She turned her attention back to her knitting, telling herself she was being silly. She belonged in this park as much as anyone. And she was perfectly
happy with the life she had chosen—despite her occasional vague longings for something she couldn’t even define.
After forty-five minutes of play, the teams called a break for halftime. Alice drew herself away from her friends for a few minutes when she saw Mitch walking toward Jacqui.
“You’re playing great, Mitch!” she said cheerily, bounding up to join them.
Jacqui smiled wryly, wondering if Mitch was aware of how little notice Alice had actually given to the game.
After taking a swig of a sports drink, he wiped his brow with a hand towel he’d brought in his sports bag and winked at Jacqui before answering his niece. “I’m glad you’ve been entertained.”
Jacqui told herself the wink had only been conspiratorial, acknowledging Mitch’s awareness of Alice’s divided attentions. He hadn’t actually been flirting or anything, so there had been no reason for her heart to skip a beat in reaction.
Mitch glanced at the knitting in Jacqui’s lap. “If y’all are ready to go, don’t feel like you have to stay until the end of the game for my sake.”
“I’m not ready to leave yet,” Alice said quickly. “I’ve been hanging out with some kids my age over at the picnic tables.”
Widening his eyes in mock surprise, Mitch said, “I thought you’d been watching my game.”
“I can see it from over there,” she assured him. “Some of it anyway.”
He laughed and tugged at the end of her curly ponytail. “Just teasing. But what about Jacqui? Maybe she’s bored sitting here by herself while you’re hanging out with friends and I’m playing.”
“Not at all,” Jacqui answered candidly. “I’m enjoying it. And I’ve made good progress on finishing this scarf.”
“See?” Alice beamed approvingly at Jacqui. “There’s no need for us to leave yet.”
A whistle blew from the field, signaling that the game was about to start again. Mitch turned that direction. “Okay, see you both later then.”
He jogged off without looking back.
“You really don’t mind if I’m over there with the other kids?” Alice asked hesitantly before abandoning Jacqui again.
“I really don’t mind,” Jacqui assured her with a smile. “Have a good time.”
“Thanks.” Alice turned and hurried back toward the picnic tables, ponytail bobbing behind her. Jacqui picked up her needles again, her gaze on the field as the players assembled for the second half of the match. She’d lost count of the score, but she thought the doctors were ahead by one goal.
“I don’t remember seeing you here before.”
Her hands going still, Jacqui rested the almost-finished black scarf in her lap and turned to the woman who had greeted her from a nearby lawn chair. The woman must have set up there during the halftime break because Jacqui hadn’t noticed her before.
“That’s because this is my first time here,” she replied with a faint smile.
“Watching a friend play?”
Jacqui laughed ruefully. “Actually, I brought a young friend to watch her uncle play, but she seems to have lost interest.”
She intended to make it clear from the start that there was nothing between her and Mitch, even though she was attending his game. She doubted he would appreciate gossip or speculation about them among his friends and professional acquaintances, especially if it became known that she was his sister’s housekeeper.
The other woman who was somewhere around Jacqui’s age looked tall and curvy even sitting down. Her undoubtedly expensive white blouse and capris were crisp and spotless even in the heat. Her softly curled black hair framed a square face with perfect, milk-chocolate skin and wide-set black eyes, and her smile was friendly enough, if a little reserved. “I’m Keira. I’m here with my fiancé. Nolan.”
Keira motioned vaguely toward a man on the field who looked familiar to Jacqui. Had he been one of the three who’d interrupted her and Mitch at lunch yesterday? She thought one of them might have been named Nolan.
“I’m Jacqui. It’s nice to meet you.”
Scanning the field, Keira asked, “Is Mitch Baker your young friend’s uncle?”
She must have seen them talking a few minutes earlier. “Yes, he is.”