Chapter Twelve
“Where in the hell did I put my keys? Why can’t I ever find them?” Tanner slammed the desk drawer. The rest of his life was organized and orderly, so why couldn’t he manage the same at the office?
A knock sounded, and he snapped his head up in time to see Monica lift his keys off the hook hanging right beside the door. “How about right here?”
He rushed across the room and snatched them out of her hand. “Thanks. I don’t know why I can’t seem to keep track of them.”
“That’s why I hung the hook here. Now you just need to remember that’s where you put them.” She patted him on the shoulder. “But I have confidence in you. One of these days.”
“Very funny.”
Tanner hurried to the front door. Ever since the vandals had destroyed their rec room, he and Monica had been keeping the door locked when kids weren’t in the center. He didn’t want someone to come in while either of them was here alone. Not that a lock had stopped the vandals that night—they’d just broken a window. But the window had been replaced and the couches had been repaired.
Izzy was coming by to visit the center, and he was nervous. He’d presented budgets to the mayor and town council numerous times. He’d prepared and defended grant applications and conducted tours for any number of dignitaries without missing a beat. But Izzy coming by in—he checked his watch—twenty minutes was making him nuts.
He had barely taken a step when the bell above the door clanged. He spun around.
“Hi.” Izzy’s smile lit her entire self, and the green hues of her hazel eyes sparkled. She gave him a little wave with her fingers.
His body immediately sat up and took notice of the T-shirt that hugged her breasts and the tight leggings that outlined every sculpted muscle of her legs. He tugged at his jeans to release the pressure on his growing erection. This was becoming a perpetual problem around her.
He closed the distance between them and gathered her into his arms. She came willingly, her hands sliding up his chest, leaving a burning path in their wake as she linked her fingers behind his neck. He pressed his lips to hers and she opened in invitation. Not one to waste an opportunity, he slid his tongue in, sweeping around her mouth. She tasted of coffee and oranges, and he couldn’t get enough. His arms tightened around her, his body flush with hers. There was no way she didn’t know exactly the effect she had on him.
She gasped and he grinned against her mouth.
“Hey, Tanner. Oh—.” Monica’s voice penetrated his Izzy-induced haze. He reluctantly broke the kiss and rested his forehead on hers. His chest heaved as he struggled to regain his breath. Her chest heaved as well, and her eyes remained closed as she stroked up and down his back. Damn, those hands felt good. He couldn’t wait until he could get her alone, to feel her touch on his bare skin.
“Hello to you, too,” he said, and Izzy laughed.
He rested his arms on her shoulders and turned to Monica. But she was gone. That was just as well—he wanted a few more minutes with Izzy. “Sorry about that. That’s my assistant.”
Izzy laughed, the happy sound washing over him. “I guess I didn’t make a very good first impression.”
“You make a great first impression… Oh, you meant for Monica. No worries—she’s likely thrilled that I’m socializing instead of being holed up in my office for hours on end.” He slid his arm around her waist and stepped her further into the room.
“How’s Hayley?” She ran her hand up his arm, the act soothing. He was touched that she was asking about his daughter. He’d forgotten what it was like to have anyone other than him and Mary in Hayley’s life.
“She’s okay. She was tucked on the couch watching movies all day Sunday, but the fever broke and she went to school today. Just a little bug.”
“I’m glad to hear it. Tell her I was thinking of her, okay?”
“I will.”
Izzy stepped back and rested her hands on her hips as she scanned the room. He stood beside her, trying to see the space through her eyes. Her gaze landed on the unfinished mural on the wall. The kids had embraced the project to take back their center and were working on a picture that represented them. Marcus had sketched out the scene directly on the wall, and the other kids had started filling in the colors. It was magical to see the image coming to life right before their eyes.
“I love the mural. What’s it going to be when it’s done?”
He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her to his side. She fit beside him, her soft curves against him. “I don’t exactly know. One of the kids designed it, and everyone is pitching in.” His heart lurched at the memory of the ugly, red paint slashed across the walls and the debris thrown all over the room.
“What’s wrong? You just got tense.”
“I was just remembering what this room looked like a week ago. Vandals broke in and ripped up the furniture and most of the books on the shelves. They also sprayed red paint all over the walls.”
“Oh, Tanner, I’m so sorry. That’s awful. Do you know who did it?”
“No word from the Sheriff’s Office, yet. But we made the best of it. Marcus is an unbelievably talented artist, and the project is good for the kids. It gives them a way to take back their power that was threatened when someone broke in.”
“Is Marcus one of the kids who comes to the center?”
“Yeah. He had been arrested for a series of petty crimes, including damaging public property with graffiti. Now he’s using his talent in positive ways. He designed the entire image, and all of the kids have stepped up and really enjoyed the challenge. It’s been a great way to reach each of them because they are putting a bit of themselves into the picture. It will be a testament to them long after they’ve grown and stopped coming.”
“You sound like a parent sending their kids off to college.”
He puffed out his chest. She had summarized how he felt about the kids perfectly. They were as much his family as Hayley was, and his heart soared and broke as they experienced their highs and lows. “It is a bit like that, although I don’t plan on experiencing it with a child of my own for a very long time.”
“Hayley’s only eight so I think you’re safe for a while.” Izzy laughed again and he couldn’t help but join her. Every parent had to feel the same kind of jump in their heart at the thought of sending their kids out in the world, but Tanner couldn’t imagine not seeing Hayley every day, waking her up, and making her breakfast.
“How about you show me around? I want to see what you’ve done here.”
“Absolutely.” He rested his hand on the small of her back and directed her to the corner of the rec room where cozy chairs, bean bags, and futons had been arranged in a circle. “This is our hang out corner. It’s a no phone zone. The kids can chill and read or talk to each other… or not. We encourage them to interact with the world around them, though, and that’s why there are no phones and no video games in this part of the center.”
“I think that’s great. I hate to see how kids, even really young ones now, have their noses buried in their phones every minute of the day. It’s like they don’t know how to talk to each other anymore if it doesn’t involve their fingers.”
He nodded.
Her enthusiasm was contagious as he showed her the other sections of the rec room. Seeing it through her eyes gave him a whole new appreciation for what they had accomplished here. His heart swelled at having her in his space, appreciating what he had done. Vanessa had never understood his need to work with teens. She felt it was beneath him. But after losing his mother when he was young, he wanted to offer a safe place for kids who felt the same way.
But Izzy got it—and she got him.
Monica poked her head around the corner. “Is it safe to come out now?”
“Yes.” Tanner laughed and motioned to her. So maybe she had caught them making out in the middle of the center. There were no kids here. When Monica reached his side, he flung his arm over her shoulder. “Izzy, this is my assistant, Monica. I couldn’t get anything done around here without her. She’s the one who makes everything run smoothly and keeps me organized.”
Monica swiped under her eyes. “Oh, Tanner, I’m so choked up.”
“Hardy-har-har. Yeah, Monica, you know I love you.”
Izzy extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you. You guys have really built a great place here.”
“Thanks. I just wanted to let you know that I’m going to run some errands. I’ll be back before three-thirty.”
“Sounds good. See ya then.”
Monica headed out the front door and then it was just the two of them.
“Can I show you the rest of the place?”
“I’d love that.” She slid her hand down his arm and linked their fingers together. This move wasn’t possessive. It was, he didn’t know, almost sweet. He’d forgotten what it felt like to just hold hands with a woman, to have that small connection to another person.
He headed down the back hall.
“These are our study and counseling rooms. There are quiet hours where the kids know that they can have uninterrupted time to work, and we also have group and individual sessions.”
“Does everyone here participate in counseling?”
“Some of the kids referred to us have counseling mandated as part of their probation. Others have to be encouraged to participate. But I can safely say that most everyone gets something out of the sessions. Shoot, I often walk away with some new insights about myself from talking to the kids.”
“It sounds like you really enjoy your work.”
“I do.” For all the times he pulled his hair out because he wasn’t sure where they would find the funding they needed, or when one of the kids had an outburst that left others reeling in fear, or when someone took their anger out on the center itself, it was hard to remember that it was all about the kids. Being the person that they could talk to. That was what this center was all about.
He opened the door to the empty room at the end of the hall. “This is our exercise room. It’s not big enough to play basketball or anything like that, but we’ve hung a goal on the back of the building for when the weather cooperates. In here they can toss a ball or a frisbee around, throw racquetballs at the walls. It gives them a place where they can work out some of their frustrations.”
He had worked hard to make the entire center, especially this room, open and welcoming. Bright sun streamed in from the high windows that lined one wall, flooding the room with light. The hardwood floors were scratched and marked, a testament to the kids who had come and enjoyed the exercise room. The racks of balls, hula hoops and other equipment were lined neatly in the corner. There was even a punching bag for the especially angry kids. The kids were responsible for taking care of the center and returning everything where it belonged when they were finished with it. He’d learned early on that having high expectation for the kids gave them a sense of purpose and accomplishment.
Izzy stepped into the room and spun in a circle. She took three steps and then leapt higher than he’d ever seen anyone come off the floor before. “Have you ever thought about having dance classes here?”
“What, er no.” He’d barely heard her question, his mind focused on the movement of her body as she whirled around the floor. It was as though he could hear music in his head as she moved her arms and legs in rhythm. “I don’t think these kids would be up to twirling around in tights and tutus.”
“Very funny. I don’t mean ballet. There are a lot of dance styles that teens who haven’t danced before appreciate. Dance is a great outlet for anger and frustration. I could hold a hip-hop or a contemporary dance class here, maybe every other week, if you think you might have some kids interested.”
His mouth dropped open. So many people, when confronted with the idea of a teen center, tended to steer clear. Afraid how the teens might influence others around them. Sure, some kids here had been in trouble, but others were just looking for a safe place to be themselves. “Really, you’d do that?”
She moved toward him so gracefully that, if his eyes had been closed, he would have never known she was there. She took his hands and guided him into the room. “Stand opposite me. You don’t have any mirrors here so I can’t stand beside you, but let me show you a few steps.”
Izzy tapped on her phone screen a few times and an upbeat song blasted out of the speaker. For the next few minutes, she put him through quite the workout. She had him swinging his arms, jumping and leaping and moving his body in ways he hadn’t imagined possible. And every minute of the time, he was fully aware of the sexy woman opposite him. Watching her move her body with such abandon had him imagining her over him, her hips rolling, her breasts bobbing slightly with the movement as he drove into her.
“Uncle.” He threw himself onto the ground, his arm over his eyes and his chest heaving. He thought he was in shape, but clearly he had nothing on Izzy. How did she do this for hours on end, day after day? Sweat ran down his face as he continued to suck air into his lungs until his heart slowed.
When he finally opened his eyes, he found Izzy sitting across from him, hardly breaking a sweat. Her hands were propped behind her, her knees bent, and her head was thrown back as she moved her lips to the words of the song. Her head bobbed slightly to the beat.
The pressure built in his gut again. Dammit. Where was a cold shower when he needed it?
A slower song replaced the upbeat one, and Izzy’s head stilled. Her lips opened just slightly, begging to be kissed. Well, he would be happy to oblige. He sat up and slid beside her, shoulder to shoulder, his feet pointing the opposite of hers.
He cupped her cheeks and her eyes flew open. Desire swirled in the hazel depths, the mix of greens and browns drawing him in. His gaze stayed locked on hers as he lowered his head. At the last minute, her eyes fluttered closed, and their lips came together in an explosive meeting. This kiss was sweet and sexy, sensual and seductive, a collision of lips and tongues and teeth.
Her hands grabbed hold of his arms and squeezed, her fingers digging into his muscles as she nipped at his lip. The minute she touched him, his entire body tightened. His head swam as every drop of blood travelled south and his erection grew painfully thick.
Based on how her body was pressed to his, Izzy sure didn’t have any interest in going slow. He pulled her hands off his arms and linked them behind his neck. He then lowered her to the floor, never breaking the kiss. Once she was flat on her back, his hands were free to explore her body.
And explore he did.
While he licked a path to her ear, his hand slid down and cupped her breast. The soft mound gave as he squeezed, and the nipple grew beneath his touch. He flicked his finger over the nub and was rewarded with a gasp. She writhed beneath him, her body deliciously brushing against him with each movement. The music faded away, and it was just the two of them, the heat of their arousal surrounding them. She thrust her breast into his hand, urging him on. He was happy to oblige.
With his hand on one breast, he blazed a path down her neck until his tongue skimmed the edge of her T-shirt. He slid his mouth over her shirt and opened his lips on her cloth-covered nipple. Even through the fabric, the heat of her skin washed over his face. He brushed his cheek back and forth across her pebbled nipple. She moaned and pressed up into his mouth. What he wouldn’t give for a bed right about now. Or even just somewhere more private than the floor in the middle of the gym.
Izzy fumbled with his shirt, and before he knew it, her palms pressed flat against his bare back. God, her soft skin felt so good against him, each patch she touched practically going up in flames. She slid her hands up, pulling his shirt along the way, her fingers blazing a hot path. Holy hell! If he didn’t put a stop to this soon, they would be doing a lot more than making out. And he respected Izzy too much to do that to her.
But pulling away from her was hard. So hard. Especially when her fingers whispered over his nipple. He sucked in a breath. It was no wonder brushing her nipple drove her wild.
He pressed his hands to the floor and forced himself to push up. She lay below him, her eyes closed and her lips swollen from his kisses. Her shirt sported a wet spot where he’d sucked , and a patch of skin just above her jeans was exposed. He couldn’t resist the temptation and slid his lips across her belly. She rewarded him with a gasp followed immediately by a giggle as she snatched her shirt down.
His Izzy was ticklish. Good to know. He could use that to his advantage… later. But for now, they had to get off the floor before someone walked in. He sat back on his knees, and she finally opened her eyes, a sex-drugged haze turning her irises an even deeper green.
“Wow.” Her word was huffed out on a breath.
“I got a bit out of control. I’m sorry.”
“I’m not.” The corners of her mouth turned up. “Did you hear me complaining?”
“No, but I shouldn’t have attacked you here in the middle of the floor where anyone could walk in.”
“I don’t know. Sounded like a pretty good idea to me.” Izzy’s smile grew wider. If he didn’t get them out of this room soon, he would take her up on her offer. He stood, tugging his shirt down and pulling at the jeans straining over his erection. He then extended his hand to Izzy to help her to her feet.
She popped up easily, and his eyes fell to the patch of skin still exposed above her waist. As her gaze followed his, she laughed and tugged her shirt down. “That’s enough, mister.”
He chuckled and grabbed her hand, hauling her out the door and toward the front of the center. His gaze landed on the clock. He completely lost track of time when he was with Izzy. “Holy crap! School’s out. The kids will be here anytime. And you probably have to get to the studio.”
The smile fell from her face. “Is it bad of me to wish that I didn’t have classes today? That the center was closed?”
“Is it bad that I feel the same?” He brushed his lips over hers for one last taste. Now that he knew what it was like to have her in his arms, to feel her body beneath his, he couldn’t wait to find another chance to spend time with her. “Have dinner with us. Friday night?”
“You and Hayley.”
“And Mary. All of us… at my house.”
“I don’t want to make Mary cook extra just for me.”
“Are you kidding me? She lives for it. Trust me when I say she’ll be thrilled that I’m bringing you to dinner. You are all Hayley has been able to talk about for weeks.”
“Are you sure? I thought we were keeping things quiet for the time being.”
“I don’t want to sneak around, Izzy.” He’d initially been worried about bringing a woman into Hayley’s life. But he was so far gone with Izzy that he didn’t want to keep her a secret anymore. He wanted to see how Hayley would react to him dating a woman. No, not to dating any woman. To dating Izzy. For so long, he thought he was destined to spend the rest of his life alone. Just him and Hayley. And he’d come to accept that fact. But then he’d met Izzy and his entire perspective changed. He wanted to spend as much time as possible with her, and their conflicting schedules were making that difficult.
She bit her lip, and he could practically see her debating his request. Damn, had he moved too fast? He was figuring out how to walk it back when she answered. “All right.”
The sound of laughter filled the room as a half dozen kids filed into the center. They yelled and waved at him but then immediately headed over to the game corner. Just when he was starting to get somewhere with Izzy. This conversation was too important to squeeze into the few minutes they’d managed to steal with their busy work schedules. But he would get some quality time alone with her. Soon. “I have to get to work. I’ll see you Friday?”
“Friday. I’m done at seven. Is seven-thirty okay?”
“Perfect. I’ll see you then.”
He started to lean forward and then glanced around the room. Every teenaged eye was fixed on him. “Get to work. All of you.”
Izzy backed away from him, gentle laughter on her lips. That wonderful sound followed her out the door. He kept his eyes locked on her as she walked down the street and turned the corner out of his view. He then spun on his heel and headed to his office. Today hadn’t gone at all like he’d planned. It was so much better.