Page 14 of Coach Me (Boston Blues #2)

Miles lets go of his hug and leans back to look me in the eye while talking ninety miles a minute.

“It was so cool! I was a little sad when I didn’t see you in the hall.

I thought about going to the locker room, but then Shannon was walking out, and we’ve been avoiding her all day.

So Lucie and I raced into Callie’s office.

When I got sad again, Lucie said she knew a way to cheer me up. ”

I try to ignore the small pang of pain in my chest that Miles was upset he didn’t see me right after the game, but hell, that’s hard to hear. Between his mom backing out of their weekend together and me being completely selfish today?—

“Miles, why don’t you tell your dad about all of the fun we had today?” Lucie’s voice cuts through my thoughts.

“Oh yeah, we had so much fun! We went all around the stadium and I got to show Lucie all the big fancy rooms where people watch the games. And we went and got some ice cream, but I did have to eat real food first. Lucie says the same things you do, like eating good food and chewing with my mouth closed.”

Callie snorts. “What party poopers.”

Miles giggles at Callie while he pushes his hands on my chest for me to put him down. When he sits back down next to Callie, he pulls his legs up on the chair. “Lucie, can you juggle again?”

Lucie hums softly as the corner of her mouth tilts up for a moment. With how sweetly Miles just asked her, I imagine she’s considering it. I don’t even know how to do it, but hell, I’d figure it out if it meant getting that all-amazed look from my son.

But like Callie said, I’m a bit of a party pooper and I still need to talk to Lucie before we leave.

I kneel next to Miles’s chair. “Sorry, bud, maybe another night. We’ve got to get you to bed, but I do have to talk to Lucie for a minute. Can you stay with Callie until we’re done?”

“Oh.” Miles frowns for a moment before turning to Callie. “Do you know how to juggle?”

Callie hops up from her chair. “I can surely try!”

Oh, dear Lord .

I give Lucie a small nod to follow me to my office, and before we even make it halfway, we hear squeals and laughs accompanied by a loud thud.

Lucie chuckles. “We have to hurry, or I fear Callie might break a lot of stuff in her office.”

I hold the door open and let her walk in first. “Yeah, I’d consider it a safe bet that most of it wouldn’t be as accidental as she’d claim.”

“No, probably not.”

“So, today went okay?” I ask, taking my seat.

“Yeah, I think so. I mean, Miles and I had a good time.” Lucie shuffles in her chair and slides the small strands of her blonde hair back again.

This close, I can definitely see the blush but mostly sunburn on her cheeks and her nose.

“Did you not use the sunscreen?”

“Huh?”

“The sunscreen. Your face is red.”

The redness on her face intensifies…yeah, I probably could have said that in a less blunt way, but oh well. I’m pushing past my attraction to her right now, and I’m not sure how that’s all going to play out. For now, it’s bluntness.

Lucie places a hand on her cheek, I’m sure to feel the heat coming from it. “Oh no, I did. I just sunburn really easily. I didn’t realize?—”

“Maybe bring a hat to keep for the games.” And save me the need to give you one of mine.

“Right, I can do that.” Lucie gives me a slow nod. “So, tomorrow…”

Tomorrow. Fuck, the day she moves in.

Clearing my throat, I look down at the stack of papers on my desk, looking for my schedule that Shannon didn’t give Lucie.

Because she needs it, not because I need a break from looking at her.

“On the emergency list that Shannon gave you, it has the address and the instructions for the elevator. What time do you think you’ll be by to move in? ”

“Probably around ten or so. I have an hour drive, but I don’t have much stuff, so I think I can get most of it packed tonight, then?—”

It takes a minute to process the words Lucie just said, but as I glance at my watch, I see it’s already half past nine. “Wait, you have an hour drive?”

“Yeah, I told you that in our non-interview interview in the hall, remember?”

No, I don’t. I’m pretty sure I blacked out during half of that conversation.

Looking up from my desk, I study Lucie. “So, you’re driving an hour by yourself tonight in the dark after working all day, then turning around and doing it again in the morning? When are you even going to have time to sleep if your plan is to pack?”

“Well, yeah? I’ll manage some sleep, and Will’s going to meet me to help take some stuff in his SUV because it’s bigger. I’ll drive my car?—”

Nope. Not happening.

“Ride with Will in the morning. I don’t want you driving on little sleep. I’ll have the car service take you home and get your car to the apartment tomorrow. Just give me your keys.”

“Dex, that’s not?—”

“I said, give me your keys.” Okay, yep, teetering blunt and asshole territory. Let’s try this again. “The Blues have a car service for many reasons; consider this a perk of the job.”

Lucie’s lips form a thin line before she sighs and pulls out her keys from her pocket, and drops them in my hand .

Now, is calling the car service this last minute a little bit of an abuse of power? Kind of, but I don’t really care.

“Okay, consider it taken care of. I’ll have someone out front in fifteen minutes,” I say. “We’ll see you in the morning.”

Lucie tucks her chin down and gives a soft thank you as she stands up. But as she reaches the door, she spins back around. “I…uh, my turtles? No pressure, I just need to get a plan for them.”

My final answer is going to be no.

No is what I said in my head when I rehearsed this conversation with her.

But the words that come out of my mouth when I look at Lucie are “I’m not cleaning their tank.”