Take Me Out (Crimson Romance)

by Elley Arden

  “I really will call,” he shouted, as she climbed into the truck, and she waved, rolled her window up, and headed home.

  Chapter Three

  Days later, Josh hadn’t yet called her, but he couldn’t quit thinking about Mandy and wasn’t sure why. He hadn’t lied; other women had shown more and offered more. Mandy’s apparent sadness and troubled devotion to her family touched him. He frowned. She wasn’t out for an affair like so many of the women in his life since he started playing. Even college baseball apparently had been an aphrodisiac, and he’d enjoyed being pursued, though he’d been careful not to lose his chance at the majors. When he turned pro, he’d toyed with settling down, thinking he’d found love twice with beautiful women other men coveted. None had captivated him like Mandy.

  Thinking of her wasn’t helping his stats any. The Scorpions lost their next two games, and even if baseball was a team effort, he felt he’d let everyone down personally, striking out and hitting into two double plays with bases loaded. Hotstuff was more lukewarm these days.

  So, late one night at the hotel when he couldn’t sleep, he tapped in her number and hoped he wouldn’t wake her up.

  She answered immediately, surprised. “Josh?”

  “Told you I’d call.” He smiled, making a mountain of pillows behind him so he could prop himself upright. Across the room, Benton slept, or pretended to. He never knew, but usually he only called family. He’d have to be discreet.

  “So … what are you wearing?” he whispered.

  On the other end, Mandy’s indignant squeal made him chuckle. Across the room, Benton’s shoulders shook under the sheet. He hurled one of the pillows, wishing it were a ball. The shoulders went still, followed by a long, fake snore.

  He turned his attention back to Mandy.

  “Sorry,” he apologized. “Sort of.”

  “After tonight’s game, you should be,” Mandy retorted.

  “I didn’t think you watched us.”

  “It’s kind of hard not to,” she muttered. “Every TV in the city has the game on every time you play.”

  “We’re heroes.”

  “Uh — no. Yesterday, you were heroes; anyone can lose a game. Tonight, you’re dogs. Especially you.”

  She probably wasn’t kidding. The Scorpions were a new team who’d enjoyed immediate success, so sudden failure wouldn’t mollify any of the fans who’d spent a fortune on new taxes for facilities, tickets, merchandise. Sometimes he missed the good times when he’d played in a city park with his cousins down in Veracruz, Mexico. No money on the line, just skills shared and honed.

  “I’m hurt,” he protested. “We had a couple of bad games, but we’re only one back — think of the splash we’ll make if we don’t clinch until we get home.”

  Kindly, Mandy didn’t point out that if they kept falling behind, the clinching would have to wait for at least a year.

  “So … what can I do for you, Josh?” she asked.

  He closed his eyes briefly. He’d been so careful recently. Hadn’t been with anyone since his last girlfriend had humiliated him in public and threw him away after taking way too much of his time and money. The season would end soon, and he’d be alone. Sure, he could fill the time with pointless diversions, but Mandy offered — he didn’t know what Mandy offered, and it was driving him crazy. Just sex? The thought stole his breath for a moment. The next thought hit him harder. The love he’d thought he’d found and hadn’t?

  He pulled himself together. “Mandy, I keep turning over this visit thing. I don’t think a formal arrangement is going to work — what if you spend money advertising and the team calls us in that day? We’re bound to have at least practice — and press ops — and who knows what else.”

  He heard the sigh on the other end, muffled, but discouraged. He wanted to be in the room with her, to hug her … hugging would lead to more, though. And thinking of anything more right now, when they were half a country and a climatic stretch run apart, wasn’t good. Despite knowing and acknowledging that fact, his mind started to wander anyway. He could picture Mandy in her bedroom, pictured himself pressing her down on that messy bed …

  “Josh, am I interrupting something? You called me, but — I don’t know, you seem distracted.”

  “Sorry,” he blurted without thinking, “I was just imagining you in bed — “ Oh, hell! “Uh, on your bed, I mean — it’s, um … you have a nice room.”

  “You saw my bed?” Mandy said, a few seconds later. She sounded squeaky again. Or maybe a little breathless; he didn’t know her well enough to be sure.

  “Your father sent me upstairs to see if you were there when I returned your purse,” he admitted. Great, now he sounded like some kind of creepy stalker.

  “Oh. Uh, okay,” she said, eventually, sounding flustered. “Well, um, thanks for considering — ”

  “Wait, sorry. Let me finish. I still think the dating thing could work.” His offer was met with resounding silence for a good 30 seconds. “Mandy?” he prompted finally.

  “I don’t date ballplayers,” she said, her tone frosty, and hung up.

  He sat frozen in shock until the dial tone clicked in. She’d hung up on him? She didn’t date ballplayers?

  He flipped the phone onto the nightstand and paced around the room, rubbing a hand through his hair. Temper and a lack of sleep tempted him to say a few choice words, but he didn’t.

  As the momentary anger over being hung up on eased, worry niggled. She’d told him her father had cheated. Okay, he got that — it would have hurt. But enough to make her avoid everyone with a glove and a number on his back?

  He took one more turn around the room, determined to find out why Mandy wanted his help but not at the cost of a relationship — even a pretend relationship to generate a little publicity for her family’s failing business.

  “Hey, Arrevalos, give it up. I need my sleep,” Benton groused, and so he lay down and stared at the ceiling until thoughts of Mandy faded into restless sleep.

  • • •

  Four days later, Mandy shivered with excitement as she clicked off the end of the game. The Scorpions had turned the road trip around and were a half game behind their nearest rivals — and ahead in the wild card standings. They’d be back in town on Wednesday.

  Okay, so she’d declared herself not a fan, but winners were exciting. Her smile faded. Josh was exciting. He’d been on a tear the last few games, and now everyone wanted him again. In spite of everything, he’d tried to help her. And she’d hung up on him.

  The glimmer of bright red on her bed caught her eye. Her cell phone. Impulsively, she snatched it up and dialed Josh’s number. He probably wouldn’t answer. He probably was still making his way to the locker room. She should probably just —

  He answered right away. “Mandy?” His tone held surprise.

  “Hi. I’m sorry about hanging up on you like that. I wanted to call to apologize.” She could hear noise of celebration behind him, but Josh remained silent. Mandy plucked up her confidence and barreled on, “And to congratulate you on the game — especially the homerun!”

  “You watched?” He sounded even more surprised now, but there was a hint more warmth in his voice.

  “Maybe you’ll make a fan out of me yet,” she joked. “It was a great shot.”

  “I enjoyed that,” he admitted. “I enjoy them all, but hitting one off that Skypes everyone’s talking about … ”

  Mandy sat down on the edge of the bed, remembering, not wanting to. “I hear that pitcher’s running around with the actress from the new zombie movie.”

  “I don’t listen to the gossip, but he’s an ass.”

  “Tell me. My sister dated him,” Mandy muttered.

  “Your sister?” he prodded, surprised.

  She wanted to tell him, but just the thought of it was exhausting. She shook her head, even knowing he couldn’t see her do it. “It’s a really long story, and it’s late. You probably want to celebrate with the team anyway. Maybe when y’all get ho
me — ”

  “No. Wait, hold on a sec.” She heard muffled sounds through the receiver, and then the noise of the crowd fell away, replaced by silence.

  “Ok, that’s better.”

  “Where did you go?”

  “Uh, broom closet?”

  She grinned, picturing Hotstuff Arrevalos crammed into a tiny closet just to take her call.

  “Tell me now,” he coaxed. “Trust me a little, Mandy. This sister — ”

  “Shelley.” She took a breath.

  “You were close?”

  “Of course! She’s my sister.” Mandy’s throat clenched. “Or was.”

  “So what happened to her?” he asked gently, then his voice turned sharper, almost menacing. “Did that jerk, Skypes, hurt her?”

  Mandy stood, agitated, her fingers tightening around the phone as she walked over to the window to peer out into darkness. “They met at college. He’d started at UT and was the Longhorns’ next big star. But apparently he got busted for a cheating scandal, lost his scholarship and wound up at the community college over in El Paso.”

  “And Shelley was there?”

  “We never did figure out why, but she insisted she had a connection to the city.” Mandy chuckled softly, remembering. “Mom and I told her she just created a connection from that old Marty Robbins’ country song of the same name.”

  She tucked the phone under her chin and untied the sash, letting the lace curtains fall across the widow, shutting out the night.

  They were both quiet for a minute, before Josh asked, “So … he was always a jerk?”

  Mandy’s derisive snort answered the question. “Like no other jerk around! He treated her like dirt. Always ordering her around, making her wait on him hand and foot. Shelley’s so beautiful, Josh — well, I haven’t seen her in eight years. But she turned heads everywhere. She could have had anyone — and she wanted him!”

  “Wow. Must have been tough. Were your folks on board with the relationship?”

  “No. Especially when they found out Shelley was bankrolling him. She’d worked for the store forever and had a college fund, a salary — he didn’t pay for a thing. She’d try to hide it, but he sponged off her all that summer — she even ‘borrowed’ money from the store to buy him a car.” She sighed. “Mom wanted to leave them alone. She and Dad would fight over it. She kept saying Shelley was too smart to stay in a bad situation, but that if they confronted her, she’d just push the envelope — go further faster than anyone wanted. ”

  Silence greeted her. She wondered if she was boring him, but he had brought up the subject, hadn’t he? And the years of bearing the hurt in silence suddenly found voice.

  “Still there?” she asked lightly, trying to let him off the hook if he never wanted to hear another word about Shelley.

  “Thinking that my mom did the same thing — fought with my sis like you wouldn’t believe. Dad told her the same thing your Mom said.” He paused, before adding almost apologetically. “My sister and her guy have been married almost nine years now.”

  “I’m glad for them,” Mandy said, sincerely. “Love stories need happy endings these days. Doesn’t always happen.”

  “I guess not for Shelley and Skypes.”

  “When she left home with him, I hoped Mom and Dad would be proven wrong. But, I thought he loved her. Guess not since he’s clearly moved on.”

  “And you haven’t seen her since?”

  The sympathy in his voice undid her, almost as if he were in the room with her.

  She swallowed hard. “No. That was eight years ago. She’s never been in touch. Mom talked about looking for her, but so much happened when Dad had his stroke, and the years just kept slipping by.” Her head dipped, and she almost dropped the phone. “I told myself she threw me away, that I’d never speak to her again.”

  “But you would.” No question in Josh’s voice, just quiet assurance.

  “Yes.” She caught a corner of her pillowcase and dabbed away the tears she couldn’t hold back.

  His sigh whispered into the room. “Wish I were there, Mandy. To hold you.”

  Her throat thickened with emotion, even though she knew he was just being a good friend. Several seconds crawled past before she could recover enough to acknowledge his concern. “Thanks, Josh.” She drew in a deep breath. “I never wanted to talk about this again, but tonight … well, you made me feel better.”

  “I’m glad.” He was silent for a moment. “So, how are things with Team Warner? Business any better?”

  “Not a lot. We bought some Scorpions’ shirts,” she told him, smiling a little. “Haven’t seen much of a difference, to be honest.”

  “That’s pretty much a no-brainer, though,” Josh blustered, and she knew he was grinning, with that teasing light in his eyes. “Honey, the shirt’s not the thing; it’s the player inside the shirt.”

  “If you say so.”

  “Easy to prove,” he retorted. “But you don’t date baseball players.” He sighed. “Although I guess, considering your family history, I can see why now. Still, we’re not all like Skypes. And we don’t all cheat either”

  “I shouldn’t have said that. Look, I just wanted to say again how sorry — ”

  “So are we on?” he interrupted.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Well, you made the news with me when we were a couple of games behind. Now that we’ll probably have a playoff spot clinched when I see you again — or at least the wild card — dating me will definitely get the store some attention.”

  She could almost visualize him shrugging those broad, broad shoulders and grinning at her.

  “C’mon. Think of the firestorm we could stir up.”

  “But — ”

  “You don’t date ballplayers, I know. But this is for the good of the store, right?” He paused briefly then went on. “Hey, I’ve got it! I can’t spare a whole day, but I can be in and out of the store looking for you — maybe even fit in a late dinner Sunday night. People will stake out the store Monday to watch for me. You’ll get your publicity — and I’ll have a few hours to convince you that I’m the one ballplayer you can date.”

  “Pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you?”

  “Absolutely. But it has to be what we both want, Mandy.”

  She didn’t know whether or not he meant the publicity for the store or just the dating part. But she realized it didn’t matter, because she could do it for the store, for her family. She’d let him have his one chance. And she’d have a few more glorious hours to enjoy her own private fantasy.

  “You win,” she told him. “It’s a date, Josh. I know how crazy it’s gotten for you; thanks for whatever time you can afford.”

  “See you soon,” he said, and disconnected.

  Not soon enough, she thought. But if the last six or seven tough years had taught her anything, it was how to wait. A few hours wouldn’t matter at all.

  • • •

  Texas was a damned big state, and Coach would kill him if he took more than the promised twenty-four hours away from the team. His work ethic and dedication served him well when he’d asked Billings for a day off even though the team was in overdrive preparing for the season finale.

  He smiled as he tooled down I-35 at the speed limit. Okay, slightly faster than that, but the cars and eighteen-wheelers zipping past him relieved any twinges of guilt or concern. He needed to go all the way to the state’s southern reaches and get back out of Texas and into New Mexico before his time ran out.

  Getting an address hadn’t proved hard, but he hoped he wasn’t being stupid and rash. His meddling visit might not be all that appreciated. After all, there were always three sides to a story, he’d heard: yours, theirs and the truth.

  A couple of hours later, as he passed the Laredo city limits’ sign, he wanted to cheer. But there wasn’t time to pull over and pat himself on the back.

  Twenty minutes and two wrong turns later, he pulled into the worn parking lot outside a small cluster of unremar
kable apartments fenced in by incredible walls of bougainvillea and oleander. He slid out and stretched before walking toward the corner unit with its slanted 1A on the door. Almost unthinkingly, he crossed himself, a gesture of both prayer and faith left over from his childhood. He knocked on the door and after a long, long moment, a young woman in nondescript clothes opened it a crack, looking a little fearful. He smiled. A little worse for some wear, but the same pretty face as her sister.

  “Hi, Shelley,” he said.

  Chapter Four

  Mandy didn’t think of herself as a clinger, but she had to keep loosening her grip on Josh’s arm as he escorted her into Casa San Rafael so her nails wouldn’t cut grooves in his flesh. The horde of diners at the popular Mexican restaurant broke into applause when they walked in, and everyone around took pictures and tried to attract their attention. Okay, Josh’s attention.

  Amazingly, he managed to be polite and still navigate the obstacle course, not letting the manager disappear as he led them to a small room in the back.

  He stopped once to address a local reporter he knew. “Laura, I want you to meet Mandy Warner,” he told the woman. “You might know her — she and her mom run Dad Warner’s Building Supply.”

  The reporter turned a brief smile on her before focusing again on Josh. “Josh, everyone’s excited about this team going at least to the Wild Card Series. How far can the Scorpions go?”

  Josh wrapped an arm casually around her shoulders and hugged Mandy before answering. “You know, we’re a young team, but we’re winners. I think we’ll go all the way.”

  “To the World Series?” Laura asked, jotting down notes.

  He smiled down at Mandy and winked. “Yeah, of course. The Series.”

  Once at their table, he pulled out a seat for Mandy.

  “We’ll be safe here. But I think you might have some traffic tomorrow — you’ll have to make the sales, though. And I’m not sure how much I’ll be there.”

  Mandy watched while he sat down, nervously taking a sip of water. Did he regret saying that he wanted to go out with her? He sounded so focused on helping the store — she wouldn’t be a pity date, damn it!