A short time later, Hayden sent everyone out on the field again, and when they were all involved with batting practice, he entered the dugout and sat next to Riley. “Thanks for getting everyone a drink,” he said, grinning at her. “You’re settling in fine as assistant coach.”
“Are you thirsty?” she asked, getting up and ignoring his comment about her being his assistant. She also struggled to ignore the electricity she felt when he sat next to her. This coaching thing wasn’t going to work. It didn’t matter how hard she tried to convince herself that she didn’t find him attractive. Her heart and brain weren’t listening. He was hot, kind, athletic—the perfect guy. End of story. After today, she’d end the job as assistant coach, no matter what Mimi said.
“I’m fine, Riley.” He motioned for her to stay put.
She listened as he began identifying who was on the field. Who played what position, who was their best batter, who still needed lots of improvement, and how Riley would be expected to keep the stats during games.
“Did Mimi do that?” she asked, getting caught up in Hayden’s tutoring. She couldn’t fathom her grandmother keeping decent records of anything, especially considering the state of her books at the yarn shop. When Riley worked there as a teen, she stayed out of the bookkeeping and finances. Maybe she should have paid more attention.
He shook his head. “Erma was the team cheerleader more than anything,” he said. “She appointed herself assistant coach.”
“And you couldn’t tell her no,” Riley said while offering a knowing smile.
“You got it. I didn’t mind, though. Team spirit is a key part of the game, and Erma sure did bring the spirit. Olivia was doing stats before, but now she has to play since we’re down two members. Hang on a minute.” He got up from the bench and walked outside the dugout.
“Anita, put your glove on the ground before the ball comes to you. Right, like that.” Then he went back and sat next to Riley again. “I can go over all the duties with you tonight if you want. Maybe we can grab a bite to eat too.”
Riley’s pulse jumped and her resolve started to weaken. “Oh, um, I don’t know about that,” she said, staring at her sandals.
“Guess I should have asked if you were free first.”
She looked at him this time, the friendly smile gone from his face. She didn’t like that her moodiness had erased it. She had to steel her resolve, though, even if she hated herself for doing it.
“I am busy,” she explained, telling the truth. “There’s so much work to do at the shop and the house.”
“Erma’s house?” When Riley nodded, he said, “What’s wrong with her house?”
“You were there the other night. It’s a mess.”
“It’s a bit untidy—”
“You’re being kind.”As usual.“The yard needs work and the house could really use a few repairs.”
“I didn’t realize that. Why hasn’t she said she needed help?”
“Because she doesn’t think she does,” Riley explained. “You know my grandmother.”
“I certainly do, and you’re right, she wouldn’t ask for help unless the roof was caving in on her.” He rubbed his chin. “I know a good home repair guy I can recommend.”
“Really?” Riley hadn’t relished the thought of trying to replace the three splintering boards on the front porch or getting the mold off the bricks on the back of the house. “Who?”
Hayden grinned again. “Me.”
Tanner ran to the dugout. “We’ve gone through the batting order, Coach.Twice.If you’re nottoobusy, can you tell us what to do next?” Riley didn’t miss the smirk on Tanner’s face.
“Already?” Hayden shot up from the bench. “Sorry, guess I lost track of time. Uh, bring everyone in. I’ll give them the details for the game on Tuesday.” He jogged to the infield, and the players gathered around him.
Riley couldn’t help watching his every movement. Then she stilled. Hayden had offered to work on Mimi’s house. And while she knew it was a bad idea to accept his offer, she wasn’t a fool. If he could take care of the outside repairs, she could focus on the inside and on getting Knots and Tangles back in order. Then the image of Harper’s business card popped into her mind. While she wasn’t interested in becoming friends with her, maybe Riley could enlist her help in convincing Mimi to sell the store. Then, once her grandmother’s leg was healed, Riley would be free and clear to go back to New York—that was always her plan. She hadn’t imagined having to recruit help, but she’d be an idiot not to.
Feeling a little more relaxed, Riley tidied up the dugout, gathering the used cups and throwing them in the trash barrel near the bleachers, then putting the extra bats in the large canvas bag. Hayden was still talking to the team when she finished getting everything back in order, giving her time to compose what to say to him about working on the house. She had to keep things strictly professional between them. No personal interactions.
Her cheeks heated as severalverypersonal interactions with Hayden slid through her mind.Stop it!This was why she needed to treat his offer as a business transaction—she couldn’t trust herself when she was around him.
When he dismissed the players and everyone except Tanner had gone to their cars, she walked up to Hayden and tapped him on the shoulder.
He turned around. “Hey.” Then he shifted his eyes to Tanner and angled his head toward the parking lot.
“I, uh, forgot to tell Eddie something. Be right back.”
