Page 11 of Agent of the Heart (Hearts in Hawthorne #3)
Chapter
Six
J ace dialed DeMarcus Green’s number the moment he arrived in the office. Elena said the running back had called and left messages three times over the long weekend, each time saying there was no urgent need to call him back.
Three times was a red flag to Jace.
He paced his office as the phone rang, seeing Elena set a Starbucks cup on his desk.
He gave her a quick nod of acknowledgement, knowing it would be doctored just as he liked it.
Somehow, she was always in tune with what he needed.
Coffee when a hit of caffeine was in order. Cashews when he got the munchies.
DeMarcus’ voicemail came on, causing frustration to build within him.
Jace waited until the beep and said, “DeMarcus, it’s Jace.
You have my cell number. I’ve told you to reach out to me, day or night.
No more calling the office when it’s a holiday.
Call me directly, okay? Anytime you need to talk. And call me when you get this.”
He touched his earbud, ending the call, and wandered back to his desk. Picking up the cup, he took a long drag. As it went down his throat and hit his belly, he could already feel the caffeine trickling through him. He sat, keying in his login and password, and the screen before him came to life.
But Jace couldn’t concentrate on it. He sat back in his chair, twirling a ballpoint pen, letting his thoughts drift.
The past few days had been mind-blowing.
Being reunited with Eli had been better than Jace ever could have anticipated.
It made him mad at himself for not having earlier pursued the leads Crawford had delivered.
Then again, right after Eli left Houston, TTM’s business had picked up considerably last spring.
He’d found himself swamped with work. Of course, that had been an excuse so that he could put off talking with Eli.
At least he’d finally put work on the back burner for once and gone to Hawthorne.
Attending Eli’s wedding—and serving as his best man—would be something Jace held close to his heart forever.
Even though Eli and Autumn had just gotten married, they insisted on spending a large chunk of Sunday and Monday with him.
They had taken him to a nearby lake on Sunday afternoon for a picnic, just the three of them, sitting by the water and eating and talking.
Some of the memories they’d spoken of had actually been good ones.
One of them would recall something, and the other would start to add on to the memory, as they talked about their childhood before they’d been separated by CPS.
A few of the things that had come to mind had been painful.
Autumn being there helped temper those feelings.
She was quiet. Supportive. Understanding.
It was Autumn who began drawing things out of Jace.
The more he shared, the more she encouraged Eli to do the same.
While he knew much of what Eli talked about, thanks to Crawford’s deep dive into Eli Carson, just listening to his brother talk kept Jace mesmerized.
Eli was very smart. Quick with his wit. It was also obvious that he was madly in love with his new wife.
Thanks to Autumn, Jace opened up about being adopted by the Tanners, explaining they had lost a son named Jason, and how they’d been unable to have more children.
They had wanted him to be Jason 2.0, something Jace had rebelled against from the moment they brought him home.
Eli told Jace how stubborn he’d been as a two-year-old, and that hadn’t changed by the time he turned three and they were separated forever.
Eli had told Jace he forgave him for being adopted.
Somehow, his brother understood that Jace had felt guilty about that all these years.
While Eli had moved around to different group homes over the years, Jace had a steady, permanent home.
The Tanners may not have been affectionate, loving parents, but at least he didn’t have to go without, as Eli had.
His brother had said the past was in the past. That they would look ahead to building a relationship now, one which would be strong and carry them into the future.
Monday, Eli and Autumn had her family over to swim and grill.
Jace enjoyed getting to know West’s wife.
Kelby was a spitfire, but she really balanced West. Mid-afternoon, West had disappeared, and Kelby had told Jace that it was part of being a football widow.
Even though it was a holiday, he and his coaching staff had gathered at the high school to watch film and prepare a game plan for the Hawks’ upcoming game on Friday night.
With the team not practicing on Monday, they would be playing catch-up the rest of the week.
Besides spending time with Kelby, Jace had also hung out with Darby.
Her brother also came to the cookout, and Jace envied the easy relationship she and Sawyer had.
Even though they weren’t around one another often, with Darby living out of state, it was obvious that she and her older brother fell into a back-and-forth with ease.
He saw true affection between the brother and sister.
And his hands were itching to be on Darby.
They flirted a bit, nothing too overt, but he could sense the sizzle beneath their words.
She also filled out her swimsuit nicely.
He liked that she wasn’t one of those girls who merely lay out by the pool and didn’t want to get their body wet, much less their hair.
Darby’s caramel hair had been pulled back in a high ponytail, and she had dived into the pool, not caring about getting soaked.
They had teamed together to play some pool volleyball against Sawyer and Summer and commiserated when they lost at the very end.
He’d enjoyed sitting around, snacking, talking, learning more about his brother and this family Eli had married into.
As for Eli, Jace couldn’t imagine a happier guy.
Every time Eli looked at Autumn, love was clearly written across his face.
Jace had actually found himself a bit jealous, having never been in love.
He was back to reality today, however. His schedule was packed. Then he recalled he’d asked Darby to go to dinner. Immediately, he buzzed Elena.
“What’s up?”
“What’s on my schedule today from five o’clock on?” he asked.
Without having to consult his calendar, the assistant said, “You’ve got a four-thirty meeting with Penny. I scheduled you through five-thirty. Then at six, you’re having drinks with the?—”
“No, that doesn’t work for me. Reschedule. Both.”
“O-kay,” Elena said, eyeing him with interest. “Should I also bump your dinner after? You were taking that jewelry designer you met at a party last week to a charity dinner for cystic fibrosis.”
He cursed softly. “Yes. Send a healthy contribution to the CF fund.”
“When should I put her on your calendar?” By now, Elena had opened the tablet she carried, consulting it for a future time to dine with Penelope Rossi. “Even if you don’t want to attend the charity function, it would be the gentlemanly thing to at least take her to dinner.”
“Not Wednesday,” he said quickly, hoping that Darby’s business would keep her in Dallas a second night.
Because he planned to take her to dinner again tomorrow night.
“Wednesday you have a fundraiser for a political candidate.”
“Nope. Cut him a check and send it, along with my regrets.”
Elena studied him a moment. “What’s her name?”
“What do you mean?” Jace asked defensively.
“You never ask to change things around or reserve a night. You keep to the schedule I set up for you, even if you do add to it yourself sometimes. I figure it has to be some woman who’s turned your head to have you canceling things left and right.”
“I met my brother this weekend,” he blurted out.
“Your brother?” she asked, clearly puzzled. “You’ve never mentioned a brother. To me. Or anyone at TTM that I know of. And believe me, that news would’ve gotten around. Fast.”
“Have a seat,” he ordered.
Over the next ten minutes, Jace told Elena about being a foster kid and having been separated from his brother for over twenty-nine years.
“That’s incredible, Jace,” she said, awe written on her face. “I can understand you wanting to spend time with him. And his new bride.” She frowned. “But you don’t want to go overboard. Three really is a crowd. You have the rest of your life to get to know your brother.”
“I’m not seeing Eli and Autumn tonight. Or tomorrow night. Autumn’s cousin is in Dallas for business the next two days. We decided to have dinner together tonight. I’d like to be free in case we enjoy our time together this evening and want a repeat tomorrow.”
“Shall I make dinner reservations for the two of you then?” Elena asked.
Jace winced. “I have no idea what kind of food Darby likes,” he admitted.
Elena studied him. “You must really like this woman because you’ve never given a thought to whether or not your date likes a certain cuisine or not. I’m going to go and start working on making your excuses and sending those checks. You need to see when Penelope is available for a make-up dinner.”
She consulted the tablet she carried. “You’re actually free on Thursday, if that helps.”
“Send her two dozen roses.” He thought a moment. “No, just a dozen. I don’t want to make too much fuss about having to cancel and have her read more into it than I want her to. I merely asked her to go to the charity event tonight because I needed a plus one.”
Elena asked, “To Penelope’s home or office?”
“Definitely office. She’s the kind of woman who wants others to know she’s received flowers and is seen in all the right places. In fact, book a table for seven at The Mansion for Thursday night.”
“Before you know she’s free?” Elena asked innocently.
“She’ll want to go. Because it’s The Mansion.”