Page 68 of Fair Play
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“And now that you’re over it? Is that still what you want? Is that where you envision yourself—and any woman you might want to settle down with?”
I shouldn’t even be thinking that far ahead but there’s no universe where I picture Billie living that life with me. And if I’m honest, that’s not the life I would want withher.
Which makes no sense.
That cabin, and the post-hockey life I’ve been planning, has been my lifeline.
“What were you thinking about just now?” Marty asks with a laugh. “You looked sick to your stomach.”
“I guess I was thinking about meeting a great woman, one that I might want to settle down with, and dragging her to my two-bedroom cabin in Bumfuck Nowhere, New York.”
“Like I said before, any real estate is a good investment. Even if you never set foot up there again, it should make you money if you sell it. By the same token, it might be a great summer house. Or a cozy winter getaway. Just because you shift gears doesn’t mean it was a bad idea.”
“I’ve made a lot of bad financial decisions,” I admit. “I’m thirty-five years old and basically don’t have a pot to piss in. My first wife took a lot, my second wife took what was left, and I’m still paying her alimony for a few more months. Once that ends, I can put some money away. But only if I play one more year.”
Marty grimaces. “I hear you, man. But one thing about the Phantoms—if you’re loyal, Ms. Barrowman will respond in kind. She doesn’t play by the same rules as a lot of the other teams in the league. This is a great team to work for, if you can find your groove.”
“I’ve always struggled making friends,” I say after a moment. Normally, I wouldn’t admit something so vulnerable, but this is essentially my last shot. If the Phantoms don’t renew my contract—even for one more year—my career is over.
Maybe a little vulnerability is what I need.
“To be honest, you’re not at all what I was expecting,” he says after a moment.
“No? What were you expecting? A brash loud-mouth who hits on all your wives?”
He shrugs. “Maybe not quite like that, but close?”
“Like I said, I’ve always struggled making friends. I’ve been trying harder the last couple of years.”
“And this is a good place to start,” Marty says with a friendly smile. “Why don’t you come over to the house on Saturday? We’re going to have a few people over, hang out, grill some steaks. Nothing formal. You don’t need to bring anything.”
I hate the idea of going to a party without Billie, but I don’t think there’s any way to make that happen. Unless…
“You inviting others from the team?” I ask.
“Yeah, a few people. Why? There someone you don’t want me to invite?”
“No, not at all. I was just thinking that you might invite Bodi and Billie. They don’t have much of a support system, either, you know? Parents are dead, and neither of them are from here.”
“That’s a good idea. I will.”
Yeah, I’m full of good ideas.
Even the ones that will probably come back to bite me in the ass.
Chapter 25
Billie
The next coupleof weeks are a blur. I spent more time at the diner than at home, and aside from missing Rome, I’m loving it. Nita has become an unexpected mentor, and it feels like she’s enjoying it too. We talk shop every chance we get and the paper I’m working on feels more like the real world than a school project.
I have so many ideas about ways to bring this concept of a 1950s diner to other locations, cities, and countries, it’s hard to narrow down my focus. We’ve even tossed around the idea of franchising.
“For someone who doesn’t love the business world,” Nita says as we work through a set of numbers I need for a section of my paper. “It’s like you were born for this.”
“You think?” I ask. “I honestly had no idea what to major in, even after my first two years. By junior year, I had to pick a major and business seemed the most generic.”
