“Work. They were both professors and got offered an opportunity they couldn’t pass up.”
“Were? Are they retired then?”
Jasmine put down her fork and knife and took a drink of water. “No. My father is still at Emory. My mother died when I was eighteen.”
Will paused in mid-chew. “I’m sorry,” he said after swallowing.
“Thank you.”
“I’m sorry to hear it too,” Frank said. “It’s a terrible thing for a kid to go through, losing a parent. Will was six when his mom passed.”
She met Will’s gaze. Unspoken understanding passed between them.
Frank cleared his throat, easing the weight of the moment. “Me and my family, we’re from the Chicago area. You ever been up that way?”
The conversation transitioned into less of an interrogation after that. Jasmine asked about Will’s siblings when his dad mentioned them. His dad took a little too much pleasure in regaling her with some of the stories he had after raising four kids on his own. Most of them didn’t paint Will in a very positive light.
“I swear I didn’t set everything on fire,” he said as he walked her to the door after dinner.
“Just the sofa, love seat, and end table then?”
He winced and looked over his shoulder to make sure Katie was still in the kitchen with his dad. When he turned back around, Jasmine stared at him in a way that said she was waiting for his confession.
“And an area rug,” he admitted.
“Mmhmm.” She smiled and shook her head. “Remind me not to let you anywhere near a lighter when I’m around.”
“Hey, the rug was an innocent mistake. I left a magnifying glass on a table under the window. How was I supposed to know it was going to concentrate the sun into a raging fireball?”
“A fireball?”
“It sure as hell seemed like one to my eight-year-old self.”
“Ah.”
They stopped at the front door. His dad’s voice reached them from the kitchen as he told Gump to behave himself. The dog was likely begging for scraps. Will pulled out his wallet and fished out the cash he’d set aside for Jasmine.
“Thanks,” she said as she accepted it. “For this and for dinner. It was nice.”
“I’m glad you stayed.”
She gave him a searching look. Why had he said that?
“I mean I’m glad you enjoyed it,” he amended lamely. “So, uh, you’re still good for the next lesson on Friday, right?”
“I’ll be here bright and early.”
“Sounds good.”
He opened the door for her. She took a couple steps and then paused to glance back at him.
“When’s your next game?”
“Tomorrow night.”
“Will it be on TV?”
“Sure.”
“Okay. See you Friday.”
He watched her walk along the sidewalk to her car, thinking about what she had asked. Was she intending to watch the game?
Why did that possibility have him grinning like a high schooler?
He shook his head at himself as he headed back to the kitchen to help with cleanup duty. Katie and Gump were no longer around. He guessed his dad had sent them off to Katie’s room to get them out of the way. He grabbed the dishtowel and posted himself by the sink where his dad was washing the dishes that didn’t go into the dishwasher.
“Seems like the lesson went well,” Frank said with a glance in Will’s direction.
“Yeah. Katie’s got some real talent.”
“‘Course she does. I always knew she’d blossom. It just needed the right trigger is all.”
Will took the platter his dad handed him and started drying it. “I can’t say I ever would have expected ballet to be that trigger.”
“I’m thinking it might be the ballerina just as much as the ballet.”
Unsure how to respond, Will focused on putting the platter away.
“I’m also thinking she’s just what you two need,” Frank said as he rinsed soap suds from the salad bowl.
“Us two?”
“Come on, son,” Frank said, handing over the bowl. “You can’t say you didn’t notice how beautiful Jasmine is, and it sounds like you have some things in common. You’d be a fool if you didn’t ask her out.”
“I’m really not sure it’s a good idea.”
He hadn’t dated anyone since Katie came into his life, choosing to give her his full attention. As attractive as Jasmine was, he didn’t think he was ready to open that door.
“Why not?” Frank pressed. “What about that charity deal you’ve got to attend next month? The one over Memorial Day weekend. You’re always saying what a hassle it is attending those things as a single guy. Ask Jasmine to go with you.”
His dad was talking about the opening of the new boys