The Game Changer (The Perfect Game 2)

She let out a loud guffaw, her head tilting back. “You’re joking. ”

I shook my head. “I wish I were. ”

“So they wouldn’t talk to you?”

“No. They just stared at me at first and then they refused to acknowledge me at all. It’s like I wasn’t even there. ” I rolled my eyes, annoyed at the fact that I’d be seeing these women again later.

“That’s awful. And so unnecessary. Why do we women treat one another with such disrespect?” she asked as my coworkers milled in and out of the small kitchen, casting curious glances in our direction.

“I don’t know. ” I suddenly remembered the one bright spot in the evening. “Oh, yeah! One woman did talk to me. She was really nice. Her name was Trina. She’s a model. Freaking gorgeous. ” I bit at my bottom lip.

“Trina Delacoy? Beautiful brown hair, bright hazel eyes?”

“Yeah. How do you know her?” I asked in surprise.

“She’s worked with us before, very nice girl. Who is she dating on the team?” she asked, bringing the ceramic mug back to her lips.

“The second baseman, Kyle Peters. ”

“Make sure you tell her I said hello. ” The lines around her eyes deepened with her grin.

“I will. ”

“So, Cassie, now that your gorgeous super jock is back in your life, you’re not going to quit the magazine, are you?” She smirked at me knowingly as I pinched my eyebrows together.

“No. Why on earth would I quit?” The last thing I wanted to do was leave this job. While the very idea of Jack being back in my life caused my soul to beam with love, I still had career goals I wanted to achieve. I moved across the country to work for this magazine, and Jack didn’t affect my feelings about that.

“I was just making sure. I’d hate to lose you and all that beautiful potential you have. ”

“As long as you’ll have me, I’m yours,” I said with a nervous grin.

“Good. I assume you’ll be traveling with the team some, won’t you?”

My breathing hitched as the question echoed in my ears. “I don’t know. I hadn’t even thought about it, to be honest. Work is my priority, so I guess I’ll go to some of the away games on the weekends if I’m not busy. ”

Jack’s schedule hadn’t even entered my mind. I’d been so overjoyed at simply having him back in my life, it never occurred to me. I had no idea how long he’d be in town before he turned around and left again. I made a mental note to talk about his travel schedule that night, after the game.

“Maybe we can schedule some magazine work in with your boy’s away games. Kill two birds with one stone?” she offered with a wink.

I fought back against the burn of tears forming in my eyes. I would not cry, no matter how kind and amazing this woman was to me. “If that would work out and it makes sense for the magazine, it would be amazing. But you don’t have to do that. ”

“I know I don’t. And I’m not making any promises. Just bring me a copy of Jack’s schedule, and I’ll have my assistant look into it. ” Her eyes wandered, glazing over as she tapped a finger against her lips. “Maybe we can work in an online feature where we travel with you, highlighting some local human-interest stories from wherever you are. Or we can highlight the team and the charities they visit when they travel?” She hummed lightly. “So many possibilities. Although I’m not sure how they will work since the teams are usually in and out of towns rather quickly. But something to consider nonetheless. ”

I listened to the thoughts and ideas that spilled from my boss’s mind, quietly waiting for her to dismiss me as my own excitement grew. The idea of being able to possibly work and travel with Jack at the same time thrilled me, but I refused to get my hopes up for something that might not be feasible.

“Go. ” She waved me away. “We’ll talk about this later. ”

I scurried out of the kitchen before flipping on my computer and scanning last night’s e-mails. I smiled when I saw Melissa’s name in my inbox.

Cass,

Just remember one thing… when life

gives you lemons, cut ’em open and squeeze the juice in life’s face!!!!! That’ll teach life to mess with you! HA!

Hang in there. The photo will blow over. You can always call Mom and talk to her if the shit hits the fan. In the meantime, I’ll monitor all the websites you guys show up on and see if I can run interference. You know, post things anonymously to try to help. I’ve already favorited the local NY gossip sites so I’ve got you covered, GF!

Love you. Miss you.