Chapter One #2
Late that afternoon, he praised his players before sending them off to rest and recuperate, so they would be fresh on Monday, when the work would begin all over again.
After everyone had left the field, he headed home, aka the Rawlings place.
It was seven miles outside of town. On twenty rolling acres, the property included a red barn, an empty horse pasture and a sparsely furnished four-thousand-square-foot house full of big rooms he never entered.
But hey. He’d been an NFL superstar once with more than one big-ass house. Since then, it was kind of a habit with him to live in a house with way more room than he was ever going to need.
That night, Finn ate leftovers and stayed up late working on his plans for future practices, then caught up on paperwork for his real-estate business.
Sunday he hit the ground running, showing houses with acreage to two clients and submitting two offers. He couldn’t help thinking that between coaching the Titans and his job selling real estate, he barely had time to eat and sleep.
But finally, Sunday evening, he got a few precious hours to himself—in his too-large, too-empty house. After a take-out dinner of pollo asado from the great little Mexican restaurant in town, he did what he’d been working up the nerve to do for months now.
He called Kenzie—because, he reassured himself, he wanted to find out a little bit more about Oscar. Yeah, he could have called Barrett, but by the time he reminded himself that Barrett was the one he’d been planning to ask, he’d already hit the call button for Kenzie.
She picked up on the second ring. “Finn.”
“It’s clear from the way you just said my name that you’re not glad to hear from me.” He was grinning.
She knew it, too. “Wipe that smirk off your face.”
“Sheesh, Kenz. Fifteen years have gone by since we were together. And still, you don’t have to see my face to know that I’m smirking.”
“What do you want?”
“I love it when a woman can’t wait to get rid of me.”
“Oh, come on. I didn’t say that.”
“But you were thinking it.”
She scoffed. “So you’re calling to give me grief, is that it?”
“Nope.”
“Then what?”
“Well, first off, I want to apologize. I was abrupt at first practice the other day…about the, uh, baby, I mean. Until I spotted you on the field I had no idea you were pregnant, that you must have been pregnant that day we met up at the Grizzly.”
“That day at the Grizzly, I didn’t know that I was pregnant, either.
I didn’t even consider that I might be pregnant until a couple of days later.
That was when finally I went out and bought a few tests.
And when the stick turned blue I still didn’t believe it.
I took a second test just to be sure.” Her voice was softer now.
“I should have been honest that day you called me. I should have told you the truth, that I’d just learned I was pregnant, that everything had changed for me.
However, in my defense…” There was a long silence.
Had she hung up? “Kenzie?”
“Right here—and it just occurred to me that I sound completely self-absorbed.”
“No, you don’t.”
“It’s nice of you to say that, but still. You don’t need to know every little thing I’m going through.”
“Maybe not,” he said. “But I want to know about it—if that counts at all.”
“Oh, Finn…”
“Come on. Lay it on me.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes.” He was grinning again now. “Talk to me, Kenzie.”
“Alright. But remember, you asked.”
“I did ask. And I’m listening.”
“Well, the truth is, I’d only gotten the test results from my doctor the day before you called. And then, I’d talked to my ex. That wasn’t fun. Truthfully, that day you called, I was still kind of reeling from all of it, if you know what I mean…”
“Yeah. I can understand that.” He resisted the urge to say bad things about her ex and instead added mildly, “I appreciate your filling me in.”
“Sure—so we’re good, then?”
“We are. We’re solid.”
“I’m glad.” She sounded pleased, which made him feel better about everything.
“Me, too,” he said. “And I have a question…”
“Sure. Fire away.”
“I’ve been wondering about Oscar Abernathy…”
* * *
Kenzie stared at the flat screen mounted over her fireplace. Before taking Finn’s call, she’d muted the sound. Now, she pointed the remote again and the screen went black. “Oscar? What about him?”
“Well, for one thing, I think that kid might know more about football than I do.”
“Not possible!” She was faking extreme shock for all she was worth. “Nobody knows more about football than the great Finn Monahan!”
“Yeah, well. I couldn’t believe it, either…at first. But I swear, that kid has a firm grasp of DVOA.”
“DV-what?”
“Defense-adjusted value over average.”
“Well, that really clears things up for me…not.” She laughed and then added more seriously, “Okay, I’ve heard of it. But you should explain it to me, anyway.”
“Fair enough. It’s essentially a system that puts statistics in context. DVOA can predict outcomes more consistently than simple stats like total touchdowns or rushing yards.”
“And you’re saying that Oscar understands this system?”
“Yeah. I believe he does.”
That surprised her—not that Oscar understood some complex statistical system.
But that Finn had taken an interest in Oscar Abernathy.
Back in high school, Finn never would have spared a second thought for Oscar—and no, Finn hadn’t been a mean boy.
He’d always treated others kindly, with respect.
But he’d also been far too wrapped up in his own plans and goals to show much interest in the team water boy.
“Kenzie? You still with me?”
She smiled to herself. “I am right here.”
“So, then. Will you tell me about Oscar?”
“Sure. He’s smart and conscientious, a good guy, observant and kind. His mom died about a decade ago. And he and his dad, Jesse, moved to town recently. You should also be aware that Oscar is autistic, though he’s considered low-support.”
Finn responded cautiously. “Okay…”
“I’ve met with both Oscar and his dad to talk about Oscar’s individual health-care needs.”
“This is sounding very official.”
She laughed but then said seriously, “Because it is. I’m only telling you this because you’re on staff at the high school and Oscar’s welfare is your professional concern.
Basically, he might get a bit more overstimulated than other kids, and we’ve established supports for him like the use of headphones and earplugs for loud noises. ”
“Got it. And thanks for filling me in.”
“No problem. Honestly, Finn. Oscar gets along well enough with everyone to avoid much attention, so a lot of people in town overlook him. Plus, as I already said, he’s new here.
He does seem to be doing pretty well, but as of yet he doesn’t have a lot of friends.
I guess what I’m saying is that Oscar doesn’t have a built-in support network here, and he could use someone who appreciates his passions, one of which is football. ”
“We have that in common, Oscar and me!”
She smiled at that. “Yes, though I think you’ll find Oscar knows even more than you do.”
“Alright. I look forward to being continually humbled by Oscar’s superior knowledge of the game.”
Dear God in heaven, Finn Monahan could be charming when he wanted to be.
She drew a slow, careful breath and said brightly, “Happy to help.”
“And Kenzie…”
“Hmm?”
“Well, how are you doing—I mean, what with having a baby and all? Are you feeling good, eating right?”
“Oh, Finn. Thanks for asking. Honestly, I am doing great and so is the baby.”
“Well, then. That’s terrific. And now I know that you’re feeling good, there’s just one more thing I need to ask before I let you go.”
“I’m listening.”
“Won’t you please have dinner with me?”
She pressed her lips together in order to keep the word yes from escaping.
He let her silence go on for several painful seconds, then coaxed, “Come on. It’s just dinner. How about Tuesday night? We’ll go to that new steak house.”
She really did mean to say no. And yet somehow, when she opened her mouth, yes made a break for it.
“That’s what I wanted to hear.” He sounded so pleased. She could just picture him right now, a cocky smirk on his face, those blue eyes gleaming.
And all of a sudden, she was thrown back in time to their first real date, freshman year.
They were both just fifteen and he didn’t have his driver’s license yet.
Luckily, the house he grew up in had been only five blocks from hers, and hers happened to be right around the corner from the Silver Spur Café.
When she’d answered the door, he was standing on the welcome mat, his hair slicked back with way too much styling gel. In his right fist, he held a wilted bouquet of wild blanket flowers.
Even slightly droopy, those daisy-like flowers were beautiful, the bright orange petals tipped in sunny yellow. He’d handed them over. “For you, Kenzie.”
When she took them from him, the stems were damp from his sweaty palms. She knew then that Finn Monahan liked her. And that was a wonderful thing. Because she liked him right back.
“I’ll pick you up at six.” His voice—a man’s voice now—jerked her back to the present.
She blinked away the tender memory and announced, “My treat.”
“Nice try, Kenz,” he replied dryly. “And no way. I did the asking, I get the check. Tuesday night. I’ll be knocking on your door at six.”
She debated insisting that she would meet him there…but why? If he wanted to pick her up and buy her dinner, so be it. She rattled off her address.
“Great. Got it,” he said. “See you at practice.” And then he was gone.
* * *
On Monday, Finn pushed his players hard…but not too hard. He wanted to get them in condition, not injure or overstress them. At the end of practice, though, he and Barrett put on the pressure. It never hurt to test a player’s limits in a carefully managed, responsible way.