by Jeff Vrolyks
“I was thinking we’d release them today. I’ve had enough fish these last two days.”
“Yeah, me too.”
It was too dark to get a decent picture, and there was no flash on the cell phone camera. So they released the fish and continued on. Theo unfurled his turtleneck shirt high on his neck. His hands were numbed from the cold water. He put a little distance between he and his father, yawned, and recommenced fishing.
“Scotty called me last night.”
“What did he want?”
“Update on the draft. He’s pretty sure Tennessee will take Dante.”
“Great. They’re stupid, but great. You’re a better quarterback than Dante.”
“It isn’t just numbers, Dad. Teams want someone who will draw a crowd, who they can sell millions of jerseys from. Dante is exciting, like a young Vick. Every time the ball’s snapped you never know what might happen. He could scramble for a touchdown. Me, on the other hand, I’m not exciting to watch. What was it that Chris Berman said…?”
“You bore people with your efficiency.”
Theo chuckled. “That’s right. And he’s correct. I don’t throw a lot of deep balls, don’t move out of the pocket much. Short flare passes, passes up the gut to the tight ends, it’s seven yards here, ten yards there. It gets the job done, but it’s far from exciting football.”
“But teams want a guy who will win for them. You’re that guy.”
“Yeah, and you know what I think? I think Dante Allister will win more games for Tennessee than I would. That’s another reason why they’ll go with Dante. Tennessee has a poor line, not a lot of pass protection for their QB. I’d be getting sacked six times a game in Tennessee. With Dante, when pressure’s on, he’ll run out of the pocket and throw if he can, run if he can’t. Their receiver core isn’t that great, either. Dante will probably be their top rusher. He’s best for them. And I’m glad.”
“I bet. So Scotty thinks you’ll go to Frisco?”
“He spoke with Jim Harbaugh, and it looks as if that’s the case. Smith wants to be traded, leaving Farrier and Billingsly. Farrier went first round two years ago, a fair comparison between him and I. He made nine million signing, twelve million for three years.”
“Is that what you can expect to get?”
“I don’t expect anything. I don’t want to get my hopes up. Scotty thinks it’ll be more, though—Farrier went later in the draft.”
“Chris Farrier, he was pretty good for Michigan. Not so well off the field, though. Couldn’t keep his nose out of trouble.”
“You remember that?”
“When your son is a quarterback for a big school, you pay a lot of attention to other quarterbacks. He had a DUI, and a brawl.”
“Two DUI’s,” Theo corrected.
“Makes me that much more proud of you, son. It’s easy to find trouble when you’re twenty-one and famous. You show great restraint. I’m sure Frisco will appreciate that, too.”
“That’s one reason why Scotty thinks I’ll make more than Farrier.”
“There’s no comparison in your talents. You’re much better. Just stay out of trouble till the draft. Think of it like this, a DUI or brawl might cost you millions of dollars in lost wages.”
“Once I sign I’ll go pound a fifth of whiskey and hit the road, punch people as I cross them.”
“Smart ass.” James threw his fly and watched it drift, lost sight of it frequently. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that you and Carmen are getting along. Do you think you’ll want to accompany me on my annual trips again?”
“We’ll see.”
“Too bad she doesn’t live closer to home, huh?”
“I’m not sure it would matter. She made it pretty clear that she isn’t interested in me that way. She’s seeing some guy.”
“Eh, she’s playing hard to get.”
“Nah, she’s not. There’s a mutual attraction between us, I think, but she’s grounded in reality. A small town girl, a big city athlete: it’s just not in the cards for us.”
“Now that you two are square, how about you tell me what caused all this ten years ago.”
“I can’t do that. It’s personal.”
“Did you touch her inappropriately or something?”
“Dad, come on! We were eleven!”
“I know. Maybe you guys were curious about the other sex. What else could it be? I’ve spent more hours ruminating the possibilities than you’d imagine.”
“I’m going over to her place tonight.”
“To touch her inappropriately?” James said with a wry grin.
“If I thought she’d let me, maybe.” Theo laughed. “Nah, just to hang out. We’re leaving the day after tomorrow, so we don’t have much time left to get caught up.”
“We should visit the Handles tomorrow. What do you think?”
“Maybe. I’ll bring it up.”
Chapter Nine
The weather report had said clouds, nothing about rain. But rain it did. By noon they packed up their stuff and returned to the truck dripping wet. Fifteen minutes later they were sitting in front of a fire sipping coffee. The rain drumming on the roof was cozy, and loud. Theo hoped it would let up before six-thirty. Would Carmen call off the trip to the mine if it was raining this hard? Maybe. It may be dry inside the mine, but they’d be soaked long before they got there. He supposed they could use umbrellas.
“I’m hungry,” Theo said. “Want your sandwich?” He stood and took a sip of his coffee.
“Eh… you know what sounds good?”
“What.”
“Pizza.”
“Oh God yes. Too bad Conoco wasn’t a Pizza Hut.”
“There’s a pizzeria in Cedar Hills. Why don’t you give them a call and see if they’ll deliver out here.”
“That’s like twenty minutes each way, especially in this deluge. No way would they deliver out here.”
“Tell them you’ll tip twenty bucks.”
Theo considered it, looked over at the clock. It was almost one, five and a half hours before he saw Carmen. He’d love to see her now, couldn’t stop remembering her. On a whim he decided to surprise her at work. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll head over to town and pick up a pizza. Large pepperoni and sausage?”
“You don’t have to do that, that’s a long drive for pizza.”
“I want to. Pepperoni and sausage?”
“That sounds great. Take a twenty out of my wallet on the counter.”
“Alright.” He went to his suitcase and unzipped a side pocket, removed a bottle of cologne and gave himself a squirt on the neck, one on either wrist, and put the cologne back. He combed his fingers through his damp hair, grabbed the keys on the counter and the twenty-spot from pop’s wallet.
“Tell her I said hi,” James said a faint grin.
“Who?”
“Who,” he repeated thickly. “Who do you think? Why else would you spray yourself with that stuff? For the pizza people?”
“Maybe I’ll stop by the doctor’s office and check it out. Being that the doctor is a football fan, I bet I could cajole him into giving me a Cortisone shot for the road. I’ll bring it back, give it to you in the morning. Will make our last day of fishing perfect. You will feel a lot better.”
“That stuff works pretty good, huh?”
“It does. It’s a great temporary solution to joint pain. I’ll be back in an hour or so.”
* * *
The wipers were screaming across the windshield at a dizzying pace. The weather people couldn’t have gotten it more wrong. Theo Googled Cedar Hills Doctor Gerhart and found an address, punched it into the navigation system and was given a route. His stomach growled at the though of hot pizza, cheese melted and stretching between each pulled slice like a web. He didn’t know where the place was, but he was driving through the business district and was likely to spy it. The nav system said turn right just as he noticed Clyde’s Pizza up ahead. Instead of making the turn he continued on ahead and pulled up to
Clyde’s, jaunted up the walkway and under the awning. Rain was pelting it so fiercely that it sounded like war, thousands of guns firing off rounds. Inside he placed his order to-go, paid the fifteen bucks and said he’d be back in about thirty minutes, maybe less. The girl behind the register smiled sweetly at him.
“Where can I buy an umbrella around here?” he asked as an afterthought.
“The Mercantile. You can borrow mine until you return for your pizza, if you’d like.”
“You’d do that?” he said, bewildered.
She couldn’t see what the big deal was. “Why not?”
“Just seems a little… I don’t know, personal, to lend something to a stranger.”
“We’re not strangers. We’ve been friends for about two minutes now.” She smiled that sweet smile again, and Theo was enamored by it. It’s amazing what a smile can do, Theo thought. She was a plain-looking girl until she smiled, then she became something more. A treat for the eyes.
“That’s awfully sweet of you…?”
“Candice.”
“Candice. I’m Theo. Sure, if you don’t mind. I’ll take great care of it.”
She snorted. “You’d better, or you’ll owe me two bucks to replace it!” She whisked away and returned with a black umbrella, handed it to Theo. “If you don’t mind me being rude, may I ask who you’re here visiting?”
“I’m not. I live in Lotton, just stopping by for pizza.”
“If you lived in Lotton you’d know where to buy an umbrella. That you had to ask is proof that you don’t. I’m sorry, I don’t mean to pry. I was just curious, is all. We don’t get a lot of out-of-towners coming by. The town runs like clock work.” She checked her wristwatch. “It’s one-fifteen now. In about fifteen minutes, Henry Allen will stop by and order two medium pizzas, one cheese and one Hawaiian. At about two-thirty, Craig Harper will call and order a large mushroom pizza for take-out. But if it was Tuesday instead of Monday, Madeline Dryer would be calling right about now for a small pepperoni for delivery. See what I mean?”
“I do. Not a lot of variation in your schedule, is there?”
“There is some. Impulse buys. People do tend to buy more pizza when it rains like this, for some reason. But there is a lot of routine in town. That I haven’t seen you before means you aren’t from here. I hope you enjoy your stay here, Theo.”
“I’m from out of state. I’m here with my dad, in Lotton. I’m here to visit an old friend. Do you know a woman named Carmen?”
“Carmen? No.”
“How about Georgette?
“Georgette Handle? Of course.”
“Yeah, Georgette,” Theo said dreamily. He hadn’t thought of that in ten years.
“She’s a dear. I live down the road from her. Her new place at the Beaumont’s, not her folks’ place.”
“Gosh, you guys really do know everything about town residents.”
“How do you know Georgette?”
“From fishing.”
“Are you about to go see her? At work? Is that why you said thirty minutes till you return?” It dawned on Candice that she was being quite nosy. “Never mind. I’m sorry, Theo, don’t mind me. It’s a hard habit to break, being inquisitive.”
“Not a problem. I love the candor from the people in town. I bet it must be great living here.”
“It is, though I have nothing to compare it to. Tell Georgette I said hi.”
“I will. Be back shortly.” When she flashed him that smile again, he decided he wouldn’t let it go unspoken. “You have the prettiest smile I think I’ve ever seen.”
The smile widened at that. “Why thank you! You are very sweet to say!”
He left the parlor into the deafening down-pour, the tin awning sounding like a string of M-80’s firing off. He got in his father’s truck, closed the door and looked through the glass door he just came. The girl was standing there grinning at him, and waved.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he muttered. “People this nice don’t really exist, do they?”
He backed out and followed the nav system to a small plain building. Its parking lot would be at full capacity with five cars. There were three cars parked there now, a blue Honda accord hatchback, a silver Toyota Avalon, and a Chevy Colorado. Theo figured the Avalon was something a doctor would drive. The Chevy was probably a patient. He parked beside the Colorado and opened the umbrella, went inside the office, which might have once been a small two-bedroom house. Bells on the door jingled, as if it were a market and not a doctor’s office.
The reception area was half the house or better. There were two doors; one was open and the other closed. Since the room with an open door was ostensibly for patients to be seen (said the table with white paper running down its length) the other room was probably Doctor Gerhart’s office. Sitting behind the desk and computer monitor was Carmen. Sitting in one of two chairs before the desk was a man. Both faces looked up at Theo. Carmen’s eyes widened.
“What are you doing here?”
“Sorry, was it a bad idea? Just wanted to stop by and say hi.” He looked to the man sitting before Carmen. He wasn’t a bad looking guy. Maybe a couple years older than Theo.
“Uh, no, I just didn’t know you were coming by.” She looked nervous. Really nervous. Actually, she looked like she just got caught stealing, or lying.
Theo retracted the umbrella and imperiously took the other seat before the desk, and engaged in a little Cedar Hills friendliness, which seemed to be the town’s only export. He thrust out his hand to the man and said, “Theo, how do you do?”
The man shook the hand, nodded, and said nothing. He looked over to Carmen dubiously.
“Theo, this is Matthew.”
Ahhh, Theo thought, that explains it. He figured he’d make her a little more uncomfortable. “Matthew, how goes it? Are you a patient? Here for a check up? An ailment?” He could see Carmen scowling at him through his peripherals.
“Not today,” Matthew replied.
“He’s a friend,” she said.
Matthew shot her a look, one that was a little surprised to be referred to as simply a friend.
“Great,” Theo said merrily, “I’m her friend, too. That makes you and I friends by association, right?”
The man nodded out of politeness and looked over to Carmen again. Theo thought he wanted her to tell him to take a hike.
“May I speak with you in private?” She said to Theo.
“Sure.”
He followed her into the patient examination room. She closed the door and whispered, “You can’t just show up unannounced! Do you now how embarrassing this is for me?”
“I have an idea. The man you used to have a thing for and the man you now have a thing for, together and at last.”
“Judging by your smirk,” she said, “I’d guess you have misconstrued which one you are. I’ll give you a hint… you aren’t the man I now have a thing for! He is!”
“Ouch, that hurts.”
“Good. You shouldn’t have come. What must Matthew think?”
“Who cares?”
“I do! You ass! Go on, leave. I don’t want to see you until I get off work.” She opened the door and stormed out.
Theo reentered the reception room, locked eyes with Matthew and shrugged. Women…
The other door opened and Doctor Gerhart came out. Theo had a prepossessed idea how he’d look and was miles off. No white smock but a green sweater. Not balding, but a shock of white hair. Not thin but a few extra pounds, mostly at his stomach. He did hit the nail on the head with the small bifocals perched at the end of his nose. His brow creased at Theo’s sight. “Afternoon,” he said.
“You must be Doctor Gerhart. Pleasure to meet you.” He stepped toward him with his hand out. “I’m a friend of Carmen’s. Name’s Theo.”
“Carmen?” He looked to Carmen. “Georgette?”
“Yes, Georgette. I didn’t know she went by that name anymore.”
“I didn’t know she went by Carmen,”
the doctor said. He looked back to Theo, drew his brow in, peered deeply at him. “Theo…” he mused. “No, couldn’t be.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that,” Theo said humored, “I may be.”
The doctor’s eyes widened with awareness. “Theo Graham!”
Theo looked to Matthew and savored his expression. Matthew was awed and deflated at the idea of his Georgette befriending a famous athlete.
“What in God’s name brings you to Cedar Hills?” He looked over to Carmen for understanding.
“Like I said, I’m friends with Carmen here.”
Carmen put her head in her hand. “Stop calling me Carmen.”
“That’s the name you told me to call you. I thought you hated the name Georgette.”
She removed her hand, sighed. To the doctor she said, “Carmen is the name I went by when I was a kid. I’m fine with Georgette.”
The doctor’s voice was incredulous. “How do you know Theo Graham? How on earth have you never told me this? That breaks my heart.” He put a hand over his heart to put an exclamation mark on the sentiment.
“Because Theo is an ass. A first rate ass. I’m sorry that I know him.” To Matthew she said, “I’m sorry, Matthew.” She looked at Theo with icy blue eyes. She didn’t need to tell him to leave, her eyes were screaming it.
“Nice to meet you, doctor, Matthew. I’ll be on my way.” Then he remembered his father. “Oh, Doctor, I was hoping you could do me a favor. Could you preload a syringe with Cortisone for me? My dad sprained his ankle and I know it would help him fly fishing over the next couple days. I’ll pay whatever it costs.”
“Cortisone,” he mused. “I’d have to order that, I’m afraid. A sprained ankle… he needs to stay off of it, and take something for the inflammation. I could give you some Diclofenac. It’s not great for pain, but it will help with the swelling. For the pain I could give you Vicodin.”
“That would be great, Doctor.”
He went inside the examination room. Theo heard a cabinet open. He looked at Carmen and Matthew, who were fixed on each other expressionless. Well, not entirely expressionless. He though hers were apologetic eyes. She felt Theo’s stare and looked over at him. He gave her a thumbs up for no real reason at all. She shook her head disapprovingly at him.
