Disclaimer: I am not the owner of the characters in this story. All rights go to Crown Media, Hallmark, Brian Bird, Michael Landon, Jr., the actors, creators, and writers of the show "When Calls the Heart." Any names or locations are simply for storyline purposes.

Chapter 2- The Dating Game

Sunday Afternoon…

"Hey Elizabeth…" Ed Cipera called out as Elizabeth slipped down the tunnel leading to the seats behind home plate.

She stopped and backed up before sticking her head around the corner, "Oh, hey Ed, you had a good game last night."

"Thanks," he stated as he jogged up to her. "Are you going with anyone to the cookout tonight?"

"No, I'm not even sure I'm going," she replied.

"I was going to ask you to go with me," he replied.

"Ed, are we going to go through this again? You know I don't date players. I appreciate you thinking of me, but I can't," she stated firmly. "Besides, what happened to your girlfriend from last night?"

"Jealous…?"

"Hardly, but I'd assume if you're dating someone, you wouldn't be asking me out."

"I ask you every year…"

"And every year I say no."

"One of these times you'll give in."

Elizabeth simply smiled, "Don't count on it," as she continued on to her seat.

Ed followed her, "Will you at least save a dance for me?"

"I'll dance with you if I go, but I'm not promising you anything."

Ed turned and yelled, "I've got a date with Elizabeth."

Before Elizabeth could correct him, he was down the tunnel and heading into the locker room.

"So Ed wore you down?" Rosa Wilson teased as she walked in with her son and they took their regular seats.

"No, certainly not. He asked if I would dance with him at the cookout tonight. I'm not even sure that I'm going; are you?"

"Yes, but Preston is having some allergy issues, so I had to pack his food."

"Honey, I left the cooler in the training room," Rosa's husband, Mookie advised as he approached to give Elizabeth a hug. "I feel like we haven't seen you in forever."

Before Elizabeth could respond, Rosa excused herself. "I need to go get Preston some juice, I'll be right back," Rosa stated as she disappeared around the corner.

"Mookie, you saw me yesterday at the game."

"Yea, but I was hoping you'd come to the cookout last night. You missed a good one."

"I'm sure; you guys are the best hosts."

"Have you met the new centerfielder, Jack Thornton?" Mookie asked.

"No, and you know that I don't get involved with the players," she replied.

"Elizabeth, what would have happened if Rosa had refused to go out with me?"

"Well, logically speaking, I guess she wouldn't be married to you."

"Elizabeth, all I'm asking is for you to give him a chance."

"Mookie, how do you know that he doesn't already have a girlfriend?"

"I asked…"

"You didn't say anything about me, did you?"

"No, of course not. I've got your back, Thatcher. But, all joking aside, he's a nice guy, not like the ones who usually hit on you."

Before Elizabeth could respond, Mookie continued, "We've known each other for quite a while, and in all the time I've known you, have I ever suggested that you give someone a chance?"

Elizabeth thought for a moment, "Well, actually no…"

"That should tell you something. All I'm saying is that he's a nice guy."

"No promises, Mookie."

"Well, since we haven't had much time to talk, how have you been?"

"I'm doing well. Only a few more months of school, so I'm good."

"You're coming to the party tonight, aren't you?" Mookie asked.

"Of course she is. She has a date with Ed…" Rosa revealed as she rejoined the conversation.

"Cipera? No Elizabeth, not Ed…" Mookie sounded astonished.

"Mookie, you know me better than that. I keep telling you, I don't date baseball players. I told him if I go to the party, I'll dance with him. I don't really want to go."

"You have to go," Mookie pushed.

"Well I'm sorry but I always hate these cookouts. Mr. Roseman puts them on to let everyone get acquainted, but in reality it's an opportunity for the single players to put the make on my usherettes. It's almost pimp like. He sets up my girls to keep his players happy, and people wonder why I won't date baseball players; this is part of the reason," Elizabeth admitted. "Unfortunately, they are too naïve to realize what these guys are after…uh, present company excepted!"

"Present company appreciates that. But you know, you need to be there to watch over your girls," Mookie suggested.

Feeling slightly motherly, Elizabeth was concerned about throwing her girls to the wolves, "I'll be there."

"You can ride with us if you want to," Rosa offered.

"Thanks but I have my car here," she replied. "That way I can leave when I want."

Mookie left to change into his uniform and Elizabeth went about assigning the girls to specific areas.

"Hey Elizabeth, have you seen the new centerfielder? His name is Jack Thornton."

"Rosa, are you and Mookie playing tag team on me? He was just spouting the virtues of Jack Thornton before you came back," Elizabeth advised. "How long have we known each other? I mean, I knew you when you were just dating Mookie, when he was an outfielder on the team. With the exception of Scott, have you ever known me to date one of the players?" Elizabeth asked.

"Well no, but we got a chance to talk to several of the new guys last night, and Jack is really sweet," Rosa advised.

Elizabeth felt as though she was experiencing a déjà vu moment, having just been involved in the same conversation with Mookie. "Well, you were one of the lucky ones. Mookie is a great guy and an obvious family man. Not all of the players are like that. Most of them really are "Players."

"Well Jack will be at the cookout tonight, so you can meet him there," Rosa suggested. Seeing Elizabeth's apprehension, she continued, "Really, he's sweet."

"I'm sure he is; charming, handsome and a real catch, right? The fact is these guys don't want to be caught. They reel the girls in and when they no longer need them, they throw them back," Elizabeth reiterated her feelings on the matter. "I'm not interested in that."

Elizabeth was on a roll and continued, "The right guy will come along when I least expect it."

Rosa smiled, "Yes, but you'll have to lower your guard to recognize it. Elizabeth, you'll need to let someone in at some point."

"Okay, well I have to get to work. I'll be back in a little while," Elizabeth stated as she went to meet her usherettes at the main office to give them their assignments.

When Elizabeth returned to the wives/girlfriend's section, she found herself all alone. With her work done, and tired of the prerecorded baseball music, she slipped on her ear-buds and flipped through a Good Housekeeping magazine while waiting for the game to start.

Jack stepped out of the locker room and walked down the tunnel leading to the backstop. Having a question about his knee he had been on a mission to find Dr. Coulter.

As he stepped out onto the field, he turned around and glanced into the section behind home plate. Seeing Elizabeth and assuming that she was Dr. Coulter's wife, he attempted to gain her attention.

"Hey Mrs. Coulter, I'm looking for your husband…" he stated as he stood by the backstop with his fingers gripping the chain link fence. Is she ignoring me?

Elizabeth eventually looked up and removed an ear bud as Jack caught a glimpse of Dr. Coulter.

"Did you say something?" Elizabeth asked.

"I was looking for your husband," Jack replied. "Thanks anyway, I found him."

But as she called out, "Excuse me?" he disappeared back down the tunnel and into the locker room. "Hmm, I must have misunderstood him."

The game was close, tied 3-3 and came down to the bottom of the 9th inning. With runners on first and third and two outs, Ed Cipera came up to bat. On the second pitch, the ball struck Ed on the left hip, moving him to first base.

With bases loaded, Jack stepped up to the plate. On the fourth pitch, he hit a ground ball which miraculously took a bounce escaping the shortstop's glove and Kelvin Chapman ran across home plate.

Although Kelvin scored the winning run, the dugout emptied and Jack was again carried around the field by his teammates.

With the game over, and the fans gone, the usherettes, players, their wives or girlfriends and many of the season ticket holders made their way to a park near the harbor for the "Hawk-nation Cookout."

Jack grabbed a beer from the cooler and walked around the grounds with his roommate, Ed.

"So, are you dating anyone, Jack?"

"No, I haven't found that special someone yet."

Ed laughed, "Who cares about finding that special someone? Jack, you're young, you should be having fun. Look around, beautiful girls are everywhere."

With this being his first conversation with Ed, Jack quickly realized that their morals were likely worlds apart. He excused himself and walked over toward the water.

"Jack," Dr. Coulter called out, "I'd like you to meet my wife, Rosie."

Observing Jack's confusion, Dr. Coulter continued, "Is something wrong?"

"No, it's very nice to meet you, Rosie."

With many of the women discussing recipes, Rosie was pulled away from her husband and Jack. With her gone, Jack asked, "Who was the woman I saw you leaving the park with last night?"

"Elizabeth Thatcher; she is the one who handles the usherettes, and you couldn't find a sweeter woman," Dr. Coulter replied.

"I just assumed she was your wife," Jack responded. "So…whose wife is she?"

"She's not married, but please don't tell me that you're interested in her."

"Well, I don't know. I don't know her, but she did get my attention."

"I'm just going to give you a bit of advice…"

"About what?"

"Jack, Elizabeth doesn't date baseball players."

"Why, did something happen?"

"No, but Elizabeth once told me that ball players want to make it big and sleep around, and she's not interested in being anyone's conquest."

"Hmm, do you mind me asking where you were taking her last night?"

Dr. Coulter began to explain, "Oh, I just drove her to her car. Roseman requires her to park out in the south 40," he stated as he released an aggravated breath. "I don't know what the problem is with that man. It's one thing to make men walk to their cars, but the players park upfront, and he makes Elizabeth walk to the back of the parking lot. It makes no sense."

"He literally makes her walk to the back of the parking lot alone after dark?" Jack asked. "He's asking for a problem."

Dr. Coulter hesitantly continued, "She was attacked on her way to her car a few years ago. Luckily one of the players heard her screams and pulled the guy off of her. I think Roseman even blamed her for that because she didn't have security take her to her car."

"Last night we were leaving at the same time and when she told me that security was busy and she'd have to wait, I offered to take her to her car." Dr. Coulter began laughing, "Have you seen the park's security patrol? I actually think Elizabeth would have better luck fighting someone off on her own."

"You know, I even talked to Mr. Roseman and he refused to give her a parking space up front. I offered to give her my spot, but she turned me down."

Both men were quiet for a moment before Dr. Coulter stated, "I wish there was something I could do for her. Elizabeth is literally the best, and Roseman treats her like crap. Sometimes I wonder if he might even have a thing for her…"

"Ewwww," both men remarked in unison.

Jack glanced out into the parking lot and observed Elizabeth stepping up on the curb.

"Jack," Dr. Coulter called out, "If your head isn't in the right place, leave her alone. She is truly one of the good ones."

As Elizabeth walked into the park, Ed grabbed her, "Come on, let's dance."

Jack watched as his roommate, the one man who could single handedly give women a poor impression of men, had his hands on her while he drunkenly pulled her across the floor.

As Ed's hands kept slipping down her back, and onto her buttocks, she repositioned them twice, wishing that she'd never agreed to dance with him.

Jack tapped on Ed's shoulder, "May I cut in?"

Ed was experiencing a decent buzz at this point as Jack simply pulled Elizabeth away, leaving the intoxicated shortstop alone on the makeshift dance floor.

"Would you like to dance?" Jack called out.

"I appreciate you asking, but I think I'll just make my appearance and then scoot on out of here. I hate these get togethers, but I'm required to come," she stated. "Thanks for your help over there," she leaned her head in Ed's direction, smiling at the fact that he was still looking for her.

"I'm sorry that he was like that, but you're welcome. By the way, I'm Jack Thornton."

Elizabeth made a mental note that this was the man who Mookie and Rosa had been talking about. "Hi Jack; I'm Elizabeth Thatcher. It's nice to meet you."

"Would you like something to drink?" he asked, doing his best to engage her in a conversation.

"That would be nice, thank you."

"What would you like?"

"A glass of wine if they have it. If not, a bottle of water would be great," she replied as she took a seat and awaited his return.

Jack hurried hoping that she would still be there when he returned. "There you go," Jack stated as he handed her a glass of white wine and took a seat across from her.

"Thank you very much."

"My pleasure."

"So, are you from here?" he asked.

"Yes, well except for when I left for grad school at UVA. I love it here. So where are you from?" she asked.

"San Diego, but I've been living on the east coast since I was drafted. Though I do manage to get home a few times a year," he replied.

"I've never been there, but I understand it's beautiful," she responded with a smile that both warmed him and drew him in deeper.

"It is; just imagine temperatures in the 70's most of the time with low humidity, warm sunshine, and the sunsets," Jack looked off into the distance as if he was taken back to another time. "Elizabeth, the sunsets are absolutely magical."

"Well, it sounds like a place that I'll need to visit some time."

"You really should; it is beautiful… Just like you." Jack suddenly looked horrified; "Did I actually just say that out loud?"

"Yea, you kinda did," she responded as a slight rosiness appeared on her cheeks.

Trying to quickly change the subject, Jack asked, "So what do you do?"

"I'm a high school guidance counselor," she replied. "I work in a school that is predominately under privileged and we have to work really hard to get those who want to go to college the funding to make it happen."

"So what do you do in the off season?" she asked.

"Relax…" he stated.

"I would imagine. Sounds like the life. I mean, it must be nice to work during the season, and then have the rest of the year off," she stated, sadly assuming that he was much like the other baseball players she'd met.

"Well, it's not exactly like I do nothing. I have a chain of restaurants and other obligations," he stated as he attempted to correct the image he envisioned that she now had of him. "I sit on the Board for a few chari…"

Unintentionally interrupting Jack's conversation with Elizabeth, Mookie called out, "We're doing a team photo; come on…"

"I'm sorry; I guess I need to go," Jack disappointedly remarked.

"I need to go too. I have to work in the morning," she responded as she held out her arm to shake his hand. "It was nice meeting you Jack."

Jack took her hand and although he couldn't have explained it if he'd tried, there was a feeling of electricity that pulsed through him when they touched. He swallowed hard, "It was a pleasure meeting you, Elizabeth."

Elizabeth watched as Jack disappeared into the sea of baseball players. She couldn't deny that she was attracted to him, but unfortunately her experience led her to feel that she'd be sorry if she allowed it to go further than friends. She grabbed her bag and headed for the parking lot.

As she placed the key into the lock on her car door, Jack came through the crowd.

"Elizabeth, wait…"

Jack jogged up to her car, "Elizabeth, I'm new here; do you think maybe we could have coffee sometime, or maybe dinner?" Seeing the hesitancy in her expression, his eyebrows arched as he continued, "An ice cream cone? Anything, I just want to get to know you."

"I'm sorry; I have to say no, but thank you for asking. I guess I'll see you on Friday night. Good luck this week against the Mud Hens," she stated as she slipped into her car and drove away.

Jack stood in the parking lot and watched as she pulled out onto the main highway and disappeared. As he turned to rejoin his teammates, Ed walked out into the parking lot to meet him.

"Give up on her buddy. She won't go out with you. I've asked her out several times, and she still won't go out with me."

"Why do you keep asking her out then?" Jack inquired.

"It's a game to me. Hell, it's probably a game to her too," Ed responded with a laugh.

"I'm not so sure that she sees it as a game. I think you're just giving the good guys a bad name. Oh, and just so you know I'm not your buddy…" Jack stated as he turned and walked back toward the party.

The more Jack learned about Ed, the more he realized that he needed an apartment of his own.

Elizabeth walked into her townhouse, grabbed a pile of papers from her kitchen table and took a seat on the sofa. She was on a deadline to finish some of the college recommendation letters for the students who had requested them, but she really wasn't into it.

Although her eyes were open and she was looking across the room, she saw nothing but the handsome man she'd just met. It had been quite some time since a man; any man had stirred those butterflies in her stomach. She had to admit, she enjoyed the feeling she experienced while sitting and talking with Jack. But then as they shook hands, her heart was pounding so loudly that each beat reverberated in her ears.

As his hand touched hers, she looked up and caught a glimpse of his eyes; honest, yet cautious; hesitant yet determined, and kind beyond words. They say that the eyes are the windows to the soul, and she realized that at that moment, he had somehow touched her heart. Unfortunately she had learned to not trust easily, and it would be his actions, and not his charm or words that would prove to her that he was different.

Elizabeth went for many seasons without dating baseball players. Then, against her better judgment, she let herself break from her principle of behavior which had previously served her well. Following her break up with Scott, she returned to her "No dating baseball players" policy, with a promise that she would never again give into temptation.

So, after telling her usherettes to steer clear of the ball players, how could she in good conscience date one of them? Rather hypocritical, she thought. Besides, he'd be gone soon enough and she doubted very seriously that she would be more than just a fading thought.

Elizabeth walked back to her bedroom and grabbed her journal from the bedside table. She walked over to her desk, pulled her favorite writing pen from its special box and walked back to the den. She laid her journal and pen down on the coffee table before walking into the kitchen for a bottle of water.

She sat down and twisted the top off of her water bottle before drinking a majority of it, having no idea that she was so parched. Elizabeth flipped to the next blank page, clicked her pen and began to release the feelings and emotions that were clouding her thoughts…

"Why do we often find it so difficult to trust? Unfortunately in our world, it is much easier to assume, and in doing so we run the risk of pushing wonderful people out of our lives. We come across one, or a few in a particular line of work, and without cause or reason, everyone in that category is judged the same.

We become jaded by our experiences, positive and negative and the people we meet, both good and bad, which leaves us to base our feelings on past occurrences. Sadly, there are times when the good get lumped in with the bad, and as the saying goes, 'One bad apple can spoil the whole bunch.' Assumptions play an important part in our views from yesterday, today and into tomorrow. The constant mantra of my mother keeps coming to mind… 'Be careful of who you hang around with. You are judged by the company you keep.' Never before did I find it to seem so accurate.

I've always thought that the saying, "Do as I say, not as I do," was so hypocritical. It was often used as if it were a commandment of some type, and people laughed when using it to explain their behavior. If doing as I say is such good advice, why not follow it as well?

As we make our way through the various stages of life; as we become the person we were always meant to be; as we fight internally for the strength to stand alone, the most difficult yet valuable lesson we will ever learn is that no one owes us a thing, so we can't and shouldn't expect it. However, we owe ourselves everything, and should never settle for less.

Be you; it's truly the only person you can be. To be someone else requires you to be dishonest, untrustworthy, elusive and fake. We attract the interest of others by the qualities we display. However, we keep them wanting to know more by the qualities we honestly possess."

Several weekdays passed; The Hawks were on a road trip and with her evenings free, Elizabeth managed to complete all of her recommendation letters which were subsequently attached to scholarship essays. In the evening, she sat down to dinner with the radio tuned to WHVH, the local station that broadcasted all of the Hawks baseball games.

In all the years she'd been involved with the Hawks organization, she did not recall one game that she'd listened to on the radio and that even included the time that she dated Scott.

The team was in Ohio, playing the Toledo Mud Hens, and she listened intently on the few occasions that Jack came up to bat. He managed to hit a single, a triple, and reached one base on balls.

On this particular evening, Ed Cipera hit like he was pushing to be called up to the majors. He had a home run, and two doubles, however, the Hawks still lost 5-3. Elizabeth could only assume that Ed's head would have grown two sizes bigger by the time the team arrived back home tomorrow.

Elizabeth left school and drove directly to the field. She followed the Richmond Braves team bus into the facility, but lost them as each vehicle went to park. It was broad daylight, so parking her car in what felt like another town and walking to the field wasn't so bad. However, she always dreaded the nighttime trek into the darkness and the land of the unknown.

After her last attack, and fearing for her safety, she purchased a mace canister and carried it, prepared to use it if necessary. With it considered to be a weapon, she kept it hidden for fear that Mr. Roseman would force her to dispose of it.

When Elizabeth walked down the tunnel to the seats behind the backstop, she was surprised to see two young scantily clad women already occupying two seats.

"Hey Elizabeth," Ed called out from behind. "I was looking for you."

Ed proceeded to inform her of his many hits during their road trip, and how he was looking forward to some R & R, implying that she was welcome to join him. As usual she declined.

Elizabeth's stomach was in knots as he found the need to tell her about his and Jack's upcoming plans for the evening, and it was the only time she could ever remember being thankful to Mr. Roseman for calling her into his office.

After being told that she would be responsible for handling the "Hawk's Hat" promotion on Sunday, she started back to her seat to finish assigning tunnel placements for her girls.

Before reaching the entrance to the tunnel, Elizabeth caught Jack's eye, "Hey Elizabeth. Do you have a minute; I'd like to talk to you."

Elizabeth stepped up against the wall at the entrance to the tunnel, "Did you need something?"

"I'm nothing if not persistent; will you have dinner with me after the game?"

"Thank you for asking Jack, but I'm sorry, I don't date players," she stated.

"May I ask why? Oh, and just so you know, I may play baseball, but I'm not a player."

She'd never been confronted before about her decision. Players asked her out and when she said "No," they simply waited and asked her out again. However, in the meantime they generally found other women interested and willing to go out with them, so they were rarely alone.

She thought for a moment before answering, "Jack, do you want the truth?"

He thought her comment was a bit odd, but replied, "Yes, the truth is always best."

"Okay, well most ball players I've met are so used to people telling them what they want to hear."

"Not me; I want the truth. We just met so I assume I haven't done anything to offend you."

She nervously smiled, "Jack, to answer your question, no, nothing really happened, but I know you guys are here for a short time. You want to get that major league call and then you're out of here. The women you date are just to keep you from being lonely and I'm not interested in that."

"Nothing happened and yet you came up with that assumption for all of us?" he snapped back, tired of people assuming that he was devoid of morals.

"Well, I do find it interesting that you're asking me out and you already have a date."

"What are you talking about? I would know if I have a date, and I am dateless…"

Elizabeth started down the tunnel to the seats behind the backstop with Jack following close behind her. "Do you see those two women sitting in the second row?"

"Yes, are they supposed to mean something to me?"

"I would hope so. The one on the left who can barely keep her breasts in her tank top is your date for the evening…" she stated before grabbing a stack of towels, and disappearing into the crowd.

Elizabeth walked down the first base line, ducking into each tunnel to drop off towels to each of the girls. She walked around to the third base line and walked up into each tunnel, dropping towels off to each girl there as well.

"Eliz-a-Beth," she heard a man's voice calling out to her. Glancing down at the third base dugout, #14, Taylor Bratton, got her attention.

"Hey Taylor; how are you?" she asked.

"Doing well," he responded as she walked down to be closer as they talked.

"I thought you were with Atlanta; didn't you get called up last year?" she asked.

"I did, but I messed up my rotator cuff, so I'm back here. Hey, Mackenzie and I got married on New Year's Day."

Elizabeth squatted down and gave him a hug, "I'm so happy for you. Just remember, she's a keeper, so treat her right."

"I know how lucky I am. I'm hoping that she'll be here tomorrow; maybe we can do dinner?"

"Sounds good," she replied, unaware that Jack was walking over to the Braves' dugout with a bag of balls and overheard the tail end of their conversation.

Jack watched as she turned around, still unaware that he was there and disappeared down the tunnel. "I can't believe her. I can't get her to have an ice cream cone with me, but she'll go to dinner with someone from the other team? She makes no sense."

Jack was confused by his feelings; they'd only known each other a short while and yet he was upset that she had the wrong opinion of him and he couldn't help being angry that she walked away without giving him a chance to explain. Although at that moment, he wasn't even sure that he knew what the truth was.

One thing Jack knew, he experienced pangs of jealousy when he observed her hug Taylor Bratton, and to hear that they had dinner plans for tomorrow night sent his mind spinning.

"Why did it matter? Why did she matter to him?" he asked himself, but the more he thought about it, the more confused he became.

Elizabeth walked into the "Wives/Girlfriends" section just as the crowd stood for the National Anthem. She couldn't help but to notice that Ed and Jack's dates for the night were not in their seats, and a hope immediately crossed her mind that they had already been sent packing. Unbeknownst to Elizabeth, they had simply slipped out to freshen up in the private restroom. Sadly they returned to their seats a short time later.

Standing on the field was the starting lineup for both teams and although she tried not to look, she had to admit that Jack filled out his uniform perfectly in all the right places.

"Are you okay?" Rosa asked as she observed Elizabeth using a program to fan herself.

"Are you hot?" Elizabeth asked as she took her seat beside Rosa.

"No, it's actually a comfortable evening. Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm fine; I guess I was just out in the sun too much today," Elizabeth remarked.

"I know what has you all hot…"

"What are you talking about, Rosa?"

"Elizabeth, it is a smorgasbord or good looking men out on the field. Someone has your interest."

"Rosa, I may have principles, I'm not dead. I can look…"

"But Elizabeth, touching is so much better."

"Rosa, stop that…" Elizabeth gasped as they watched the men take the field.

In the bottom of the first inning, as the Richmond Braves took their turn on the field, the Hawks prepared for their first at bat.

"Hey, I forgot, I wanted to tell you…" Rosa began. "Elizabeth…hey, are you ignoring me?"

"Huh… what…I'm sorry, what did you say?" Elizabeth replied.

Rosa glanced out onto the field and observed Jack standing at home plate warming up as he prepared to step into the batter's box.

"I don't know why they do that little wiggle with their butts when they bat, but my heavens he looks good," Elizabeth whispered, unaware that the words had actually passed through her lips.

"Ha, I knew you'd be interested…"

"Shh…" Elizabeth whispered as she leaned over toward Rosa. "Don't look, but the two women behind us are Ed and Jack's dates for tonight."

"I said don't look," Elizabeth scolded Rosa for nonchalantly turning around to scope out the situation.

"WOW, I didn't see that coming; maybe with Ed, certainly not with Jack," Rosa replied.

"Well, maybe now you understand why I don't want to get involved with baseball players."

Following the game, Elizabeth did as usual, and collected all the dirty towels before standing by the gate and watching as her girls left the park and walked the short distance to their cars.

By the time she was ready to leave, the park appeared to be nearly empty. She called down to the security office but was advised that they were having a meeting and if she could wait for another 30-45 minutes someone could take her to her car.

Exhausted and wanting to get home and into bed, she started out into the parking lot with her mace canister in her hand. She was two-thirds of the way to her car when she heard a vehicle approaching from behind. Her breath caught in her throat as she was taken back to that night three years ago when she was attacked in that very same parking lot.

She pretended not to pay any attention as the vehicle moved up alongside of her, but her heart pounded and immense fear swallowed her.

"Elizabeth…"

She spun around with her finger on the mace spray button as Jack's hands left the steering wheel and covered his face.

Thankful that she hadn't pushed the button on the mace canister she yelled, "Damn you, Jack. You practically gave me heart failure."

"Why are you out here by yourself?"

"Why are you not out on your date?"

"I asked you first."

"For your information, I didn't have 45 minutes to wait on security to take me to my car."

"Well, to answer your question, I didn't have a date. Ed went to the beach today when we got back in town; he met those two girls and invited them to the game. I had nothing to do with it."

She stood quietly attempting to process what he'd said.

"Please get in, Elizabeth. I don't like to see you walking out here alone," Jack practically begged. "You're safe with me, I promise."

"Somehow I'm fairly certain that those very words were spoken by Ted Bundy before he kidnapped and murdered all of those women."

"Elizabeth, I just want to make sure you get to your car," he stated as she opened the door and sat down in the passenger seat. As he continued to the back part of the parking lot he added, "Besides, I wouldn't want you to miss your date tomorrow night."

"Excuse me…?"

"I overheard you making a date with Taylor Bratton. You know, you say one thing but do another. I get that maybe you don't want to go out with me, but to say you don't go out with baseball players and then you make a date with Taylor Bratton…" he stated but was confused when she started to laugh. "What's so funny?"

"Taylor and I went to college together. I set him up with my friend, Mackenzie, and they just got married in January," Elizabeth began to explain. "I haven't seen them in ages. She's coming to the game tomorrow night so he asked me to join them for dinner."

Seeing the smile come over his face as he scratched the back of his head she added, "Jack Thornton, were you jealous?"

"I don't have a right to be jealous, but to be honest, I guess I was. Since you brought it up, you wouldn't let me explain about the women Ed invited to the game, could it be that you were a little jealous?"

"Jealous of them?" Elizabeth commented before glancing down at her own adequate, but less than well endowed bust. "I mean, they dressed like they were out for a good time. Did you see their boobs were falling out of those skimpy tops…What am I saying, you're a man, of course you saw it."

Now it was his turn to laugh, "What's so funny," she asked.

"I didn't pay any attention to them. My eyes were too busy following you through the stands," he stated as he pulled his car up to the parking space next to hers.

"Elizabeth, please reconsider having dinner with me," he stated before a nervous laugh escaped through his lips. "You pick the place; we can even drive separately and meet there. I really would just like to get to know you."

"Jack, I'd like to, but…"

"But what?" Have I done something to offend you?" he asked.

"No, you have been nothing but kind and respectful. But you need to understand, this isn't my first season here at the park. I have been dealing with baseball players for years and…"

Jack cut in, "You know, I understand where you're coming from. Lord knows Ed's behavior gives you every reason to want to steer clear of us, but Elizabeth that's him, I'm nothing like him."

"I never said you were, but you need to understand something; every year the ball players come and go, and then some return the next season for one reason or another. The girls who work for me are young, and naïve. They fall in love with guys who have no intention of this being any more than a summer time romance, a fling if you will. Often they don't even last the entire summer and then I'm left dealing with the broken hearts."

"I'm not like that," Jack stated adamantly.

"I'm not saying you are, but I've encouraged my girls not to date the baseball players. So, how can I suggest that to them, but then I do the opposite? 'Do as I say, not as I do' has never worked well for me," she stated as she opened the door and stepped outside.

"I don't like it, and I wish things were different, but I have to admire you. You most certainly are someone for the girls to look up to."

"Thank you for the ride, Jack. I do appreciate it," she stated with a smile as she closed the door and began to walk to her car.

Jack rolled the passenger window down and called out to her, "Elizabeth, if you have a change of heart, will you let me know?"

"You'll be the first person I tell," she responded as she got into her car and Jack waited for her to pull away.

He followed her to the main stoplight and disappointedly watched as she went left, and he turned right. He understood her dilemma, but it didn't make him feel any better.

He pulled into the parking lot of his apartment complex and wondered what he could do to make her realize that he was nothing like the baseball players she'd met in the past.

He walked to his building and hearing loud music he opened the door to the apartment and stood in disbelief. Inside the den, nearly every square inch was covered by people, mostly women. The alcohol and ugly language were freely flowing and at that point he truly saw why Elizabeth felt the way she did.

Jack packed his suitcase, grabbed the few items he'd brought with him from home, and left, advising Ed that he would not be back.

Just outside the ballpark parking lot, Jack went into the Hampton Inn and secured a room. He walked into his room and fell out on his bed, thankful to be in a quiet place. Unfortunately the quiet only lent itself to him thinking more about Elizabeth.

Suddenly he shot out of bed, pulled out his phone and sent an email to his personal friend, the Mets team president. By 11am he had a reply and set about putting his plan into action.

To be continued…

Note: To Katie… I was unable to send you a PM so I will answer your question here. Yes, I was an usherette at Met Park for many years. I'm not sure when your husband played there, but I changed some of the names, to protect identities. And of course it is fiction, so please don't hold my character analysis of D.R. against me…LOL! WOW, it truly is a small world!