Colton
I knew my old minors coach lived in a small town, but as I drove down the winding single lane road, I felt like I’d been transported back in time.
There was nothing but fields of grass and flowers, rolling hills, and towering mountains on either side of me.
I feared I was lost and was about to end up in a real-life version of Texas Chainsaw Massacre if the cell reception hadn’t been outstanding.
When I reached out to Brett, my old coach when I played for the farm team before getting in the NHL, he had offered me a place of solace, a respite to get my head on straight.
The last two years had been anything but calm.
A career-changing injury sent me for a whirlwind both physically and mentally.
At my age, I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to return to the game.
A torn ACL was an ender in most sports. But my issue ended up having more to do with my love of the game than with the injury.
I fought tooth and nail to heal and get back on the ice, but by the time I’d returned, I felt like an old man compared to the newbies on the ice. That was the life of a retiring player.
It was more than all of that, of course, but that’s the story I gave to the press, and they ate it right up. I hoped that while I was here, Brett and I could get some time on the ice.
At least that gave me something to look forward to. I hadn’t discussed a concrete amount of time with my agent, but I knew he was in the mindset that I’d grow tired of small-town living and I’d want something bigger and brighter in a few weeks.
Little did he know that my favorite childhood memories were made in a small town.
Maybe not this small, I thought to myself.
Franklin, Illinois, was outside of Chicago and where I had learned to play hockey, but it had a few big box stores and its own sign off the interstate.
When Coach Chisolm sent me the address to his house, he informed me I had an hour drive on a single lane road once I left the interstate. He’d even attached a map because the satellite navigation never could “get it quite right.”
I peered down at the map as I crossed paths with another road and checked the directions to confirm I was still headed in the right direction.
Out of the corner of my eye something black caught my attention and I slammed on the brakes, thankful I had been driving well below the speed limit on the tiny, unfamiliar road.
My shoulders rose to my ears as the truck screeched to a stop before it collided with a herd of cattle.
My hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly that the whites of my knuckles showed through the skin appearing as if they were ready to pop through the covering.
My breath came out in heavy pants at the same rate as my racing heart.
“Fucking hell,” I heaved.
Taking a moment, I let myself calm down, using the breathing techniques that the team therapist taught us on how to control our anger. This time I used it to knock back the adrenaline coursing through my veins.
When I was finally able to pry my fingers from the steering wheel, the noise causing my body to cringe, I popped open the door and jumped down from the truck.
I needed to catch my breath. My body hunched over itself.
My hands firmly gripped my knees as I hauled in tremendous pulls of air to fill my lungs.
Closing my eyes, I removed myself from the moment and settled back into my body.
“Are you okay there, son?” a gravelly voice filled with concern called out from the distance.
I glanced up, not sure what I’d find, but a man sitting on the back of a brown and white horse wasn’t even in the realm of possibilities.
When I didn’t give a response, the man added, “I’m sure these here gave you quite a fright. It’s not every day you see a hundred cows hanging out on the asphalt.”
The horse trotted closer, bringing the man within a few feet from where I stood.
“Yeah, I definitely wasn’t expecting it. That’s for sure.”
“Best things in life are unexpected,” he added cryptically.
Standing to my full height, the adrenaline slowly dissipated from my veins and my body immediately grew tired. Something I was going to have to fight through the rest of the trip. I always felt the same after every game except this time I didn’t have a bus or airplane to doze in.
“What are they all doing out here?” I asked as the stallion drew next to me, its curious eyes taking me in. The large animal whinnied as its rider stroked his neck.
“Well, see, this here road runs between my land. I was moving them to the field across the way. Bet ya scared them just as much as they scared you.”
Making eyes back at the large black heifer that was staring at me, I grunted. I’m pretty sure if she could laugh, she would.
“Doesn’t seem that way to me.”
The man had the decency to stifle his chuckle, but his chest moved all the same.
“I’ll get these girls moving so you can be on your way.”
“Thanks,” I said as I moved to get back in my truck, but a thought glued me in place. “Hey, I don’t suppose you know how much longer it is until I reach Ashfield, do you?”
“Well, now, I do. I thought I recognized you.”
Immediately, my hackles rose. I was famous in the sports world, but I spent most of my days covered in twenty-five pounds of gear and a helmet.
My chances of being recognized prior to my retirement were slim, but with the news outlets having me on for sports interviews, my face had been front and center.
The last thing I wanted was to be recognized here.
“Oh. If you could. . .” I began trying to barter with the man to keep my identity a secret, at least for now. Once I left, he could blab all he wanted. I’d buy this man five more of those stallions if he’d keep quiet.
“Good ole coach said he was expecting someone.”
“Coach?” I asked, perplexed. My head tilted as if that would help me understand the man better. It didn’t.
“Yes, sir. Coach Chisolm. Those kids at the high school love him. Damn good coach. You know he took our hockey kids to the state championships this year? Man, it was something. Anyway. We don’t get people here quite your height.
I figured you must have been that hockey player he was going on about at the market this morning. Had the town in a frenzy.”
Ah, so it seemed Brett had been telling people I was coming.
“Yes, sir. That’s me, but if you could keep my arrival quiet, I think that would be best for everyone. I don’t want any press knowing my whereabouts. If you know what I mean.”
“Yeah, I heard something about your injury and nasty breakup. Don’t you worry, son. We ain’t got no reason to bring those camera people round here. Got enough to worry about ourselves, if ya know what I mean.”
I didn’t, but I nodded and smiled just the same. I’m pretty sure he didn’t have nudes of himself doctored and made to look like I was in bed with a well-known female escort and those images plastered across every tabloid in the nation.
Maybe they didn’t even get those glossy magazines here. Wouldn’t that be something? This town was sounding better and better the more I thought about it.
“I’m headed in the right direction?” I asked as I began moving again and stepped inside my truck.
“Yes, sir. You’ve got about another fifteen-minute drive down this road, then you’ll hit the town square. It’s about another twenty minutes from there. Can’t miss it.”
I was pretty certain I could, indeed, miss it.
“Thank you, sir,” I called out after I slammed my truck door and rolled down the window.
“Give me just a few minutes and I’ll get these here cattle out of your way.”
“Thank you. It was nice to meet you.”
“You too, son.”
Son. That must be a southern thing, I thought to myself. It was as unfamiliar to me as an I love you. But it was nice to hear, even if it wasn’t more than a term of endearment.
It took the man exactly five minutes to get all of the cows across the street. The one that had eyed me earlier had been the last to leave the path and I could tell she was angry about it. I had the sneaking suspicion that she was up to no good and was planning her vengeance just as I sped past.
And just as he said, fifteen minutes passed when I came across a sign for the town of Ashfield.
I slowed as I approached and took in the grandeur of the picturesque town nestled in the valley between the rolling hills.
The Smoky Mountains set the perfect background for the town.
I could see why Brett found it so charming and made it his home.
A horn sounded from behind me and I was stunned to see a fairly new BMW in my rearview mirror.
My instinct wanted me to throw up a single finger at the driver for honking at me and interrupting the moment of silence as I took in the land before me, but I was in a different place now and needed to remember that.
I tended to do things first and then think about the consequences later.
Pressing the accelerator, I brought the truck back up to speed and made my way to the town center, wondering in my head where the car had come from. I hadn’t seen any roads since the interstate, but I hadn’t been paying a lot of attention either.
The streets were full once I got closer. People milling about, cars lining the roads, and canopies on every free surface of the sidewalk. A banner hung high in the air, draped between two buildings on either side of the road.
FARMERS MARKET
EVERY SATURDAY
8AM-12PM
Well, that at least explained the dispersing crowd.
Glancing at the dash, I noted that the time was around three in the afternoon, so the farmers market was long over.
I wanted to get something for Lily, Brett’s wife, as a thanks for allowing me to stay with them for a short time.
The market would have been a great place, now I’d have to find something, and fast.
Luck must have been on my side because a sign for Chuck’s Grocery Store stood out like a beacon in the middle of a hurricane.
Pulling my truck into the lot, I parked a good distance from the entrance, not that the parking lot was huge. There were only a handful of other vehicles in the lot, one being a little red car parked across from me a lane over.
Approaching the store, I gave myself a pep talk and tried to remember that this was not the big city. Things were going to be different. Not bad, but different.
I passed by the shopping cart area and paused a few feet inside the store.
There weren’t many aisles to choose from, but there was a decent floral area and from what I could tell, a remarkable bakery section.
The scent of fresh bread and chocolate had my stomach growling the second the smells wafted across my nose.
Immediately, my body began moving toward the intoxicating fragrance on its own accord. I was just a passenger along for the ride. My feet were moving and before I knew it, I was standing in front of the bakery stand without any knowledge of how I’d come to be there.
“Can I help you, sir?”
There were so many choices. More than I’d ever seen at a small grocery store, which New York had plenty of. The options were endless. Breads, cakes, and pies. I wanted it all.
“I don’t suppose you know which dessert Lily Chisolm likes the best, do you?”
“Well, now. You must be the hockey player coming to stay with her and Mr. Chisolm,” the older lady said with a sweet southern drawl. She had kind eyes that reminded me of a grandmother. The type you’d see in the movies since I’d never had one myself.
“Apparently word gets around.”
She had the decency to laugh as her cheeks reddened. Those same kind eyes twinkled in amusement.
“Sorry, ma’am,” I said. “I didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just been a long drive.”
“It’s nothing, young man. I apologize for saying it out loud. You’re pretty popular around these parts. Coach’s protégé and all that jazz. We’re just excited to have you in our town.
“Now, to answer your question. Mrs. Lily likes anything with custard or cherries. I have a Boston cream pie that she would absolutely love. If you want to look around the store, I’ll get that all set up for you in a few minutes.”
“Thank you. . .”
“You can call me Betsy.”
“Well, Betsy, I’m sure you’ll be seeing me plenty. Got to find a way to stay on Lily’s good side while I overcrowd their home.”
She laughed genuinely that time. Those eyes crinkling at the corners, the valleys growing deeper with time. “Well, you’re absolutely headed in the right direction.”
Leaving the bakery stand, I searched around for a bathroom to clean myself up a bit after the long drive.
I was surprised to find it immaculately tidy.
I’m not sure why I expected anything different.
The entire store was neat and polished from top to bottom.
The owner must have taken great pride in his business.
Something I understood.
When I finished, I took a few minutes to walk around the store, watching a few people grab their canned goods and local meats. A magazine rack near the entrance caught my eye and I glanced over the selections. They were over a week old, except for the hottest tabloid fodder.
Quickly, I grabbed a copy and scoured through the pages. I wasn’t front news anymore since my ex, Nina, sank her claws into someone else and she settled the lawsuit I had against her, but when it was a slow news week in the sports world something about me always popped up.
It was times like that I was glad I didn’t know my parents. I’d hate to know the embarrassment I would have caused them, even though none of it was my fault. I would have disgraced them either way.
I returned the magazine back to the rack when a couple started ushering their brood over to the single register. Moseying back to the entrance, I stopped at the floral stand.
Flowers were always a nice gesture. But I was completely overwhelmed as I took in the selection.
Maybe just a pie would be fine.
Continue meeting Autumn and Colton…