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This was fine, she told herself, draping the blanket across her lap. She was here to support her daughter and watch the game. Nothing else was important. All her life she’d had to follow her own path—it was the price of success. She didn’t want anything different.
Despite her brave words, she found herself glancing at the other moms. They were talking and laughing, obviously comfortable with each other, and why wouldn’t they be? They’d been close for years. Their daughters were friends, and they were friends. Erica was the only outsider.
Summer’s team was first at bat. Erica watched, then cheered as her daughter hit a double, which scored a run. By the end of the first inning, the Wa-West Raptors were ahead by four. By the third, they were ahead by ten. Erica found herself hoping for a few more runs and an early wrap-up to the game.
“Hi, Erica.”
Erica turned and saw Crystal, one of the softball moms, approaching. Behind her, the other moms watched carefully, as if they wanted to judge Erica’s reaction to whatever was going to be discussed.
“Hi.” Erica smiled brightly. “Could it be colder?”
“I know.” Crystal, a pretty blonde with delicate features, smiled as she sat down. “It’s freezing. I was torn between hoping for rain so the game was canceled or dressing in more layers.”
“A missed game just means a tighter schedule at the end of the season.”
“That’s what I told myself, so I picked the layers.” Crystal laughed. “Not that I have weather superpowers. So, um, how are you?”
“Good. Busy. What about you?”
“The same. Declan, my youngest, is going to be seven, if you can believe it. Probably time for me to get a job or something.” She wrinkled her nose. “I haven’t worked since Jeff and I got married and it’s not like we need the money, but I need a little more in my life than taking care of the family and the house.” She tilted her head. “Not that you can relate, right? I mean you’ve always been a tycoon.”
“I’m not sure tycoon is the right word,” Erica murmured, unable to relate to Crystal’s description of her day. Of course her own schedule—running four spas while being a single mom—would be just as foreign.
A crack of a bat had them both glancing at the field.
“Another run,” Crystal said. “Maybe this game will end early.” She held up a hand. “I don’t mean that in a bad way.”
“I know. It’s a weather thing.”
Crystal smiled, then looked away. Erica waited, not sure why the other woman had stopped by. Crystal gave her yet another smile.
“So, um, we were wondering about the spa packages at Twisted. We were thinking about having a girls’ day out. We’ve heard there’s a special room at the Kirkland place that you can’t book online, so we, ah, thought maybe I should talk to you.”
“A spa day?” Erica repeated before she could stop herself. “With the other softball moms?”
Crystal’s gaze dropped to her lap. “Yes.”
Because those women were friends, Erica thought, refusing to acknowledge any reaction on her part. Friends who got together and did things like spa days. It was normal and good for business.
“You’re right—there’s a treatment area for private parties. It’s on the top floor with a beautiful view of the lake. There’s a lovely patio, although this time of year we don’t use it. The dressing area and bathrooms are separate, but all the treatments are done as a group. We can do massages, facials, mani-pedis, along with hair and even makeup, if you want. We cater lunch.”
The sales pitch was easy and practiced. No thought was required. As she spoke, she told herself to stay relaxed, to not feel anything. This was business and nothing more. She and those women had never been close. They wouldn’t think to invite her and if they did, she would never accept.
She pulled a business card out of her handbag. “Here’s my contact information. Email me a few dates, along with the services you’re interested in, and I’ll see what I can do.”
Crystal took the card. “Are you sure?”
“It’s what I do.” She faked humor. “Sort of a tycoon thing.”
Crystal laughed. “Thanks for this. We’ll figure out what we want, then be in touch.”
With that, she got up and made her way back to her friends. Rather than watch her go, Erica returned her attention to the game. The Raptors had scored another two runs. At this rate, the game would only last an hour or so, and wouldn’t that be nice. When it was over, she could escape back to one of her salons and get lost in a world that made a lot more sense to her.
Allison counted the diapers on the shelf. Thank goodness she’d just bought two boxes with a coupon she’d found online. Each box lasted about three weeks. With those and the loose ones in the drawer, she figured she was good for at least seven weeks.
She’d decided to prioritize her expenses. Until Peter called, she was still pretty much in the dark, but whatever happened, they were still going to be in trouble, money-wise. At least until the bank released their accounts.
Diapers, food, medical insurance, electricity and water. Those were the most important items. She’d already canceled the cable and internet. There were two more rent payments until their lease ended, so she supposed she should add those to the list. She’d never once not paid a bill. When she’d been a kid, money had been tight but somehow her dad had found a way. When she and Levi had been married and she’d been putting him through HVAC tech school, they’d struggled to survive financially, but somehow had always made it work. It wasn’t in her nature to deliberately stiff someone. But the rent was so high and the landlord was tossing them out whether they wanted to go or not. Perhaps more to the point, she didn’t have anything to pay him with. The twenty-two dollars she had in her wallet wouldn’t go far. She’d requested more shifts at the grocery store, but she could only do that as long as she still had day care credits.
