"How do I get the fast results of a sweatshop without violating human rights?" I sat across from my lawyer hoping in some joking way she could give me a hypothetical answer. "Erin I'm going to pretend you never asked that, and advise you to never try and make a joke again." nodding she shoved the papers towards me "Here's the deal we worked out with the Senators wife, just sign in the next five minutes and I won't have to bill you for another hour." signing, I felt a smile spread across my face, two weeks. Two weeks had passed since that fateful phone call that would restart my career, everything was starting to look up. Not that it had ever really looked down, besides in my head. As I left the office I knew nothing could keep me down, a bird could literally shit on me and I would still be smiling. I could be hit by a bus and still go on my merry way.

Then the theoretical bus hit me. My phone started ringing and while it sounded exactly the same as every other time I get a phone call, there was something about the way it range that told me it was Jake without even looking. "Hello?" "Erin, hi," he was breathy and frantic sounding "what's going on Jake?" "My mother is sick and so is half my family, the other half is busy and... I need you," it had been weeks since I had even seen him and yet those three little words set flutters through my stomach "I need you to be my sixteenth person." That stopped the fluttering a bit. "Look will you do it? I know it's last minute I just don't have any other options, I'll buy you dinner, give you tickets to games anything..." that franticness seemed to increase exponentially with each passing second. "Don't worry about it, I'll come over and get Isabelle, just text me your address," "Erin I'm at the stadium, I'm literally standing outside the Locker room with Isabelle in my arms. We have a game in a few hours." My purse dropped from the crook of my arm to my hand as I started walking a hell of a lot faster towards my parked car. But then I stopped and looked at the streets and the flood of cars headed towards the stadium. It would take me hours to get there by car. Glancing down at my feet and my lovely, lovely Manolo Blahnik's I knew this was literally about to be hell. "Look I have to walk there, but I'm like two miles away, is nobody's wife or mother there that could take her during the game?" It was silent for a few moments "look I know it sounds crazy because we really don't know each other but I trust your for some reason." I hated that, that was all I needed to hear. One little line about trust and I was willing to walk two miles in Manolo Blahnik's. "I'm on my way,"

I'm 89% sure that my feet may have started bleeding during that walk. Not to mention the more walking I had to do once I got to Fenway Park. After being led down the winding hallways for what seemed like ever I finally saw him. Standing there holding onto a practically sleeping Isabelle, a small duffel bag on the ground beside him. There was something in the way he stood there, leaning against the wall, softly whispering to his daughter. I had a longing to be right there next to him, to take up room in his other arm... and I hated myself for it. He was a triple threat jackass. At least that's what I have to keep telling myself. "Hey!" He stood up relief washing over his face as I continued to walk over. "Thank you so much." Isabelle seemed to wake up a bit and partially smiled at me "Isabelle, you're going to go with Erin for a little while," her little arms were practically already around my neck before Jake handed her over. "She's like a little monkey," I snickered as the kid tried to block the light by burying her head into my neck. Jake smiled and picked up the duffel bag, handing it to me. "She's my little monkey... my whole world." He leaned in close to me... but only to kiss her on the cheek. He patted my arm "she'll probably sleep the whole time, but if not just do whatever you think is best," I dropped my jaw just a little bit "but..." he shook his head "Erin I don't know what I'm doing, and you probably have a better idea than me, so go with your gut, just text me where ever you are and I'll come get her." The locker room door opened up and you could hear them shouting for Jake "I gotta go," I nodded smiling "have fun," he paused a moment to say something but instead just gave me a half smile half amused look. Have fun? I really can't believe I just said that to a professional baseball player. As I walked away I glanced down at the sleeping kid and whispered five little words that would mentally set me back about two weeks "I am such an idiot"