25. Cloak and Dagger #2
After way too long taking photos, I was finally able to ditch Liz and Jackson. Entering the ballroom where the gala is hosted, it’s like being transported back in time. The entire room is all very art deco, and the décor is giving old Hollywood glamour vibes. Gilded fixtures. Geometric shapes.
My eyes scan the room from the top of the staircase as I search for familiar faces.
I’m sitting at the table with the rest of the TV crew, but I don’t see any of them around yet.
I don’t see many of the guys from the team either, but it doesn’t take long for my eyes to find Ryan’s where he’s hovering next to a table talking with someone.
His lips kick up into a smirk and mine mirror his expression as the heat of a flush climbs my cheeks.
I drop my eyes before things get any more obvious than I feel they already are, and make my way down the stairs.
The second my foot hits the last step, an arm is thrust out in front of me, startling me.
“May I have this dance?” Cooper asks with a knowing smile.
Much like everyone else, he’s cleaned up for the evening.
Lean body outfitted in what I’m sure is an outrageously priced, navy-blue suit, highlighting his slate gray eyes.
I laugh. “Sure. Anything for the Cooper Lennox,” I say as I loop my arm in his and allow him to guide me to the area that’s been cordoned off as the dance floor. “Fair warning, I’m a shit dancer.”
He leans his body sideways toward me and speaks from the corner of his mouth. “Good thing I am too.”
“Oh good, this is a trainwreck waiting to happen then.”
We take up positions, mirroring what others are doing and make a swaying attempt at a dance.
“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” he starts.
I tilt my head at him in question. “We’ve met before.”
“Well, yes. But what I mean is that it’s a pleasure to finally get to meet you under different circumstances,” he explains, placing a knowing emphasis on the word different.
“Ah, I see.” I let my eyes flick around the room to make sure there’s no one around to hear our conversation. “You mean with the fact that I’m sleeping with your best friend.”
He lifts an eyebrow in challenge. “I’d call it a bit more than sleeping with him, wouldn’t you?”
“Sure, dating, whatever you want to call it. We don’t really have a label for it.” I flap my hand around on his shoulder as I speak. Cooper stares at me in a way that makes me think I’m supposed to be seeing something in his gaze, but I can’t quite pick up on it. “What?” I ask.
“You do realize he’s pretty much in love with you, right?” he asks, expression entirely too serious for what must be a joke. Cooper goes through women at an abnormally high rate. What does he really know about love?
“What? No, he’s not.” I shake my head with a laugh.
“We’ve only been whatever it is we are for like a month.
And friends for maybe a month before that.
No way is he in love with me.” I scoff at the idea.
He can’t be in love with me. It’s way too soon.
And we’re not even supposed to be together in the first place.
Cooper tilts his head and thinks for a second before he speaks again. “Did you know when Liz was in love with Jackson? The moment she fell. Even if she refused to admit out loud to anyone, or even to herself.”
I give it a moment of thought. “I wouldn’t say I knew it was love, but I could tell that something was different about her. So, maybe?”
“He’s been different this season.” I start to open my mouth to respond but he speaks up again, silencing my argument.
“A good different. He’s been happier. Lighter.
He’s more like the version I saw of him in the early years with the Suns.
I think a lot of that—honestly, probably all of it—has to do with you.
I’ve never seen him in love before, so that different you say you saw in Liz?
I’m pretty sure I see that in him.” With that bombshell dropped, the song trails off and another picks up in its place as Cooper releases his hold on me.
“Thanks for the dance.” He shoots me a quick wink and then disappears into the crowd, leaving me with only my thoughts.
I shake them off. Cooper’s wrong. It’s too early. He’s infatuated with me, yes. That’s very clear. But Ryan’s not in love with me.
I turn, and as if granted a miracle from above, through the parting of the crowd, I spot the rest of my TV family at the table we’ve been assigned. I weave my way through the crowd and sidle up to table.
“Well, look what the cat dragged in,” Annie purrs from where she’s kicked back in her seat. “Damn girl. You clean up well, Rossi.”
I drop my chin, bashful at the compliment. “Thanks. All the credit goes to my friend, really.”
“Credit or not, you look hot! I sure hope you find yourself a hot date to go home with. You deserve to let loose,” she encourages.
I laugh nervously. “Oh, we’ll see. I work with about half the people in this room so not so sure how well that’ll go down.”
She shrugs and returns her attention to the drink in her hand as Jamie comes up beside me.
“Well, hello there. You’re certainly a sight for sore eyes,” he says as he takes in my appearance. “Didn’t think we’d actually see you here tonight.”
I tilt my head at him in question. “What do you mean?”
“Well, you tend to keep very strict boundaries—which is all fine, it’s your business—that we didn’t expect you to be here this evening since it blurs those lines a bit, hm?”
I suddenly feel nervous and like I’m intruding. “Oh.” My eyes drop to my hands where I’m picking at one of my cuticles.
“Hey, hey. I didn’t mean that as a bad thing.
It’s good you have those boundaries. Healthy, even.
God knows we probably need some,” he says with a laugh, throwing a thumb over the shoulder at the rest of the team sitting around the table.
“It’s nice for us to see you outside of your natural habitat is all I was trying to say.
” I offer him a small smile in thanks, and he holds his hand out toward me. “How about a dance?”
I shrug and take his hand. “Why not?”
“I’ll admit, I have an ulterior motive for asking you to dance,” Jamie says as the song picks up.
“Oh? And what is that?”
“I wanted to thank you.”
I miss a step and stumble a bit before regaining my footing. “Thank me for what?”
“For everything you’ve done for us this season. You’ve been such a huge help.”
I’m taken aback by his words. His words are reminiscent of the feedback from Mr. Boseman, making me think a large number of those compliments came from him. “Jamie, I’m only doing my job.”
“Yeah, but you walked into this job at the start of the season knowing absolutely nothing about baseball—truly your lack of knowledge was offensive to a lifelong fan—and look at you now. You threw your everything into learning the sport, our team, and how we operate. The things causing us issues. Helping us find the best solutions without causing disruptions elsewhere. I don’t think we’ve had a broadcast season go as smooth as this one has.
And we owe all of it to you. We owe you so much more than a thank you, but it’s all we have to offer. ”
Tears well in my eyes and it takes everything in me to hold them back.
I playfully smack his shoulder. “Jamie, you ass! You’re going to ruin my makeup.
” I let out a watery laugh. “You want to know a secret?” I ask, leaning in and dropping my voice to a whisper.
“I didn’t want to be on this assignment. ”
He lets out a mock shocked gasp. “No! You don’t say!”
“Yes,” I respond, equally exaggerated. “But I’m really glad I took it.”
“I’m glad you took it too, Rossi,” he says as he wraps one arm around to pull me into a half hug.