Page 4 of Time For You
“You’re excited,” I teased her as I shifted my bag from my shoulder down to my waiting hand and began searching for my car keys.
“I’m excited to have you home. And if I can find a way for you to stay, I’ll do whatever it takes. Besides, I think Jeremy may propose soon.”
Her high school boyfriend was a sleazebag to the first degree, but Rory would hear none of it.
“Ulterior motives, I see.” With the key fob in hand, I pressed the button to unlock my car doors. The resounding beep and flash of yellow startled the couple crossing the lot in front of my car and I winced when they sneered at me.
Replying with a quick one-armed hug across my shoulders, Rory replied, “Always. See you tonight.”
Chapter Two – Colton
I knew my old minors coach lived in a small town, but as I drove down the winding single lane road, I felt like I’d been transported back in time. There was nothing but fields of grass and flowers, rolling hills, and towering mountains on either side of me. I feared I was lost and was about to end up in a real-life version ofTexasChainsawMassacreif the cell reception hadn’t been outstanding.
When I reached out to Brett, my old coach when I played for the farm team before getting in the NHL, he had offered me a place of solace, a respite to get my head on straight. The last two years had been anything but calm. A career-changing injury sent me for a whirlwind both physically and mentally. At my age, I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to return to the game. A torn ACL was an ender in most sports. But my issue ended up having more to do with my love of the game than with the injury.
I fought tooth and nail to heal and get back on the ice, but by the time I’d returned, I felt like an old man compared to the newbies on the ice. That was the life of a retiring player.
It was more than all of that, of course, but that’s the story I gave to the press, and they ate it right up. I hoped that while I was here, Brett and I could get some time on the ice.
At least that gave me something to look forward to. I hadn’t discussed a concrete amount of time with my agent, but I knew he was in the mindset that I’d grow tired of small-town living and I’d want something bigger and brighter in a few weeks.
Little did he know that my favorite childhood memories were made in a small town.
Maybe not this small,I thought to myself.
Franklin, Illinois, was outside of Chicago and where I had learned to play hockey, but it had a few big box stores and its own sign off the interstate.
When Coach Chisolm sent me the address to his house, he informed me I had an hour drive on a single lane road once I left the interstate. He’d even attached a map because the satellite navigation never could “get it quite right.”
I peered down at the map as I crossed paths with another road and checked the directions to confirm I was still headed in the right direction. Out of the corner of my eye something black caught my attention and I slammed on the brakes, thankful I had been driving well below the speed limit on the tiny, unfamiliar road.
My shoulders rose to my ears as the truck screeched to a stop before it collided with a herd of cattle. My hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly that the whites of my knuckles showed through the skin appearing as if they were ready to pop through the covering. My breath came out in heavy pants at the same rate as my racing heart.
“Fucking hell,” I heaved.
Taking a moment, I let myself calm down, using the breathing techniques that the team therapist taught us on how to control our anger. This time I used it to knock back the adrenaline coursing through my veins.
When I was finally able to pry my fingers from the steering wheel, the noise causing my body to cringe, I popped open the door and jumped down from the truck. I needed to catch my breath. My body hunched over itself. My hands firmly gripped my knees as I hauled in tremendous pulls of air to fill my lungs. Closing my eyes, I removed myself from the moment and settled back into my body.
“Are you okay there, son?” a gravelly voice filled with concern called out from the distance.
I glanced up, not sure what I’d find, but a man sitting on the back of a brown and white horse wasn’t even in the realm of possibilities.
When I didn’t give a response, the man added, “I’m sure these here gave you quite a fright. It’s not every day you see a hundred cows hanging out on the asphalt.”
The horse trotted closer, bringing the man within a few feet from where I stood.
“Yeah, I definitely wasn’t expecting it. That’s for sure.”
“Best things in life are unexpected,” he added cryptically.
Standing to my full height, the adrenaline slowly dissipated from my veins and my body immediately grew tired. Something I was going to have to fight through the rest of the trip. I always felt the same after every game except this time I didn’t have a bus or airplane to doze in.
“What are they all doing out here?” I asked as the stallion drew next to me, its curious eyes taking me in. The large animal whinnied as its rider stroked his neck.
“Well, see, this here road runs between my land. I was moving them to the field across the way. Bet ya scared them just as much as they scared you.”
Making eyes back at the large black heifer that was staring at me, I grunted. I’m pretty sure if she could laugh, she would.
