The Game Changer (The Perfect Game #2)

The Game Changer (The Perfect Game #2) Page 18

I ran down the dank subway stairs, my papers clutched firmly in my hand as my train pulled in. The brakes squealed as it came to a complete stop before the doors opened. I hustled through the crowd and into the packed subway car. Not wanting to stand the whole way, I silently thanked God for the empty seat I spotted. Once sitting, I flipped open the paper to the sports section, immediately scanning the article on Jack. After skimming the highlights, I mistakenly decided to flip to the Entertainment & Arts section.

My pride-filled heart suddenly exploded inside my chest, and I almost choked on the air around me when I caught glimpse of a familiar photo. I stared at the larger-than-life picture of me pointing my finger at Jack, my face clearly twisted in anger. I looked furious as Jack simply stood there, dejection written all over his face. My eyes fell to the photo caption where my first name was posted as clear as day. “Mets new golden boy gets reamed by girlfriend Cassie off the field.”

Shit. How’d they already figure out who I am?

I snapped the paper closed and looked at the people sitting around me. I prayed they hadn’t seen the picture or noticed I was the one in it.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

That stupid picture showed up online last night and now it was printed in the newspaper for everyone to see. I reminded myself that no one actually read printed papers anymore before I realized that the online version would probably include the same articles. Shaking the embarrassment off, I fidgeted in my seat until my stop.

Walking into the office, I tossed my things down on top of my cluttered desk before heading into the small corporate kitchen. The magazine’s senior editor, Nora, flipped through the pages of a newspaper before glancing up at me.

“Morning, Cassie. I see you had quite the night last night.” Her gray eyes softened as she held the paper up for me to see.

I released a tense breath. “Yeah. It’s not what it looks like.” I attempted to defend myself, dunking a bag of chai tea into my cup of hot water.

She smiled, her short brown hair perfectly curled. “It never is.” Her voice soothed my fraying nerves.

“It looks bad though, right? Like I’m crazy angry?”

She glanced back down at the photo. “You look pretty pissed off.” Her gaze returned to me as I winced. “Don’t worry about it. It’s just one photo and no one will think anything of it.” She waved a hand in the air, and I wanted to believe her.

“Thanks, Nora.” I smiled, appreciative for her kind words. I turned to walk out when she called my name.

“Sit with me for a minute.” She pointed at the chair across from her.

Uh-oh.

My legs started to tremble as anxiety consumed me. That picture could be bad for the magazine, and I doubted they wanted to be associated with any negative publicity. What if she fired me over this?

“Stop looking at me like I stole your cab and sit down. You’re not in trouble.” I relaxed into the cold chair, still clutching the hot teacup in my hand. “I just wanted to hear about your first Mets game as a player’s girlfriend.”

A small breath escaped from my lips as I relaxed even further. Nora had been kind to me since the day I started in the office. She complimented my work, encouraged me to learn, and challenged me to grow on a daily basis. I respected her, and I wanted to earn her respect in return.

“So, how was it?” She cocked her head to the side, her eyes locked on to mine.

“It was,” I hesitated, “different than I expected.”

“Different how?” she asked, before sipping her coffee.

I glanced up at the white ceiling tiles, attempting to formulate my words into cohesive thoughts before answering. “It was amazing watching Jack play again. Nothing in the world compares to how that feels.” My heart squeezed inside my chest. “But the wives on the team are really mean. Like, none of them would even speak to me, mean.”

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.

Melissa’s mom owned a successful boutique publicity firm in Los Angeles. She maintained an exclusive group of big-name clientele, but always made sure to keep that small business feel. Inadvertently I’d learned a lot from her over the years just by overhearing her business meetings and phone calls. This sort of thing was right up her alley, and I knew she’d be more than happy to help me if it got to that point.

Please, dear God, don’t let it get to that point.

I hit the Reply button and quickly typed out a response before handling my daily duties.

Meli,

That picture was in the paper this morning. The actual PRINTED version! And they printed my name, but just my first name, thank God. I’m so freaking embarrassed, but what can I do, right?! Ugh. I will definitely call Mom if things get out of control, but I’m going to work on being more aware of my surroundings from now on. Hopefully they won’t have anything to print of me going forward, unless it’s my face wearing a big-ass, shit-eating grin. :) Call you soon.

xoxo

My cell phone vibrated as I searched online for upcoming events our readers might be interested in seeing. The magazine printed human-interest stories, with the inclusion of local politics, news, and happenings around the five boroughs. When I started, I mostly handled the research for future issues, but once a week I was assigned a general event to cover and photograph. My bosses never promised me that my photographs would be used, but since I started working here six months ago, they always have.

I glanced at my phone, noting one new text message from Jack on the screen. My body trembled at simply seeing his name. I pressed the button, displaying the message:

Matteo will pick you up at 6. You need to go to the sales office and pick up your ID card. See you after the game. Love you.

Without responding, I set my phone aside. As I completed my work assignments, my thoughts kept drifting to my conversation with Nora from earlier, hope filling my mind.

Matteo pulled up outside the Will Call booth again, and I averted my eyes from the hint of a tattoo that crept up from underneath his white dress shirt. I wondered what it was, but I was too embarrassed to ask. I caught sight of his blue eyes watching me in the rearview mirror and smiled. He turned to exit the car when I stopped him.

“You don’t have to open the door for me. I got it. Thank you, though. I’ll see you later.” I scooted out of the backseat, shutting the car door behind me. Matteo waved before driving off.

I approached the booth window. “Hi. I’m Cassie Andrews, Jack Carter’s girlfriend. He said I needed to pick up an ID card?”

The young girl smiled. “See that building over there?” She pointed to my right, and I nodded. “Just go inside and they’ll take your picture and print your card for you.”