An Unexpected Partnership (HQR Special Edition)

by Teresa Southwick

  * * *

  Leo stood outside until the car’s taillights disappeared. For that kid’s sake, he hoped Josh’s father had listened to him. He sighed and turned away, then walked back into the house, where Tess was waiting. He was glad she was there.

  She’d cleaned up the kitchen from Josh’s spur-of-the-moment meal and was sitting in the family room, staring at the TV, which was currently not on.

  “Hey,” he said.

  She glanced over her shoulder to look at him. “I guess he got picked up?”

  “Yeah.” He walked over and sat on the couch, careful not to get too close. Being near enough to touch her wasn’t a good idea.

  “You were out there for a long time.”

  He met her gaze. “There was a little bit of a fanboy thing going on.”

  “So it’s not just women?” she asked sweetly.

  “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that.” He wished she would let that go.

  “Okay. What did you say to his father?”

  “I repeated the things Josh said, and Ed—that’s his dad—admitted there’s stress in the marriage and it could be handled better. They’re in counseling.”

  “Good.” She thought for a moment. “Did you suggest that Josh probably needs counseling, too?”

  “I just met the guy,” he said wryly. “It’s something I’ll save for our second conversation.”

  “His son ran away from home,” she protested. “I think that’s a cry for help.”

  “Yeah.” He looked at her, all fierce and mother lion about a kid she’d just met. Maybe her instincts were on warp drive because she was pregnant. But whatever the reason, it was damn sexy. “I think his dad understands that.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “We talked about the home situation and that Josh is caught in the middle. And the sport he loves is the only positive in his life right now. A place where he can just be a kid on a team, trying to put a puck into the other guy’s net. It’s a physical game but everyone is padded up and supervised. A safe place to release all those feelings you can’t do anything about.”

  “How do you know so much about teenage boys?” she teased.

  “I was one, remember?” He grinned briefly, then recalled what his life was like when he was Josh’s age. “I wasn’t exaggerating when I told him how it was with my family.”

  “Do you want to talk about it?” she asked.

  “Is that your way of telling me I need counseling?”

  “I would just say it straight out if I thought so.” She shrugged. “All I’m saying is that I’m happy to listen.”

  He didn’t think much about that time anymore, because he didn’t feel trapped. He was a grown man and not stuck in a bitter, angry place. That was never going to happen to him again.

  “Like I said, I wasn’t being dramatic about my home being like a battlefield. There was no volume control. Either they were yelling at the top of their lungs or not speaking to each other at all. The tension was suffocating.”

  “That must have been awful.”

  “I didn’t say anything unless absolutely necessary, for fear of setting off another round.” He rested his elbows on his knees, clasping his hands together. “One time when they were wishing they never got married, I told them I wished they hadn’t either. And maybe they should get a divorce.”

  “Uh-oh,” she said.

  “Yeah. He accused me of being ungrateful. She said I was selfish.”

  “Do you know why they didn’t split sooner?”

  “I asked my dad that once.” He remembered bracing himself for an outburst of anger but that hadn’t happened. His father had looked sad, which was worse somehow.

  “What did he say?”

  Leo saw sympathy in her eyes and wasn’t sure how he felt about it. The look was just south of pity. “He told me they didn’t want the family to be broken up.”

  “Oh, Leo.” She sighed. “You were already broken.”

  “I know.” And every time they’d screamed at each other about not wanting to be married, he’d vowed not to make the same mistake they had. But he had and it had been even worse.

  “Do you see them much now?” she asked.

  “Occasionally. He’s in Washington state and she’s in Florida.”

  “Did they pick opposite ends of the country on purpose?”

  “A case could be made.” He leaned back on the couch, stretching his arm across the back. With very little effort he could touch her shoulder and badly wanted to. A classic case of damned if he did, damned if he didn’t. “Ironically, individually they are both nice people. But together they’re like a bad chemical reaction.”

  “Do you think Josh’s parents are like that?” she asked.

  “Hard to tell. Ed seemed like a nice, reasonable guy. Worried about his son. Relieved and grateful to find out he was okay. Thanked me over and over for taking care of him.”

  “About that...” There was a sparkle in her expression, a look that turned the brown in her eyes the color of warm chocolate.

  Leo was so used to her look of hostility and resentment, he didn’t know what to make of this. “What did I do?”

  “The right thing.”

  “Anyone else would have done the same,” he said.

  “Not everyone would have brought home a troubled teenage boy, let alone gotten involved in a family conflict.” There was approval in her voice, something that wasn’t there much when she talked to him.

  He liked it.

  “I didn’t exactly get involved. But I did offer a piece of advice.”

  “Which was?”

  “Don’t take hockey away from Josh.”

  “And?” she asked.

  “Ed explained that he couldn’t do nothing and watch his son fail English. There had to be consequences. And that didn’t mean taking away brussels sprouts.”

  She smiled at that and then said, “He’s right.”

  “I agree. But I think I convinced him to make that a last resort. Give him a chance to bring up his grade, maybe with a tutor.”

  She nodded enthusiastically. “Now that’s a really great idea.”

  “It was yours and I’m glad you still like it because I volunteered you. There’s no time to mess around finding one and I know you like to read.”

  “I love to read, but—”

  “Josh agreed. He likes you, by the way, and that’s important. It might not work with anyone else. Ed is on board, too.”

  “Look, Leo—”

  “I know I should have asked, but I needed to take a shot right then.” Playing hockey, he’d learned strategy and setting up for a goal. No hotdogging. But sometimes you just had to swing away. A lot of times you missed the net, but every once in a while a player got lucky and scored. “I was in the zone with both of them.”

  “Another sports metaphor.” She shook her head. “Reading between the lines, I’m going to assume you were taking advantage of your superstar reputation.”

  “Taking advantage sounds so harsh. I prefer to think of it as using my charm.”

  “Oh, please.” But she didn’t look upset. “Josh is such a fan, if you said jump, he’d ask how high.”

  “Then isn’t it lucky I’m using my powers for good?” He gave her a pleading look. “Come on, Tess. It’s not for long. Just help him write a paper and study for the final. The bar is closed right now anyway while the renovation is going on. So you’ve got the time. What do you say? This kid is at a crossroads and could go either way. Be a force for good.”

  She pulled her legs up to the side and angled her body toward him, sliding her shoulder out of his reach. “Are you implying that if I don’t, Josh’s life will be ruined?”

  “I would never do that,” he said virtuously.

  “Oh, pull in your wings and halo, hotshot. Next t
hing I know you’ll be walking on water.” She met his gaze. “You didn’t say it in so many words, but that’s what I heard.”

  “So, what’s the verdict?”

  She stared at him for several moments, then nodded. “Okay. I’ll help him. When do we start?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  Her eyes widened. “Seriously?”

  “He’s going to meet you here after school to study for a quiz on Friday.”

  “I thought you said it would just be for finals,” she said, pointing an accusing finger at him.

  “He needs all the points he can get.”

  “Well, it’s a good thing you didn’t spring this on me. No pressure either,” she said wryly.

  “It’s a tough time for him, Tess.”

  “I know. A cry for help. How can I turn my back?” Her voice softened. “I had my issues with not having parents, but in the long run maybe I was better off than you and Josh that they weren’t around.”

  “Maybe.” Thanks to Patrick Morrow, she’d turned out great. And Pat had helped Leo through one of the worst times in his life. He owed him.

  “I’m tired. It’s been quite a night.” She stood and looked down at him. “I just have to say that you did good tonight, Leo. You’re going to be a wonderful father.”

  He didn’t say anything, just watched her leave as a too-familiar feeling of emptiness came over him. He’d been a good father once, until the kid he thought was his was ripped out of his life. That wasn’t going to happen again. Not if Tess was carrying his baby.

  Chapter Seven

  Leo looked around The Pub and nodded with satisfaction. Plastic covers protected the booths, tables and bar. The changes were in the adjacent areas, and knocking out the wall had really opened up the place, made it brighter. In his gut he felt this was a good move and he really hoped Tess agreed. She was going to be here any minute and he was a little nervous about her reaction. The last time she saw it there was a devastated look on her face, and he couldn’t make her feel better until the place was put back together. It wasn’t yet. Still a work in progress.

  This business wasn’t just how she made her living; it was part of her history, and he’d come on pretty strong about modernizing. Doing nothing meant a slow, painful decline and eventual failure. It was the right thing to make sure this place was around for a long time to come.

  The door opened behind him, and she walked in, looking so fresh and pretty, he wanted to just stare. It was a stupid reaction. He’d seen her a few hours ago at breakfast, when he realized he very much liked seeing her in the morning. And that was stupid, too. This living arrangement was temporary. And that’s all it could be. He knew from personal experience not to get used to being happy, because the good stuff didn’t last.

  Tess was looking around and finally met his gaze. “Hi. So, it’s still torn up.”

  “You’re late.” Way to get her on your side, Wallace.

  “Sorry. I had to drop Josh off at home.”

  “How is the tutoring going?” Leo knew she’d been working with him twice a week for a few weeks now.

  “He’s a bright kid. He just doesn’t like reading and writing.” She shrugged. “We went through books on his suggested-reading list and I tried to steer him to one that might interest him. We’re both going to read it so I can help him organize his thoughts to write the paper.”

  “Is he cooperative?”

  “Very.” She smiled. “He’s polite and really funny. I enjoy tutoring him.”

  “Good.” At least his idea for her to tutor had worked out. On the other hand, time would tell how the changes here would be. He glanced around. “So, what do you think?”

  She walked around, studying the adjacent area in its rough stages. “With the wall gone, the bar will actually be in the middle of the room.”

  “Yeah.”

  “It’s very open.”

  “Nate’s guys are repairing wall board that was tweaked when the demolition was done. That takes the longest. Then there’s paint.”

  “And when the fumes are gone, I’ll be out of your hair,” she said.

  “You’ve really been a pain in the neck,” he teased. The thought of her gone didn’t thrill him, though.

  “Speaking of finishing touches, I brought paint chips and some other decorating samples. We need window coverings and furniture.”

  “Let’s see what you have.”

  She walked back into the old part and set her purse on a plastic-covered table, then pulled out paint charts in varying shades of beige, yellow, blue and green. Leo moved close to look at the colors, and their arms brushed. His gut clenched and tightened. The scent of her skin burrowed inside him and shorted out brain function until he couldn’t tell the difference between gold and meadow green.

  “I think we should go with earth tones,” she said.

  The card she held out had about six shades that went from nearly white to chocolate brown. And they all had names. He picked up another card with shades of blue.

  “How about one of these?” He looked more closely. “The cerulean is eye-catching.”

  “Seriously?” The fact that her lips were curving up was a clue she didn’t mean that in a bad way. “Hearing the word cerulean come out of your mouth just seems wrong somehow.”

  “I’m just reading the name.” He pointed to it. “Seems to me this color will work with chrome and glass.”

  “Seriously?” This time she didn’t smile.

  “What?”

  “Chrome and glass are only good if you want to get fingerprints at a crime scene.” She held up a hand to stop his rebuttal. “Think about the time it will take to maintain. Not to mention it will completely alter the vibe. Goodbye, homey and cozy. Hello, dystopian society.”

  “Well, when Big Brother is watching, I hope it’s here, with a game on one of our TVs.”

  “I’m serious,” she said.

  “Me, too.”

  “We have a core clientele that likes to come here and relax. I feel an obligation to them and their expectations. Plus we can’t afford to alienate any segment of our customer base. It’s like interviewing for a job. You have a small window of time to make an impression. Whether it’s good or bad depends on appearance.”

  While listening to her passionate defense, Leo was more than a little preoccupied with her appearance. Her mouth, for one thing. He knew how good she tasted. And her hair. It was shiny and dark and pulled into a ponytail, with wisps curling around her face. She was wearing jeans that were getting tight, showing the baby bump where her stomach used to be flat. This wasn’t the first time he’d noted pregnancy changes in a woman carrying his baby—at least he’d thought it was his.

  “Are you listening to me?” Tess asked, breaking into his thoughts.

  “Yes.” Technically that was true, although he didn’t really know what she’d said. Except she generally disapproved of his decorating suggestions. “Okay, how about a compromise? We continue the wood floor all the way through. Put in comfortable chairs with glass tables, a lounge feel for watching the game, as if you were in your own family room. Use earth tones in the original bar area and paint the new part a coordinating color of cerulean.”

  It was obvious that she didn’t want to smile, but her lips twitched. When she answered, her tone was grudging. “That might work.”

  “Look at us. I think we just negotiated a peaceful settlement.”

  “It appears we have.”

  He grinned but it quickly disappeared. There was something else that he needed to bring up, and she was going to like it a lot less than chrome and glass.

  “Tess, one more thing—”

  Her expression turned wary. “Your tone isn’t reassuring. You should work on that.”

  “Okay. But first we need to think about a new name for this place.”

  “What’s
wrong with the old one?”

  “It sounds like it was made up by a man.”

  “It was. My grandfather.” Her mouth trembled and she looked horrified when big, fat tears rolled down her cheeks. She covered her face with her hands and turned away from him. But her shoulders were shaking with silent sobs.

  Leo couldn’t stand seeing Tess cry now any more than the last time, right here in this room on the night of her grandfather’s memorial. He put his hands on her shoulders and turned her, pulling her against his chest, then wrapping his arms around her.

  “Hush. Don’t cry.” He patted her back.

  “Damn hormones.”

  “It’s going to work out. You’ll see.” That was something you said when the jury was out deliberating and you had no idea what the heck was going to happen. It was lame and all he had.

  But damn, she felt good. If it made him a bastard for finding the silver lining of her distress, then so be it. Because he couldn’t help the feeling. She felt even better than that night when they’d ended up having sex just a few feet from where they were standing right now. And he wanted her again. Even more than he had then.

  When she abruptly pulled away from him, he was afraid he’d said that out loud. But probably not, since talking required air and suddenly it was hard for him to breathe.

  Tess’s hand was shaking when she brushed moisture from beneath her eyes. She drew in a deep breath, evidence that she wasn’t unaffected by his touch.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to blubber.”

  “It’s okay. I kind of surprised you by suggesting a name change. My bad.”

  “Would you mind if we take that up another time? I’m meeting my friends for dinner.”

  “No problem.”

  “We need to make final decisions on the finishing touches and it occurs to me that it might help to consult an interior designer. One of the regulars does that so I’ll contact her and make an appointment. Let’s coordinate our schedules so we can both be here.”