my Hyundai. “If I find out you took it for a joy ride, you’ll hear from my lawyer.”
The valet didn’t get my joke, and only said, “Yes ma’am,” before driving off.
I approached the entrance to the mansion and took a deep breath. “Just a work event,” I told myself as I went inside.
8
Natalie
I was under no delusions about my upbringing. I had been lucky enough to grow up in an upper-middle class family that was always financially secure. I was more privileged than most.
But walking into the foyer of Darryl Bryant’s mansion was a strong reminder that there was wealth, and then there was wealth. The floor was shiny white marble. The wallpaper that covered the walls was some sort of Anglo-Japanese design, and there was a Roman theme in the frieze on the ceiling. A large central hallway ran away from the foyer with oil paintings hung on either side. The visible doors were tall, heavy, and varnished, with doorknobs and plates made of brushed bronze. Music thumped deeper in the house.
“Holy shit,” I said.
Two women came out of a sitting room with glasses of champagne. Both wore black cocktail dresses that were so skimpy I could see more skin than fabric, and their hair looked like they had just gotten back from the salon. They glanced at me and sniggered before disappearing down the hallway.
“I am way under-dressed,” I muttered to myself.
“Nah, you’re good.” Darryl came out of the side room with a glass of dark liquid in his hand. “There’s no dress code. See? I’m wearing jeans and a t-shirt.”
It was a designer t-shirt that probably cost as much as my car, but I wasn’t going to insult him in his own house. “I won’t be compared to you, though. I’ll be compared against the other women. Why are they all fancy?”
Darryl’s eyes were dark and intense. “I dunno. Don’t worry about it. And welcome to my place.”
I looked around the room. “I thought you said you didn’t like big mansions.”
“Pfft, that was at spring training. This is home.” He gestured with his glass. “Enjoy yourself.”
I followed him down the hallway deeper into the house. The structure was shaped like a horseshoe, with a huge pool deck in the middle surrounded on three sides by the house. All the doors were open leading out to the pool, which is where Darryl led me. A DJ was set up in the corner, and servers walked around with trays of food. A dozen men and women were playing in the pool, while the rest of the guests mingled around the outside. The women were either wearing bikinis or cocktail dresses, with nothing in between. I was definitely out of place in a casual summer dress.
To say nothing of the fact that most of the women were tan and had enormous fake tits that looked like softballs.
Rafael came walking up to me with a glass of wine in one hand and a beer in another. He wore a pair of black shorts and a slim-fit polo.
“Double-fisting drinks already?” I asked.
“Actually I was bringing you a drink,” he said smoothly. “Beer, or wine? I think it’s a pinot grigio.”
“Beer, please.”
He narrowed his dark eyes at me. “Are you just saying that because you don’t want to look like a girly girl?”
I snatched the beer out of his hand. “I’m a baseball coach. I like beer.”
He shrugged, then handed the glass of wine to one of the servers walking by.
“You’re not drinking?” I asked.
“I try to avoid it close to my pitching day.”
“Opening day is still two days away,” I pointed out.
He shrugged. “I’m hardcore about my routine. Alcohol messes with recovery. I think we have a real chance at winning the world series this year. It’s important to start strong.”
We both turned to watch the crowd of players and women. “If you don’t drink, then why are you here?”
“Camaraderie is important. It’s a long season, but it’s even longer if you don’t get along with your teammates.”
I nodded at that. It was very close to why dad had told me to come to the party.
“Plus,” he added, “if I tried to go to bed now I wouldn’t be able to sleep. Too much noise from the party.”
“Wait, what?” I said. “You’re sleeping here?”
“I probably should have led with that, huh? I’m crashing here with Darryl. Just like last season.”
“You didn’t have your own place last year?”
“I only got called up last May because I was replacing an injury in the rotation.