It was Tino’s brotherly obligation to snicker even if there wasn’t much about this conversation that he found amusing. “Well, if it’s any comfort, Mikhail and I can’t believe it, either. God knows we’re both better looking, not to mention better dancers.”
Jack didn’t rise to the bait, a clear sign that he was zeroed in on his self-assigned mission. “Here’s the bottom line, little brother: If I’m right about what’s going on between the two of you, tell Natalie who you are and how you feel. If she’s the woman you think she is, then she’ll accept you as is.”
Then Jack’s big hand settled on Tino’s shoulder. “If she won’t, don’t just walk away—run.”
—
On Thursday morning, Natalie started past the basketball court on her way into the community center but then stopped. It looked different, better somehow. She wandered over to take a closer look. Sure enough, the poles that supported the baskets had both been painted and now stood perpendicular to the ground instead of being canted at an angle. A couple of two-by-fours had been added to prop them up, maybe to give the new cement time to solidify. The backboards and nets had been replaced and the lines on the court repainted.
Somebody had been hard at work, but she had no idea who it might have been. Refurbishing the court had been on her wish list of things to do, but the money allotted for the community center project had stretched only so far. She would like to thank whoever had stepped up to bat.
Inside the building, she set her things down in the computer lab and went looking for Clarence, knowing not much ever got by him around there. She found him pushing a huge dust mop up and down the gym floor. He stopped as soon as he spotted her.
“Miss Natalie, you’re here bright and early this morning.”
She held up the coffee and muffins she’d brought for them to share. “I needed to go over the lesson plans the other teacher left me for tonight’s class, and I won’t have time to do it after I get off work.”
He accepted the coffee and chocolate muffin as he led the way over to the stage to sit down. “You spoil me, young lady, but I’ve told you that before. You shouldn’t go to all this bother.”
“It was no trouble. I was going through the drive-up anyway, and it’s no harder to order two of everything.”
Once they were settled, she asked, “I noticed the basketball court outside has new hoops and fresh paint. Do you know who did it?”
Clarence washed down a bite of his muffin with a sip of coffee before answering. “It was your friend Tino. He, another man, and a teenager showed up with the materials yesterday afternoon. Right after they got here, Tyler and his friends came. Between the bunch of them, they got it all done in no time. It looks really nice out there.”
Tino did all of that? She’d seen him briefly on Tuesday when they’d both been at the center. His basketball practice had ended almost an hour before her computer class did, but he’d hung around until she finished up. No matter how many times she told him that she was perfectly safe walking to her car by herself, he insisted on waiting. All of that aside, he had to have everything organized to redo the basketball court by then, so why hadn’t he said anything? Maybe he wanted to surprise her, but that didn’t exactly make sense.
The odd look Clarence was giving her made her realize she’d been silent too long. “It looks great. I hope the kids who play out there all the time will appreciate what he did.”
Clarence nodded. “I thought it was smart of him to have the neighborhood kids help out. Maybe investing some of their own time and energy in the project will make them appreciate what they have more. I’d hate to see it get trashed again.”
“Me, too.” She checked the time. “Oops, I’d better get moving. I’ll only be here another few minutes, but I’ll be back this evening.”
“Can I ask a favor?” Clarence reached into one of his pockets. “I found this cellphone in the men’s room this morning. The battery is dead, but I’m pretty sure that it belongs to Tino or the other guy who was with him. I know it wasn’t in there before they came.”
He held it out to her. “Can you get it back to Tino? Even if he’ll be back tonight to coach the kids, he’ll be looking for it.”
She took the phone. “It does look like his. I can stop by his house on my way to the office.”
Not that she actually knew where he lived, but how hard could it be to track him down? She headed for the computer lab where a quick Internet search produced an address that wouldn’t take her too far out of her way. There were several different names listed with his, which seemed odd, but maybe it was an apartment building.
After letting her assistant know that she’d be a little later than expected, she reviewed the lesson plans and then hustled out to her car. Even if Tino wasn’t at home, she could at least leave him a note that she had the phone.
After entering the address into her GPS system, she took one last look at the refurbished basketball court. There were a lot of reasons she liked Tino, maybe even felt something stronger for him, but the way he’d bonded with the people at the center was right at the top of the list. Once again, she was struck by the difference between him and Benton.
After one wrong turn, she finally arrived at the address. She took a minute to study Tino’s home and found she liked it. For sure, there was something warm and welcoming about the neatly landscaped yard and the old-fashioned look of the house itself.
By comparison, the place Natalie had inherited from her father’s mother was fussy and overdone. She planned on gradually replacing a lot of the furnishings with stuff that was more suited to her own taste, not to mention a lot more comfortable. Purchasing the couch for the living room had been an important step in that direction, and she’d also moved her aunt’s old bedroom furniture to a guest room and bought a new set for herself. There was still a lot to do, but she didn’t have much free time to devote to the project.
It was time to get moving. She really hoped Tino didn’t mind her dropping in on him with no warning.
When she started up the driveway, an older woman stepped out on the front porch, clearly on her way out. Okay, this was awkward. Maybe this wasn’t Tino’s place after all. The woman had started down the steps before she noticed Natalie standing there.
“Hi, can I help you?”
Natalie remained where she was but held up the dead cellphone. “Maybe. Could you tell me if Tino Gianelli lives here? He left his phone at the community center yesterday. I thought he might be looking for it.”
The woman offered her a warm smile and joined her in the driveway. “You’re Natalie Kennigan, aren’t you? I should’ve recognized you immediately. I’m sure my son will appreciate your going out of your way to bring it to him.”
