Chapter 43

Brock found himself hanging out with Zack, Al and Josh during the photo shoot for the baseball card company. Whoever was getting their picture taken had to contend with the other three doing any number of obscene things to try to get them to crack up.

Still, they managed to get the shoot done by one p.m. and started to make lunch plans. He was about to beg off when he got a text from Stan alerting him that he had been delayed and wouldn't arrive until the next morning.

"Where shall we eat, gents?" Josh inquired.

"You remember that club we went to for Meredith and Jen's party?" Brock asked.

"They serve food?" Zack wondered.

"I wouldn't eat it if they did," Al added.

"I was thinking across the street," Brock said. "Those two party crashers said they work there. I thought we could drop off the tickets I promised them."

"Brock's ego must need stroking," Josh joked. "He wants to find his two adoring fans and let them fawn over him."

"If I wanted to be fawned over by adoring fans, I'd invite your wives for dinner," Brock shot back.

"Zing!" Zack said, giving Brock a high five. Well, it was a high five for Brock. Zack's height meant it was a medium five for him.

"You're a laugh a minute," Josh groused.

"You're just mad because Mandy wanted you to get a Brock Miller mask for Halloween," Al put in.

"Like Esmi doesn't make you wear one to bed," Josh returned.

"To bed?" Al said. "Shit, she used to make me wear it everywhere. Then she got pissed when the women would flock to me. It made her jealous to discover she wasn't Brock's one and only."

The men were still busting each other's balls when they went into the team offices to pick up the tickets. They got waylaid by the public relations director.

"Oh, just the guys I wanted to see," he said cheerfully. "I'm glad I caught you."

Brock's guard immediately went up. Since the fiasco with the soccer game, he had avoided public relations at all costs.

"You guys are going to be our bobblehead giveaways this year," the man said. Brock let out a sigh of relief. The man couldn't possibly be talking about him.

"Josh, we want to do yours in May when the Marlins are in town," the man said. "We never get fans to that one. Al, yours is going to be in August when Milwaukee comes."

"I'm good with that," Al said. "Same deal as last year? You want us to do some commercials."

"I'll get back to that in a minute," the man replied.

"Brock, we want to do yours in early June with the Pirates," he said. "We figure that will help drive your All-Star votes, too."

"Mine?" Brock asked. "Seriously?"

"Seriously," the man said. "Zack, sorry but we have nothing planned right now as far as promotions. But we'll want you to do some radio and TV spots for us – particularly since you've been popping up with Tara Wyatt on your arm lately."

"Tara can't be a consideration," Zack said. "Our careers are separate. Sorry."

"Oh, I understand completely," the man replied. "It's just you've become one of our most popular players – along with these three and Betancourt."

"Why isn't Betancourt getting a bobblehead?" Brock asked.

"Betancourt is a bobblehead," Al jibed. "He doesn't need a doll."

"It's an action figure," Josh protested.

"So you three are good for some TV spots?" the man asked with trepidation. The rumor around his department was that dealing with Brock Miller was impossible.

"Sure," Al said.

"Yeah, it was fun last year," Josh replied.

"I'm good with it if they are," Brock told him.

The man breathed a sigh of relief.

"Fantastic!" he said. "I'll get back with you on the schedule. It won't be until after we hit Spring Training so don't worry about coming back out."

The man hustled away before they could change their minds.

"Great," Josh groused. "Now Mandy is going to want a Brock bobblehead on the bed to let her know she's doing it right."

"You guys are terrible," Brock said, shaking his head.

The bistro the guys went to eat wasn't known for its early afternoon celebrity crowd. Mostly they were known for high-end dinners before the celebs hit the hot spots for the night. But it was late enough when they arrived that the evening crew was already at work.

The hostess – who had accompanied Hailey into the club earlier in the month – recognized Brock instantly. It took her a second glance to see Al and Josh. Only a casual fan, she didn't know Zack but assumed he was security. He certainly had the build for it.

"Hi," Brock said cheerfully. He glanced at the woman's nametag because he wasn't certain she had ever given her name. "It's nice to see you again, Karen. I was hoping we could be seated in Hailey's section if she's working today."

"No problem, Mister Miller," Karen said brightly. She hoped she could get the men seated and warn her friend before the poor girl came out and dropped something in their laps when she saw them. "If you'll follow me."

The four men took their seats and began peering through the menus.

"Pricy," Zack said. "It better be good."

"I was thinking the same thing," Brock admitted.

Josh and Al just laughed. After the meals they'd had in Phoenix, this was like eating at In and Out.

"Oh, God," Brock heard. He looked up into the startled eyes of Hailey Winters. Karen had been pulled aside by a new group of customers before she could get to her friend.

"Hi, Hailey," Brock said. "I remembered you said you worked here so we figured we'd come to check it out. How's your brother?"

"Good," Hailey said in a small voice.

"Did you tell him about the card?" Brock asked.

"Yeah, he thought it was cool," she told them. "Uh, could I get your drink order?"

"Sure," Brock said with a smile. He didn't want the poor woman to feel upset. "Look, if we're bothering you, we can go somewhere else. I was at the stadium today and I picked up your tickets. I just wanted to drop them off in person and to apologize again."

Brock slid an envelope from his pocket and passed it across. Hailey's hands were shaking when she took it.

"I looked," he said. "You have tickets to my bobblehead day. I don't know what day of the week it is but I know it's during the Pirates series."

"God, what an ego!" Josh said. "Why in God's name would someone want your ugly mug on a bobblehead?"

"Ask your wife," Brock replied. Hailey gave a snort as she tried to keep from laughing.

"That's hurtful," Josh deadpanned. "Miss, I don't know how you could be a fan of this guy. He is always saying mean things to me and Al."

"Yeah, Brock, did you check to see if she has tickets to our bobblehead nights?" Al asked. He answered before Brock could. "Of course he didn't. It's all about you, isn't it?"

"They're joking," Brock said. "Uh, could we get four iced teas? I'm not going to let these guys consume alcohol. It gets worse when they drink."

"Sure, I'll be right back," Hailey said. She bounced off still clutching her tickets. Brock noticed she went straight to the hostess stand to point them out – as if Karen hadn't just seated them.

Chris noticed Randi was noticeably silent on the way home. He also noticed she didn't quite look as full of herself as she had earlier. He wondered what the meeting with Tiffany Wells was about. He didn't know about Randi's upcoming role nor did he know about her meltdown.

He had his suspicions but those were entirely based on the actions of others. He had been off since the trip back from Phoenix so he could help Jen get settled in her sister's apartment.

"Do you have any other stops?" he asked.

"What?" Randi asked absently. "Oh, no. I just want to go home. I'm sorry, Chris."

"Oh, I get used to people ignoring me," Chris joked. "I'm small and unassuming. People always overlook me."

Randi chuckled. It felt strange to laugh.

"Can I ask you something?" Randi posed.

"Of course," Chris answered.

"You're friends with Brock, right?" she wondered.

"I guess so," Chris hedged. "He seems to think we are."

"That's a strange answer," Randi said.

"I know," Chris admitted. "This whole thing is strange. I mean, in my job, I have always been treated like an accessory. Most people I work for have no idea of my name or even if I have one. That's why I like working for you. You've always treated me as a person. And so has everyone else. Brock knows I have a job to do but he still makes me feel like I'm not intruding. So, yeah, I think we're friends. He doesn't treat me any differently than he treats anyone else."

"Yeah," Randi lamented. "Well, I have been a complete and total bitch to him and Meredith for the past week. How do you think I should get them to forgive me?"

"Apologize," Chris said after a moment's thought. "Then stop acting like a bitch. Wait, I might have that backward."

Randi found herself shaking her head and laughing again.

"You think they'll forgive me?" she asked hesitantly.

"Meredith? I don't know," Chris admitted. "Brock, well, Jen and I have discussed him. I guess I had to make sure I wasn't being used to make him jealous or something. He seems to forgive people for things I'm not sure I could. Can I ask what you've done?"

"Oh, the usual," Randi said. "I accused them of being jealous of my fame. I said they were trying to sabotage my career. You know, stuff you hear every day."

"Are they?" Chris asked.

"No," Randi said. "It was all in my head. But I thought they were. You saw me with the script in Phoenix?"

Chris nodded his head.

"It's a pretty screwed up story," Randi said. "I let it get to me. I let the character get inside my head. They saw it and asked me to get some help. Then I blew my top and said and did some really awful things."

"But nothing you can't take back?" Chris asked.

"I don't know," Randi said. "I hope not."

"Then all you can do is eat some humble pie and take your lumps," Chris told her. "At least that's my advice if you want it."

"I do," Randi said. "You know, I told my Mom once that if I had an older brother, I hoped he'd be like you. I was probably 15 at the time. But that's still true. Thanks, Chris. And the next time you see me start to act like an asshole, just kick my butt."

"I honestly didn't notice anything," he said.

"Gee, that makes me feel better," Randi replied.

"That's not what I meant," Chris cut in. "I mean I haven't been around since Phoenix. You said you were going to be holed up working on a project. You seemed, I don't know, a little arrogant this morning but I thought I might have been imagining it."

"You weren't," Randi said with a sigh.

"Well, you seem back to your normal self now," Chris said. "And I have a younger sister. I wish she had turned out as well as you have. Then I wouldn't have a niece who is only 15 years younger than her mother."

The men sat around the table sipping iced tea while they waited for their orders. Karen appeared and asked if she could join them for a little while.

"Sure," Al said. "Glad to have you."

Karen smiled warmly as she pulled a chair from a nearby table.

"You guys have made Hailey's year," she said. "I just wanted to thank you. She's had a rough time and it's good to see her happy."

"Anything we can help with?" Josh asked.

"No, but thanks," Karen said, looking at the ballplayers in a new light. "Her Mom ran off a year or so ago. The woman just up and left. Hailey is trying to help her father out with her little brother. She quit college to work here full-time. Her brother adores her. He's 12 and he knew that Brock was her favorite player. She saw your story on TV when you were first traded here. She said that you were a guy who refused to stay down for the count. It didn't matter what life threw at you, you got up, dusted yourself off and worked harder to get ahead. That really spoke to her. She was wearing down, you know. Then she saw how her situation could have been so much worse. She could have been left without anyone."

Brock started to tell Karen that his situation was helped by a lot of people but Al gave him a quick kick under the table.

"So Ricky – that's Hailey's brother – tried and tried to find a baseball card of you for her birthday," Karen continued. "But I guess you didn't have a card yet. He hunted and found that card she carries around with her. He had to buy the whole set to get that one card. He saved all summer, did whatever he could to earn money, just so when her birthday came in September he could give it to her – because she had given him so much. He's a really great kid. When she saw you go in to the club that night she wanted to head over. I mean, she never goes there. She hates the people who usually hit that place. She watched and watched until our shift ended. She didn't see the usual people. She recognized some of the guys from the team and figured out it was private. But we also saw a lot of women going in so we figured 'What the hell.' Of course you know the rest."

"Actually, we don't," Josh said. "At least I don't. I mean, I knew you were there but I couldn't figure out how."

Karen smiled.

"We got busted like a minute after we made it through the door," Karen said. "There was a group right on our heels or I think we'd have been OK. Still, Brock and the security guard were really nice about it. Brock told us so long as we just enjoyed ourselves and didn't become pests; we could stay and hang out. I swear it was the most fun I've had in a while. There was no pressure to be anything I'm not. It took me a few minutes to figure out it was a really private party – as in everyone there knew everyone else. That's how we got busted, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it was a gradation-slash-birthday party for one woman and a 'Welcome to L.A.' party for another," Brock said. "Still, I figured you looked harmless enough."

Karen snorted.

"I mean I eventually figured it out," Brock admitted with chagrin.

"Hailey was so flustered when Brock walked up to her that she almost got us both killed," Karen said when she saw the confused looks on three faces. "She reached into her purse to get the card she always carries around with her. After that awful thing in at the end of the season, it was not a good idea."

"Wow," Zack said. "I'm surprised Cynthia didn't snap her in two."

"Is she the really scary looking woman?" Karen asked.

"No, that's Al's wife," Brock joked. "I'm kidding. Cynthia Lu is the head of security for the team. She was one of the women with me. The other was my sister, Zoe. She's with the sheriff's department."

Karen nodded.

"Once Hailey realized what she'd done, she was mortified," Karen said. "I mean she was completely flustered. But everyone was still so nice to us. Even when Brock grabbed her arm, he didn't do it roughly. He just kept her from pulling it out of her bag. I've had my arm grabbed harder than that by a patron who wanted another drink. Then he let us stay and join the fun. The cool part was when Tara Wyatt came up at the end of the party. She got our names and our numbers and promised to call us when you got together again. It was one of the few times Hailey rode home with a smile on her face."

She suddenly pointed at Zack.

"You're Tara Wyatt's boyfriend," she said. "I knew I recognized you but I couldn't place you."

"He's a pitcher for the team," Josh clarified. "Don't worry. He sucks so badly that the only time they let him on the field if we're up 15 or down 15."

Zack rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"He's not that bad," Brock added. "I remember they let him pitch once when we were only down eight. Of course an inning later we were down 15 so I guess it still counts."

"They're kidding," Al said. "Zack came up in August so he's still a rookie. Brock was the only first-year player on the team last year and he suffered his share of pranks. I think he's been saving up all sorts of jokes for Zack."