Page 11 of One More Baby for the Boss

She frowned. “Is this about the fact that your father didn’t come to dinner last night?”

“I don’t care if he does or not.”

But she suspected that wasn’t the truth. “You were expecting him, weren’t you?” she said. “He made you think he was going to be there, and you were disappointed when he didn’t come. Isn’t that right?”

No answer, but she noticed that Jack’s lower lip quivered slightly.

“Jack,” she said gently, “It’s okay if that’s the way you feel, you know. I was disappointed that your dad couldn’t make it to dinner too. I was also hoping we’d get to eat with him.”

“He has to work a lot,” Jack said. “He’s really busy.”

“I know he is. He’s a really important guy, huh? He owns a lot of ranches, isn’t that right?”

Jack nodded. “Seven.”

“Seven ranches! That is a lot. Do you get to visit them?”

“Sometimes. Not all the time. Sometimes he won’t take me because it’s a work visit.”

“Well, that makes sense,” Alex said. “I guess it wouldn’t be much fun to go to a ranch and sit around while your dad worked. It would be more fun if he had time to play, right?”

“Dad doesn’t play. Grown-ups don’t play.”

“I play,” Alex said.

Jack looked away from the window and met her eyes. “You play? Really?”

“Sure I do. All the time,” she said. “I don’t think you have to stop playing just because you’re grown up. I think that would be really sad. Playing is one of the most important parts of life.”

“What do you play?” he asked her.

“Well, all kinds of things,” she said. “But what I want to know is, what doyouplay? Your dad asked me to come here to watch over you, which means Iamthe boss of some things, and you are going to have to listen to me. But I don’t have to be the boss of everything. You can be the boss of play and tell me what games you like best. What do you think? Is that a good job for you?”

“And you’ll play anything I want?” He sounded as if it was too good to be true.

“Almost anything,” she said. “As long as it isn’t dangerous. I get to be the boss of deciding what’s dangerous.”

“Is soccer dangerous?”

Alex laughed. “I don’t think soccer is too dangerous. Do you have a ball?”

“And a goal,” he said. “Dad bought them for me after we watched the World Cup.”

“You and your dad watched the World Cup together? That’s nice.” She had begun to think Elijah was someone who didn’t make any time for his son at all.

“He said I could watch with him,” Jack said. “He had some of his work people over to watch one of the games, and at first he was going to send me to bed. But one of the cowboys saw me and said he had a son my age who loved soccer, and then Dad let me stay.”

“I see,” Alex said. That was kind of sad. It sounded like Elijah hadn’t intended to share the moment with Jack at all. “But then he bought you the ball and the goal?”

“I asked for them for my birthday.”

“When was your birthday?”

“Last month. I turned six.”

“Well, that’s exciting.”

“How old are you?”

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