I had no idea what my day would turn out to be when JC showed up on my doorstep at 2 o'clock in an LA Dodgers t-shirt and ball cap.  

"You ready for today?" He'd asked. "We're going to be doing some very un-celebrity like things."

"Uh... yeah," I'd answered, stepping back to let him inside my condo. "I guess I'm ready. For what, I don't know. But I'm ready."

"Is Barksdale ready? Are ya boy?" He was bent over, receiving kisses and whines and thwaps of a dog tail in greeting.

"Let me just grab his leash. Do you want to take my car? He's used to riding in it and it already has the essence of dog hair all over it."

"Nah. I'd rather drive and my backseat is all ready for him."

I grabbed the leash from its hook and rolled it up, shoving it into my bag. "Where exactly are we going?"

"Dodger Stadium. The game is kind of lame- we're playing the Padres. But it's Pups in the Park Day."

Every year, the LA Dodgers invited fans to bring their dogs and enjoy a late afternoon baseball game. This would be our first Pups In the Park and I was oddly excited to share it with JC.

Barksdale had an amazing time- he was so excited to see other dogs and people that JC had to take over manning the leash. He and JC played catch until he was panting heavily and once the game started, he had worn himself out, so he was happy and relaxed. JC and I had some beers, had some Dodger Dogs and fed Barksdale the treats from his goody bag.

The game was great, close all the way. The Dodgers and the Padres were tied at 3-3 when JC glanced over at me. "You wanna get out of here?"

"Are you serious? The game's tied!"

"We can listen to the rest on the radio in the car, if you want. We should get out of the parking lot before traffic is a nightmare. We have another stop tonight."

I was way more interested in whatever else we were doing, so I started to stand. JC grabbed the leash and whistled softly. "Come on, boy!" Barksdale, who been stretched out along the cool concrete, scrambled to his feet and led us out of the pavilion, to the entrance and back to the car, then hopped into the backseat of JC's Mercedes like he'd done it a hundred times before.

 "So where are we going now? And not that you could forget him, but we do have the dog, so-"

JC laid a hand on my thigh, giving me a little squeeze. I liked how it felt. Callouses and all. "I know we have the dog. I've got it handled."

He whipped the car through the streets of LA and after a while, turned into a pizzeria that I hadn't been to since my early years in LA.

"The Coop! I know this place! How did you know I know this place?"

"I didn't. They allow dogs here. I figured you'd like it."

We were seated at an outdoor table at the rear of the restaurant. Barksdale was plied with his own bowl of water and had stretched out in the cooling early evening air.

 "I had two Dodger dogs and so much beer. I'm not sure if I can eat," I said, browsing the menu.  "But I haven't had The Coop in a long time, so I'm going to give it a try."

"We could share something. Get what you want and I'll finish it off."

 A short time later, I balled up a napkin and tossed it onto the decimated pizza pan. We'd shared a small pepperoni with a thin, handmade, seasoned crust. "Did I say something about not being sure I could eat?"

JC grinned, then reached across the table and wiped a smear of tomato sauce from my cheek. "Let's just say that I felt like I had to fight you for that last piece."

"Well, I'm a sucker for a handmade crust."

JC nodded toward Barksdale, who was posed ever so gracefully on his back, legs up in the air, head tossed to the side with his tongue sticking out. "He is beauty, style and grace."

"I did mention that he was a big dork, right?"

"You brought that up, yeah. So..." JC paused for a beat, crossing his arms and leaning them on the table. "Did you have fun today?"

"I did. Thanks for taking us out. I had a really, really good time."

"With a celebrity," he added.

"With a celebrity," I slowly repeated, feeling the blush crawl up from my chest to my cheeks.

"A musician, even."

"A musician, yeah. Although, there's going out with a celebrity- a musician, even. And there's dating a celebrity. Big difference."

"I agree. But we're good so far, right?"

I nodded, vigorously. "Very good, so far."

"So, why don't we take the big dork home? He looks beat."