Chapter Ten
Cory kissed her goodbye in her car, lingering as long as possible before Winnie finally gave him the boot. She wanted to get the house ready for him, despite his assurance she didn’t have to go to a lot of trouble. He loved being with her, and yes, even the dog. She’d seen the mess that was his room back at the house; he’d overlook a pile of clothes in the bathroom or a sink full of dirty plates.
That was home, comfort. He wanted that with her; he could say it to himself now. After a career spent traveling the country and coming home to an empty apartment after practices, he needed cozy.
Winnie. Synonymous with home…if she’d allow it.
Back in his truck, he caught a whiff of himself and winced. Damn. He smelled like sweat and hops. He had to credit Winnie for willingly sitting next to him at Lost Girls, but since the whole place smelled of brewing beer and truck food. He’d probably contributed little to the overall aroma. Shower and change, priority. Then he’d gather some essentials for a small overnight bag to keep in the car until he needed it.
He found an unfamiliar car parked next to Old Smokey when he arrived at the farm. Virginia plates and a UVA sticker on the back window, but that hardly narrowed it down. Only when he heard voices in the living room as he entered through the kitchen did recognition dawn.
“Hey, booger! You’d better not have been in my room,” he called out, stopping at the pantry to check for a snack. Seconds later, his sister Lisa appeared, her resemblance to their mother more obvious with her bright-brown eyes and heart-shaped face. Cory did a double take and smiled at her.
“Hey yourself, smart ass. Like I’d set foot in that swamp.” She made a face, but it quickly smoothed out when she broke into laughter. All the Levanes had silly nicknames for each other, said with the utmost affection. Lisa was a few years younger than he and Suzanne but smart as a whip—she had skipped a grade and graduated with Suzanne and Winnie’s cousin. Cory could call her booger, and she’d counter with words he’d have trouble pronouncing.
He grabbed a granola bar and offered her half. She held up a hand in refusal. “How’re things in the big city?”
Lisa snorted. “It’s Richmond. It’s not like L.A. or anywhere you’ve played.”
“It’s a hell of a lot bigger than this place. You here for dinner or the weekend?”
“Both.” Lisa leaned against the doorway to the living room and looked over her shoulder as voices in the distance rose. Who else was here? “I wouldn’t miss all the homecoming festivities or the Halloween fair.”
“Come on. Not even for a grown-up party in Richmond?”
“Adulting is overrated at times,” Lisa said, leaving Cory to wonder if his sister had brought home a sack of laundry for their mother to handle. It would be hypocritical of him to call her out on it, though, considering all the maternal pampering he’d enjoyed since coming home. He intended to find his own place soon, though, and wash his own dirty socks.
Living at home severely cramped his love life. Oh, he’d loved sneaking Winnie upstairs, but how often could he get away with that? He also refused to impose on Winnie’s hospitality for long. He wanted give and take until they moved further along in their relationship.
“Cory?” his mother called out, and Lisa backed away into the living room. “What are you two doing out there? You have a guest.”
Yes. Who? His Spidey sense ticked upward at the sound of laughter, and he reduced the possibilities to a handful of people, all female. Lisa didn’t have a roommate, as far as he knew, and she’d been popular at school. Any number of former classmates could have dropped by….
Like Patsy Oleson.
He stopped in the doorway to the living room to find Aaron’s sister perched in the center of the sofa with a yearbook in her lap. Eunice had one end and reached for a china teacup on a nearby table. It appeared they’d been reliving some fond high school memories—from where he stood, he saw the book opened to a page for a social club, one to which both young women had belonged.
Patsy had changed little since he graduated. She still wore her dark hair in a bob with the ends curled toward her neckline. Same small rectangular-framed glasses, same wide-necked shirts with sleeves down to her elbows. Other guys on the team called her Velma, after Scooby Doo, behind her back, but Cory neither participated nor encouraged the nickname. Bad enough they were indifferent or worse to Winnie.
“Hey, Cory. How’s retirement treating you?” Patsy looked up with a smile and shining brown eyes. He’d always seen her as an honorary kid sister, given how he and Aaron palled around in their youth. He couldn’t quite read her now; all that business with Aaron and Winnie threw him. Patsy might only be friendly with him, and here he stood trying to decide if she was interested in him. If Aaron had planted a bug in her ear that he was single and looking.
“I’m good, though I don’t consider myself retired. I’m hardly done yet.” He scanned the room for another place to stand or sit. Soon his mother would remark on him appearing like he wanted to bolt. In a way, it was true. However, he’d never thought the good living room comfortable. The family rarely used this space for anything other than show, which fortified Cory’s suspicions. Why bring Patsy in here if they didn’t have anything formal in mind? Like him getting on one knee?
He shook the thoughts out of his head. They made no sense.
“Any prospects for the future?” Patsy asked. “Like TV or public speaking?”
“He’s writing a book,” Eunice put in, and Patsy seemed to brighten at that. “Winnie Segal is doing the illustrations for it. I can’t wait to see when it’s done.”
That brought the woman’s eyebrows together in puzzlement until he explained it was a children’s book. “In fact, I have a date with Winnie tonight, and we’re going to work some more.” He hit hard on the word date. Let all the women in house get the gist and realize he was spoken for. Lisa smirked at him in the way only a knowing sibling could. He hadn’t spoken to her in weeks, yet she got it. His mother, too, obviously.
He watched for Patsy’s reaction and saw no shadows of disappointment cross her features. Perhaps he’d let his imagination run away with him. Aaron hadn’t sent her over to feel out her prospects. She was just visiting her old friend from high school and catching up with her big lunkhead brother.
“That’s so exciting. I hope it works out for you,” Patsy said. “Are we talking a picture book, like for beginning readers? I mean, I’d get a copy either way, but Tanner would love it.”
“Tanner?” Lisa asked.
Patsy’s shoulders sagged, and she reached for her purse on the floor. “Yeah, I meant to show you all. Tanner’s my fiance’s son. He just turned four, and he’s adorable.” Out came the phone and two swipes later they were all oohing over snapshots from a recent zoo trip. Talk quickly turned to the ring on Patsy’s finger, which everybody suddenly noticed, and wedding dates and flowers and honeymoon trips. Cory felt the air lighten around him, and he filled his lungs, wanting to grin until his face split.
Patsy had a guy. He had a gal. Aaron had nothing on him.
He moved to excuse himself to get ready for Winnie and wished Patsy all the happiness in the world. “If I don’t see you later, enjoy the homecoming festivities,” he said. “And if I see you from my parade car, I’ll toss you some of the good candy.”
“Oh, I’ll have my own,” Patsy said with a laugh. “I’m riding the restaurant’s float with Dean and Aaron.”
That’s right. Perk Me Up always represented. Last time Cory was in town for homecoming, their “float” was essentially a giant papier–mâché coffee mug in the bed of Dean’s pickup. He understood people took the event seriously these days and even hired out giant parade balloons to walk down the route.
“Speaking of”—Patsy glanced at her phone and set aside the yearbook—“Deano’s expecting me for dinner, mainly because I promised to cook for him tonight.” She laughed. “Lisa, we should meet up tomorrow morning at the café before shopping.”
“I’ll walk you out,” Cory offered, gesturing for his sister and mother to stay put. He remembered he’d left his phone in the car, and he wanted to be available to Winnie in the event she texted.
Patsy flashed him a smile, and he gave her berth to pass through the kitchen after she said her goodbyes. “Your fiancé here, too?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Work has him in Norfolk today. He’ll be along in time for the parade. I can’t wait for the family to meet him, and Tanner. I hope he and Presley get along.” She fished for her keys and with one touch of the fob, the doors of her Jetta unlocked. “He’s a big Cougars fan, too, so you can imagine I’m kind of reluctant to introduce you two.”
Weird. Cory cocked an eyebrow and waited for an explanation.
“If he were to meet you, I’d never hear the end of it. Actually I probably wouldn’t see him at all this week because he’d be over here talking your ear off.” They stood together by her car. In the distance, the sale stands of Levane Farms still had a cluster of customers browsing the available berries and vegetables for sale. He ought to go over there to help out his dad after Patsy left.
“Well, don’t think you’re doing us a favor by keeping him away. I don’t mind if you bring him over, Patsy. You guys are family, and of course I have to meet the guy who wants to marry my unofficial little sis.” He smiled, and she seemed to relax. He appreciated how she tried not to take advantage of his celebrity, and since people in town pretty much treated him like they always had, pre-football fame, he felt comfortable in St. Florence.
Enough to stay for good.
“Give Lisa a ring when he’s in town. I’ll set him up with a signed football,” he offered.
“Oh, he’d flip for that. Thanks!” Patsy lurched closer and dragged Cory into a tight hug. The movement caused him to lose his footing and he stumbled into her, but he quickly sought balance and grasped her arms so they didn’t fall onto the hood of her car.
Patsy kissed his cheek and pulled away. “See ya soon, hon.” Cory waited, catching his breath while she pulled away. Her car kicked up orange dust clouds in its wake as it passed the dirt lot near the produce stands. Man, for a petite woman, Patsy could tackle with the best of them. She ought to have her own Cougars jersey.
He checked the time, deciding to have a look at the stands and see if his father needed assistance. Better to do it now before taking a shower to get ready for his date. They would be closing up for the day soon anyway, so at most he’d probably help secure crates and store any unsold food. By the time he reached the sales area in the yard close to the road, though, he noticed most of the vegetables had been picked over. His father, standing by the portable register, handed a woman a bulging canvas bag.
“I was going to see if you need help, but it looks like y’all have it,” Cory said. He nodded to one of Anthony’s employees, a kid from the high school who was carrying produce to a woman’s car.
“Good day today, not even counting what they sold at the farmers market.” Anthony wiped his brow with a cloth handkerchief, then pointed past Cory to the lot. “Be careful where you step. One young lady must have got a bee in her bonnet. We sold her some corn and grape tomatoes, and she snatched her bag so fast some of them fell out. I called after her, but she seemed rather peeved. Hope it wasn’t something we did.”
“I doubt it.” Chances were, the woman had one of those phone speakers in her ear and she was having an argument with somebody while multi-tasking. Cory had seen plenty of people talking to thin air at Cougar headquarters and in the locker rooms.
He saw where the tiny, oval tomatoes had fallen and went to gather them. “Thanks, son.” Anthony took them in his handkerchief. They couldn’t resell them, so they’d probably end up in compost. “I hate that I couldn’t reach her. I feel like I’ve shorted her.”
“It’s not your fault, Dad.” If anything, it served the customer right for not paying attention. People needed to unplug. He’d gladly get rid of his phone if he didn’t have Winnie to sext.
Speaking of…hopefully. His hip vibrated, and he checked his phone. Not Winnie, but Raymond. His agent. Cory cringed. On his last day in the NFL, he gave Ray specific instructions to wait a month before contacting him. He wanted time to decompress before getting involved in any endorsement deals and appearances, and heaven knew Ray had earned his vacation. Plus, the guy had other clients Cory thought would keep the agent occupied.
Can you talk?
At least Ray posed a question rather than breaking the imposed period of silence. Whatever he had to say must either be crazy lucrative or else Ray had suffered a family emergency. Wishing against the latter, Cory auto-dialed Ray, prepared to ring off if the conversation turned toward an immediate gig.
“What’s this about a children’s book?” To Ray’s credit, he didn’t sound put off by Cory making plans without him. Of course he’d show disappointment for being left out of the loop, but at this point Cory had nothing to share. He doubted Ray knew much about publishing to help him, anyway. He’d need a literary agent.
“Just something to keep me busy while I wait for the rocking chair to be delivered.” Cory started back for the house. Dad and his worker bees had everything under control; Anthony silently shooed him away. “I intend to sit my ass down and watch the leaves turn.”
“Don’t make a habit of it. Everybody wants to know where you are. You got offers from at least twenty of the Forbes 50.”
“To do what?” Surely Ray exaggerated. More than likely a few sporting goods and novelty companies wanted his approval for licensed merchandise like video games and signed balls. He already had the numbered jersey and his face on posters and key chains and other souvenirs. He’d been flattered at the time some of the stuff came out, but after a while it seemed superfluous and irrelevant to the game. His head on a PEZ dispenser? He got a laugh out it, but couldn’t see people actually buying the thing.
“You name it. Your face on a cereal box. Starring in action movies. Morgan’s reading all the scripts coming in.”
“Ray, you know how I feel about that.” He hadn’t been comfortable taking drama in high school. He wasn’t an actor, and the idea of starring in on-demand schlock bothered him. Even thinking of a walk-on as himself in a sitcom gave him hives.
“Fine, no movies, but with Matty Rose retiring, there’s talk of getting you to replace him.”
“What?” Now Cory knew Ray was yanking his chain. Matty and Milly Live was a daytime television institution. On summer days out of school, he and his sisters would sit with their mom and watch the two talk show hosts banter and interview movie stars. “That’s absurd. I have zero experience in journalism, or acting. I can think of ten people more qualified than me to host a talk show.” Make it fifty.
“Don’t sell yourself short, Cory. You were one of the most personable players in the NFL. You were a great interview, people love you, and damned if you didn’t break hearts when you left. Doesn’t it make sense your fans don’t want you to disappear?”
“Well, I get it, but I need a bre—”
“You gotta weigh your options. Long life ahead of you…you’ll need the paycheck. You haven’t been this hot since the Super Bowl.”
Cory considered that. He didn’t expect to sit on his ass for the next fifty years, but had planned to forget about a high-profile life. Co-hosting a talk show meant moving to New York and working twelve-hour days. Sitting under blinding lights in a studio and making nice with everybody. He mingled with celebrities as a pro player, but often he had to deal with obnoxious actors and clingy starlets. The thought of fending one off before an audience made him cringe.
“Actually, I would prefer to find something closer to home. Richmond or Charlottesville.” College sports, that’s the ticket. “DC, if I have to.” When his phone fell silent he added. “I’ll still need an agent for some things, yeah.”
“You’re not ready to talk,” Ray said.
“Right. Give me a break. It’s homecoming week here, and they want me for the parade. That’s the only gig I’m doing at the moment.”
“And this children’s book.” Ray cleared his throat. “Nothing wrong with that. You wouldn’t be the first athlete to write for kids. In fact”—something rustled on the other end—“if you expand one book into a series there’s potential for good money. Subsidiary rights for a kid’s show, like a cartoon.”
“Ray.”
“Whatever it’s about, you might think about something with superheroes. Something with franchise appeal. Make yourself a character and we can—”
“Ray.” Cory spoke calmly, breaking into the rapid motor that was his agent. “I’m just taking it easy with the book thing. All I did was jot down a few lines, and my friend is illustrating it. I’m trying to figure out how you heard about it in the first place.”
“Twitter.” Well, duh. “Cory, I got all my clients on social media alerts. Somebody says something about you online, I hear it.”
Aaron came to mind at that point. Just like his friend to share news and bask in being the first to know. Meh. Maybe he was being unfair. Marcy might have Twitter and could have said something about it being her idea.
He wondered, had anybody said something online about him and Winnie? He kept no such social app on his phone, like he cared to get sucked into that world.
“You think that’s a good idea, having a friend draw it?” Ray asked. “Some of these publishers, they have people for that. They might take a look and redo the whole thing. No sense in putting an amateur through the work to no result.”
“Hey, Winnie’s no amateur. She runs her own design business, and the pages she’s done so far are awesome,” Cory said, heat rising around his neck. “If any publisher tells me to ditch her work, the book doesn’t get published. No other options.”
“Fine. Didn’t mean to irk you, son.”
Funny, since Ray seemed to make it part of the job.
“Listen, talking with you is always a pleasure, but I have a date tonight.” Crap. Ray would want more details. His agent equated Cory’s personal life to promotional opportunities. The right woman by his side meant big bucks for something or other. It was why he’d been paired with Charmaine in the past, but Cory wanted more than a magazine cover relationship.
Ray would have to accept that Cory wanted Winnie. Let him spin it into an American hero falls for childhood sweetheart angle, for all Cory cared.
“Let me call you when I’m ready to get back to business, okay? Thanks, Ray.” He rang off before Ray got in a word and resumed his path toward the house. Shower, nice clothes and an even nicer evening with his lady friend waited.
***
Odd. Cory was super early. Winnie had just finished folding laundry and vacuuming the living room and hallway. A light sheen of sweat coated her, and she wanted a shower before he arrived. What possessed him to arrive an hour before the agreed-upon time baffled her, unless his parents drove him so nuts he had to escape.
It irked her, but in a way she felt happy. His unplanned appearance could lead to a hot shower scene for both of them when she insisted she still needed to freshen up. They’d certainly save a few bucks on takeout if that happened.
“Hang on a sec!” she called out, and pulled the loose neck of her T-shirt away to let in some air. The housework had left her more parched than she realized. No time to check for smudges, either, but oh well. Such was real love, warts and all.
The shape distorted by the beveled glass on her front door wasn’t large enough to be Cory. Winnie recognized the profile, and she greeted her cousin with a smile. “Hey, what’s up?”
Marcy, arms laden with grocery bags, stormed past her with a grunt. Well, hello to you, too. Zeppo skittered in between the women, whining and wagging. He obviously smelled food in Auntie Marcy’s possession and assumed she’d brought him something. In the kitchen, Marcy slammed down the bags and a few loose fruits and veggies rolled onto the counter. One berry got to the floor but Winnie wasn’t able to retrieve it before Zeppo lapped it up.
“Hand me a napkin, in case he spits it out.” Thanks goodness it wasn’t chocolate. Regardless of Marcy’s mood, they’d have words if her cousin endangered her little buddy.
“I was at Levane Farms picking up stuff for the church potluck,” Marcy said. “You know they sell better stuff there than at the farmers market.”
Winnie saw no difference in the produce but said nothing. It didn’t seem like the proper point of debate.
Marcy took out her phone and called up an app. “So I’m paying for my food and out of the big house comes Cory, with Patsy Oleson.”
So? “Oh-kay. And that has you all perturbed for some reason? Patsy and Lisa were tight in high school, and the Olesons and Levanes are friends. She was probably paying a visit.”
“More like she was all over Cory like a cheap cheerleader outfit.” Marcy flashed a photo taken of Cory’s parents’ house by the back kitchen entrance. Though snapped from a distance, it clearly showed Cory and Patsy in a clinch, and not the kind with a surprised and uninterested man. Cory’s hands spanned Patsy’s slim waist while the younger woman stood on tiptoe to bury her face in his neck. Without context, the picture had the look of a couple madly in love posing for a romcom movie poster.
There had to be an explanation, though. Cory let her know there was nobody else in his life, and Aaron…oh, Aaron. Winnie saw his fingerprints all over the scene.
She leaned on the counter and help Marcy right her groceries in the bags. “Did you go over and say hello? I mean, you were friends with Patsy, too, and she doesn’t come to town much. I figure you’d have walked up to them and caught up on the good old days.”
“I was so angry, I stormed off. I know I spilled some tomatoes, too. I could hear Mr. Levane calling after me, but I was afraid I’d turn around and sock Cory in the face. Not good for their business.” Marcy made a face.
“Marce.” Winnie sighed, “you shouldn’t assume anything untoward between them happened.” If, big if, Cory wanted to fool around while in town, Winnie hoped he’d at least show some discretion. The idea she thought of it as a possibility irked her, too.
Should she say something to Cory when he got here? He’d have an explanation, and probably would feel hurt Winnie suspected him of duplicity after he’d come to the farmers market to clear the air. She appreciated how Marcy had her back but believed if her cousin had just stuck around the farm she’d have come away with the truth.
Marcy opened the fridge and rooted around for a soda. Nice. She was about to make herself at home, and Winnie still needed to shower and change before her date. Heaven forbid her irate cousin still be here to answer the door when Cory arrived. “Uh, Marce,” she said, “why don’t you take that to go? I have to get ready.”
“You really aren’t going out with him, are you?” Marcy’s head shot up and the cracking sound of an opening can punctuated the question. “All that with Aaron needling you this morning. What if it was true? Patsy looks like Cory’s ex, so maybe he’s out for more of the same.”
“I know you’re upset, but you don’t know the whole story, and you don’t really know Cory all too well, either.” Winnie handed Marcy a paper towel for the soda and gathered the produce. She started for the door, hoping her cousin would follow. “I don’t get this sudden one-eighty. It seemed like the other week you nudged us together,” she called over her shoulder.
“Because you deserve a guy with the means to keep you comfortable, and happy. I mean, the average age of the single man in St. Florence has got to be sixty-five.” Marcy grimaced. It took a minute, but she slowly loped up the hallway with Zeppo trailing her. “I also saw how his eyes were glued to you the entire time he was at the booth, and I figured I didn’t have a chance in hell.”
“So you let me ‘have’ him. How benevolent of you.” Winnie rolled her eyes and reached for the door. “Thank you so much.”
“Winnie, that’s not what I meant,” Marcy said, annoyed. She took the bags, but not before offering a one-armed hug. “You are awesome, and you deserve the best. I guess, after seeing that hug, I am not sure if Cory is good enough.”
“I never liked that sentiment, where a person has to be good enough for another person. If we’re all good in general, we don’t have to put up fronts. We can be ourselves.” Winnie didn’t want to volunteer more than that. She knew Cory had been honest with her since they reconnected, and she hated how Aaron, and even her own cousin, influenced her to second-guess her instincts.
If she and Cory eventually drifted apart, then such was life. She wanted the opportunity to explore the possibilities herself without asking “what if” a decade down the road.
“Win, I’m sorry.” Marcy held the soda like she hadn’t realized she’d opened it. Winnie took it from her and set it on a nearby table. “I don’t want your heart broken.”
“My heart is fine. I’ll call later if it will make you feel better.” She and her cousin hugged, and Winnie hoped to make this visit short.
Marcy said her goodbyes, and Winnie watched her retreat down the path to her car before closing the door. Such was life. What happened, happened. Winnie started toward the shower, feeling heavier than before. She liked the idea of a fun relationship but anticipating a breakup cast a pall over her mood, especially since Cory seemed nowhere inclined to want one.
For that matter, did she really want to keep things casual between them? Winnie glanced at her bedroom—smallish and suitable for a single woman, but renovations would allow a married couple to live here comfortably.
Unless Cory wanted to buy a house elsewhere in town. Assuming he wanted to marry her after little more than a week of dating, after fifteen years of non-communication. And before that…listening to Aaron Oleson and the like when his heart allegedly nudged at him to talk to her.
Winnie shook her head to dislodge the seeds of doubt planted in her mind.