Page 15

Chapter fifteen

Hazel James

It shouldn’t be concerning that one of Emmett’s friends is smiling at me, but there’s something about Jason’s grin that has me shifting in my seat. His eyes sparkle with the kind of mischief that June’s do before she does something like pour half a bottle of maple syrup on her pancakes. For the record, she only stopped at half because I confiscated said bottle.

“So, Hazel,” Jason begins with a drawl. “You work for Emmett.”

I glance at Emmett, who is staring at his friend in a decidedly unfriendly way.

“Yes,” I answer with caution.

“Miss Hazel is my best friend,” June chimes in.

I bite the inside of my cheek as tears well up. Now is not the time to cry. They’ll think I’m ridiculous if I cry over something so small. I blink a few times.

“You’re my best friend too, sweet pea.” I run a hand over her dark curls, hoping everyone didn’t hear my voice crack.

Something brushes against my leg and I glance down. Emmett’s hand hovers over my thigh, holding a napkin. I glance up at him. He’s still looking across the table. I gently take it from him, our fingers brushing in the process and sending warmth shooting up my arm.

“Sorry,” I murmur as I dab beneath my eyes. “I’m a bit of a sap when it comes to June.”

“That’s so sweet,” Willow says with a soft smile.

“Miss Hazel cries a lot ,” June informs the group.

I squeeze my eyes shut as my face flames in embarrassment. I’m contemplating running back up to my hotel room when Emmett’s chuckle reaches my ears. His laughter gives permission to my own. Jason’s eyebrows raise as he looks at Emmett; I don’t know what for.

“I do, don’t I?” I say to June through my giggles. “But they’re all happy tears.”

“I can relate to that,” Willow says, locking eyes with Jason. He gives her a look that says he knows exactly what she’s talking about. It’s the kind of shared gaze that shows a depth of understanding only two people in love could have.

“I don’t get happy tears, but maybe I will when I grow up,” June says.

I put an arm around her shoulder and squeeze her close to me. “Maybe.”

“What about you, Emmett? Any happy tears shed lately?” Jason teases.

Willow bumps him with her shoulder, but she’s smiling as she does it.

“Daddy says there’s no crying in baseball.” June nods to punctuate her sentence.

My brow furrows. What an odd thing to say. I guess that’s probably true, but it seems like a strange thing to tell a kid.

Jason’s head tips back as he laughs. “What a great thing to teach her.”

“Hey, that’s from a fantastic movie,” Emmett defends. “And I said it as a joke .”

“I didn’t know you knew how to joke, E.T.,” Jason says. “Today is full of all kinds of surprises.”

“I’m confused,” I say as I look between Emmett’s scowl and Jason’s smirk.

“The quote June said is from A League of Their Own . It’s a movie about a women’s baseball team,” Emmett explains.

I nod. “Okay, but where does E.T. fit in?”

“Our friend, ” he says the word like it pains him, “Shaw gave me the nickname after finding out my middle name is Thomas. I hate nicknames, but he doesn’t seem to care about that.”

“Nope,” Jason cheerfully adds.

I can’t help the little laugh that slips out. After seeing Emmett and his teammate Emerson together, I’d thought they were an odd pair. Now it seems like it’s common for Emmett to keep this sort of company. I look at his expression. He’s attempting to scowl, but I can see the left corner of his mouth tipped up just barely. Perhaps he’s soft for more than just June. I think of him slipping his hat on my head yesterday. My face flushes.

Now is not the time to be blushing and staring at his mouth. I avert my gaze, only to have it snag on the Cheshire grin Jason is sporting. Great. He definitely caught me. He’s probably going to tell Emmett and then I’ll get fired for having a huge inappropriate crush on my boss. After yesterday, I wouldn’t even be able to deny the accusation. Between the hat moment and then waking up to a jersey with his name on the back this morning…I’m officially a goner. The coroner will write death by falling too hard, too fast, on my chart.

“You should hear the five of them playing video games,” Willow says with a laugh. “They spend most of the time getting under each other’s skin.”

My eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “You play video games?” I ask Emmett.

“Just one,” he replies. “I play Halo with the guys whenever most of us have time.”

I wrinkle my nose. “Oh, that kind of game.”

“Not a fan of shooting aliens?” Jason asks.

“No, definitely not. My idea of a good video game is something involving farming while a peaceful soundtrack plays in the background.”

“A game about farming ?” Jason’s face mirrors mine when he spoke about aliens.

“It’s calming,” I say with a shrug.

“It’s not like it matters what game we play anyway, because all you want to do is talk. Half the time we lose because you’re arguing about whether or not you could fight a bear,” Emmett says, making me laugh.

“Please don’t bring that up again,” Willow begs.

As if hearing her plea, the waiter–Karl–comes over to take our order. The restaurant is bustling with patrons, and Karl looks harried because of it. His hair is mussed in a way that doesn’t look purposeful, and he can’t seem to stand still for long. He hasn’t come by since dropping off our drinks, but no one seems to mind.

Each of us order, and then Karl is off to the races again.

“Poor guy,” I comment. “I wonder if he’ll even get a second to breathe today.”

“Makes me appreciate the job I have,” Jason says before taking a sip of his water.

Emmett hums low in agreement.

“You both work hard too, though. Based on the game yesterday, and past football games I’ve watched, I’m sure your training is intense.”

“It can be a lot, but I don’t mind. Especially if Willow is there to watch.” Jason winks at his wife, who blushes and smacks his shoulder.

“Please don’t flirt in front of my daughter,” Emmett grumbles. “Or me.”

June looks up from her coloring page. “What’s flirting?”

“Another thing you’re not old enough for yet,” I tell her and she frowns.

“I wish I was older.”

I laugh. “You’ll take that back one day.”

She scrunches her nose before turning her attention back to her coloring book.

“Do you go to Emmett’s practices?” Jason asks.

“Are you asking me if I watch him like Willow watches you?” I say without thinking.

Jason lets out a surprised laugh. “If I was?”

“Jason,” Emmett warns in a low tone that makes tingles go down my spine.

Willow shakes her head and shoots us an apologetic look. “Don’t pay him any mind, Hazel. He’s teasing you to get under Emmett’s skin.”

“I don’t think that’s going to work very well,” I reply.

Willow presses her lips together in an expression that says she doesn’t believe me. The only reason any of this would bother Emmett is if he thought it was unprofessional or rude. He seems adamant about making sure I’m comfortable, but that’s just basic human decency, not any fondness on his part. She probably wants to see something between us the same way Jason does. While I’m flattered, they have to know it’s a ridiculous thought. Emmett is the furthest thing from interested in me.

“Time will tell,” Jason mumbles cryptically.

I hope Jason doesn’t have his hopes up. I read about what happened with Emmett’s ex-wife. I’m sure that’s made him extra careful about who he lets in his life. I know it would for me. His standards are likely way too high for me to even hope to meet. I’m only ever going to be his nanny. Willow, Jason, and my heart need to remember that.