“Shouldn’t you leave it up to her?” I asked.
“No,” he snapped. “Come on, this goes all the way back to college. Remember we said we would never get involved with each other’s exes or sisters?”
“Yeah, but I don’t have a hot sister,” I maintained.
“Neither does Gavin or Cory, but that doesn’t make it right,” Patrick grumbled. “I’m going to have to fight you all off with a stick.”
I laughed, imagining Patrick standing guard over Petra with a big-ass stick, beating the three of us away. It was ridiculous. One or the other of us would win her heart, and that would be that. Or none of us would. It was completely up to Petra, and I didn’t think Patrick’s ultimatum held any weight.
“Will you introduce me?” I asked.
Patrick narrowed his eyes.
“I have to meet with her if I’m going to fund her renovations,” I explained. “If it makes you feel any better, there are two other businesses in the area that I have my eye on.”
“It does actually make me feel better,” Patrick said. “Are any of them run by single females?”
“One is a family bodega owned by an older couple and the other is an art gallery, and yes, that one is owned by a woman.”
“Great!” Patrick was suddenly much more interested in coming with me to tour the neighborhood. “I didn’t know about the art gallery.”
“It’s on the second floor of a tenement house so it’s easy to miss,” I explained. “But it has little classes for kids as well as a contest for teenagers. There’s some local art hanging in all the rooms, but it needs a lot of work. I’m going to help them rent the entire house, that way they can put a much larger sign out from and even hang paintings in the windows to attract visitors.”
“That’s a perfect complement to Petra’s business,” Patrick exclaimed. “People could go to her bakery, get something to eat and visit the art museum.”
“Now you’re getting it,” I said. “I’m going to take two tiny businesses and build them up to be major attractions. Your sister is part of it, whether you like it or not.”
“I want what’s best for her,” Patrick decided.
“Then introduce me,” I replied.
He agreed with a slight nod, then stroked his chin. “I almost forgot. I talked to my boss, and they are willing to go in with you on the investments.”
“Really?” I blinked. The team had all the name recognition in the world. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to share, but getting into business with the fan favorites might be a real boost to my brand. “Can you set up a meeting?”
“Sure thing,” Patrick agreed.
“Do they know who I am?” I wondered.
I was used to the corporate sector taking a hands-off approach with me due to my father’s legacy. They didn’t want to be associated with someone with the last name Lancaster. I couldn’t blame them, although it did make it harder to do my job. I just hoped that the work I was doing with the bakery and the other businesses would brighten my image and lead to more and better collaborations. I hadn’t been expecting anything so significant to happen so soon.
“Yeah, they know,” Patrick said.
“I mean, do they know about my father?”
“Yes,” he insisted. “I explained what you’re doing and why. They’re interested in being a part of it.”
“That’s fantastic,” I cheered. “Definitely put me in a room with the owners, I’ll make my pitch.”
“Okay,” he agreed.
I stared at him, waiting for him to take out his phone.
“Now?” he asked.
“Yes,” I pressured him. I didn’t want to wait for another minute knowing there was such a big fish on the hook. At least I could get a meeting scheduled. With the White Sox in my corner, I had even more I could offer Petra and the other business owners.
Patrick obligingly pulled out his phone to text his boss. A moment later, there was no response, and he put the device down. “I’ll let you know when they answer me.”
“How soon can we go to the bakery?”
“We can go now,” Patrick offered. “I’m not doing anything important. I can pick this up tomorrow.”
“Great,” I said with a grin. I waited impatiently while he put the files back where he found them and locked the office door. Together, we walked out to the massive parking lot that surrounded the stadium. Splitting up to each take our own vehicles, we arranged to meet at the bakery. I couldn’t wait to meet the woman, the myth, the legend, Petra Knight. After all the hype Gavin and Cory gave her, I wasn’t sure she could live up to my vision. But if she was anything like her picture, I was willing to take a chance.