Reluctantly, I took the record from him. “Jackie’s trying to trade him?” I inquired.
“Grandfather, there you are!” Jackie’s voice made my spine tingle with worry.
“Hi dear,” he said. “Just chatting with the big Beatles fan here.”
“Of course.” She scoffed, looking at the record in my hand. “Here, let’s put that back,” she added.
“It’s a gift,” Mr. Bells explained. “I insisted.”
“Of course. Now, I think Coach Slanch had something to say to you before he leaves.” She directed him down the hall, and once he was out of earshot she shut the door and yanked the record out of my hand.
“Miss Vidal, let’s have a talk, shall we?”
“I don’t understand. Is something the matter?”
“I won’t have you taking advantage ofanotherman like that.”
“If you’re talking about the Beatles’ album, I tried to turn him down. He insisted.”
She put her hands on her hips. “I don’t know what you and Dustin were trying to pull up there, but I’m up to your funny business. Something doesn’t smell right between you two.”
I focused my gaze on her. “Why doyouwant to trade Dustin?” I asked.
“Dustin LeBlanc is supposed to bemine. I want him. I know what’s good for him. And we’d make a fantastic power couple.”
My heart started to speed up. “I don’t understand. So that’s why you want to trade him?”
“An owner and a player on the same organization can’t be together. It’s forbidden love. Now, if he were on another team ... it’s fair game.”
“So you traded him . . .”
“So that I could date him. Untilyoustepped in and muddied the waters with your hot body and your skanky Vegas charm. He always did have a weakness for ... girls like you.”
“Girls like me?”
“You know what I mean.”
“You thinkI’mthe one taking advantage of a man here? No no, I thinkyou’rethe one abusing your power.”
“It wasmyidea to draft Dustin LeBlanc out of college. Now that he’s a big star,Ishould be the one reaping the benefits. And the main benefit I want ishim.”
“Excuse me?”
“By the way, if you repeat any of this outside this room, I’ll deny it,” she smiled. “My plan was going smoothly untilyoucame into the picture. And I can’t tell what he sees in you, to be honest. Besides the skank thing I mentioned. Maybe you think I’m evil, but I’m the hero here. Really, I’m looking out forhim.He might be hard on the outside, but underneath the surface of the fighting and smirking, he’s a gentle man.”
I stepped forward. “You ever think maybe you’re totally wrong about him? Maybe the reason he likes me is because I’m smart and talented and care about people?”
She shook her head. “That’s just not what he likes. Trust me. I know very well what he likes.”
There was a stern knock on the door.
“Remember,” she added. “This conversation never happened.” She opened the door.
“Oh, Dustin! Lovely to see you. We were just discussing music.”
“Oh man, Mr. Bells said he really loved talking music in here with Cat, and he gave you a special live album withNorwegian Wood?”
Jackie batted her eyes. “Such a funny pickup line, with a man with such a French name,LeBlanc,” she said in a faux-French accent.
