Page 1 of Lucky 22

Prologue

The stadium roars with life around me—an electric,relentless hum of cheers and chants. It’s almost deafening, but you can’t helpbut get caught up in it. Bright lights bathe the diamond in a surreal glow,catching every glint of sweat, blade of grass, and nervous twitch of theplayers. In my head, I’m cheering just as loud as everyone else. It’s like I’mtrying to telepathically say, “You’ve got this.”

But sitting in the stands, in a pocket of solitude amid thechaos, I am alone.

Literally.

My husband is mere seconds away from winning the WorldSeries, and minutes ago, security came to get all the players’ friends andfamily to bring them down so they could run onto the field when the big momentarrived.

But I stayed behind.

I never should have looked at my phone.

Heck, it should have been turned off. But I’m in the middleof shooting a movie here in St. Louis, and I already know I need to be on setin the morning. The producers were kind enough to work around the World Seriesschedule, but I need to be aware of any schedule changes.

Hence, the phone being on.

My heart races, and my hands feel clammy as I clasp my cellto my ear. I’m watching what’s happening on the field, even as I listen to myagent presenting the biggest role of my career. This is what I’ve been workingtoward since I was a kid. If ever there was a dream part, this is it.Unfortunately, her timing couldn’t be worse. Everyone knows I’m here to supportChristian.

This is his moment.

I wish she had considered that and waited until tomorrow tocall.

A tiny voice in my head reminds me, “It’s Christian’smoment,” but this is important, too.

Not that anyone understands that.

My husband does. Truly. But the looks I got as the rest ofthe friends and family were ushered away—and the snarky comments from some ofthe players’ wives—told a different story. Words like selfish,self-involved, and rude were whispered.

I’m an actress, and things like that aren’t anything new.But this time, the words stung quite a bit more than they usually do.

I look down at my free hand—at my wedding ring sparkling inthe stadium lighting. It represents the promise that Christian and I made toeach other.

So many promises.

So many sacrifices.

I hear the exuberant announcement. “And the Archers have wonthe World Series!”

“Ella? Ella, are you listening to me? This is an incredibleopportunity. They want an answer from you tonight.”

Everyone’s running onto the field, laughing, cheering,hugging their loved ones. I should be down there. But I’m not.

“I’m going to have to call you back,” I say. “I need torun.”

I hear a loud sigh on the other end. “Seriously? This is thechance of a lifetime. What is there to think about?”

“We’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”

“Jeez, Ella.” Another sigh. “Are you sure he’s worth it?”

Chapter One

Three years ago…

Today was supposed to be a great day.

Personally, I think every day offers an opportunity to makeit great, but today was supposed to be a little extra dazzling because I’mflying back to Los Angeles for an audition. I had a great time visiting myfamily in Tennessee, and knowing I was heading back home for a potential rolemade leaving a little easier. I’ve been living on my own for a couple of yearsnow, but I truly believe this is my time.