by Jillian Dodd
“I see the other lights are hung. Why don’t you let the company setting it up do that?”
“The tent company has already left,” she huffs. “I knew I should have checked every detail before I signed off on it. They did the ceiling but neglected to do the sides. Your sister wants the place to glow. The crazy thing is, they left the lights, just didn’t hang them.”
“Do you want me to call them? Get them to come back?”
My mother sighs at me. “Do you think I would be standing on a ladder, doing this myself, on the morning of my daughter’s wedding, if I hadn’t already tried that? I’m not an idiot, you know. I’ve been running this household, this farm, and planning numerous large events for years. Your sister talked me into hiring a wedding planner so that I could relax, but as you can see, she’s nowhere to be found.”
“She’s in the garden, helping the florists with the ceremony stuff. Probably since that’s first and all.”
“Don’t get sassy with me, Vale,” she says. “I’m under enough stress as it is already. Either grab some lights and help or go somewhere else.”
I leave my mother’s side, pushing my hand against the side of my jeans so that I don’t pull it up into a mock salute and really piss her off, and go pick up a string of lights. It’s a long, horizontal string that has multiple strings of lights that hang vertically from it.
“Where are the boys?” Raine asks me as I climb up a stepladder. “I’ve tried texting Seth, but he hasn’t replied.”
“I’m not sure. I know Dad and AJ wanted to show Carter around before they hit the golf course.”
“It doesn’t seem fair,” Brooke says. “Here we are, setting things up. Then, we have to sit through hair and makeup. What do they do? They take a tour of the farm and go golfing.”
“Maybe they need to relax after all that cornhole and flag football,” Raine teases. “Poor, tired babies.”
I can think of one man who most certainly worked hard yesterday, and I’m not talking about the games.
“We should call them,” I suggest.
“Already tried,” Lakelyn says, joining us. She lowers her voice to a whisper. “No one is answering. Honestly, Mom is freaking out over this. There’s no reason it has to be done right this minute when the reception is hours away.”
“Well, I’m assuming she doesn’t want to do it once she’s all ready,” I suggest, surprised that I’m standing up for her.
“The lights are pretty,” Lakelyn says.
“They are, and everything should be pretty today. And you, little miss, should be in the house, feet up, mimosa in hand, doing nothing but dreaming of your honeymoon.”
“We’re not going on a honeymoon for a while. The draft is coming up. And I have finals.”
“Okay, so when you go on a honeymoon later, where are you going?” I ask her.
“No idea. AJ is in charge of it. And he says it depends on how big his signing bonus is. We want to get moved to our new city, then go on our honeymoon. Relax and enjoy ourselves after all the stress of that is over.” She shakes her head and smiles. “Lots of change coming our way.”
“Change is exciting,” I say.
“Does that mean we might see you around here more often?” Brooke asks.
“Maybe,” I say, but I’m not sure I mean it.
Mom comes over to where we are chatting. “This isn’t going fast enough. Call your father.”
“He’s off with the boys, and they have golf soon.”
She gives me a look. “I absolutely don’t care what they have planned. These lights are going to get hung. Now.”
“Uh, I’ll call them,” I say as she exits the tent in a huff.
Just like me.
Carter
“See this here piece of equipment?” Mr. Martin says to me as he gestures toward a large combine. “It’s always funny, seeing them Hollywood types bragging about their fancy Lambos and Ferraris like they’re better than everyone else. And I got this sitting here, which cost more than both, and I only use it once a year. You look like the Ferrari type, Carter.”
“I don’t have a Ferrari, sir,” I respectfully reply.
“He’s got a Bentley,” AJ clarifies with a grin, and I find myself wishing we hadn’t talked about my toys on the way back from the bachelor party. I didn’t think he’d even remember.
“Same difference,” Mr. Martin says.
“Not really, sir,” AJ counters. “A Bentley is more subtle. Carter isn’t about flash regardless of his net worth. Though I’ve heard he has his own plane—a pretty new Gulfstream. Now, that cost a lot more than this fine piece of machinery.”
“What is this, some pissing match?” Mr. Martin scowls at me.
“With all due respect, sir,” AJ says, “you started it.”
The man starts laughing. “I guess I did. But what do you expect? He got engaged to my daughter and hadn’t asked for my permission.” He cuffs AJ on the shoulder. “At least you did it the right way.”
“I’m sorry, sir,” I say. “I wasn’t raised that way. The engagement was … never mind.”
“No, tell me.”
I find myself blurting out the truth, the story I’ve never admitted to anyone, not even my own family. I told them I chickened out. That the timing wasn’t right.
“I was crazy about Vale from the moment I met her, but with our busy work schedules, our relationship was what I’d guess you’d call casual dating. We would hang out whenever we could. I went to Fashion Week with her and invited her to join me on our family vacation. It felt like things could be more, but after that, we just fell back into our old routine. I was worried if I pushed, I might lose her. And in that process, I might have given off an air of ambivalence about it.
“I wanted to prove my love, so I had a ring made. I had every intention of calling or meeting you before I proposed, but then my older brother got married at Christmastime. I was inspired by their love, and I wanted that for myself.
“Vale invited me to her New Year’s Eve party in New York. I told her that I wasn’t sure if I could make it because I wanted to surprise her by showing up and proposing at midnight as the ball dropped. Which, in retrospect, was probably not the smartest thing I’ve ever done.”
“Why not?” AJ asks.
“Well, when I got there, unfortunately, she was kissing another man.” I take a deep breath. “I took it as a sign. Turned around and left.”
“Tucked your tail and ran away? Huh,” Mr. Martin says. “That, I wouldn’t have expected from you. I saw you win the Heisman. Watched you play in the Rose Bowl against my beloved Hawkeyes. You were one hell of a quarterback. Expected to go first round in the draft. Picked our defense apart. The score was embarrassing for us. You were ranked first. We were second. But it was no contest. Even after you were carted off the field.”
He turns to AJ again. “That’s why I worry about you going pro. You could get injured and not be able to provide for your family. What will you do then? Why not just work at the bank with me? Or on the farm, like Seth? Or maybe one of the dealerships?”
“We’ve had this conversation before,” AJ says. “And you know my signing bonus alone should be enough that I will be able to take care of your daughter financially for the rest of our lives, no matter what happens.
“Carter here is a good example of that. He could have gone pro after his junior year and probably should have, but he stayed in school and got his degree, just like I did. I could have been hurt. Hell, I could have gotten in a car wreck or flipped my four-wheeler.
“We never know what will happen. But I love playing football. I’m good at it. It’s my passion. And it’s what I want to do with my life.” He pauses and looks his future father-in-law straight in the eye. And I have an immediate respect for the kid.
“Your daughter, who I love and would do just about anything for, is fully supportive of this endeavor.”
“You still planning to use your uncle in your contract negotiations?” Mr. Martin asks him.
My ears perk up in surprise, but I keep my mouth shut.
“My dad is pretty adamant about it,” AJ says. “He’s a tight ass, like you, says I’d be stupid to give a percentage to an agent when my uncle could review my contract.”
Mr. Martin shakes his head. “I might be a tight ass, but there’s one thing I never cut corners on, and that’s a good lawyer.” He sticks a piece of hay in his mouth and turns to me. “What do you think, Carter? You’re supposed to be some highfalutin sports agent, which is really just a very specialized attorney, right?”
“Yes, I suppose that’s right. I do a lot more for our clients than a typical attorney though.”
“Like what?” AJ asks.
I know this is more for Mr. Martin’s benefit than his since we’ve already had this conversation. He wants to show his future father-in-law my worth—and maybe help influence his own father somehow.
“I consider myself a hub on the wheel of my clients’ businesses. I work with and recommend financial advisors so they can safely invest their money and accountants who specialize in the industry and understand the best tax shelters. I always help my clients get settled into the city they are drafted or traded to. I’ve dealt with crazy ex-girlfriends, money-grubbing relatives, paternity suits, and stalkers. I have a personal relationship with those I represent.”
“He’s also Danny Diamond’s agent,” AJ adds.
“I hear Danny’s an upstanding man,” Mr. Martin says.
“He is,” I agree.
“Most agents go for any client they can get but not Carter,” AJ adds. “He has a small but highly successful group of clients.”
“How do you do that?” Mr. Martin says, tilting his head at me.
“Because of all the things that I mentioned above, that means I get involved with my clients on a personal level. So, I choose people that I mesh with. Good men and women—on and off the field.”
“So, why aren’t you working with AJ here?” He kicks a little dirt in AJ’s direction. “I don’t like most people, but I do like him.”
“Because I was told he already has representation,” I say simply.
“Do you think hiring his uncle is a smart move?” Mr. Martin asks me.
“No, I don’t. But it’s not my decision to make.”
“Dad,” Vale calls out from behind me, her voice sounding stressed.
I turn around and am struck by how beautiful she looks.
I know she thinks she doesn’t belong here, yet she looks so at home. Her hair is down and curling at the ends. The light jeans she’s wearing fit her snugly. A white lace top is tied in a knot at the waist. The whole outfit is modest, but it certainly doesn’t hide her sexiness.
She’s moving toward us when her dad says, “We just heard that Carter was going to propose to you on New Year’s Eve but got there and found you necking with another man. How is it you’re engaged now? What happened in between?”
Vale looks at me, her eyes wide, but she quickly hides it and says, “We’ll have to talk about that later. Mom needs your help in the tent before she has a breakdown over some twinkle lights not getting strung.”
“Well then, we’d better hop to it. When that woman sets her mind to something, there’s no denying her. She keeps me on a tight rope.” He turns to AJ. “You’d better head to the golf course. We don’t want you to accidentally see Lakelyn and jinx things.”
“No, sir. I’d be in big trouble.”
“We’ll be right behind you,” Vale says to her dad. She looks equally shocked at both what he said about her mother and what he said about the proposal.
She drags me away, but the second we are out of earshot of AJ, she stops and asks, “Is what he said really true?”
“Yeah, it is actually,” I admit. “Cade and Palmer had gotten married, and I planned this big surprise moment. I timed it perfectly. Literally, I would have pulled you into my arms at midnight, kissed you, and then dropped down on one knee. Just like in your dream.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?! I didn’t think you were coming to the party. I thought you’d stood me up. I was sad. Pissed actually. I was kissing some random guy. It didn’t mean anything.”
“His hands looked very comfortable all over your ass. He wasn’t just some random guy,” I counter.
“Fine, I mean, we had hooked up before, but I wasn’t serious about him.”
“Just like me, apparently.”
And even though I don’t want to, I walk away. Just like I did then. Because it hurts too much.
Especially after last night.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Candidate for sainthood.
Carter
I suck at golf right now, and it’s a game I take pride in. But my head and my heart are aching so badly that I can barely concentrate. After the sex we shared last night, I hoped we maybe could start over. But then I stupidly told her dad the truth about the proposal, and he turned right around and told her.
And I got mad all over again.
“I swear, I’m usually much better at this.” I run a hand over the back of my neck, wincing at my terrible performance.
AJ snickers. “You look nervous. Like you’re the one getting married later.”
“How in the world are you so cool right now?”
His game has been impeccable.
He shrugs, looking out over the rolling expanse of green all around us. “That’s easy. Today makes the most sense out of anything I’ve ever done in my life.”
He pulls a couple of beers from the cooler on the back of the golf cart, handing one to me. Blake and Seth are a hole behind us while Jake is in the middle of setting up a putt.
“I’ve gotta say, when you showed up here, the first thing I thought was that you were here to sign me. But you don’t seem interested.”
“What makes you feel that way?”
He shrugs. “We talked when you first got here, and you were helpful. You didn’t have that whole shark thing going on. If you know what I mean.”
I do, so I nod.
“Then, we had that conversation earlier today. I think you convinced Mr. Martin. I’m sure he feels a lot better now, if only for Lakelyn’s sake. You explained what you do, but you weren’t pushing. You weren’t trying to sell yourself.”
“I don’t push, AJ. I don’t have to. All that needs to be done is to explain what I bring to the table. I like working with smart people who understand my value.” I give him a nudge. “Besides, that’s not why I’m here.”
He still looks troubled. “It’s just that I’m worried my uncle will be insulted, which will piss my dad off. He’s only interested in me keeping more money.”
“Or, with all due respect, your uncle could put up a fuss, and a team will get so sick of dealing with someone who’s not professional that you’ll still be waiting to sign when the season has started. Seen that happen many times. Also, teams have salary caps. He can’t negotiate that much on your earnings. But honestly, it’s not what’s in the contract that concerns me. It’s what might not be.”
“Like what?”
“For instance, standard contracts don’t always contain clauses for what happens if you get hurt. What if you’re placed on injured reserve? What if they try to fire you? With cause or without. Will there be performance bonuses? Are they team or individual?” I have to chuckle in sympathy at the frown he’s wearing now.
“I’m not trying to overwhelm you. I’ve just seen situations like this play out before. And it typically isn’t good for the player. And I’m only scratching the surface. There are so many variables in each sport, even across individual teams. I’ve dealt with those things either through my own clients or I’ve heard about them through the agency I’m affiliated with. What you’re getting with a good agent is all that experience.”
I lower my voice a little, remembering our earlier conversation. “I know you said your dad believes you’re a fool to give a percentage to an agent, but here’s a question for him. How much money are y
ou leaving on the table if you sign a contract that doesn’t cover everything? Bonuses, injury pay, all of it could be lost. Not to mention, the other situations I described earlier. Getting my clients out of trouble, dealing with fans who don’t know what boundaries mean, helping them manage their money.” I give him a smile. “Every one of my clients will tell you that I’m worth every penny.”
“As far as I’m concerned, you’re the guy I want. But it feels very complicated.”
“Then, uncomplicate it. You have to stop playing the role of a child and stand up for yourself, your wife, and your future family. It’s great to go to people you trust for advice, but ultimately, it’s your decision, and you and Lakelyn are the ones who have to live with the consequences of that decision.”
He takes a pull of his beer. “Lakelyn didn’t want this big of a wedding. I’m not complaining, and I know she wouldn’t either. The Martins have been so generous. But it’s because it’s what they wanted. Not what she did.”
“Does that bother you?” I ask.
“Yeah, it does. I want her to have everything she dreams of. Not have her dreams forced on her.”
“Then, it sounds like you’d better start being a man. If you want me to represent you, I will. But it’s your decision to make, and I won’t pressure you.”
“Vale’s lucky to have found you.” He laughs. “Or maybe I’m lucky you found Vale. Either way, glad you’re going to be part of the family.”
It’s in that moment that I realize I should not take him as a client. I pride myself on my integrity. And I’m lying to him right now. Not the best way to start off a relationship.
Why didn’t I say no to her when she showed up at my doorstep?
Probably because she was literally down on her knees.
And because I’m still in love with her.
And probably because I’m an idiot.
“What’s the holdup?” I can see Blake waiting to tee off, shouting with his hands cupped around his mouth. “Do we have to play through?”
“Man”—Jake laughs, joining us—“I feel sorry for the girl who thinks she can handle him one day. Poor girl will have to be a candidate for sainthood.”