Chapter Fifteen
Cade
After my encounter with Serena in her office, I didn’t sleep for crap. I never got like this before a big game, so why are there so many emotions going through me now? I wonder. I’m anxious and nervous about my date with Serena, but I’m excited, too. I still have no clue what possessed me to drive to USC and basically stalk her, but I’m glad I did. She’s still everything I remember and then some. Best part, even though she now knows who I am, she still isn’t affected by it. Maybe that’s why I’m nervous. She’s not like any other woman I’ve been out with. And, I want this to be perfect. Oddly enough, for the first time in my adult life, I want to impress a woman.
I’ve had ideas spinning in my head since last night. This morning, I got the idea of taking her to a really upscale place that is always impressive, and so I called to make a reservation for us.
I’m still feeling antsy, though, even after making solid plan. Despite it being early, I head into my closet to pick out something to wear and after thirty minutes of back and forth with myself, I finally settle on something. I check the clock to see I still have two hours before I need to head in to work. Plenty of time for a long shower and breakfast before making the drive to the studio where the show is filmed when we’re not on location.
Driving in to work only gives me more time to stress out over tonight. I need to stop. On second thought, what I need is to talk to somebody about Serena. Sadly, the number of real friends in my life are few. There is one person, though. Tyler. I know I can spill my guts to him, and he’ll give me honest feedback. He’s the last person I ever thought I’d call my best friend had you asked me a few years ago.
Tyler Washington was my biggest rival on the field, playing for the Condors biggest rival: the Vipers. We were drafted the same year, me with the first pick, Tyler with the second. He won the Super Bowl first – which absolutely killed me – but in the end, I won it more times. I hated the guy, even still when he retired the year before me.
When I was approached about doing a weekly commentary show after I announced my own retirement, I was excited, until they told me that Tyler and I were going to be hosting together. I came so close to turning it down, until our producer convinced me to sit down and meet him, one on one, and make a decision with fresh eyes and look at Tyler as a partner in this, not a rival. Switching off game mode was hard, but I did sit down for that lunch with Tyler and surprisingly, we hit it off. He’s still a cocky SOB, but I know I can always count on him for advice when I need it.
I park in my designated spot at the studio and head inside, greeting staff and security guards as I go. After a quick spin in the makeup chair and through the wardrobe department for my suit, I take a seat in the green room, going over our producer's notes for this week, as well as my own while I await Ty’s arrival.
Fifteen minutes pass before Tyler walks in and he smiles easily in greeting. “Hey, man. You’re early.” Tyler is always here before me; I am usually pulling in just ten minutes before we film.
“I broke up with Josephine,” I blurt out.
“Yeah, you do that about every two weeks, what’s new?”
“No, I did it for real, for good.”
Tyler studies me for a long minute before he says anything else. “You’re serious.”
“Dead serious,” I confirm.
“It took you long enough. That girl is nothing but trouble. You can do better. Hell, you deserve better. She’s only ever been after you because you’re a household name. She could care less about your likes and dislikes, so long as you’re famous and she gets to show up on your arm.”
“It was so fake. And annoying. I hated all the premieres she dragged me to. Half of those movies were awful.”
“You need someone down to earth and real, who sees the you that no one else gets to see.”
“Yeah, well, we’re not all lucky enough to find that in high school and marry her.”
“Yep, I’m pretty lucky.”
“How did you know, that Tamara was the one?”
“I don’t know that there was any one thing that made me know. It was just a feeling, and I knew. I know how fortunate I am to have found someone that doesn’t give a shit about the fame or the money. She just loves me, flaws and all. It’s not easy, but it’s out there.”
“That’s all I want, someone who loves me for me...and I think maybe I found someone.”
“Come again? You think you found someone? When? How? Who?”
“Her name is Serena, and we met a month after I won my last Super Bowl.”
“You’ve known her this long and have never mentioned her?”
“Well, I had one night with her, and she snuck out on me. I haven’t seen her since, not until last week when I saw her on TV. She’s a professor at USC, and yesterday, I showed up in her class, and then found her in her office and asked her out.”
“So, what you’re saying is that you barely know this girl.”
“I know it sounds like I’m saying that, but that one night was hours of talking and getting to know each other. She had no idea who I was and it was so nice to just be Cade Thomas and not Cade Thomas football player, you know? I felt something different with her, but she was gone before it could even begin.”
“You think she sees you for you?”
“She did that night, and even yesterday she didn’t seem fazed about my celebrity.”
“I’m happy that you think you found someone, but do you even know how to be in a healthy relationship?”
“No, but that’s why I’m friends with you.”
“I’m going to be honest with you, then. If you think that this Serena woman is someone you want to have something with long term, if you want this to be a true and healthy relationship and not at all like what you had with Josephine, then you should take things slow and really show her you’re looking for something more, something with substance.
“Because let’s face it: your love life has been plastered on the front of every magazine for the last four years, and she might not buy into anything that comes out of your mouth. You have to prove to her that it’s not just about a quick fuck and that it is more than that. If you can do that, then maybe this has a shot. But you also need to prepare yourself for rejection. Whatever happens happens...but I’ll be rooting for you.”
We’re called to set and as I follow Tyler out, I replay his words in my head, knowing he’s right. I have to prove to Serena that she means more if I want this to last. Attraction is one thing, and I already know we can be great together. This time though I need to court her before any of the other stuff happens. This time I’m going to do it right, and I’m going to win the girl.
Because I always play to win.