An overweight man she vaguely remembered having met at her father’s funeral came toward her, his eyes bulging slightly as he stared at her. She was wearing what Simone called her “carwash” dress because the clingy pink sheath was slit into wide ribbons from a point well above her knee to the mid-calf hem. With every step she took, her legs played peek-a-boo with the hot pink ribbons, while the sleeveless scoop-necked bodice clung to her breasts. The man held a cut glass tumbler filled to the brim with liquor, and his effusive greeting made her suspect it wasn’t his first.

“I hope you’re going to bring us good luck, little lady.” He ogled her breasts. “We had a rough season last year, and a few of us aren’t sure Calebow’s the right man for the job. He was a great quarterback, but that doesn’t mean he can coach. Why don’t you use that pretty face of yours to get him to open up the offense more? With a receiver like Bobby Tom, you’ve got to throw deep. And he needs to start Bryzski instead of Reynolds. You tell him that, hear?’

The man was insufferable, and she lowered her voice until it was husky. “I’ll whisper it right across his pillow this very night.”

Ronald quickly drew her away from the startled man before she could do any more damage and introduced her to the others. Most of them had suggestions for adjustments they wanted Dan to make in his starting lineup and plays they wanted him to add. She wondered if all men secretly aspired to be football coaches.

She flirted with them until she could ease away, and then walked over to the windows to gaze down into the stadium. The kickoff was less than ten minutes away, and there were far too many empty seats, despite the fact that the Stars were playing their opening game against the popular Denver Broncos. No wonder the team was having so many financial problems. If something didn’t change soon, those layoffs Dan had mentioned were going to become a reality.

The men in the skybox watched her legs while she watched a television commentator explain why the Broncos were going to beat the Stars. Ron appeared at her side. He shifted nervously from one foot to another, and she remembered that he’d seemed jumpy ever since he’d picked her up. “Is something wrong?”

“Would you mind very much coming with me?”

“Of course not.” She picked up her small purse and followed him out of the skybox into the hallway. “Has something happened I should know about?”