Waste of Handsome (Carolina Waves #2) Read online

  Waste of Handsome

  Carolina Waves Series Book 2

  Tina Gallagher

  Galsalla Press

  Waste of Handsome

  Carolina Waves Series, Book 2

  By: Tina Gallagher

  Published by Galsalla Press

  Copyright © 2019

  Cover Design: Lydia Michaels

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. All characters in this book are fiction and figments of the author’s imagination.

  I couldn’t tackle this publishing journey without the help of some amazing people. Like they say, it takes a village. Here’s just a small list I’d like to thank:

  My partner in crime, Pattie Giordani. All the retreats, writing days, and road trips have been amazing. I couldn’t stay sane without you or them.

  Cecelia Mecca for offering inspiration and support on this crazy journey. Some day soon I’ll be doing this full-time and we’ll have our own little writing group at Kay’s. :)

  The SPF crew, James, John, and Mark…and Young Tom. You guys literally created a road map for so many like me to follow. I am grateful for all the knowledge you’ve shared and all the drinks you’ve bought.

  And finally…to Mindy Kaling. I was searching for this book’s title and found it while binge watching The Mindy Project. Thanks to your awesome dialogue, I think this one is a winner.

  And my family, as always.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Untitled

  Chapter 1

  Jack

  I walked through the office doors and nodded at the receptionist before continuing toward the stairs to Mr. Hanover’s office. Normally I’d stop and talk with the staff, but I’m not in the mood today. I’ve punched up my workouts getting ready for spring training and I’m sore as hell, plus I haven’t been sleeping so I’m tired. The former is something that gets worse as the years go on and the latter is because of that damn book.

  In my fourteen years with the Waves, I’ve done my best to avoid being singled out by the team owner. Aside from a warning about partying too much my rookie year, I’ve been successful. And now this. It’s bullshit.

  I worked to keep my temper in check as I made my way through the hallway toward Mr. Hanover’s office. I’m sure whatever happens at this meeting is only gonna piss me off so I can’t start it with a hot head.

  Stepping in front of the double doors, I took a deep breath and knocked three times. The door opened immediately. Ken Hanover Jr., heir apparent to the Waves stood in the doorway, blocking my view of the office.

  “Kenny,” I said.

  “Come on in, Jack.”

  He moved aside and I stepped into the office. Mr. Hanover sat in an oversized chair behind his gigantic mahogany desk.

  “Come have a seat,” he said.

  The thick, blue carpet cushioned my steps as I crossed the room. I settled into one of the visitor’s chairs directly across from him and Kenny sat in the chair on my right.

  “How’ve you been doin’?” Mr. Hanover asked. “You’re lookin’ good. Must be workin’ hard.” His good ol’ boy accent and small talk weren’t fooling me. The man didn’t call me in to tell me how good I look or ask about my workout routine. But I’ll play the game.

  “I’m good,” I said. “Just ramped up my workouts getting ready for the season.”

  “Well it shows.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  My words still hung in the air when Hannah Adams, from the public relations department, stepped into the office.

  “Sorry I’m late,” she said.

  She gave me a small smile and sat in the chair to the left of me. Dressed in her usual bland attire, bright red glasses added the only color to her face.

  “Jack, we asked you to come in today so we can discuss this book of yours,” Mr. Hanover said.

  I wanted to point out the fact that it’s not my book, but figured he wouldn’t appreciate that. Instead I focused on keeping a neutral face.

  “Now I’m a live and let live kind of guy. Who you spend your time with off the field is your business. But once it affects this team, we have a problem.” He leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers in front of his chest. “When the book first came out, we decided to ignore it. But that’s not working anymore. Now it’s a best seller and that woman’s been all over the local circuit. Word on the street is she’ll be on Good Morning America next week. And if she’s heading to New York, that’s probably not the only show she’ll be hitting.”

  Shit.

  When Cindy released that book, I thought it was a joke. Turns out, the joke is on me.

  “Sir, I—” He held up his hand, halting my words.

  “The problem is that this book is taking focus off baseball,” he said. “We’re gearing up for spring training and it’s all the reporters are asking about. The phones are ringing off the hook with requests for interviews and comments. Not to mention the fact that the staff is tittering about it instead of working.”

  Mr. Hanover’s face reddened with each word. He sat forward and took a deep breath, dragging his fingers through his hair. Resting his elbows on the desk, he looked at me again.

  “Son, I understand you didn’t ask for this, but you got it anyway,” he said. “There’s nothing we can do about the book. It’s out and doesn’t look like it’s going away anytime soon. So, we’ll just have to give them something else to focus on.”

  “Like what?”

  “That’s where Hannah comes in,” he said. “She has some ideas for a, whaddyacallit?” Looking over at her, he raised his brow.

  “A PR blitz,” she said, shifting slightly in my direction. Clearing her throat, she continued. “We want to get you out there having a positive impact. If we show all the great things you’re doing in the community, the media will look petty if they keep focusing solely on the book.”

  “There are tons of pictures of me visiting the children’s hospital, and once the season starts, I’ll be engaging with the fans like usual. What else did you have in mind?”

  “You’ve been great with the children’s hospital and we’ll be able to use that. And you’re always a fan favorite so that’s something we can definitely highlight. But I know there are other causes you support that you’ve never wanted us to capitalize on. Now’s the time to do that.”

  How the hell does she know what I support?

  “I’ve kept them off the
radar for a reason,” I said. “They’re not things I want to discuss.”

  “You wouldn’t have to discuss them necessarily, just let it be known you’re doing them.”

  “I don’t want to do that, either.”

  She opened her mouth to speak, but it was Mr. Hanover’s voice that filled the room.

  “You don’t have much of a choice here,” he said. The fact that he didn’t raise his voice didn’t lessen the impact of his words. “We’re trying to focus on baseball and the reporters are asking about what kind of underwear you wear instead of how the team is shaping up for God’s sake.”

  I doubted that was true, but thought it best not to state it out loud. Instead I said, “I apologize for that sir, but don’t you think this will die down with time?”

  “From what we’ve heard, she’s making the most of the fifteen minutes of fame she’s getting with this book. And once the season starts, the press will link every little thing you do to that book, stoking the fire. I’m not willing to have my PR department stomping out brush fires all year. Hannah here thinks we should hit this head on.”

  “She does, huh?” I asked, not quite keeping the sarcasm out of my tone. It’s not Hannah whose ass will be on the spot answering probing questions. And no matter what she says, I know the questions will be asked.

  “If you have some time before you leave, I can explain the ideas I’ve come up with so far and maybe we can think of a few more,” she said.

  I opened my mouth to answer, but once again, Mr. Hanover pulled his ventriloquist act.

  “Son, I can see you’re not quite on board with this, but understand, it’s not an option. You know Hannah is good at her job, so let her do it. You’ve been a valuable asset to this team for a lot of years. I’d hate for this unfortunate incident to put a bad color on our future negotiations.”

  Did he just threaten my contract renewal?

  His steely eyes told me he did just that.

  Well damn.

  Mr. Hanover prides himself on keeping the team’s reputation flawless and in his opinion, this book is threatening that. I’ve played my whole major league career with the Waves, and plan on retiring from the team. Until now, that was never in question. I guess I’ll have to play nice.

  “I understand,” I said to Mr. Hanover, then turned to Hannah. “I don’t have any plans, so I’m yours for the rest of the day.”

  Hannah

  “Great,” I said. “We can head to my office now if that works for you.”

  “I’m all yours,” he said with a slight bow.

  After wrapping things up with the Hanovers, Jack and I exited the owner’s office and stepped onto the elevator. As we stood side-by-side in silence, his sweet, spicy scent found its way to my nostrils making me want to bury my face in his neck and deeply inhale.

  And maybe lick.

  Oh, who am I kidding? Definitely lick.

  How am I going to survive this?

  Despite the fact that Jack Reagan is everything I don’t want in a man, my heart goes pitty-pat every time he’s near. And it pisses me off because at this point in my life, you think I’d be immune to men like him.

  I mean, I’ve been working for the Waves for nearly ten years. I shouldn’t be susceptible to the charms of any of them. Not to mention where and how I spent some of my teen years. Beautiful people shouldn’t even cause a blip on my radar because I know the reality behind all the glitz and glamour.

  We exited the elevator on the third floor and walked down the hall to my office, fourth door on the right. I stepped behind my desk, hoping it would provide a barrier to Jack’s magnetism.

  No such luck.

  Maybe it’s because he’s a professional athlete and a dead ringer for Ryan Reynolds that tips my scales. It’s like a double-punch to my sound judgement.

  Jack slouched into the visitor’s chair across from me and crossed his ankle over his knee. I assume he’s trying to look relaxed, but the man is practically vibrating.

  “I have a few ideas to start with and we can add on as the season progresses,” I said. He didn’t answer or react, so I forged on. “I know you’ve been a silent supporter of a variety of anti-drunk driving organizations as well as the anxiety and depression associations here and in your home state.”

  He sat forward. “How?”

  “Excuse me?”

  “How do you know that?” he asked. “No one knows that.”

  “It’s my job to know,” I said, leaving it at that. He doesn’t need to know that I stumbled on both of those facts while obsessively creeping on him a few years back. Most people don’t look past the first few pages of an internet search, but the last few are where you can find some of the best stuff.

  Sure, Jack is obsessive about keeping his private life private now, but back in the beginning of his career, he didn’t cover his tracks as well. Which led me to the little tidbits I just shared. A few follow-ups and voila, I’ve got something to work with.

  Thankfully he didn’t question me further and slouched back in the chair.

  “Can’t you just find something else for me to do?”

  “I can and I will, but if that’s all we have, it looks like we’re doing it just to up your image.”

  “But that’s exactly what we’re doing.”

  I chuckled, both at his words and the incredulous look on his face.

  “Yeah, but we don’t want the public to know that.”

  He sat forward, resting his elbows on my desk.

  “Hannah, the reason I support those groups is personal and I really don’t want to discuss it,” he said, then added. “With anyone.”

  His New Hampshire accent appeared when he stated my name, a definite tell of how upset he is about this. But I have to say, Hanner never sounded so sexy.

  Mentally shaking myself, I accepted his point and told him so.

  “I’m sure there will be some questions about why you’re supporting those specific groups, but you don’t have to tell the whole story. They’re both very worthy causes. Why wouldn’t you support them?”

  “I guess.”

  “Considering the time of year, I think we should focus on the drunk driving groups first. With proms coming up in the next few months, their campaigns will be in full swing. I’ve contacted a few schools and groups around St. Pete to work with during spring training. There’s also a local event prior to that you can attend.”

  “What kind of event?”

  “A dinner at Lucca. It had sold out but I managed to convince them to squeeze another table in for us to purchase. I was thinking maybe you and some of the other players could attend. Do you think Cal and Dan would go? They’re really good with the public.”

  “What about you?”

  “What about me?”

  “You’re not just going to set me up for all these things and not come along to babysit, are you?”

  The twinkle in his eye mingled with that wicked grin nearly gave me an orgasm. I cleared my throat and struggled to sound professional.

  “You’re great with the fans. I have no doubt you’ll be able to handle it without a babysitter.”

  “Oh no, if I’m stuck doing all this stuff, you’re going to be there every step of the way.”

  In all my years with the Waves, I’ve managed to minimize my alone time with Jack Reagan. His mere presence is enough to scramble my thoughts, and his scent...well, I think I’ve already mentioned that. Being in close proximity to him on a regular basis will not be good for my peace of mind.

  “I figured I’d set up everything, give you the details, and you could take it from there. I’m just a phone call away if you need me.”

  “Oh I’ll need you,” he said. “In fact, I’m going to tell Mr. Hanover that you’ll have to be available for every little thing I do.”

  God help me.

  Chapter 2

  Jack

  I knocked twice on the kitchen door before going inside. That’s something I wouldn’t have done a few months ago, but wit
h Sabrina in residence I figure I should give some notice before barging in.

  The lady of the house is sitting at the island, a cup of coffee and half-eaten bowl of cereal in front of her. She turned and smiled as I stepped inside.

  “Hey.”

  I sat down, keeping a seat between us.

  “Hey to you.” I looked around. “Where’s the rest of the family?”

  “Lexi is getting dressed and Dan went for a run.” She glanced at her phone. “He shouldn’t be too much longer. At least he better not be. He did a new workout earlier and I told him not to push it too much today.”

  Sabrina is not only Dan’s wife, she’s also his physical therapist. Last year, Dan busted his knee when he crashed into the center-field wall chasing a home run ball. They’d been pretty hot and heavy in college until he screwed it up and she broke up with him. A decade later, he used his injury to pull her back into his life. It took some serious groveling, but he finally won her back.

  Thank God.

  I’d listened to him whine about her for years and now I understand why. Sabrina really is great and they’re perfect together. Plus, she and Lexi love each other, which gives her my seal of approval.