Good Neighbors Ch. 101

Let me set the scene for you. We are driving on the Interstate towards the football stadium a few hours prior to gameday. My neighbor is sitting in the passenger seat. She has her hair done up so most of it is behind her. She is wearing the home team baseball cap. Her top is a cute polo shirt in the team colors. She is wearing a pair of tight jeans, a light blue. She has a smile on her face only because we are doing something crazy, at least crazy by my standards.

In my back seat sits two older guys. Those would be her brothers. Both have on official team baseball caps as well as official team jerseys for their favorite players. They both have the excited look on their faces because even though they were lifetime fans, they had never been to a home game before, let alone in a suite at the stadium.

Then there's me. As much as I would like to be in a comfortable outfit, Matt thought it better that I should be dressed in business casual. This meant dark black jeans, a white dress shirt with black tie and the look of a man going towards his final execution on my face. As many times as my neighbor kept telling me how handsome I looked, I felt more out of place than ever before.

As we neared the stadium, I was following Matt's directions on where to park as my neighbor read it for me. I could hear the excitement inside the stadium as she read the directions. We reached the parking garage and was guided by an attendant to the spot Matt reserved for me. I reached into my pocket before the attendant refused.

"Mr. Masters already had it covered, Mr. Mercer. Is this your party of three with you?"

"Yes Ma'am. So where do we go in this giant place?"

"Follow me. "

We followed although it was pretty difficult to keep the brothers with us. It took a bit before we took an elevator to the suite area. As we were escorted to the door, I could hear Aubrey's voice.

'Leo, you made it!"

There she was decked out in a black dress. It was a full dress that only showed a little leg. The brothers looked at her for a bit before they were elbowed in the ribs by their sister.

"What? She's gorgeous," Rob said.

"And my assistant and spoken for," I reminded them.

They seemed to take the hint before they went to the window and were able to see the field for the first time. The home team was going through warmups, or so I was told given I had never been to a football game nor watched more than the one with the brothers during my inquisition. I think I told that story already. During everything, my neighbor stayed right next to me. It was as if she was holding on to me for dear life. That was until Matt's wife appeared.

Like my neighbor, she was wearing a similar outfit. Like my neighbor, she looked like a deer caught in the headlights until she saw my neighbor. Then her face brightened up with a smile. She walked over and hugged my neighbor before escorting her to a corner of the room. I could see my neighbor lightening up a bit at that point. Seeing her smile relaxed me a bit before Jimmy walked over.

"So, is that broad with Sis single?"

"That's the woman who married my business partner."

'Oh, man you have some fine women around you."

I looked at him before I smiled.

"Matt hired most of them. All of them came fresh out of college and had plenty of experience with start ups like ours. Aubrey had been my assistant for a few years. Missy recommended her. They went back a ways."

I started to tear up a bit before I felt arms around me. I looked around and saw them attached to my neighbor. She smiled at me before she whispered in my ear.

"Showtime, Romeo. Your client is here with Mat. Remember to breathe. You are co-owner of this company, and you know your stuff."

She let go before walking back over with Matt's wife. I took a breath and walked forward to shake the guy's hand. The rest of the game was a blur. Thankfully, Rob and Jim didn't drink as much as they did at their sister's house during that game. They even shared some stats and history with some of the folks who were there that didn't know as much. Aubrey ended up hanging with Matt's wife and my neighbor when her date got absorbed in the game with the other guys. Meanwhile, Matt and I received a verbal commitment from the client. All in all, it was a good game. As Matt and I sat afterwards when the suite was cleared save for our dates, he looked at me smiling.

"Bro, you rocked it. That was the most outgoing I have seen you with a prospective client. What happened?"

I looked at my neighbor and smiled.

"Just needed the right encouragement."

I looked at his wife with her face beaming.

"Looks like yours was an inspiration also."

He smiled.

"I now understand what Missy did to snag you. But I also see what your neighbor does as well. I swear to God we are the luckiest bastards on Earth."

"Too bad our team lost."

I looked over to see both brothers smiling. It was then I yelled towards them.

"You guys alright?"

Both came up and hugged me before their sister joined in. They looked me in the face and were still smiled.

"Watching a game from home is nothing like this. I hope we get to do this again although watching from the seats would be just as awesome," Rob said.

That's when Matt surprised them.

"You two think you can handle these tickets for the next four home games? They gave them to me when I reserved the suite. Our client is from out of town, so we won't be seeing him for a few weeks until we go to his headquarters. So you guys want them?"

Rob and Jim were standing there with mouths agape until their sister spoke up.

"That's a yes. Thank you, Matt. I'll make sure they get them once their mouths come back from the floor."

We all laughed a bit before we started heading towards the parking garage. Instinctively, my arm was around my neighbor's back as we walked together. The brothers were ahead of us following the attendant back to my car. All in all, I called this experience a success.

"You did great, Romeo. Wanna stay over with me tonight so we can celebrate together?"

That last whisper made me smile wider. Talk about a touchdown.