Page 62 of His Hungry Wolf

“Momma, can I talk to Merri alone?”

“So, you admit that your friend has a name. And you didn’t think to mention it all this time.”

“Please, Momma.”

She got up. Approaching me, she said, “Remember what I said about the bedroom window,” and then headed upstairs.

Alone with Merri, I turned to him.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, trying not to sound harsh.

“I needed to talk to you.”

“You know, they’ve invented this thing called a phone.”

“I thought you deserved to hear this in person.”

I considered what he said, nodded, and then replied, “You look nice, by the way.”

It took a second for him to respond. When he did, it was as a deer would staring into the headlights of a truck.

“What?” He eventually asked.

“I said, you look nice,” I repeated with a nervous smile.

Merri shook his head, trying to rattle things back into place.

“I’m sorry. You just threw me for a second. I’ve never heard those words come out of your mouth before. It took me a moment to figure out what they meant.”

“What are you talking about? I’ve said you look nice before.”

Merri feigned thinking about it before saying, “No. I was in love with you for three years. I think I would remember that.”

“So, I’ve never complimented you before?” I asked, surprised.

Merri pretended as if he had remembered something and then said, “Nope. Not once. Not even that time when I wore a tuxedo and looked an awful lot like James Bond.”

“Oh, I remember that,” I said with a smile.

He stared at me, waiting for something. “And?”

“And what?”

Merri sighed. “Nothing. Look, I’m here because I want to make you another offer.”

“Did the Cougars’ owner reconsider?” I asked, feeling a tingling in my chest.

“Oh. No. He’s still a bigot and a dick.”

“Oh.”

“The offer I want to make involves a pre-season showcase.”

“A pre-season showcase?”

“Yeah. There’s a showcase for undrafted players held in the middle of pre-season. I’ve been pulling a few strings, and I think I can get you included.”

“Why would you do that?” I asked, unsure how to feel.

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