“That’s wonderful! I bet it’ll be a spectacular event being you live in the Hamptons.”
“Sort of,” I agreed, surreptitiously wiping a bead of sweat off my upper lip. “We’re keeping the guest list fairly small, but we have the perfect venue and we want to make it a wedding to remember. My fiancee is actually a wedding planner, so she plans to add our wedding to her portfolio.”
“I’m so sorry, but I can’t remember her name. I think you told me over the phone. What was it again?”
“Tammy.” As soon as the name escaped from my lips, I wanted to plant my palm on my forehead.What am I thinking…I was quite sure I hadn’t given him Tammy’s name over the phone.Fewer details… fewer ways to get tripped up.
Luckily, I could easily sell the fact that Tammy lived and worked in the Hamptons full time while I traveled with the team, quelling any suspicions over her absence.
“Actually, I don’t believe you mentioned her name over the phone. Now that I think about it,” Mack mused. “But congratulations again… you can expect to hear from me soon.”
“Great, thanks!”
Mack called the limo driver, then led the way to the elevator. As we approached the same metal doors as before, he shook his head. “Sorry about all this cloak and dagger business. Right now, as you know, it’s too early for any of the team to be here, and most of the staff is on vacation. But, you never know… The word is out about Harris. So, every sport’s oriented reporter is snooping around for clues, trying to figure out who the new team manager will be.”
“Sure, I understand. I don’t want to be questioned about it either.”
“When it’s time, we’ll announce it to the media together.” Mack clapped me on the back as he swung open the door, and I rush toward the waiting limo. “I’ll give you a holler next week,” Mack called after me.
Once I had returned to the privacy of my hotel room, I collapsed onto the bed, sighing. I hated how I had lied again to Mack. But there was a silver lining to the dark cloud of guilt that swirled around my head. As I lay here on the bed, reviewing my conversation with Mack thinking about Tammy was leaving me feeling a bit nostalgic about our high school days. Fate had been the cause for the hurt feelings between us. Could it be fate wasn’t done with us yet?
Throughout college and then my career as a pro football player, I had never forgotten about Tammy. Then suddenly she reappeared in my life. If fate had been the cause for the mix up in the letter, it stood to reason fate was the cause for us meeting again at Zeke and Claudia’s wedding. I had felt it in Tammy’s hand when I reached across the table the other day to reaffirm our friendship. And I could tell she felt something too because her hand lingered there for a moment before she pulled it away.
I took off my suit jacket and loosened my tie.Who knows? We both live in the Hamptons, and we have a lot of friends in common.“Maybe we could rekindle more than just our friendship,” I said to myself as I began gathering my belongings into my suitcase, preparing for the flight home.
* * *
Over the next couple of days, the yarn I had spun about fate’s effect on my life seemed more and more realistic, because soon after I returned to the Hamptons, Tammy called me out of the blue. She knew from what Claudia had told her that I had borrowed Zeke’s jet for the trip and being the sharp woman she was; she figured I would be home by now.
As I sat on my boat with my feet up on the side rail chatting with her, I soon realized there was no specific reason for Tammy’s call other than to just chat.Fine with me…So we just hung out on the phone and talked like we had back in Somerset. We both mentioned that we would like to spend more time with each other, but we didn’t set up anything specific.
Before she hung up, Tammy started to giggle. “You’re still a cocky jerk, you know.”Tammy may be all grown up… but there is a part of that fun-loving Kentucky gal still eager to come out and play.
I did kind of wish I could ask Tammy to do something over the next few days, though. Mack made it pretty clear that he wanted to give me the job, but I knew he would do what was best for the team. If a better candidate for general manager appeared - one with a stronger business background, maybe, who had a real family - Mack would choose that person. And with each passing day, I kinda hoped fate would take that burden off my shoulders.
It was frustrating, and I had a feeling this lie wasn’t done haunting me yet. But I had no choice but to sit around, waiting for the call from Mack that would determine my future.
I didn’t have to wait long. After three days of light upper body workouts at the Hamptons Peak Fitness Center, a few fishing trips along the Long Island shoreline in my beloved boat, my phone rang one morning while I was finishing my coffee at the kitchen island bar.
“Hey Mack,” I said when I picked up the phone, hiding my nervousness with a jovial tone.
“Good morning, Nate. Hope I didn’t call too early.” Mack sounded cheerier than usual.
“No, of course not,” I assured him. As always, Mack made polite small talk before he got to the meat of the call.
“Well, I just wanted to call and let you know that I’ve considered all the applicants, and I’d like to extend you an offer. The initial contract would be for a year, and after that period, there would be an option to extend that contract if the position suits you. And your pay is negotiable.” He cleared his throat. “Don’t tell HR I told you that.”
“Mack… I… I can’t believe this… Thank you so much for the opportunity to be a part of the Lexington Colonels again.”
“It’ll be great to bring you back on the team,” Mack told me warmly, echoing my thoughts. “And, well. I was talking to my wife. She would love to come to visit the Hamptons then go spend a few days in the Big Apple shopping… So we’re definitely looking forward to that wedding invitation.”
Slowly, very slowly, my brain started to catch up to the horror of this quickly deteriorating situation. I was awakening from my nightmare. Mack’s words were shining a light on my new reality. I swallowed hard. “Oh, sure. Your name is at the top of the list.”
Now, the floodgates of horror and panic I had been holding at bay were flung wide open. A wedding invitation. Mack, my new boss, wanted an invitation to a wedding that didn’t exist.
Tammy had been right the other day.I’m a jerk… not just your run-of-the-mill jerk… a lying jerk.
“You tell Tammy, my wife and I are eager to meet the lady that caught the infamous Nate Jackson.”Mack chuckled.
