Chapter 32
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
C ade
The rest of the semester and graduation flew by in a blur. We won the Frozen Four. I graduated along with Annie, Charlie, Finn, and Hayden. Finn and Hayden knew where they were headed to the NHL. I had no clue. Minnesota wanted me but I had to commit to being a defenseman. I knew what that meant. They wanted me to be an enforcer. I almost took the spot because Annie got into veterinary school in Minnesota, but she knew how unhappy I was playing in that role and she didn’t want me to accept something I wasn’t happy with. Annie also wasn’t sold on going to school in Minnesota. She was accepted to the veterinary school at Riverside U and as much as she wanted to get away from the place a number of months ago, it was also close to her family farm. With her mother moving into the city, she wanted to go home more often because she worried about her dad.
Instead of going back to Colorado after graduation, I went back to the farm with Annie. The farm in the summer was a whole different ball game. The land was green. The animals roamed around and her dad took me under his wing and taught me about the dairy. It was a different pace of life, but one I was enjoying very much.
Annie moved into the guest room with me. She assured me her dad was okay with it since we were in a committed relationship. By night I had the woman I loved in my arms, and by day I was working the land. A sense of contentment washed over me, except I wanted to make Annie my wife. Having her as my girlfriend was no longer enough.
One morning, I was out with her dad, watching the cows being milked when I say to him, “Sir, I want to marry your daughter.”
“And what does my Annie want?” he asks me in return.
“I know she loves me, but I haven’t floated the idea by her yet,” I admit.
He barks out a loud laugh. “Son, I think you need to make sure my daughter is on the same page as you. I know she loves you with all her heart, but is she ready for that step? She’s starting school in September. I’m weeks away from bankrupting this farm, and you don’t know what team you’re going to land on. I’d say things are up in the air.”
He isn’t wrong. “About the farm. . .I was thinking . . . I could ask my dad for a loan. I could pay him back once I make the money back this year. I know how much this place means to Annie. She told me she wants to raise a family here, and I love that idea. I just want to do everything to make her happy.”
“I think this is a conversation you need to be having with my daughter before you have it with me. Everything you said seems sensible, but Annie is the type of woman who likes to make her own decisions. I’ve taught her to be a free thinker and so, at the end of the day, she needs to do what’s good for her.”
“I hear that. I’m kind of scared of her reaction,” I confess.
He barks out another laugh. “That’s not a bad thing, son.” He claps my shoulder. I don’t know what he means by that statement, but I figure he is laughing so it isn’t a bad thing.
“We need to talk,” I say to Annie after dinner. We are a couple of weeks out from the draft. Even though I don’t know which city I’ll end up in, I have other parts of my life I need to feel are in order.
“This sounds serious,” she says. We are sitting in the family room about to watch a movie, but I had to get this off my chest.
“It’s something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately,” I admit.
She shifts to face me, giving me her full attention. “What’s going on?”
“I want things between us to be more permanent,” I begin, feeling nervous.
“What do you mean, like exclusive? We have been from the start. Even when this wasn’t real,” she reminds.
“I think even when we weren’t real, we were real. I’m pretty sure that kiss in Fair Shot sealed the deal for me,” I confess.
“It was a hot kiss and the way you pulled me into you and we got lost.” She sighs, her gaze dropping to my lips. I know that look. She’s horny. We have a hard time keeping our hands to ourselves, but tonight has to be different. There are things I need to say.
“It was hot. I knew that night how attracted I was to you.”
“Do you remember when I was trying to suggest we fake date and you thought I was propositioning you for sex?” She laughs out loud.
“That’s because undressing you was all I was thinking about that night at Fair Shot,” I confess. “I know everyone was worried about me being hurt by Scarlett, but she didn’t have that power over me. You do though.”
“Oh, Cade.” She leans forward and caresses my cheek. Her gaze is on my lips and I know she wants us to make out on the couch, but I am on a mission. I have to stay focused.
“Annie.” I blink. “I want to ask my dad to give me a loan to help your dad with the farm. Please, let me finish. It would be a short-term loan. I’d pay him back quick. I just couldn’t live with myself if you lost this farm. After spending time working here, I’ve come to really love this place. Maybe because I see it through your eyes now. I know you want to raise a family here one day. . .”
“Cade, what are you saying?”
“This isn’t a proposal, Annie. When I do ask you to marry me, I’m going to try my best to make it super romantic but, right now, I need to know we are on the same page. That you see what I see in our future.” I wait with bated breath and watch her eyes tear up.
“I love you so much, Cade. More than I knew could be real. But what happens if you end up in Colorado next year? What happens if we see each other twice a month? I’ve committed to veterinary school. That’s four years. It’s a serious amount of time. You’re going to be on the road traveling. There will be women throwing themselves at you.”
“Baby, I only want you,” I assure. “My heart belongs to you.”
“What happens if you help with the farm and then you realize next year this isn’t the life you want? I would never want you to feel stuck,” she insists. I understand where these fears come from. Her mom felt stuck and voiced it every chance she got.
“I’m not your mom and you aren’t your dad. I know what I want. I’m loyal to my core, Annie. You’d never need to worry about other women because I only want you.”
“But you can’t know that, Cade. I love you. I don’t want this to end, but I think it’s best if we don’t make anything final until you get through your first year in the NHL.”
“You’re playing hardball with me,” I accuse, shaking my head, but I know better than to argue because Annie is stubborn and it is that fire in her I love so much.
“For now, we are selling half our cows. Daddy has a buyer. It will cover the cost of the penalty to the state. With less cows there will be less waste management. We’ve been speaking with some local contractors about some waste management methods that won’t be as costly, and Daddy has been brainstorming some new branding for cheese.”
“So you have everything worked out?”
“Not everything, Cade. I love you so much. Please believe in that. Please understand why I need you to land and figure your life out before we make that kind of commitment.”
“I understand, baby. I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”
“Thank you, Cade.”
She curls into my side. We watch our movie. My mind is reeling because this conversation has not gone as planned. But I haven’t gotten this far in my life by giving up. Annie wants me to prove I am in this for the long haul and that is exactly what I plan to do.