by Barbara Gee
On his first day, during the facilities tour, Tug had been totally intrigued by the idea of playing hockey on a sled. Being an athlete at heart, and one who enjoyed the camaraderie of others, he’d missed the team sports he’d grown up with. He’d watched Charlie Jansen, a former retreat participant and now head counselor at the center, demonstrating his considerable hockey skills on a sled, and decided he wanted to give it a try. Boone had instructed Vince to work one-on-one with the man, getting his sled set up for his measurements, and showing him the basics of using it.
“Does he have the potential to be a good player?” Callie asked.
“It’s probably too early to say, but he sure has the determination. Charlie’s going to do some work with him after hours, but in the daytime sessions, I’ll be running drills with him and a few others who are real serious about learning to play. It’s so rewarding to work with them, Callie. Seeing their will to succeed, in spite of their disabilities, makes me want to work that much harder on my own game.”
Callie loved seeing Vince’s enthusiasm. She was pretty sure he and Boone had a lot to do with why the veterans were so motivated to excel, and she hoped she got a chance to see them in action at the rink soon.
They went inside the stable and made their way to Edison’s stall. The horse stuck his head over the door eagerly.
“Hey, big guy. You been waiting for me?” Vince asked, stroking the horse’s nose. “Were you feeling left out ’cause Quinn didn’t take you outside today?”
“Go ahead and bring him to the tack area,” Callie said, smiling when Edison blew in Vince’s ear. “I’m going to give you a timed quiz on getting him saddled and bridled.”
“I thrive under pressure,” Vince said confidently, his smile flashing.
Fifteen minutes later he’d passed the test, mounted like an old pro, and they were riding out the back doors of the barn.
“We can take it at a walk as long as you like,” Callie said, smiling as she always did at the sight of the wide open fields spreading before them. “Just tell me when you’re ready to run.”
Callie enjoyed watching him get reacquainted with the movement of the horse beneath him, gradually relaxing and showing his natural grace again. Pretty soon he looked over at her, his eyes shadowed by his hat. She thought he was going to say something, but then his lips curved up and he dug his heels unexpectedly into Edison’s sides.
“Ready to run,” he called as his horse took off, getting a huge head start.
It took a second for his illegal start to register with Callie, but when it did she and Leo lunged forward in pursuit, rapidly closing the distance between the fleeing Vince. She gave him a wave as they easily passed his much older and slower horse, pulling a quarter of a mile ahead before she finally reigned in and turned around to wait for them.
“Really, Callie?” he asked when they finally came alongside. “You couldn’t at least pretend to let me win?”
She waggled her finger at him. “Letting someone win isn’t doing them any favors. Didn’t your parents teach you that?”
“They taught it, and modeled it. Never, ever play a board game with Linda Abbot.” He reached out and patted Edison’s sweaty neck. “I love this old guy, but next time, I want a faster horse.”
Callie laughed. “You’re probably ready for one. There goes my advantage.”
“I don’t need an advantage, I just need to have a reasonable chance.”
“The consummate competitor,” she drawled.
“Guilty.” He grinned at her and Callie felt her heart skip a few beats. When he pushed his hat back so she could see his eyes, it skipped again. “I’ve been looking forward to this all day,” he said. “Working the rink is great, but I couldn’t wait to see you.”
She swallowed past the lump his words put in her throat. “I’m glad. I couldn’t wait either.”
He grinned. “The only thing that’ll be slightly disappointing is if supper doesn’t live up to that incredible smell in your kitchen,” he teased. “It was dessert, right? Cake or something?”
“Mmm hmm. And what if it doesn’t live up to the smell? Will you tell me, or just pretend it’s all great?”
He frowned. “I guess I haven’t thought that far.”
Callie laughed at his worried expression. “I don’t think you’ll be disappointed, but if I ever do make anything you don’t like, I’d much rather you tell me so I know not to make it again.”
“Deal. But I’ll do it in a really nice way.”
“Of course you will,” she said, never doubting it. She reached down and patted Leo’s neck. “You want to let these guys run again?”
“Depends if you’re going to leave me in the dust.”
“I’ll try to hold my boy back.”
They cantered to the barn at Edison’s pace, then brushed the horses and left them happily munching hay.
Back at the house, Callie sent Vince to the living room to keep Jeremiah company while she finished up the meal. She brushed more barbecue sauce on the meatballs, tested the potatoes to see if they were cooked thoroughly, and put on the beans. The men wandered in as she was getting out plates and silverware, and Vince insisted on setting the table for her. She actually heard his stomach growl when he walked past, which caused her to laugh and assure him everything was ready, and there was plenty of it.
He helped her carry over the food, then Jeremiah said grace, and they dug in. With the amount of food Vince consumed, Callie was pretty sure he was telling the truth when he told her it was all delicious. He finished off a huge portion of strawberry shortcake, then helped with the cleanup. He actually offered to do it all himself, since she’d done all the cooking, but she preferred to do it together.
Jeremiah stayed at the table and talked to them while they worked, then retired to his recliner. Callie gave Vince a hopeful look. “Do you think now would be a good time for you to try to convince him he doesn’t have to worry about things around here? Or whatever it is that’s causing him stress?”
Vince folded his arms and looked pensive.
Callie leaned against the counter, hoping she wasn’t asking too much. “I know he might not want to talk, and that’s fine. It’s just that I could tell he had a lot on his mind today. He obviously doesn’t want to share it with me, but maybe he will with you. I think it might have to do with finances. Which is weird, because just a few days ago he told me everything’s in good shape, and that’s what the books are saying too.”
“I can sit down with him and see how it goes,” Vince said, “but if it’s something he doesn’t want you to know, I won’t be able to share it with you, even if he does tell me.”
She nodded quickly. “I understand that. I don’t need to know, I just want you to assure him that whatever it is, it’s not worth making himself miserable over. He doesn’t need to worry about anything except trying to feel better.”
He nodded. “Yeah, okay. Give us a little while alone and I’ll see what I can do.”
***
Vince joined Jeremiah in the living room, settling down in a corner of the loveseat across from the man’s beloved recliner. He told him Callie needed to get a little more work done in the kitchen, and for a while they just chatted about things like how the riding was coming and what kinds of things Vince was helping with at the retreat center.
Vince had just finished describing a typical day there when Jeremiah fixed him with an intent stare.
“I’m glad they’re keeping you busy. They do good work there. Now, enough with the small talk.” He folded his arms. “Tell me, Vince, what are your intentions toward Callie?” he asked bluntly.
Vince had known that question would surface eventually, and he met the man’s gaze without flinching. “I think you know, Jeremiah. I’m falling hard for her. This has been one of the best weeks of my life.”
He looked down, picturing Callie’s face the first time he’d seen her, then again last night when he’d been about to kiss her, and then at dinner a little while ago,
when she’d watched him take the first bite of the food she’d prepared, anxious to see if he’d like it.
“I’ve never met anyone like her, and I seriously doubt I ever will,” he stated, meeting the other man’s gaze again and shaking his head, still amazed by how deeply he felt. “I probably don’t deserve her, but I’d be a fool not to try.”
Jeremiah nodded. “That’s the truth, too. My girl’s the whole package.” He gave a low laugh. “You’re not the first one to figure that out, either. Seems like every man in a fifty mile radius has come sniffing around at one time or another. A few of them even managed to get a date with her. Don’t think any got more than one or two, though. She’s as picky as they come.”
“I wondered about that,” Vince admitted. There was just no way a girl like Callie hadn’t had a slew of opportunities.
Jeremiah grunted. “I figured someone would catch her eye eventually. Just didn’t expect it to be a hockey player who never stepped foot on a ranch till now.”
Vince nodded slowly. “The hockey playing complicates things. I realize that.”
“I imagine you also realize she’s been gobsmacked as hard as you, and she’s feeling real torn right now. It’s making her do a lot of thinking.”
“I understand.” Vince leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. He’d done a lot of thinking too, and every scenario he’d come up with involved some kind of sacrifice. Mostly on Callie’s part, unfortunately, because he was under contract and had basically no flexibility from the middle of September until May or June, depending on how deep the team went in the play-offs.
It would get at least a little messy, there was no doubt about that. Part of him believed he was being selfish for not walking away from this before she had to make a painful choice, and the other part thought taking the decision away from her would be worse. He had to trust that Callie knew what she wanted, and if she changed her mind about it being him, she’d let him know. Until that happened—and he hoped it never did—he was going to keep fighting for her. Doing everything he could to make it work.
He looked at the man across from him, the person who loved Callie more than anything in the world.
“You know her best, Jeremiah,” he said earnestly. “Do you have any advice for me?”
Jeremiah reclined his chair a little further and folded his hands across his stomach. “What’s your gut telling you, son?”
Vince didn’t hesitate. “It’s telling me she could be the one. I know it won’t be easy to make it work, and this surely isn’t what I was expecting when I decided to spend the off-season at the retreat center. But I'm not sorry I met her.”
“And if I tell you I don’t see any way this can go without her feeling some kind of hurt?”
Vince rubbed a hand along his jaw. “You mean because she’ll end up having to choose between me and the Double Nickel?” he asked, finally verbalizing the problem that was staring them in the face.
“That’s the biggest issue, wouldn’t you agree?”
“I do, and I hate it.” Vince got up and paced to a window, then turned to face Jeremiah again. “I don’t want to make her choose, I hope you believe that. I know how she feels about the ranch. I’ve seen it. It’s in her blood, and it always will be.”
“Yet you’ll take her away from it, if she’ll go with you?”
Vince met the man’s gaze, knowing the thought of his granddaughter leaving the ranch had to be a painful one. He had to answer honestly, though. Jeremiah deserved that.
“If she chooses me, I hope it’s because she believes I can make her even happier than the ranch can. That’s what I would try to do, Jeremiah. Every day, that’s what I’d try to do.” He went and sat back down. “She wouldn’t have to cut ties completely, you know. If things work out for us, we could be here during the summers, and move back permanently when I’m done with hockey. The timing of that would be something we’d decide together.”
“It would be real tough to keep this place going without the owner here.”
“Tough…..as in financially tough?” Vince asked, frowning. “Because I can help with that. I’d want to do that.”
Jeremiah’s bristly gray brows drew together. “That could be downright expensive at times. Even a normal year might not be much above break-even, if you consider the cost of the staff to replace Callie and me. Then there’s the risk of a bad crop year, where a lot of feed would have to be bought. And the price of beef can go way up or way down without much notice. When it goes down, you could be looking at being out a pile of money. That happens from time to time, too. It’s unavoidable. Of course we have boom years sometimes, too. But they seem to be few and far between.”
Vince shrugged. “Maybe we should talk actual numbers sometime, but I’m pretty sure the bad years won’t be anything I can’t cover.”
Jeremiah looked skeptical. “Hockey players make that much money?”
“I do pretty well,” Vince replied.
“Well dang,” the other man said, almost as if to himself. “Here I thought I’d figured out what to do about that thing I’ve been worrying on. Then I find out you’re rich.”
Vince wasn’t sure what his financial situation had to do with the decision Jeremiah had been fretting about, but he could at least assure the man Callie wouldn’t have to walk away from the Double Nickel for good.
“I won’t let her lose the ranch, I promise you that,” he said, hoping Jeremiah could see his sincerity. “If Callie feels the same way about me as I do her, or grows to feel that way in time, I want her with me. But I’d never ask her to give up the Double Nickel forever. Did you really think I would?”
The older man shrugged tiredly. “I figured you’d let her make the choice, and then you’d both accept the consequences, whatever they were.”
“Well, losing the ranch won’t be one of the consequences to us being together.” Vince assured him.
Jeremiah managed a smile at that. “Glad to hear it, son. I like the idea of my great-grandkids running around here.”
Vince chuckled. “That’s looking waaaaay out in the future.”
“Yep, but it’s all stuff that needs to be considered.”
“I agree.” Vince sat forward, clasping his hands between his knees. “We’re both praying about this, Jeremiah. Neither of us expected to be ‘gobsmacked,’ as you put it, but we’re trying to do it right. I hope you can trust it’ll work out, and not worry about Callie too much. She doesn’t want you to have any extra stress right now.”
“I’ll always worry about my girl, but if you’re the one who can make her happy, I’m not gonna fight it, ranch or no ranch.” The man’s eyes sharpened. “I might ask for something in return, though, and I’d be real disappointed if you refuse the request of a dying man.”
Jeremiah’s eyes crinkled at the corners when he grinned, and Vince chuckled. “Now you’re playing dirty,” he accused.
“A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do,” Jeremiah said unrepentantly.
“Okay, lay it on me.”
The man went silent, and after a minute, Vince prodded him. “Are we back to the decision you’ve talked about before?”
Jeremiah nodded. “I’m still going back and forth on it, and at this rate I’m going to run out of time. That’s why I’m thinking I might pass the decision on to you.”
Vince narrowed his eyes, a feeling of dread creeping in. “Wait a second. If you can’t decide, what makes you think I’ll be able to?”
“You could maybe see it from a more objective point of view.” Jeremiah shifted in his chair, wincing slightly. “I wish like the dickens I’d never found the thing that’s put me in this awful position.”
Vince saw raw pain in the man’s eyes before he pressed his thumb and forefinger against them, blocking his expression. Strangely enough, Vince didn’t think it was physical pain he’d seen, which indicated that the decision causing Jeremiah so much stress was indeed something he needed to let go of, just as Callie had said. Before it too
k more of a toll.
“If this has to do with the viability of the ranch, then like I said, I can help.”
“It has to do with everything,” Jeremiah rasped, “but I’m not quite ready to talk about it yet. If I decide to bring you into it, I’ll let you know.”
That’s what he’d said last time they talked, which meant the man was going to keep fretting for the foreseeable future. Vince hesitated to push him, though. Whatever was causing so much distress obviously had the potential to hurt Callie, and that wasn’t something Vince wanted to be a part of, quite frankly. But if Jeremiah needed him, he didn’t want to be selfish, either.
“Callie’s worried about you, Jeremiah. She knows something’s wearing on you, and she doesn’t want that. If talking to me about what’s bothering you will help, then I’m willing to listen. Just let me know when.”
Jeremiah nodded. “It’ll probably be soon. I don’t want Callie around when I do, though. We’ll have to think of a reason to send her into town or somewhere.”
“I don’t like the idea of keeping something from her,” Vince admitted. “Having a secret isn’t a great way to start off our relationship.”
“When you learn this secret, if you learn it, you’ll understand,” Jeremiah replied sternly.
Vince held out his hand, fighting his trepidation. “Give me your phone. I’ll put my number in it, so you can call me whenever you need me, okay? For this, or anything else.”
Jeremiah pulled the phone out of his shirt pocket. “I appreciate it, son. Knowing I have the option helps. I just need to work things out in this old head of mine.”
Vince entered his name and number into the phone, then sent himself a text so he’d know Jeremiah’s number, too.
He handed it back, smiling wryly. “I guess I’m at your beck and call now,” he teased. “Not many people have my personal number. Don’t abuse it.”
Jeremiah cackled as he put the phone back in his pocket. “No promises. I might call you to help me to the bathroom in the middle of the night.”
Vince knew the man expected him to be horrified, but he didn’t even flinch. “Just make sure you give me a fifteen minute heads-up,” he dead-panned. “That’s the quickest I could get here, and I wouldn’t want you to have an accident.”