Yours for Christmas
Page 4

“Someone told Mayor Marsha. I just got back from a meeting with her. I’m going to be working with Bailey Voss on the toy drive. It’s not like I could say no.”
Taryn’s mouth twitched, but it wasn’t nearly as sexy as it had been on Bailey. Because he knew Taryn was laughing at him rather than with him.
“It’s not funny,” he grumbled.
“It kind of is.” She rose and walked around her desk toward him.
As usual she wore some fancy designer-suit thing and was barefoot. Because she wore stupid shoes that were too high to walk in all day. She put her hands on his chest and stared into his eyes.
“Thank you for helping my Sprouts with the toy drive.”
“You owe me.”
“I do. I don’t know how Mayor Marsha found out, but she did and you’re a really good guy for stepping in.”
He made a growling sound in his throat. No way she could mollify him with a few compliments. He was tougher than that.
She smiled. “Seriously. It means a lot to me. Those are my girls and I want them to have a good holiday.”
He shook off her touch and glowered. “I said I’d do it, okay? You don’t have to convince me.”
“No, but I would like it if you’d at least pretend it might be fun. Unless...” The humor fled her violet eyes and worry replaced it. “Oh, Kenny, I didn’t think. Is this going to be too hard for you? I can ask Jack or Sam.”
Kenny was sure their other two partners would agree. And while that would free up his time, he wasn’t one to walk away from something he’d already said he would do.
“I’m fine,” he told her. “Bailey has the details figured out. It’s the holidays, right? I can help kids who need toys.”
Taryn wasn’t fooled. She continued to study him. “I worry about you. You need somebody in your life.” She held up a hand to stop him from talking. “Not just friends, but someone special. Someone to fall in love with.”
“I’m fine.” The truth, he thought. He was completely fine. As for falling in love—well, he wanted that, too. But so far it hadn’t happened. He liked women but he hadn’t found the one. When he did...he would be all in. As long as she didn’t have kids. That was his only caveat. No single moms. No exceptions.
“I want you to be more than fine,” Taryn told him. “I want you to be happy.”
“I will be.”
One day, he thought longingly. Because there was someone for everyone. Even a guy like him.
CHAPTER TWO
THE FWM MEETINGS were a lot louder than Kenny would have guessed. He knew that there were only eight seven-year-old girls in the room, but it seemed like there were more. Of course all the girls had brought at least one parent. Adding the Grove Keepers along with him, that was a fair number of people in a smallish space.
He kept to the back of the room, careful not to make eye contact with the mothers. The dads he could handle. They would either want to talk about a game they remembered or try to prove that his having played pro ball didn’t mean anything. He could handle that, no problem.
The mothers made him more nervous. He didn’t mind the ones who said their sons wanted to play. It was the women who looked at him the way a hungry cat watches a goldfish that made him glance longingly toward the exit. He’d been propositioned plenty of times. For some people, a wedding ring was an accessory, not a commitment. He didn’t feel that way.
While he was good at shutting down the lady in question, there was always the risk of hurt feelings. Or a husband feeling he had something to prove. Kenny wasn’t in the mood for either. Better to avoid the problem completely.
He kept his attention on Angel and Taryn, who ran the meeting like the experts they were. When he felt the need to look at something more appealing, he let his gaze drift over to Bailey. Now a proposition from her would be most welcome. Then he remembered Chloe and knew he was totally screwed.
Angel, a tall dark-haired man with gray eyes and an air of danger about him, explained about the toy drive. The Sprouts didn’t seem to care that their Grove Keeper was a former special ops guy with a scar on his neck like someone had tried to slit his throat. Kenny would guess that day hadn’t ended well for the other guy.
Taryn stood by her husband and smiled. “You all know Bailey—Chloe’s mom. She’s going to be helping with the toy drive service project. But it’s a big job, so we have someone else joining the grove for the next few weeks. My friend Kenny Scott.”
Kenny waved from his place by the wall. A few of the girls waved back. He saw Chloe looking at him and he winked at her. She giggled.
Maybe he was looking at this all wrong, he told himself. Sure, he had his rules for his dating life, but this wasn’t that. He could help the girls with their service project, enjoy the holiday season and walk away without worrying that he’d gotten too involved. That made it a win-win for everyone.
He acknowledged that at some point he was going to have to deal with the fact that holding himself apart from nearly everyone wasn’t the best idea. But not a psychological hurdle he had to deal with today.
Taryn explained how the bins would have to be decorated and when that would happen. She also pointed to the sign-up sheets on the wall.
“Parents, this is where you come in. We’re going to need all the bins emptied every day. Then either Kenny or Bailey will meet you at the trailer so the presents can be secured. Any questions?”
Taryn and Angel fielded the questions. A couple of the parents walked over to the sign-up sheets and wrote their names. Kenny wondered if it was too early for him to duck out. Before he could decide, Bailey walked toward him.