“Who?” Lucia asks.
“A guy I work with.”
She hums. “You don’t mean Drake Bennett, do you?”
Me: I don’t want flowers, real or emoji.
Drake: Good night, Gianna.
Me: I really don’t!
Drake: Okay, dream crusher.
Me:
Drake:
“Yup,” Lucia says in a tone that I don’t want to indulge. “It was Drake.”
I set my phone down and grab my burger. “How do you know?”
She shrugs, grinning as she takes a bite of her food. I take a giant bite of mine, too. I’m starving … but I also don’t want to continue this conversation. I’m well aware that he’s …him, and I’m sure I appeared amused at his message.
But neither of those means anything.
If they did, I’d be as silly as every other woman in the world when it comes to that man. And I’m way too smart for that.
After all, Drake Bennett is nothing more than a coworker and a friend to me. And I always enjoy excellent banter with my friends.
Even the ridiculously hot ones.
CHAPTER
EIGHT
Drake
“You can’t be serious,” I say, scanning the stats that my producer, Mario, loads onto the screen in front of me. “The odds that the Bobcats walk away with a championship this season are trash. I know you grew up in Indianapolis and your old man was a big fan, but that doesn’t change reality.”
Ron Jeffries, a sports analyst for over thirty years and sometimes a guest onSports Take with Drake Bennett,groans through my headphones. The man bleeds green, the color of his beloved Bobcats, and will fight anyone who dares to speak anything but accolades about his team. Needless to say, we quarrel often.
“How can you say that?” he asks me as ifI’mthe fool between us. “Caparelli is on a streak. He’s had a hit in fifty straight games. His batting average is over four hundred, and he’s been intentionally walked twenty-one times. Couple that with their dominant pitching this season, and it’s hard to lose a damn game. There’s no way we don’t end with a ring. Not a chance.”
“Those stats are great, but the team batting average is under the Mendoza line, and no player is good at getting on base. And ifyou want to talk about pitching, their entire staff consists of two guys who can reliably get the ball across the plate with a better chance than not getting blasted out of the ballpark. You can’t get away with two pitchers these days. This isn’t 1920, you know.”
He chuckles. “I’m going to hate coming back here in a couple of months and telling youI told you so.”
“Don’t lose too much sleep over it because it’s not going to happen.”
My chuckle joins his as Mario gives me a sign from his spot in the sound booth.
“Thanks for coming by again this week, Ron,” I say, grinning. “It’s always good to see you. And I’d love to have you back as soon as the Bobcats fail to make the postseason.”
“You’re lucky I like you, Bennett.”
I laugh as a short stinger, like a crowd cheering, leads me into the wrap-up.
“That’s it for this week’s episode,” I say into the microphone. “I’d like to thank my guests for joining me this afternoon. And make sure you tune in next week to catch Branch Best, wide receiver for the Illinois Legends. He’ll be here to talk about the upcoming football season and his new charity, Sunny Days, whose goal is to raise money for childhood hunger. We’ll be discussing ways that you can get involved, including a competition that I’ll announce live on the show, featuring one-of-a-kind Legends merch. It’s gonna be great.” Mario points at me. “And that’s my take. See you next time.”
