Page 10 of Worth the Try
Shaking my head, I force the rest of the cobwebs away and pull myself together. No one wants to watch me have a mini breakdown over a sudden job and housing offer. It’s not Ansel’s fault that he unknowingly put three of my fantasies on a platter and offered them to me. Or, maybe Lennox offered. Either way. And my inability to have kids iscertainlynot his issue to sort through.
“It’s fine,” I murmur, making myself meet his eyes and immediately wishing I hadn’t. Because now the sun is hitting him just right, highlighting the swirls of light caramel within his deep brown eyes and the faint traces of auburn in his beard. He’s human after all, it seems, and the look of concern on his face makes him that much more devastating.
On a blink, he seems to come to a decision. “Just forget about them. You clearly aren’t interested?—”
“I’ll do it.” The words are out of my mouth so quickly that I barely register what I’ve said. “I mean,” I stammer, “if you’re actually offering. But I have a cat. And people are weird about cats.”
“Cats are fine.”
I keep going, blowing forward. “You don’t know anything about me, but I’m really nice, and I was a killer babysitter when I was a teenager. I mean, not killer, that sounds bad. But good. Great. I wasgreat. I even have first-aid training. It’s been adecade or so, but—” I stop, caught off-guard by the brilliant smile he’s giving me.
“So, you’re interested.”
“Uh, yeah.” I wince.Uh, yeah? I’m a thirty-year-old woman. “Sorry, I mean yes. I’d love to talk more.”
“How’s now?”
“Now?”
The smile barely dims. “Yes. Now.”
A nervous laugh bubbles out. “Do you make a habit of interviewing people on the spot?”
He looks down, the beginnings of a blush forming just above his beard. It might be more adorable than the grins his daughter has been throwing my way. “Nah, but I’ve had to learn to trust my gut. Make decisions quickly. And you seem nice.”
Nice. Of course. Ofcoursethe hot rugby player thinks I’m nice. Some sexless creature with a one-dimensional personality who will play Barbie with his daughter for a couple of months.
Then I check myself. Don’t I want him to think I’m nice? I mean, Iamnice. So why am I suddenly anti-nice?Get it together.I throw on the pageant smile. “Hit me.”
He raises a scarred brow, and there’s something in his expression. As though he sees right through me.
Impossible. “I mean, you know.” I wave my hand, forcing myself to claw back to metaphorical standing and to get my act together. I’ve faced much,muchmore intimidating situations than this hulking set of muscles. Besides, the prospect of living rent-free for a few months in a place that doesn’t involve Kari’s couch is too good to pass up, even if it does come with a daily reminder of everything that I can’t have. “Ask me the questions.”
He pulls his phone out, opens an app, and pushes it to me. “Fill that out.”
The phone may as well be a snake for the look I give it.
Ansel chuckles. “Remember the background check I mentioned?”
I fix him with a look. “You run background checks so often that you have an app at the ready?”
He sighs. “I…have trust issues.”
I snort a laugh, then immediately cover my mouth. “Sorry. That was rude. I just—” I hesitate, trying to figure out how best to say this. “First you tell me you trust your instincts, then you say you have trust issues.”
“Hey,” he protests, the veneer he’s constructed falling for a moment, “I’m multi-faceted.”
It makes me laugh even more. “Gotta say, Mr. Miles, I’ve never met a guy who readily admits his shortcomings.” Especially one who looks like him.
“Ansel,” he corrects. “Mr. Miles is my father.”
“Ansel,” I repeat, trying his name out.
He clears his throat. “And don’t worry. There’s plenty I get wrong.” He glances at his daughter, who’s returned with a sheet from one of her coloring books. “Right, Rosie?”
She nods seriously. “Right.” Then she climbs into his lap, the paper crinkling between them as she settles in. “What am I right about this time?”
I pick up the phone and start entering my info, wondering where her mom is. I can’t ask—not right now, anyway. But it seems like she’d be an obvious choice for summer Rosalie duty. I’m sure Kari knows. It’s her job to learn all there is to know about the players, so I’ll get the scoop later.
