This was why Brittany was a media darling. She knew all the right publicity moves to make…even when greeting her date. And she looked gorgeous doing it.
“It’s a gift from Brioni. He’s a big Bobcats fan, and I just love his clothes.”
Brittany waxed poetic about the way the jacket fit my broad shoulders,blah blah blah. Then she made a sympathetic sound as she pursed her bow-shaped lips. “I’m so sorry about tonight’s game. I tried to help. Did you see me standing and watching?”
I had. Everyone had. And I was never more grateful to have to focus on a baseball and nothing else. It hadn’t worked, but I’d certainly tried.
“Yeah, about that…” I said as I put on my best sad puppy face. That’s what my mom called it and it had never worked with her, but the cameras were eating it up. “I’m just a simple Nebraska boy who loves baseball. All this fuss is overwhelming.”
“Oh you poor—”
“And you are just too beautiful for me.” That was bullshit, of course. She wasn’t beautiful at all in my mind. But social media liked having a story about me, so I was giving them something that I could live with.
“Don’t be silly.”
I did an “aw-shucks” shrug, and then continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “You are, Brittany. You’re just too much woman for me and it’s messing with my concentration.”
She shook her head. “But it didn’t in practice. And at the White Sox game—”
“You’re like holding a firecracker, Brittany. You burst so bright that I get mesmerized.” I knew there would be social media memes with her face and firecrackers going off behind her. “But I don’t want the team to get burned. Nothing is more important to me than playing my very best for the Bobcats.”
I gestured to Joe DeLuce, and he nodded as if he were a proud papa. More camera clicks.
“But don’t get sad,” I said as I caught a flash of annoyance in Brittany’s eyes. After all, no one wants to be rejected on camera. “There are a few other guys who have been dying to spend some time with you.”
And right on cue, the door opened and in walked Jake with his square jaw, rugged features, and a Lothario twinkle to round out his megawatt smile. He was carrying a rose which he presented to her with a flourish. And when she reached for it, he grabbed her hand and kissed it like a knight-errant.
“Of course, you know Jake, our shortstop,” I said. “Did you know he used to be a firefighter? They’ve been bugging him for months to get to meet you.”
Then in walked every single model from Jake’s firefighter calendar, each carrying a rose to present to Brittany. Jake was a local boy, so all the guys were from the Indianapolis Fire Department and every single one of them made good camera bait.
“Oh yeah. And let’s not forget the Indigos,” I said, mentioning my old AAA team that fed into the Bobcats. I’d spent half my free time convincing the guys to hotfoot over to Indianapolis for tonight. All the available Indigos strolled into the room and mugged for the camera as each presented his rose to Brittany.
By the time it was done, she was holding almost three dozen roses and looking likeThe Bacheloretteat the beginning of the season.
“My goodness,” she breathed over the bouquet, her cheeks blushing prettily. “I don’t know what to say. Except that Indianapolis has the best firefighters in the world. And of course, we couldn’t be prouder of our Indigo players.” Then she looked at me. “But Rob, what about our dinner?”
Our intimate dinner for two.That was the part she wasn’t saying. “It’s all arranged,” I said, “Ruth’s Chris has a room specially reserved for everyone. Mr. DeLuce, why don’t you join us?” Then I turned to wink at an openmouthed Gia. “You, too, Gia. I’m sure you’d like to get names and stats on all these handsome guys.”
She’d have to, just to keep up with the press pictures.
“Um, sure.” She had to pause a moment while the guys lifted Brittany up in their arms. I couldn’t tell if it was the baseball guys or the firefighters, but either way, the cameras were clicking nonstop.
And while that was going on, Gia came to my side. “You did this all to get out of one date?”
“You wanted a media event.” I gestured to the guys as they vied for Brittany’s attention. “Let her bring each date to the games. She’ll stop distracting the players, you get all the social media hits you want, and—”
“Tickets, Rob. The whole idea is to sell Bobcats tickets.”
“If you spin all this around our games, then we suddenly become—”
“A trending topic,” she answered for me, and I could tell her mind was working overtime with possibilities. “And trending topics sell tickets.”
I wondered if that was a tongue twister that she practiced every morning. “Exactly.”
Her eyes abruptly narrowed. “But you can’t go flaunting another girl now. In fact, you have to be out of the spotlight completely, since Brittany’s toofirecrackerbright.” The sarcasm in her tone told me she hadn’t been fooled by my bashful smile any more than my mother ever was.
“That’s exactly what I want.”
