Page 12 of Small Town CEO Grump

“Wow,” Tyler answered, in awe.

Coach came up and said hello to me, and then talked with Ryan some more. We all walked towards the parking lot together, and Tyler just kept staring at Ryan.

When we got to the car we said goodbye to the coach and Tyler thanked him. Ryan said goodbye to his friend and then turned towards us.

“Well, Tyler, it was wonderful to meet you and watch you play. You’re a good little ball player. Stick with it.”

“Oh, thank you, Sir,” Tyler said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Ryan smiled and turned to me. “And Jenna, it was great to watch the game with you. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” I answered.

Once we were settled in the car, Tyler finally spoke again.

“Did you hear what he said?” he asked. “Did you hear what he said?”

I smiled. “That you’re a good little ball player?”

“Yes,” Tyler said.” Somebody who has seen the Yankees play thinks that I am a good ball player. He knows what he’s talking about. I need to keep practicing.”

I felt a surge of emotion, and I couldn’t stop smiling for the rest of the night.

Chapter 5

Ryan

“This looks great,” Jenna said, as she handed back the list of dates and locations.

We had been able to work out a schedule where she would go and visit the other cities where we had offices. She would go and see the properties, and then write the descriptions and all of the information for us. I was so excited that we were going to be able to improve our listings, and I felt like we were lucky to have someone with her qualifications working for us.

I was still curious as to why she did not try for a higher-paying or more prestigious job, but I could see how well her job worked with her schedule.

Jenna’s eyes were sparkling, and I could sense that she was excited about all of the travel, and what she was going to be working on, even though she was trying to play cool.

“So, you start in Manhattan next weekend,” I said.

“I noticed that,” she said. “I haven’t been to New York in a couple years. And even then it was just for a specific event. I didn’t explore the city at all. I’m looking forward to going back and actually getting to see the city.”

“The hotel we chose for you is pretty close to Central Park. That’s my favorite place in the city, and I figured that Tyler would like it too. He will have to check out the ballfields there!”

Jenna smiled, and I was once again struck by how strong her bond was with her son. It was clear that he was the center of her life, and it was a beautiful thing to witness.

“He is so excited,” she said. “He said the main three things he wants to do here are see Central Park, ride the subway, and walk across the Brooklyn Bridge.”

I smiled. “Well, that is an excellent itinerary. If anyone were to ask me the top three things to do in New York City, that would definitely be my list.”

I suddenly felt nervous as I was about to bring up the next idea to her. I was surprised that I felt so unsettled, since I was normally very calm and collected. But I knew this was more of a personal request, and although I was pretty sure she would like the idea, I still felt like I was putting myself out there a bit.

“Well,” I said. “I know we have you on a pretty packed itinerary during the day on Saturday and Sunday. But on Saturday night I had an idea for something that we could do if you are open to it.”

Jenna looked at me, confused. “You’ll be there, too?”

I nodded. “Yes. I will be working in the Manhattan office on that Friday, so I will be in town that weekend as well.”

“Oh, okay. What is your idea?”

“Well, the Yankees are in town that weekend, and I have two extra tickets to Saturday’s game. Would you and Tyler want to go with me?”

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