Haley started to protest but Cal turned away from her and set Taz on the mahogany desk. He proceeded to look over every inch of her boy, checking the goose egg on his head. “Wow, dude, you’ve got a tough noggin.”
“What’s a noggin?”
Cal tapped his hand on Taz’s head. “This rock solid head of yours.”
Taz laughed. “Told you I was toughs.”
“I know.” Cal leaned in and stage whispered in Taz’s ear, “You’re too tough, I’m just looking you over for the mama.” He winked at Haley.
Haley almost felt herself relax as Taz grinned at her, but she was fighting the impulse to push Cal’s capable hands away from Taz. She still didn’t know what Mr. Johnson’s role was here at the hotel.
“I’ve got some bad news, little man.” He pulled out a plain Band-aid from his desk. “We’re all out of Ninja Turtles.”
“Bummer.” Taz’s lower lip jutted out as Cal pressed the Band-aid into the right spot.
“But I’ll make sure there are good treats in your room to make up for it.”
Taz’s grin was restored. Making her little boy happy definitely raised this guy’s impressiveness in Haley’s eyes.
“Look straight at me, bud.”
Taz obeyed and Cal checked out his pupils, giving Haley a nod. “No signs of concussion. Did he hit his head hard?”
“It banged against the wall. It seemed hard to me.”
“Didn’t hurt,” Taz insisted.
“Moms have to watch out for us though.” Cal ran his hands carefully over Taz’s head, neck, and back. Haley looked on, holding onto the desk with white knuckles so she didn’t interfere. Cal seemed to know what he was doing.
“Are you trained in medicine?”
“A bit. My adopted grandfather was a surgeon and we spent a lot of time in Island Park, Idaho, middle of nowhere. He taught me the basics. Mostly it was patching up the dog, she liked to fight with bears and mountain lions.” He winked at her then cocked his head to the side and smiled at Taz. “You’re looking good, little man.”
“Can I swim?”
Cal chuckled. “That’s up to your mom.” He glanced over at her and she really liked the way his blue eyes seemed to take her in, not leering but definitely welcoming. “That was an impressive ride down the stairs,” he said to Taz, “but you’re so tough it didn’t hurt anything besides that elbow.”
Taz puffed out his little chest. “I am toughs.”
Cal nodded his agreement then focused on Haley again. “If you’re concerned in the slightest I can call the EMTs or you and I can run him over to the clinic. The hotel will cover the bill, of course.”
Haley swallowed, embarrassed that he’d noticed how tight money was for her. It ticked her off that he kept offering to pay for things. She loved the ocean so much that she and Taz scrimped and saved to visit her friends, Maryn and Alyssa, in California every year. It had been a dream come true when she’d won this week-long vacation package, to a place she’d never be able to afford on her own, on the radio station.
“He’s not acting like he has a concussion? You didn’t feel any back or neck injuries?”
“Nope. Not on this tough guy.” He ruffled Taz’s hair on the opposite side of the small goose egg and Taz giggled.
“Okay. Well.” She wasn’t sure what to do next. For some crazy reason she wanted to stay with Cal longer. That hadn’t happened with another man in quite a while. “We’ll just, get to our room.”
“Sure. I’ll show you the way.”
Haley was equal parts drawn to and repelled by his confident, take charge personality. Cal acted like he owned the place or something, but a massive hotel like this had to belong to a big corporation of some sort. Besides, he was way too young. He must be in management, at least, to have a nice office with a beautiful view like this. Walking them up two flights of stairs and to their room he didn’t say much, just listened to Taz prattle on about the beach and how much he loved to swim and how there was still snow on the ground in Colorado even though it was April.
Cal listened patiently, smiling so kindly at her son Haley found herself drawn to him, even if he was a bit too commanding and in control. That same level of confidence in a man had always been intriguing to her, which was why she’d fallen for Taz’s father and look how that had turned out.
He used his key to open her door and that wigged her out. “Why in the heck do you have a key to my room?”
“This is an all-access key. Your keys will be on the entry table.”