by Lauren Wood
“Not quite,” he said, his eyes filling with tears. “And I wanted to meet my son.”
Chapter 13
Chase
Mollie looked at me as if I were a crazy man speaking a language she’d never heard. Her eyes went wide and her lips moved, but no words came out.
She turned back toward the fridge, pulled open the door, and took out a water bottle, then sat down at the kitchen table. She twisted the top off the water bottle and took a long drink.
“Mollie, did you hear me?” I asked. I moved to sit across from her. The migraine I’d had at my mom’s house had subsided enough that my vision was clear, but my head still ached. Thankfully I had the pain in my arm to distract me. That and the feelings of shame and guilt that were oozing from every pore in my body.
“Look, I know I have no right to be here,” I said.
“That’s right,” she shot back. “You don’t.”
“I fucked up, Mollie,” I said, my voice cracking. “I royally fucked up. I got so caught up in being in the NFL, and all the money and the fame…”
“And the women,” she said. Her eyes were shooting daggers into me. I swallowed hard and tried to ignore the sting of them.
“Yes, the women, but they meant nothing to me. And I swear on the Bible that I never touched another woman while we were together.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” she asked. “The fact that you supposedly didn’t screw anyone else until after you broke up with me over the phone?”
“I guess not,” I said with a sigh. Christ, I was lousy at this. I rested my forearms on the table and laced my fingers together. I watched her stew for a minute, her beautiful eyes seething.
She squeezed the water bottle between her hands until the plastic popped. I figured she was probably imagining that it was my head she was squeezing.
Taking a deep breath, I decided to just put it all out there and let her decide if I deserved another shot.
I said, “I’m sorry I hurt you, Mollie. I really am. And I’ll make no excuses for my actions other than to say that I was a twenty-one-year-old kid who lived and breathed football, and when the Falcons wanted to draft me, well, other than having you as my girl, it was my greatest dream come true.”
“I know that,” she said, staring at the table between us.
“When I went to Atlanta I had people pushing things at me, things that I could only dream of. I mean, my family was not rich. We barely made ends meet most months and here I was making more money just for signing my name to a contract than my dad made over his whole lifetime. I couldn’t process it all. I didn’t know what to do.”
I’ve never been much a cry baby, but without warning, my eyes filled with tears. I licked my lips and wiped my nose on the back of my hand.
I said, “I saw that my life was spiraling out of control, but I didn’t try to stop it. I wanted the money and the fame and big houses and the fast cars. My ego was out of control. When you’re an NFL quarterback you have people standing in line to tell you how great you are. And I started buying into it. I started believing the hype. And I knew that you wouldn’t like the person I had become. So I decided to break up with you, to save you from the person I had become.”
Mollie blinked at me for a moment. The anger left her eyes and a smile crossed her lips. Just when I thought I was making headway, she cocked her head at me and said, “So you dumped me because you didn’t want me to see what an asshole you had become.”
I hesitated for a second.
When she said it, it sounded ludicrous.
All I could do was give her a slow nod.
She smiled brightly at me and held up her hands.
“Well, thank you for that, Chase. And thank you for giving me the chance today to tell you to go fuck yourself!”
Chapter 14
Mollie
Chase was either the biggest idiot on the planet, or he was so wrapped up in himself that he thought I would fall for the old, “It’s not you, it’s me” routine.
I couldn’t help but laugh at him, sitting there like a whipped pup, telling me that he dumped me for my own good. I leaned back and shook the water bottle at him. I hated to kick a man when he was down, but if a man ever needed kicking, it was Chase at that moment.
“You can take your bullshit and go, Chase Richards,” I said. I leaned in with my teeth gritted and tapped a fingernail to the table. “There is nothing for you here. Nothing.”
Chase sat quietly for a moment with his head down. My eyes went to his right arm. He was wearing a t-shirt and I could see the scars webbing from his shirtsleeve to his wrist.
His arm was thin, with barely any muscle tone. It was half the size of his left arm. I remembered the muscles that used to pop out from that arm when he’d palm a football or lift me in the air or grab my waist to pummel me up and down on him when we made love.
Suddenly, my anger seemed to dissipate. The memory of his mangled Porsche on the news flashed before my eyes. The hours of not knowing if he was dead or alive, the mourning of our dead future, the months and months of lying alone at night thinking about him. It all seemed to come back at that moment.
I looked up to find my mom standing in the kitchen doorway with Tommy in her arms. I looked at my little boy, then looked at Chase. There was no denying the truth anymore.
I got up from the table and took Tommy into my arms, and stood facing Chase. With as much strength as I could muster, I said, “Chase, meet Tommy. Your son.”
Chapter 15
Chase
Mollie was holding a little boy with dirty blond hair and bright blue eyes. He had a round little face and a round little nose. He reached out for me and waved his hand. It was like looking at one of the baby pictures of me my mom had framed in her bedroom.
“My son?” I heard myself say, getting to my feet. Mollie put Tommy into my arms, being mindful of my weak right arm. Tommy looked up and gave me a slobbery smile.
“Yes,” Mollie said, tears in her eyes. “Your son.”
Without thinking, I held out my shaking right hand to Mollie. “Does this mean, I mean…”
“It means that we’ll see where things go,” Mollie said, holding up her hands and giving me a wary smile. “I haven’t forgiven you for anything – yet. But I’d never keep your son away from you.”
“Thank you, Mollie,” I said. Tears filled my eyes again as I held my son close. Tommy slapped his little hands against my face and cooed.
“He’s strong,” Mollie said, smiling, genuinely smiling for the first time. “He’ll probably be an athlete, like his father.” She raised an eyebrow and gave me a look. “Let’s just hope he handles it better.”
Chapter 16
Mollie
It’s been almost six months since Chase came home with his body in pieces and his spirit broken. He’s still staying with his mom and doing rehab at a local center.
He’ll never get the strength back in his right arm, but he seems okay with that. He seems to understand now that there’s more to life than throwing a football.
His arm aches sometimes and he gets migraines, but the pain seems to lessen every week. I think it’s because his son is such good medicine.
Chase knows his playing days are behind him, but he’s still interested in sports. He enrolled at the local college a few weeks ago. He’s determined to finish his degree in physical education. He wants to be a high school football coach. Imagine that!
The more time we’ve spent together over the last six months, the more I understand that his body wasn’t the only thing that was changed by the wreck.
He seems much calmer now.
He takes life a little slower.
He isn’t so quick to react and rarely gets angry; unless he’s watching an Alabama football game on TV and things aren’t going Bama’s way.
Maybe it’s because he knows what’s really important now. He starts each day with the knowledge that he has a son and knows that it’s time to grow up.
; Or maybe he’s just trying to impress me.
Whatever it is, I love the new Chase Richards and I find myself falling deeper in love with him every day.
Epilogue
Mollie
I gave Tommy a quick kiss and told him to be a good boy for grandma. I gave my mom a hug and said I wouldn’t be out too late.
“Stay out as late as you like,” mom said, giving me a sly grin. “We’ll be just fine.”
I grabbed my purse off the little table in the foyer and opened the front door. Sitting at the curb was the old blue pickup truck. Chase was standing next to it, holding the passenger door open. He was also holding a bouquet of daisies, my favorite.
“Your chariot awaits, madam,” he said as I came down the walk. I fell into his arms and pressed my lips to his. He picked me up with his left arm and spun me around, then deposited me in the passenger seat. He slammed the door and trotted to the other side to get behind the wheel.
“What are those?” I asked, looking through the back window at the rolled up sleeping bags lying in the truck bed.
“I thought we’d go to the lake,” he said with a grin. He turned the key to fire up the truck and winced just a little as he pulled it into gear. “I mean, if that’s okay with you.”
I slid across the seat and put my left arm over the back of the seat and rested my right hand on his thigh.
He looked down, then brought his eyes up to mine and gave me the smile that got me into the bed of that truck the first time all those years ago.
“What are you waiting for,” I asked, giving his thigh a squeeze.
“Nothing,” he said, easing his foot off the clutch and pressing the gas. “Nothing at all.”
THE END
BAILEY
Chapter 1
“It doesn’t have to be this way, Lynn. I could easily offer you a promotion with all the benefits, but I’m not sure that you’re willing to take it. It will mean moving away from this no nothing town and finding a life in the big city. I want you to seriously consider my offer. I’m giving you the right of first refusal. You should not take that lightly and I’ve never been a man that was about charity.” Holden Mackie was the boss and usually whatever he wanted he would get. That was not how it was with Lynn Hawkins. She was a potential gold mine, but she was allowing her past indiscretions to get in the way of success.
“I never knew that you even saw me. I thought that I was wallpaper. I am flattered, but I’m going to have to give it some serious thought.” “I want to tell him yes, but I can’t do that with the responsibility of another to take care of. My young son Timothy is only five years old. I can’t take him away from everything that he loves including his grandparents. Having them around has been a godsend. Whenever I was at my wits end, they were always there to lend a hand. I understand that I might be losing out and that somebody else is going to benefit by my decision to say no, but I have to think of my son. It if was just me, I would jump at the opportunity for this kind of adventure.”
“I can give you, until the end of the week and then I’m gonna have to move on to another candidate. This could be the start of something huge, but it’s going to be up to you to take it. I’ve seen you get lost, but I’ve also noticed that you have the kind of work ethic that I’m looking for. I know that this is a huge step, but it’s a big opportunity that doesn’t come around all the time. Don’t squander the gift that I’m giving you on a silver platter. I don’t want you to get complacent and I want you to truly live up to your potential. This is not the place for you. I only keep this newspaper because the town needs it to stay up to date with local news.”
Lynn Hawkins had wanted to go to school to become a real international journalist. She wanted to jet set around the world seeing all those things and places that made her heart stop any time that she was thinking about traveling. She had gone to journalism school, but she had dropped out on her last year. She couldn’t juggle that kind of commitment with the terrible two’s of Timothy making her hair turn prematurely grey. Thankfully her hairdresser was able to give her something to bring back the body and luster.
“I’ll be sure to take everything that you say under consideration, Mr. Mackie. I appreciate you thinking of me.” She couldn’t come out and flat out say no and that would have been rude. She already knew that she was going to have to decline. Writing obituaries was not her idea of fun, but it was necessary to put food on her plate and a roof over her head. She made sure that Timothy had everything that he wanted regardless if she had to eat Ramen noodles for the next month.
“Miss Hawkins, I don’t do this for just any one and sometimes you have to stop looking a gift horse in the mouth. I’ve been watching you for quite some time and I think that you have what it takes. You’re just going to have to decide what you want from this life and if you’re going to allow anyone or anything to stand in your way. I have family myself and sometimes sacrifices have to be made. I’m offering you a chance to get in on the ground floor of an online publication.” Holden Mackie had many businesses, but those that he had a passion for was in the media.
“It’s not just me that I have to consider. I think you know that. Give me the week and I’m sure that I will have an answer for you by then.” Lynn knew that if she took it that it wasn’t going to give her any more money. It would essentially be a steppingstone and one that was required to really make her mark as a journalist. Having her byline under the obits was mostly ignored by her friends and her grandparents. “I do have one foot already out the door, but the other one is being held down by Timothy holding my ankle.” “I didn’t want to have a family this early in life. I had everything planned out, but any great laid plans can go awry at a moment’s notice. Holden Mackie was my idol and mentor and even working alongside him in this capacity was a dream come true. He was charismatic, but he was also a man that knew what he wanted and apparently he wanted me.”
“I don’t want to beat a dead horse, but this will disappear in a week. You never know when something like this will come up again. Don’t become stagnant and think that you have to do this. Think about your future and where you want to be in five years. Family is important, but you sometimes need to do what’s right for you.” Holden Mackie had five kids of his own and that was never more apparent than the gray hairs on his head. He had five different wives and each one was taking a bit of his soul every time that he had to pay alimony.
Lynn walked out of the office feeling like there was a shift in the air. She wanted to believe that her future was bright, but without the necessary money to go along with the position it was almost foolhardy to think about it. She would not have her grandparents to be instant babysitters. She would have to uproot her entire life. She was already living hand to mouth. This would be a risk that she wasn’t sure that she could take with her family in tow. “I think about how I got here. Bailey Welling was the one that got away. On prom night, we said our goodbyes with a soft kiss. It ended with him leaving to become a very high profile football star with the Patriots. I wanted to go with him, but I knew that he was still young and sowing his wild oats. He didn’t give any indication that he wanted to marry me and I had to believe that his feelings were not as deep as nine was for him.”
“You’ve been in there a long time. You don’t have to tell me what that was all about, but you really do look like something big has happened. You got a message and apparently an old friend of yours is getting married in the next few days.” Leslie was in competition with Lynn. She tried to ingratiate herself into Lynn’s life, but she was only doing it to keep her friend’s close and her enemies even closer. This girl had a bubbly personality and she knew how to use what god gave her. Leslie had no problem using her obvious sexuality to her advantage to get ahead. It was primarily the reason why she was writing the editorials and working with the sports side of things. “I think what we both need is a ladies night out. A few drinks and watching some young stud put the moves on us is something that we have been lacking lately. What do
you say, Lynn? Are you ready to cast aside these cubicle walls and dance the night away?”
“I would really love to, but I have to get home. I have a child that I have to feed and take care of. I’ve already asked my grandparents for enough to last a lifetime. I know that they would gladly take him for the night, but I can’t do that without a damn good reason. Going out and having fun sounds great, but I just can’t do that.” “I’m not foolish to think for once that Leslie wants to be my friend. She would just as soon stab me in the back than to say anything kind to me. She wants to be noticed and the low cut tops have certainly gotten her some attention. It may not be the right kind of attention, but it has gotten her this far. I’ve seen her flirt on several occasions with those athletes that are just getting noticed. She has no problem digging into their past and finding those skeletons that are better left buried.”
“I just think that we need to find some time for ourselves. If you can’t go out tonight, then maybe you can go to lunch with me.” Leslie wanted to grill her for more information about what that meeting with Holden Mackie was all about. She’d heard rumors that Holden had acquired something of a dysfunctional online publication. He was going to do a major retooling and poach some of the best talent from various companies underneath his umbrella.
“I suppose that I could take a long lunch. There’s a cute bistro down the street that makes the most amazing ravioli that you have ever put into your mouth. I go there all the time with Timothy. I think he enjoys trying new things.” “That kid is very curious, but he lets me know in no uncertain terms what he likes and what he doesn’t. I don’t think I’ve ever had to scold him or yell at him in public. I’ve taught him to be a little gentleman. He doesn’t give me many problems and being five years old, he’s starting to wonder about a few things.”
