Page 182 of Saving the Halfback

“Let me get that for you,” Nolan said, pressing Chase’s chin and closing his mouth.

Benedict cleared his throat. “Yes, very well. Perhaps Monday, I can have you come into the local township office, and we can get a government official to witness the signature, and you can receive what is rightfully yours.”

Chase still seemed in shock.

“Thank you, sir.” Dad held out his hand. “We’ll make sure he makes it there.”

“Here is my card, should anything change.” The lawyer handed the card to my dad before turning away.

“You okay, son?” Dad asked.

There was a pause as Chase’s eyes moved side to side, as if he were reading something, processing everything. “I want to invest in you,” he finally blurted out.

“What?” I asked.

“McCormick farms. I was raised around businessmen my whole life, John. I’ve been watching how much land you own. How many crop, dairy, and beef operations you keep in others’ names, but really, it’s you behind it all. We should combine what I have with your—”

Dad held up his hand. “Just slow down there. First and foremost, we need to sort this all out, and you need to take care of you. A lawyer on your side is a must, and we can get together with our lawyer and talk about merging, but that's all far in the future. Just take a breath, and take it one day at a time.”

“For the family,” Chase said, holding his hand out.

My dad chuckled, shaking his head. “You keep your money, give us your loyalty.” He looked over at the others. “Each of you. I need nothing from you but loyalty.” He took Chase’s hand. “For the family.”

68

Bailey

When we got home after the game, I went upstairs to change into sweats. We were skipping the homecoming dance, and the guys had promised me a campfire and sleepover. I was pulling my hoodie over my head, careful with my shoulder and stitches, when I heard my name being called from outside. I walked over to my window and looked down. Chase was dowsing the garden shed with a can of gasoline. Ethan pulled down the tailgate of the truck; he had it parked close to the shed. And then Nolan carried armfuls of blankets and pillows, tossing them into the truck bed before jumping up and spreading them out.

Lachlan was the one who’d called me. When my eyes locked with his soft, sweet blues, he held up a matchbox and wiggled it, enticing me. I smiled and turned to run out the door, but my reflection in the mirror caught my attention.

There was no saving my old mirror, it was damaged beyond repair. Behind it the wall had taken a beating as well, but over the last few days the guys had repaired it. They fixed the drywall, put mud over the cracks and smoothed them over. They even attempted to paint it, it didn’t match the paint on the wallsexactly but it was perfect to me. Ethan had hung the new mirror up, the reflection was something I was still getting used to.

The possibility of the scar didn’t bother me too much. Nor did the black and blue markings or the purple bruising. I smiled at myself in the mirror. I saw the strength in my eyes, and I acknowledged it. “I love you,” I told her. “I love everything you are and every bit you have become.”

The guys letme light the match. They were sweet like that, happy to allow me to commit arson.

We watched the shed burn up brighter than the stars in the sky. Then I lay back on the blankets and looked up, hoping for any shooting stars. Pops jumped up and lay between my legs, his head resting on my thigh as my fingers combed through his white fur.

He was officially the farm dog, and though he often traveled between this place and his old home, he was really Ethan’s dog. I thought it would be a good retirement for the old pup, spending the days patrolling his land, evenings watching the sun set in the cab of a tractor, and nights cozied up in the straw with the other animals.

Chase lay on one side of me and Nolan on the other. “Hey, there’s the big dipper,” Chase said.

“Ursa Major.” Nolan sighed. “Or the great bear.”

“What? Where the hell do you get off thinking that looks like a bear? It’s a spoon! Hence, dipper.” He had his hand raised up, like he was grabbing the handle of a spoon.

Nolan chuckled. “It’s a bear, and see, those three stars there are hunters.” Nolan pointed.

“Eth, what do you see?” Chase asked.

“An almost perfect marshmallow.”

I looked down, watching as Ethan roasted a marshmallow over the garden shed fire.

Lachlan took a large breath from his pipe, holding in the smoke before slowly releasing it. “Look at it like one of Bailey’s stick drawings, if she were to draw a bear.”

Chase tilted his head. “Oh, oh, I kinda see it now.”

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