January (Calendar Girl #1) Anthology Anthology (46 page)

While the men cleaned up, another thing I found incredibly cool, guests of the Murphy household never did dishes, even if you were a woman. I guess they just got used to doing all the domestic duties themselves. It was enlightening but sad. So while they cleaned up, I looked at all the pictures. There were many of Eleanor the mother around the house. Pictures with each boy, with the boys all together, and happy ones with her husband, Mick. They looked really happy, a solid family. Here was a woman who fought cancer and probably would have given anything to just stay with her family, whereas my healthy mother had a happy family she left for her own selfish desires. To this day, I wasn’t even sure where she was and as much as I pretended not to care, I did. So much that it pissed me off.

Mason came up behind me, placed a hand on my shoulder, but didn’t say anything. “Your mother was really beautiful.”

“Yes, she was. She was the perfect Mom, too. Really cared about us. The cancer, when she got it, ravaged her, sweeping through so fast there was little we could do. Dad beats himself up that she didn’t get tested early. Dad’s only forty-five. Mom was gone shortly after she turned thirty-five. They had seventeen perfect years together if you ask Dad. Then she was just gone. She always said she’d get tested when she was forty like the rest of the world. That was too long for her.” His tone was sad and filled with the longing of a man who missed his mother. I understood that all too well.

I thought about the beautiful Eleanor who was lost to the world at such a young age with four boys and a husband that needed her. They carried on and had one another; they were still a family.

“We should do something for your Mom.”

Mason’s eyebrows narrowed. “What do you mean?”

As I thought more about it, the idea swirled within my mind and took flight. It would be perfect. “I mean about breast cancer. Get involved in the cause. You’re a big professional ball player. We should do a fundraiser or something; donate it to the local breast cancer awareness group in Boston. We could get pink bracelets, that you and I could wear, shirts for me and the WAGs. If the team wants to get involved, they can. Not only would it help your Mom’s memory, the women fighting now, and those with family history that should get prescreened earlier than forty, but it would look good for your image.”

Mason smiled, his tiny crooked tooth shining against his pearly whites. “We could help women like my mom,” he said in total awe, like it was the best idea since major league baseball. “I love it! You’re a frickin’ genius!” He picked me up and twirled me around. “So what do you think we do first?”

For the next hour, we sat down with Eleanor’s favorite cheesecake Mick had made in her honor, and we talked about how we could help get the word out using Mason’s celebrity status as a pushing-off point.

Chapter 5

Think Pink was the campaign name we came up with. Once back in Boston, Mason and I got to work. We ordered special Think Pink silicone bracelets to pass out at games, and special shirts for the WAGs that we rush ordered and paid an ungodly amount to ship overnight once the items were ready. My shirt I ordered personally and paid for without Mason knowing about it. The back and front had Mason’s jersey number, and on top, it said “For Eleanor”. It was super cute and I knew it would mean a lot to Mason.

While he was practicing, I stayed back at his pad and wrote out a plan for a fundraiser. Rachel was all over the idea and thought it was great and offered to help make it something that would actually raise a lot of money for the cause as well as help Mason’s image. We hadn’t talked about last week’s nightmare and she didn’t seem in the mood to. Each time she was present she was all business all the time. Somehow, I had to find a way to get back into her good graces to promote Mason as a prospective boyfriend. Though I was at a loss, at the moment, for ideas on how to best do that. The orgy Rachel witnessed definitely did some serious damage to her belief that he would be into her and probably made him seem less desirable. For me, he became more desirable, but that’s because I needed to get laid. Just thinking back to watching that woman suck on Mace and him going to town on that blonde was enough to fill a couple masturbatory sessions in the shower this past week, but I needed the real thing. Only Mason wasn’t on my mind. Unfortunately, a tanned blond from California, currently on location with the chick he was fucking, was.

I sighed and continued typing out my plan then figured I needed reinforcements. I pulled out my phone and dialed.

“What up, skank?” Ginelle’s voice rang through the line. Just hearing her familiar voice made me happy. It also had the downside of making me homesick.

“Planning a fundraiser.”

Gum-smacking and a full-bellied Gin laugh broke through my concentration on the list I was typing. “Uh, isn’t the idea to raise the money you need to save Pops already happening? You know, lying on your back!” She laughed manically at her own joke.

“Not for me!” I sighed. “For Mason.”

A strangled noise slipped through the line. “The rich baseball player needs money? Why?”

I groaned. “Just listen, bitch. We’re improving his image by supporting the local breast cancer awareness group here in Boston. His Mom died young from the disease and he wants to do something to give back. Since he’s playing ball and practicing, I’m working on an event where we could raise some money and help his image. Make sense?”

More gum smacking. Truth be told, I liked hearing the sound of that way more than the sound of her inhaling one of her cancer sticks.

“So what are you thinking?” she asked. My best friend, Gin was nothing if not creative. She’d come up with some good ideas. I ran through the gist of the event. We were going to hold it at some posh hotel downtown. Most of the starting team agreed to participate. Several friends of Mason’s would be there, a famous DJ agreed to play the event free, another restaurateur friend of his PR firm agreed to offer their services and food free of charge.

“Oh, and we’re going to have a silent auction filled with baseball paraphernalia, and other donated items from friends of the players. But I don’t know, I need something that will really draw some high dollars. Got anything in mind?” Ginelle paused so long I wasn’t sure she was still there. “Well?”

“I’m thinking, don’t get your panties in a twist…if you’re even wearing any that is,” she accused and she’d be right. I wasn’t wearing any because I had on tight leggings that would show lines and no one needed to see that.

“Shut up!” I warned.

Gin laughed and it sounded like home. My heart filled with love and joy as I waited patiently and did random Google searches for other charity events to see what they did.

“Okay, so you’ve got a bunch of really hot baseball players going to this thing right? Like at least twenty?”

“Yeah,” I said, not knowing where she was going with this.

“So instead of just doing a silent auction, why don’t you auction them? Get an auctioneer guy, you know the ones that talk really really fast, make sure the guys wear really hot outfits like tuxes, or maybe have them strip off their shirts. Rich women love that shit!” She was not wrong. I could see women plied with champagne falling all over themselves to get at a shirtless baseball player.

“Gin, that is fucking brilliant.”

She huffed and I could imagine her twirling a lock of hair and gloating prettily. “I know. I’m good like that.”

“Yes, you are. Have I told you lately that I got nuthin’ but love for you baby?”

“Whatcha got?” She sang back bringing us both back to the old school jam we liked to listen to on the radio back home. It played all kinds of throwback songs from the 90’s. We were too young to know the songs then, but in our twenties we both appreciated the silly rap/pop songs from that era. 

I thought about how this would work. I’d get the guys to agree to a date with the woman that buys them. She has to pay but they have to do what the woman wants for a four-hour period. Even the married ones would do it for the cause. “Gin, honestly I think this could raise a lot of money.”

“Well duh. The men are hot. What rich bitch wouldn’t want a piece of that eye candy on her arm for a night?”

Again, not wrong. “I’m going to draw up the plan. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

“Eh, you can pay me back with pictures of hot dudes stripped to the waist. And I’m not kidding. You have this event and you do not send me pictures of half-naked men I will find really evil ways to embarrass you in the future. And don’t think I don’t have pictures to prove some of the shit you did in the past.”

“Whore!” I shot back, remembering she did in fact have an entire box full of trouble we’d gotten into over the years to pull from and use against me. “You wouldn’t!”

She clucked her tongue. “I so would! Half-naked men pictures, sent to my phone, individually…and do not forget Mason. I want one of that sexy bastard.”

I laughed hard as Rachel entered the kitchen where I was set up. I waved and she went to the coffee pot and pulled down a mug and filled it.

“All right you black mailing dirty slutbgag,” Rachel’s eyes were wide and she almost dropped her coffee cup. I didn’t have a chance to explain, but tried to shake my head and wave in a gesture that meant everything was okay. “You’ll get your pictures. But you drive a hard bargain.”

“Always do, and hey, Mads is doing great. That boy she’s seeing is totally nice. I double-checked…still a virgin, but girl, I’m not thinking for long. He’s really cute, likes her a lot, and she falls all over herself to please him. It’s actually really sweet. So far though, he seems like a good guy. She could do a lot worse for her first time.”

I groaned and put my head in my hand. “You think she’s going to give up her v-card to him? For real?”

“Yeah, she can’t stay pure forever, Mia. She’s a grown woman. She’s nineteen for crying out loud. Shit, I’m not even sure I can remember how old I was when I gave up the card; it’s been so long. I honestly can’t remember a time where I wasn’t getting hot cock.”

This time I moaned. “Gin, don’t talk about cock and my sister in the same sentence. You’re going to make me break out in hives. And you better not be encouraging her to give it up to him either or I’ll hunt you down, pin you to a wall and cut off all your hair, put honey on your nipples and leave you for the ants!”

“Jesus Christ on a cross. That’s fucked up. You’d do that to your best friend? I need to make new friends. Mine’s a goddamned psycho!” she roared then laughed hard. I followed suit imagining her stuck to a wall with honey on her tits and her hair cut in chunks all over the place.

Controlling the laugher, I took a deep breath. “You’re right. I wouldn’t do that, but please, next time you see her, have her call me okay?”

“Will do. I’ve got to go practice the new routine. Let me know how the event goes and don’t forget my reward!”

I shook my head. “Hey skank, I love you, and I’m proud of you for laying off the cancer sticks. Want to keep you in my life so that we can grow old, get a bunch of cats and a beach house together.”

“I always loved cats.” Gin said wistfully, her voice petering off.

She totally set me up for it. “That’s because you love pussy!” I howled and then hung up on her before she could get in a retort. “Ah, all is right in the world,” I opened my eyes and came face to face with a stricken Rachel.

“Are you being blackmailed?” her eyes were as wide as milk saucers.

I laughed out loud and shook my head. “No, that was Gin my best friend. We’re always like that.”

“You always threaten each other and call one another foul names?” her voice was screeching and I didn’t understand why.

“Uh yeah? Don’t you with your best friend?”

She shook her head numbly. “No. No, I do not. We say very nice things to one another, do lunch, and shop together.”

I cringed. They shopped together. Yikes. That is not something Gin and I did together. Drink beer, check out hot guys, gamble a little, play cards, go to concerts, yes, shopping…er no. “Sucks to be you,” I said, meaning every word of it.

“Somehow I doubt that.” She said flippantly, and I grinned. So she had a little fire in her yet. That was good. Mason would light a fire under her so bright she’d get burned if she didn’t have a little of her own to battle it.

***

Rachel was not excited about the auctioning men idea, but Mason thought it was brilliant. He called each guy on his team and came back with commitments from over twenty players that were available this weekend and willing to be auctioned off to the highest bidder, and take their clothes off, well their shirts, for charity. I found pink suspenders for each guy to wear and asked them all to wear a nice suit. The plan was to have the men remove their jackets, shirts, and be left with the suspenders. I was also planning on painting a pink breast cancer ribbon over each man’s chest directly above his heart to keep with the theme.

Once Mason got home, he sat down at the table with Rachel and me and brainstormed other ideas while he grilled steaks on the balcony, and I made the side fixings. Together, we came up with tons of ideas to get the word out in such short notice along with ways to get his Dad and brothers involved, too, since this was ultimately a way for them to honor their mother’s memory. I told him to have his Dad get a picture of his wife that he loved blown up and framed for use on one of the tables. The other players that had family members they’d lost to the disease would also share images of their loved ones so the donors in attendance would know the real reason behind the event.

We made certain the chapter president of the local Breast Cancer Awareness group would be there and could say a few words.

“Mia, Rachel, I gotta hand it to you ladies, you’re the bomb at planning a last minute event.” Mason grinned and hugged my shoulder then kissed my cheek. He went over to Rachel who stiffened the moment he moved close.

Mason’s voice got low, but I could still hear him. “I’m sorry about what you saw last week. It shouldn’t have happened. That’s not the kind of guy I want to be.” He looked deeply into her big blue eyes and she nodded but didn’t respond. He moved close, inhaled against her hairline, and then kissed her cheek. “Thank you for your help with this. You didn’t have to pull all those strings.”