When Cole met his gaze, Will saw understanding there.
“Sounds a little uneven on the exchange to me, Campbell,” Cole observed as he dealt more cards. “Seems like maybe you should reserve some favors for later if you’re doing all of these projects.”
“Maybe,” Will said. “It might have to be financial favors at the rate I’m going tonight.”
Several of the players chortled.
“Or I’d take tickets to one of The Void’s concerts in July,” he thought to add. “Katie’s birthday is that month and she wants to go, but the tickets sold out months ago.”
“I might be able to help you with that,” Cole offered. “Evan, Javy, and I played in a charity softball game out in L.A. last November with The Void, and my cousin worked closely with one of the band’s members. I’d be happy to reach out to my contact and see about getting tickets for you.”
“Really?”
“Sure.”
“Man, I’d owe you one. Thanks a lot for offering.”
“If you stick to what you’ve started around here,” Cole said, giving Will a meaningful look, “we’d be even.”
Knowing he was talking about his plan to engage the bullpen and try to make them stronger, Will nodded. There was no mistaking the relief he saw on each of the starting pitcher’s faces. Had he known how much impact his efforts would have on the entire team, he might have tried harder to engage his fellow bullpen players before now.
Oh, well, he told himself. There was no going back now. There were, however, two solid reasons to keep moving forward with his plan: concert tickets for his little girl’s birthday and the potential of a World Series championship.
* * *
“The red one,” May said.
Jasmine turned and assessed her reflection in the dressing room mirror. The long, black evening gown was classic and elegant. The V-shaped neckline and three-quarter length sleeves were perfectly tasteful. She was sure she’d fit right in at the charity event Will was taking her to in a few days.
It was also dreadfully boring.
The red dress she’d tried on earlier was shorter and sassier. The asymmetrical hemline fell long enough over her right knee to mostly cover her surgery scar, and rose into a sexy, mid-thigh slit over her left leg. The dress had a heart-shaped neckline and off-the-shoulder sleeves, leaving a tantalizing amount of skin bare. She was sure Will wouldn’t be able to keep his eyes off her, which was one of the reasons she liked it so much…and which probably meant it was a terrible idea.
“This one’s cheaper and safer,” Jasmine argued.
“I’m buying, so take that part out of the equation.”
“May, you are not buying me this dress.”
“Yes, I am.” Her sister rose from her spot on one of the dressing room’s chairs and met her gaze in the mirror. “I know you don’t have much money left after paying off your PT bills. You certainly don’t have enough for a splurge like this. You can consider this a birthday present.”
“My birthday isn’t for another three months.”
“Then think of it as self-preservation. The more money you spend right now, the longer you have to share my bedroom with me.”
Jasmine considered that. “That’s a fair point.” She did another turn in the mirror. “This is still the safer option. There will be a lot of rich people at this thing. This is what I picture rich women wearing.”
“You said Will told you it was cocktail attire. This dress is more black-tie optional. You should go with the red one.”
Not needing any further convincing, Jasmine smiled. “Okay. Thank you. I really appreciate this.”
“You’re welcome.” May got the dress’s zipper started for her. “Now go get changed. We’re going to be late for dinner with Bàba.”
“Okay, okay.” She went into the stall she had used for changing and shimmied out of the dress. “Since you mentioned me sharing your bedroom,” she said through the stall door, “I’ve been meaning to say you’ll have to let me know if I need to make myself scarce so you and Steven can have some alone time.”
May had recently ventured into the world of online dating after a couple years of trying to hack it on her own. She had met Steven a few weeks ago and they’d gone on a handful of dates.
The sound of her sister buzzing her lips floated through the door. “We’re not even close to that phase yet,” May said.
“Really? What are you waiting for?”
“Is this really a conversation we should be having here?”