Page 12 of Putting Out
Reilly shook off his concern like drops of water. “Jeez, Pop, you sound like a shrink or a guy on a talk show. I had a few weeks off. I’m here for a break. Grams loves company and Kenny’s got a girlfriend. All is right in my world. I swear it.”
The minute the words were out of her mouth she regretted it. Pop took swears seriously. What if there was something wrong? What if the gnawing feeling that had been dogging her was the start of some kind of mental breakdown?
If that was the case it was going to tick her off. Therapy would interfere with her tour schedule.
“Oh, my God! Reilly! Reilly, you have got to see this.”
They both turned at the sound of Kenny shouting at the top of his lungs from the front porch. He was jumping up and down like a maniac.
“Reilly! You’ve got to see this. Now!”
“What in the hell has got him so worked up?”
“Please, Reilly, the language,” he admonished.
“Oh, sorry, Pop. Forgot.”
“It’s not that I haven’t heard worse, but it upsets your Grams so.”
“Reilly! You’re going to miss it!”
Miss what? Maybe Erica was here early. While she imagined her brother getting a little excited for her arrival, she couldn’t fathom what had stirred him to shouting and jumping. If this was his attempt to be a more committed boyfriend, he was carrying it way too far.
“Let’s go see what the fuss is about, shall we?”
Her Pop marched off and she shrugged. She left the balls on the ground and slid her seven iron back into the bag, knowing she would be back later. She made her way to the porch where Kenny was still waiting with an expression on his face she’d never seen before. Shock, excitement, happiness, and fear all rolled up into one.
“What?”
He shook his head and ran his hand through his ruffled hair.
“You’re not going to believe it.”
“Oh, my goodness!”
This was from Pop, who was already inside the house. Reilly followed him to the living room dominated by a new flat-screen, high-definition smart TV. Another Christmas gift. Although this was more for her and Kenny when they visited.
Reilly spotted two of the anchors from ESPN filling up the screen but it took her a few minutes to process what they were saying. Had something happened?
“It’s official and has been confirmed by several ranking members that sit on the PGA board.”
“This is for real, folks.”This from the female anchor with the high brow and deep voice.“The list is out and the host of what this might mean is truly groundbreaking news for the sport of golf.”
“The crazy thing is, Julie, the requirements of what qualified as a ranking point weren’t changed all that much. All this new system did was open up the field to allow statistics to play a larger role. Did anyone guess this would be the result?”
“I’m not sure, Sam. Last night there was some speculation as to how the numbers would pan out. I can tell you this. I sure would love a chance to call Reilly Carr and find out what she’s thinking right now.”
The words were no sooner out of the anchorwoman’s mouth when the phone in the kitchen rang. Her grandparents were probably the last two people in America to still have both a landline and one of those old fashioned answering machines to record missed calls.
“I’ll get it,” Grams sang out from the kitchen. Kenny’s fit hadn’t been enough to drag her away from the pie crust she’d been shaping.
“Don’t you get it?” Kenny asked. “Don’t you see?”
“Reilly, it’s for you,” Grams announced from the kitchen. “It’s a reporter.”
Reilly looked from Kenny to the kitchen doorway, back to the television, which was running a breaking news tag line along the bottom of the screen. She read it even as she listened to the commentator say it.
Breaking news… Golf Ranking System adjusted… Reilly Carr …number thirty-eight… will be the first woman eligible to play in the American Championship…
