My Lucky Groom

Richard handed over two hefty day-planners and Ventura squirmed in her chair.
    “The yellow one’s Elisa’s. Purple is for Ricky.”
    Ventura stared at him astounded. “These are their schedules?”
    “Hard copies. Naturally, we’ve got e-files. I’ll have Jason upload them to your smart phone.”
    “Um.”
    “You do have a smart phone?”
    Ventura reached in her purse and extracted her antiquated cell, the kind that came with the most basic plan. And that was six years ago.
    “No worries.” Richard shot her a soothing smile, and Ventura’s heart stilled. How she wished he wouldn’t do that. Smile at her in that super hot way that made her wish they were out on a date rather than discussing her business duties. Ventura bit her bottom lip, hoping that thought hadn’t been written all over her face. But maybe it had been. Because at this very moment, Richard had stopped talking and was gazing intently into her eyes. She wondered if he sensed it too, this secret pull between them. Or perhaps it wasn’t mutual at all, and there was no pull—only her overworked imagination futilely tugging.
    Richard seemed to snap himself out of it, picking up on his earlier thought. “We’ll work all that out. You’ll definitely need high-tech communication to be part of our team.” Ventura thought of her decrepit old laptop but didn’t mention it. “I’ll get Jason to set you up with a new phone tomorrow.”
    “You mean like a company phone?” she queried.
    “You can keep it for personal use as well. We’ll cover the charges as long as you’re employed.”
    “Thanks, that’s very nice.” She looked down at the huge day-planners in her lap, then opened the purple one on top. An enormous spreadsheet accordianed out of its front pocket. “Wow.”
    “Kids need structure,” Richard assured her. “Keeps them busy.”
    “Very,” Ventura said, unable to stop herself, as she opened Elisa’s folder and another enormous spreadsheet tumbled out.
    Richard cleared his throat. “You’re not suggesting the kids are overscheduled?”
    “Not at all,” she said quickly. “It’s just that…” She studied Elisa’s list. “Ballet… Piano… Soccer… Karate…? How old is Elisa again?”
    “Five. Oh, I know!” he said, apparently misreading her look. “She should really be a brown belt by now. I had no clue I was supposed to start her in PeeWee K at age three.”
    Ventura gulped. She had no doubt that Richard loved his children, but it appeared they scarcely had any time to be kids.
    His handsome face took on a touch of melancholy. “Vicky used to handle everything,” he confided. “If it hadn’t been for Jason, I never would have been able to keep things together.”
    Her heart ached for him. It was hard to imagine what that might have been like, being left on his own with two little babies. So maybe he did overschedule them, but was that really his fault? Richard was simply being a good dad in the only way he knew how — by being super organized. “I’m sorry, Richard,” she said sincerely. “That sounds rough.”
    He met her gaze with soulful eyes. “At times, it has been.”
    She wasn’t sure what else to say. Suddenly things between them seemed to have gone from professional to personal. But maybe that’s how it was going to be. It would be difficult not to develop some kind of personal relationship with Richard if they were both working in the interest of the same thing — the benefit of his children.
    “In any case,” he said after a beat, “the system we’ve put together seems to work reasonably well. Jason’s a master at scheduling. Even coordinated both kids’ activities in a way to minimize driving time.”
    Ventura’s heart skipped a beat. “Maybe I should have told you. I don’t own a car.”
    “Wouldn’t expect you to drive your own,” he said, nabbing a set of keys off the holder on his desk.
    Ventura stared out the front window. The shiny blue convertible Jason had picked her up in sat at the curb. “I’m not sure I should drive that.”
    Richard laughed. “That one’s not suited to car seats. You’ll take the Lexus.” He handed over the keychain, and their palms brushed. It was just the slightest touch, but Ventura felt electrified by it just the same. Richard held her gaze, reddening slightly at the temples. “You are a good driver? No accidents?”
    “Not even a parking ticket.”
    “Great, because this baby’s brand new. We wouldn’t want history