Page 20 of Daycare Santa

She straightened her spine and prepared to leave the daycare. The faster she made it to the office, the more time she’d have to organize herself. But she had a niggle from last week and wanted to settle it, so she went to the counter and waited while the staff dealt with two other women. When it was her turn, she asked, “Is Mr. Winters here?”

Emily’s braids swung as she nodded. “I’ll get him for you.”

Uncertain of how long she’d have to wait, Gina took a seat. A few minutes passed, and when she looked at her watch and raised her head, the gate in the counter swung open.

Zack Winters came toward her, larger than life, in black slacks and a polo shirt of the same color. She pulled in a breath and had a challenge releasing it. Zack was already too attractive for his own good, but today the dark clothing did that something extra. He held out one hand. “Good to see you again.”

She hesitated, then stood, put her hand into his, and promptly forgot what she was about to say.

Zack saved her from embarrassing herself by asking, “Emily said you asked for me?”

To restore her equilibrium, she pulled her hand away and slipped it into her pocket. “Um, yes, I wanted to ask you something. I hope you don’t think I’m a fussy parent, but Saturday, as I was leaving, I saw that dog again.”

She wanted to say more, but his concerned brown eyes were disturbingly intense. Her words petered out, and she lost the thread of her thought.

Zack’s hand went to his chest. “Yes, my mother passed through.”

When it came, his grin sucked her breath away. “Don’t worry though, she didn’t bring Champ inside.”

“Oh.” Now, she felt foolish and didn’t know how to wrap up the conversation, which irritated her because she wasn’t used to being awkward around people. She’d been in business long enough to meet all types, but this man kept her off-balance which was unnerving.

“If that’s all you wanted ...”

She pulled her words together with difficulty under his focused gaze. “Uh ... yes, that was it.”

“You’ll find I keep my promises, Ms. Wright.” Zack’s eyes twinkled, and he folded both arms across his chest. “So, there’s no need to worry.”

Her attention shifted to his muscular forearms and back to his face. Now, she felt like a voyeur. She pulled her wits together and returned his smile. “Thanks for the reassurance.”

A thought occurred to Gina, and she frowned.

“Is something wrong?” he asked.

“Not really. Actually ... maybe.”

He leaned in, encouraging her to continue. “It’s only the first day, but I may be a little late picking up Luca. I have two back-to-back functions, but I’ll get here as soon as I can.”

“He’ll be fine. Thereisan extra cost that kicks in an hour beyond the regular pick-up time.”

“That’s okay. I shouldn’t be later than a half-hour.”

“See you later, and have a good day.”

“You do the same.” She slipped her handbag over her shoulder and walked away from him. It was impossible not to feel his gaze centered on her and the sudden heat that enveloped her body. As she prepared to drive out, she glanced around until she located the matte black sports car that belonged to Zack. Again, she wondered how he folded himself into something that close to the ground.

She soon forgot about him as she battled traffic and arrived at her office. The small building was previously a home the owner had converted into office space for rent. It suited their business because it came outfitted with a large kitchen and was on the edge of the business district.

Nichelle had resisted the idea of putting in an island, but the owner had been gracious and allowed the modification. Now, Gina was grateful for the added space. Yesterday, with Seya’s help, she baked several batches of dark fruit cake—a staple at Christmastime in Jamaica.

Tara, who specialized in pastry making, and their team of four other females, plus a couple of temps, were already engaged in prep work for the luncheon and cocktail party scheduled for the evening. The split with Nichelle meant losing three members of the staff who went with her.

Since they hired waiters, depending on their needs, Gina didn’t have to worry about that end of the business. Their team was like the proverbial well-oiled machine, so Nichelle’s departure hit Gina hard. So far, she’d been coping, and didn’t spend any time moping about her misfortune.

Boyd’s handsome face swam before her eyes, and she blinked to banish the picture. He didn’t deserve any of her brain space. None of them could predict the future and what happened in it, but the decent thing would have been to say he and Nichelle were seeing each other. Of course, they chose to do otherwise.

Gina clamped her jaw shut and pulled herself firmly into the present. She wouldn’t think about what she couldn’t fix.

The afternoon passed in a blur, with Tara overseeing the catering for the luncheon and Gina supervising and assisting the staff at the cocktail party scheduled to start at six. The insurance company used the top floor of the building they occupied to host their Christmas function.

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