An impossible day was about to happen.

A metaphysical anomaly created by the baseball gods might have been involved.

Maddie took a deep breath and savored the smell of fresh-cut grass with a hint of stale popcorn. She was back on a baseball diamond, just where she wanted to be.

The shock of seeing Carlton again and her lousy performance on his podcast tortured Maddie for the rest of the day. She kept pushing it out of her mind, but part of her still couldn’t accept that Carlton had been so unkind to her.

On her second day at the ballpark, Maddie took a few minutes to savor the spring morning from the home dugout. She sat down, leaned against the concrete block wall, and surveyed the mist rising from the mountains. “Groundhogs making coffee,” the locals called it.

“You look great, Tillie, but we’re headed to the wilds of the storage room. God knows what’s down there! Didn’t I say you should dress for some dirty work?” Maddie waved a hand in the general direction of Tillie’s outfit.

Gertrude Thornberry was a mastermind at selling toys, but she possessed a famously prickly personality, especially when it came to money. Maddie knew that she had reduced every member of Sweetgum town council to tears on numerous fundraising occasions.

“Thanks for your help! Wish I could give you more.” Maddie handed each delivery man a five-dollar bill and her business card. “If you ever want Salamanders tickets, give me a call.”

The men laughed. “No thanks!” one of them said. “We have enough headaches moving furniture.”

A dim, lazy sort of thunder rumbled outside. Maddie glanced out the window in her bedroom and hoped for a storm that would wash out her not-a-date with Carlton. She wished she hadn’t agreed to go and nearly called to cancel at least a dozen times. No matter how often she told herself there was no reason to be such a wreck, she couldn’t settle down. But there was no turning back now. He’d be here any minute.

A dim, lazy sort of thunder rumbled outside. Maddie glanced out the window in her bedroom and hoped for a storm that would wash out her not-a-date with Carlton. She wished she hadn’t agreed to go and nearly called to cancel at least a dozen times. No matter how often she told herself there was no reason to be such a wreck, she couldn’t settle down. But there was no turning back now. He’d be here any minute.

Tillie’s black Volvo EX60 pulled into the parking pad next to the carriage house. The first thing Maddie saw was Esme barging through the back door of her kitchen, clearly on a mission, Sosa and Sandberg on her heels.

The mood in Carlton’s basement recording studio was not warm and fuzzy, but Maddie didn’t expect it to be. She was a little ashamed of herself for bringing Tillie. Vinny was clearly taken with her when they met at the drive-in, and Maddie hoped he might be nicer in her presence.

The home opener had finally arrived.  Maddie’s hopes and fears for the season whirled inside her like the Tasmanian Devil cartoon character on a tear. She thanked the baseball gods that it was sunny with low humidity, soft blue skies, and not even a chance of an afternoon shower.

“Have you been to Shadow River before?” Carlton asked, easing his Wilde Hardware truck into a small parking lot surrounded by fragrant cedar trees.

“And Bugle Player, GO!” Maddie shouted into her walkie-talkie. The premiere of Yoakam's Hot and Sweet Pickle Races was about to begin.

Maddie offered Tillie a high five, but her intern didn't respond.

“I’m not a high-fiver,” she stated bluntly.

“You’re lucky it wasn’t a chest bump.”

Maddie started her workday by visiting the field. She did that most mornings. The sun rising over the stadium, the misty mountains, the smell of cut grass, and the in-jokes with the grounds crew all helped her feel invigorated and ready for the day. Theo, the head groundsman, was almost speaking to her again after last week’s multiple disasters.

“Does she have a lower speed? Please tell me she was kidding about the golf cart,” Nick said as Maddie hustled out of the Emporium.

“Oh, I wish,” Esme answered. “On both counts.”

“It’s a madhouse out there. They’re going to stampede soon if we don’t let them in. And a lot of kids in Hogwarts costumes will get trampled to death. Not the best debut for our kids club.”

Carlton and Maddie were alone in the players’ rec room, long after everyone else had left the clubhouse and stadium. She felt guilty being with him because she knew that her intentions were far from platonic.

Esme was not in her usual seat at the Pickle Jar; the premium sections near home plate had been commandeered for speed-dating zones. She was fine with moving to the second tier because she had a great view of what was going on in the stands below.