Chapter 1

Chapter One

Liam

“ A re we really putting money into a new minor league team?” My best friend Donovan asked from a stool at my sports bar.

“I know. It’s a lot of money, but we’ll have three other owners. The Cruisers are already on track to a profitable first year.”

“They had a grant for their stadium.”

“We’d be refurbishing the one from the old Kinsaw College.” A suburban college went bankrupt after COVID in our town of Lombard, Illinois, and while it was a smallish stadium, it would do the job.

Donovan nodded. “I looked at the specs. It will be smaller than the Cruiser’s stadium, but will we draw numbers? They’re only about an hour away, and then there’s the Lake County team, and that other one south of the city.”

“I think it will. It will be within walking distance of the train to the city, and those new condos are nearby. The League is going to take on some costs.”

He nodded. “I’m still not sure about this.”

“Hey, the bar paid off, didn’t it?” I’d opened this bar in my family’s building. It used to be a dance studio and a breakfast restaurant that had closed. Finally, I tried to open my own business with this bar.

He smiled. “And yet, you’re here often working.”

That was more loneliness than anything else. I thought it would be good to have a business after I tired of coaching a few years back. I’d had a brief battle with skin cancer on my arm, not surprising after years of playing ball in the sun, but it required several treatments.

Running the bar was mostly fun for me. We also had a room for rentals and hosted popular trivia, bingo, and karaoke nights. No-one had beaten Donovan and me yet on the sports trivia in the lightning round, but I always gave the runners-up a prize.

“I don’t see you dating now, either.”

Baseball players do not make great boyfriends, at least six months of the year. We’d both dated and hadn’t found any relationship that was able to withstand one of our seasons.

“That’s Steve and Aaron’s woman?” Donovan swiveled to see our buddies’ fiancé as she cheered for something from the Cruisers.

“Yes.”

“Think sharing a woman works?”

“We can do it. We’ve been friends since our first baseball job. I’ve known several groups now that make it work.” I was looking at Mandy’s friend. She was really lovely, with dark brown hair and a green top that slid off one shoulder. I had an urge to kiss her light brown skin there on her smooth shoulder.

“Really think we could do that?” Donovan was looking at her, too.

It wasn’t the first time he’d mentioned that, especially as we’d heard about our friends’ arrangement. But it was the first time I thought maybe it could work.

Then Mandy gripped her friend’s arm, and they both turned to look at a couple that came in. The man was helping his pregnant partner.

He saw Mandy and her friend and froze. “Oh, shit. ”

We could hear that clearly across the bar.

“Uh oh,” Donovan said, standing. We’d seen enough fights start at the ballpark to know where this was likely headed.

“Chad? How did you have time to get someone that pregnant when we broke up three months ago?”

“Hey!” The pregnant woman glared at her. “I’m not that big.”

I snorted. This was becoming like something from a sitcom.

“You’re over three months pregnant, though, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” she said, turning her glare to Chad. “And he’s my husband.”

“Margot, forget him. It’s not worth it.” Mandy tried to keep her friend at their table.

Instead, Margot stepped close to the bar, and I could catch her vanilla scent as she took the pitcher of beer I’d just filled for a table.

“Are you sure you want to do that?” Donovan said, as she seemed to pause. “It’s not her fault she’s married to an asshole.”

“No,” she said, smiling at us. “It’s his.”

“Move!” She shouted at the woman, as Donovan and I hurried over to keep this from escalating.

Then Margot poured the pitcher over Chad’s head.