“That’s not a bad idea, actually. Is it for sale?”
Aware that Garrett was watching her much more closely than she liked, Hailey turned her back to him and leaned against the desk. Not for the first time in her life, she wished she was better at hiding her emotions—not just because it was embarrassing for her every feeling to flit across her face, but because it rarely ended well for her. As a young kid living in group homes, her tendency to blush had been painfully and relentlessly used against her. Those who fared best in the system were the ones who learned to embrace stoicism early on, who didn’t cry every time someone hurt their feelings. They may have felt the same loneliness and despair that she had, but by God, nothing would have prevailed upon them to let it show.
Hailey had let it show. She’d shown it every moment of her life. And until the day she’d been placed with the man who would eventually become her father, she’d paid a heavy price for it.
“It wasn’t necessary to send reinforcements,” she said, determined to do this part right. “The Puppy Cup team is delighted to accept your offer of assistance.”
“The entire Puppy Cup team?” Cole tsked. “It’s not polite to lie.”
She swallowed and forced herself to keep going. “And thank you for the invitation to your sister’s, but I already have plans to watch the game at my house. Send her my apologies.”