Page 25 of 5 Golden Flings

Back to the internet she went. How could she not? She and Ben were supposed to be engaged, but she was completely in the dark about his divorce. If she was going to pull this fake relationship off and do it well more information was needed. What had he done? What had his ex-wife done?

Romance is for suckers, he’d said. Her own track record in that department wasn’t exactly great, but that didn’t mean she’d written off the chance that one day love would come her way. Real forever love, the right man, a connection that didn’t fade with time.

The information wasn’t easy to find, and along the way she gave in to the temptation to watch a few clips of Ben Crusher on the field and at home plate. Maybe she didn’t watch baseball, but that didn’t mean she was entirely ignorant about the game. He was good, maybe even great. She watched him make a few impressive catches in the outfield and take a couple home run swings, and then…

She watched him get hit in the face with a hundred mile an hour fast ball and drop to the ground.

That ball-in-the-nose incident had happened years ago, and still her heart dropped and her stomach churned. He could’ve been killed! The video started to automatically replay and she scrolled down as fast as she could. She didnotwant to see that again.

After a while she wondered if he ever thought about changing his name to Smith. There were so many plays on his name!Crusher Crushes It. A Crushing Defeat.When he’d played for a team who wore orange, some called himThe Orange Crush.And on and on. It was a bit much.

Several pages in, she found mention of his ex. It was a fan post, not an official story. If it was true, and considering the source that wasn’t a given, she’d left him for a more successful player. At the time Ben had been up and down from the minors to the majors, and it could be assumed his baseball career wasn’t yet solidified. The ex’s new husband had been a star.

No wonder Ben didn’t believe in romance!

That was enough for tonight. It had been a long day, and she needed a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow there would be another brunch, then later in the day the rehearsal and dinner after.

Molly hung her dress in the closet and pulled on her pajamas. Her mom had given them to her last year for Christmas. They were flannel and too warm for Florida, but it wasn’t like the air conditioning didn’t work. When else was she going to wear PJs with dancing red and green elves on them?

She crawled into bed and reached over to turn off the light but instead grabbed her phone and sat up with her back against the headboard. If these rooms were mirrored, as she suspected, the headboard of Ben’s bed, and maybe Ben, were just on the other side of the wall.

Her thumbs flew; she was a fast texter.

You were hit in the face!

Ben

I was.

Did it hurt?

Hell yes!

You need a safer job.

Such as?

This hotel could use a night bellman.

I’ll think about it. Goodnight, Molly.

Night, Benjy.

Romance isn’t for suckers.

Those three dots, blinking. Was he typing in a response or just watching?

Just watching. The three dots went away and the phone remained silent.

CHAPTER 6

Friday morning brunchwas for the entire wedding party. He and Molly walked into the hotel restaurant together, right on time. The space was half-filled. Some were sleeping late, after last night’s activities. When a couple of the groomsmen walked in bleary-eyed and stumbling, Ben was doubly glad he’d left the stag party early.

It had given him a chance to talk to Molly on the balcony again. He was ready to get home, anxious to leave the wedding festivities behind, but he’d miss the evening conversations with the woman who’d once been a friend. Could she be a friend again?

He wanted more than friendship from her, wanted more every time he looked at her. Did she want the same or was he just a way to kill time in a setting where she didn’t know many people?

They sat side-by-side near the end of the long table, leaving the seats near the bride and groom for family. Maybe Rosie would sit near her brother and her parents.

---