Page 35 of The Only Goal

TAMMY

“Tammy!” Baxter shouts my name, and I jerk at the panic in his voice, racing out of the kitchen and into the entryway.

I reach the reception desk and spot Baxter cradling my son like he’s a precious porcelain vase. His large hand is cupping the back of Kai’s head, and the worried look in his eyes makes my heat lurch.

“What happened?” I race across to them, catching Kai as he launches himself into my arms. “Oof.”

“He hit the ice.” Baxter runs a hand through his hair, looking as beat-up as Kai’s face. “I was trying to teach him how to skate, and I should have stayed closer to him, but I thought he had his balance and then bam. Face crunch.”

I brush Kai’s hair back to check him out, giving him my sad smile as I take in his swollen lip and cheekbone. “Ouch, buddy. That ice really did a number on you.”

“It hurts, Mommy.” He lets out a hiccupping sob and rests his head against my shoulder.

“I know.” Kissing his forehead, I rub his back and murmur, “Should we get you some ice?”

He jerks up to give me a horrified frown. “More ice?”

I can’t help a soft laugh, which he is not impressed by. “Sorry. I mean like an ice pack. It might help with the bruising.”

“I don’t want it.” His bottom lip sticks out, and then his chin bunches before he launches into a cry that looks to be breaking Baxter’s heart.

“It’s okay.” I squeeze Baxter’s forearm. “He’s gonna be just fine.”

“I’m so sorry. I was supposed to take care of him, and I… I…”

“You did a great job.”

“What?” His voice breaks. “I did the worst job.”

“No, you really didn’t.” Clutching my sobbing child against my chest, I pivot and walk into the kitchen, where Rachel is already waiting with an ice pack and some candy. With a little coaxing, we subdue Kai’s tears, and he ends up falling asleep on my chest, the lollipop he’s halfway through sticking to my shirt.

With a soft laugh, Rachel throws it out for me, and I carry Kai up to our room, settling him into bed and gently kissing his face.

His lip has already started to go down, but he’ll have a nice little shiner on his face for a few days. Poor guy. I wonder if I’ll ever be able to get him back on the ice. I was so touched that Baxter wanted to do that with him. Kai doesn’t have many men in his life who will play sports with him. My dad’s a book nerd and seems allergic to sweat. Hudson’s dad has thrown a baseball with Kai a few times, but Hudson was more of a rock star than a jock… and now he’s a businessman who doesn’t get home before Kai goes to bed.

With a soft frown, I pad out of the room and go in search of Baxter.

I find him on the third floor, carefully painting a window frame with an unhappy scowl on his face. An old, familiar affection blooms within me. I’ve seen that look before. It’s the one he wears when he’s annoyed about something. And right now, I know he’s super pissed with himself… even though he did nothing wrong.

“Hey.” I capture his attention by waving my hand in his direction.

He jerks, pulling the pods from his ears and turning off his music. “Is he all right?”

“Yeah, he’s sleeping. I don’t know how long he’ll nap for, and it’s going to screw up his night routine, but…” I shrug.

“Tammy.” My name sounds raspy coming out of his mouth. “I’m so sorry.”

He looks tortured, and it’s breaking my heart.

Stepping into the room, I take the paintbrush out of his hand, dropping it in the can before capturing his wrists and turning him to face me. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You took Kai skating, and he fell over. It happens. Kids fall all the time. It was an accident.”

“But I was supposed to be taking care of him. It just happened so fast and?—”

“It always does. You can’t catch them every time.” I smile up at him, rubbing my thumb over the fine hairs on his arm and failing to ignore the strength I’m holding on to. He’s pure muscle and power. I can only imagine what his body looks like under his T-shirt, but my stomach swirls with a wanton desire that’s unnerving.

I swallow and focus on his face instead, and my heated yearning turns to something else. Affection scatters through me again, and I can’t help smiling. I’m pretty sure I’ll do anything to make him feel better right now.

So, I share a secret I’ve never dared to tell another soul… not even Hudson.

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