Hometown Hero's Redemption

“I want her to be.”

“Me, too.”

Wyatt grabbed his fishing rod and stood at the end of the dock. “How do I do this again?”

Drew showed him the steps. Wyatt’s first attempts didn’t get the line far, but after a few more tries, he cast it out several feet. Drew gave him a high five.

“Hey, Wyatt, we’re going to be all right.” He put his arm around him. “I hope you know that.”

“Do you think Lauren would stay with me while you’re at work?”

Drew’s chest expanded. The kid liked her. Wyatt had already opened up more in the last ten minutes than he had since Chase went to jail three months ago. But Lauren didn’t work with troubled kids anymore. She’d made that clear. What had happened in Chicago to make her quit?

“I don’t know.” This conversation alone hammered it home—Wyatt was dealing with much more than the average kid. He didn’t need a college student around to watch TV and heat up chicken nuggets. He needed to make sense of his shattered family. He needed Lauren. She might not believe she could help him, but Drew knew she could.

And maybe in the process, he could help her, too. Her sunny smile had grown cloudy since he’d last seen her, and he wanted to bring her joy back.

He’d just have to figure out how to get her to say yes.

Chapter Two (#ud5d37aae-52e0-5879-af08-a8a62443d4ab)

“I’ve been talking to Stan, and we think you should offer a class.”

Lauren looked up from her computer screen at the reception desk of LE Fitness the following afternoon. Megan Fellows, one of the Zumba instructors, stood in front of her. Since moving back in January, Lauren had reconnected with Megan, two years her junior, and they’d become good friends, partly because Megan was so upbeat and made it her mission to not let Lauren dissolve into a puddle of depression. What would she think of Drew’s offer?

It didn’t matter. Lauren had made her decision. She needed to stay strong and say no when Drew called. If he called...

He would call. His take-charge personality assured her he would not let this matter fade away.

“What kind of class?” Lauren typed in a new client’s information.

“A tumbling class for cheerleaders.”

A tumbling class? The idea didn’t horrify her. “I don’t know.”

“You keep saying you’re figuring things out, but you don’t have a plan.” Megan’s brown ponytail bounced as she drummed her fingernails on the counter. “And Laney will be back on Monday. What are you going to do?”

The million-dollar question. She had no idea. Megan was right about her not having a plan—every time she tried to figure out her next step, she froze. It was difficult letting go of the dream she’d had for most of her life. She couldn’t handle the heartbreak of social work, but she still liked kids. Tumbling classes might be something to consider.

“I don’t want you to go all hermit-like in your apartment again.” Megan rested her elbows on the counter. Her face had the concerned look that poked at Lauren’s conscience.

“Well, I have been offered a babysitting job.”

“Babysitting?” Megan grimaced. “What ages are we talking? Three? Five?”

“Ten. Do you remember Drew Gannon?”

“Do I remember Drew Gannon?” Megan rounded the counter in a flash and took a seat next to Lauren. “Tall, built and studly? Oh, I remember.”

“That’s him.” Lauren had probably been the only girl in school who hadn’t drooled all over Drew.

“I’ve had a crush on him since I was in second grade. I know he’s a little older than me, but how could a girl not like him?”

“Every girl in this town liked him at one point or another.” Lauren straightened the papers on the desk. “He’s back. Hired in at the fire station. He’s taking care of his best friend’s son.”

“Why?” Megan’s screwed-up face almost made Lauren laugh.

“I’m not getting into all the gory details, but Wyatt will be living with him for several years.”

“A single dad. Maybe he needs some help...from yours truly.”

Lauren swatted at her arm and laughed. “I’m sure once word gets out he’s back in town, there will be plenty of willing female bodies at his door.”

“He’s single, then?”

“Seems to be.”

“So how do you fit into all this?”

“His schedule,” Lauren said. “Twenty-four hours on. Forty-eight off. He needs someone to stay with Wyatt while he’s at work.”

Megan pressed her index finger to her lips. “Why you?”

“My degree. Experience. His mom recommended me.”

“Please tell me you jumped at the chance?”

She shook her head. “I can’t, Megan. You know I can’t.”

“I know no such thing. You can. And you should.”

“Uh, no. I’m not putting myself through it. No more emotionally damaged kids. My heart can’t take it. I’m finally getting back to normal.” If normal included not sleeping well, avoiding any public event and refusing to date any of the men brave enough to ask her out since she’d moved back...

Her new normal sounded sad. Add a few more felines, and she could be a reclusive cat lady.

“You love kids. And this is only one kid. It would be perfect. You wouldn’t be trying to find him a foster home or visiting him at a crack house. You’d be heating SpaghettiOs and helping with math problems. Easy.” Megan snapped her fingers.

Megan always made things sound easy. Unfortunately, Lauren knew better. There were so many factors making the situation impossible. Like the fact that Drew had been a complete jerk to her for years. Sure, he’d seemed caring with Wyatt and had apologized yesterday, but it didn’t guarantee he was a stand-up guy.

And then there was Wyatt. Withdrawn, emotionally shattered—it was written all over him. She couldn’t be simply a babysitter. She didn’t have it in her. No matter how much she told herself not to grow attached, not to fall in love with the kids, she did. She’d love him. And she’d get hurt. If she took care of Wyatt and made a bad decision, it could send him back to square one.

“You want to say yes,” Megan said. “I can see it in your eyes.”

“He was so skinny and small and withdrawn. He was sweet, too. I felt an instant connection.”

Megan smiled slyly. “And did you feel the connection with his temporary dad?”

Oh, yeah. When she agreed to meet Drew, she’d been sure she wouldn’t find him attractive at all. His personality in high school had made him unattractive to her. But watching him interact with Wyatt? Seeing the way he pushed and pushed for Wyatt’s sake?