No! Angela said. My blind date was sitting next to me, rattling on about bond rates and investment strategies. This was a different guy.
It was the only real regret she had in her life. Shed let her one last chance at Max Morgan slip away. As his career in the majors blossomed that season, he became the stuff of tabloid legend, slowly transforming himself into her archetypical smooth operator-dating a long string of models and actresses and party girls, then tossing them aside when something more interesting came along.
Angela had gone home that night and wrote her first blog, talking about what she called White Knight Syndrome, and her silly dream of finding the perfect man to rescue her from the horrors of single life.
Ceci reached out and took Angelas hand. Thats so tragic.
Angela shook her head, lost in thoughts of Max. No, it isnt, she said stubbornly. It wasnt meant to be. If hed been interested, he would have walked across that bar and introduced himself.
And youd be married to him today, Ceci said.
No! Angela protested. We might have gone out, had a nice time, maybe slept together, but then he would have turned out to be like all the others.
You dont know that, Ceci said.
I do. Angela paused, not sure of how much she wanted to reveal to Ceci. He has a huge profile on our site. Nearly fifty women have commented. I would have been just another in a long line of broken hearts.
You found him on the site?
Actually, hes the reason I started the blog, Angela admitted. We went to high school and college together and I had this massive crush on him. He never noticed me. We had that moment in the bar and I realized what a ridiculous fool I was, still carrying a torch for him after all those years. That night, I went home and wrote my first blog.
Whats his name? Ceci asked, turning back to her computer. I want to look him up. She clicked on the search engine, then waited.
Why not tell Ceci? Its not like she had feelings for him anymore. Hes the Sexy Devil, she murmured. Chapter Five. Max Morgan.
Cecis hands froze on her keyboard and she slowly turned to face Angela. You know Max Morgan? The baseball player? She sighed in frustration. How many times have we talked about him? About his chapter in the book. And you never told me you knew him.
I dont, exactly. Angela shrugged. Ive spoken to himonce. No, twice if you count the one word he said to me when we first met. I know almost everything there is to know about him. But we dont know each other. Hes not even aware I exist.
But you had a moment! Ceci cried. Maybe you were destined for each other.
Love is not about magic moments and fairy-tale endings, Angela said. Its about two people willing to work hard to make a relationship succeed. Two people sharing common interests and goals. And there are few truly decent men around willing to invest the time and effort to make a relationship work.
You sound just like your mother, Ceci said. So what are you going to do? Are you going to interview him? She frowned. Wait a second. Is that why you didnt go to that big charity event? The one he was hosting last month?
It wouldnt have been a good place to conduct an interview. I have to get him alone and talking, without any distractions. She swallowed hard. And Im not sure I want to catch him. I have several other candidates for that chapter.
In truth, Angela had thought an interview would be the perfect opportunity to prove to herself that her feelings for Max Morgan were gone for good. She was adult now and shed put all her teenage fantasies about love behind her. He wasnt her Prince Charming. Max Morgan was just another serial seducer, bent on bolstering his ego with an endless supply of willing women. It wouldnt take more than a few minutes in his presence to recognize that he was not the man of her dreams.
I think the reason you made him the subject of Chapter Five is because you want to see him again, Ceci said. You had a moment and you cant forget it. And dont bother lying to me. Im your best friend. Whenever you lie, your face turns red.
Angela clapped her hands over her cheeks and shook her head. Ill interview him. But my luck with interviews has been pretty bad lately. I cant help it if no one wants to talk to me.
What if I could set you up with Max Morgan? Ceci said.
What if I could set you up with Max Morgan? Ceci said.
How would you do that?
Will hangs out at the Tenth Inning every Monday night with his fantasy league buddies. Max Morgan owns the Tenth Inning. And Will says that Max has been in occasionally these last few weeks. Hes back in Chicago for the summer, recuperating after some sort of surgery he had during the off-season.
How do you know all this?
Occasionally, I do listen to Wills rambling. He even met Max last week. Got a photo of him on his phone. Im sure if you went in there, you could talk to him.
Angela felt her stomach flutter and she drew a sharp breath, pushing the surge of excitement aside. Ceci was right. She shouldnt be afraid to interview Max. She could certainly maintain a professional demeanor, even taking into account her former feelings about him.
If Im going to interview him, we have to develop a better strategy. He cant know hes being interviewed. I have to find a way to meet him and then get whatever I need from casual conversation. Angela stood. He cant know that this is for a book.
Conversation, Ceci said. Thats exactly what people do in a bar.
I know. But Ive never been very good at that. I dont flirt, I have a tendency to babble when Im nervous, and I absolutely cannot hold my liquor.
Thats the least of your problems, Ceci said. First, we have to go shopping and buy you the sexiest outfit on the planet. Youre going to have to attract him first. From what I see on his profile, he doesnt have any shortage of women wanting to sleep with him. What do you think-legs, belly or cleavage? Pick one.
For what?
Its my mothers rule. She always used to tell me that if your outfit only showed one of the three, it was sexy. Two of the three makes the outfit sleazy. And showing all three makes it slutty. The rule of three has served me well. So, legs, belly or boobs?
What do you think? Angela asked, staring down at her rather unremarkable body.
Legs, Ceci said. You have great legs. Let him fantasize about the boobs and the belly. Ceci grabbed her purse, then pulled Angela along toward the door. What color?
Does your mom have a rule for that as well?
No. I do. Black is boring, red is desperate. An unusual color, like chartreuse or tangerine, says youre a strong, independent woman who doesnt care what other people say about her weird color choices. And men think that women who wear weird colors are kinky in bed.
You have proof of this? Angela asked.
Yes. She pointed to her own mustard-colored top. I was wearing pumpkin-orange when I met Will. He said he knew exactly what I was like in the bedroom.
Im not going to sleep with Max Morgan, Angela said.
Of course not. But in order to get close to him, youre going to have to make him believe you just might.
They stepped out of the office onto the noisy bustle of Ashland Avenue. It was barely noon and the heat was already stifling. Theres this really nice boutique that just opened on North, Ceci said. Lets start there. Youll need a nice pair of Do-me shoes, too. The dress will be demure but the shoes will say take my body now.
You are not my fairy godmother and Im not Cinderella.
Ceci slipped her arm through Angelas. Honey, we all want to be Cinderella. Every single girl I know is waiting for that guy to come calling with a glass slipper.
THE BAR WAS CROWDED for a Tuesday night. Max Morgan leaned over and motioned to Dave, his manager and big brother. Is this a typical Tuesday night? This is the busiest Ive seen it in ages. Whats going on?
Its Ladies Night. Women drink for half-price on Tuesdays. And when youre here, a lot of women show up, hoping theyll get lucky, Dave said, grinning. Hey, youre better than a promotional giveaway. The women want to date you, the men want to talk baseball with you. Just sit yourself down at the end of the bar and be your usual charming self. Or better yet, hang out by the door and take a few pictures.
Max glanced over his shoulder. This wasnt exactly how he wanted to be viewed, as some kind of marketing tool. God, since his baseball career had taken off, hed become a giant marketing machine-selling athletic shoes and luxury cars and expensive watches. He couldnt buy a pair of socks without having to think about the impact it would have on his endorsements. And every move he made in his personal life affected his ability to make money.
He hadnt really minded the notoriety that muchuntil the press showed it could also be nasty. Suddenly his day-to-day life had turned into fodder for media commentators. At first, he didnt care what was said about him because most of it had just been made up anyway. But when hed learned his nieces and nephews were hearing about it at school, Max had decided to take a break from the spotlight.
A shoulder surgery hed been putting off became the perfect chance to get out of the limelight, to give the media an opportunity to focus on someone else. And though he still had a few photographers waiting to catch him at a bad moment, his time in Chicago had given him a chance to really contemplate his future-after baseball.
Here, he could leave the temptations of New York and L.A. behind, the women, the partying, a nonstop glare of the camera flash. And the constant need to be selling something. Im just going to make a few calls, Max said. Ill be in the office.
Max had purchased the bar in the DePaul neighborhood nearly a year ago, turning it over to his brother to renovate and run. Dave seemed to have a golden touch when it came to business. Whenever Max had money to invest, he turned it over to Dave, who managed to make them both rich.
At least Max didnt have to worry about how he was going to live after his baseball career ended. With seven years in the majors, hed done pretty well for himself. Max smiled and shook hands as he walked back to the office, posing for a few photos along the way. When he finally closed the door behind him, he drew a deep breath and leaned back against it.