Page 114 of The Game Plan
“Still can’t believe you got the girl.” Q grins.
“Speaking of, when are you locking Chloe down?” I ask, placing my club back into the bag.
Cody takes his hat off and runs his fingers through his hair before placing his cap on backwards. “I don’t know, man.”
“Uh oh, trouble in paradise?” Q leans against the cart and scrutinizes Cody.
“It’s not that.” Cody sighs. “There’s been so much change in our lives. Her career is taking off, and a part of me worries she’ll grow tired of me and my schedule. My job has me traveling from February through September, if not longer. What if it gets old for her? We both had rough home lives. I don’t want her future to be hard too.”
“Shit, man,” I say on an exhale. “I didn’t realize it was that deep.”
Quinton grips Cody’s shoulder. “All of us have struggled with our childhoods, but she loves you, stupid. Don’t piss it away being stuck on the what-ifs. I’ve heard her talk to Wilder. She’s excited to travel alongside you and see the world and watch you.”
“She said that?” Cody asks, hopefulness in his voice.
“Yeah, man.”
“Well, shit, I guess I’ve got to think of the perfect proposal.”
I shove him as we all laugh, but I catch the relief in Cody’s posture. He’s head over heels for his woman, and he’s terrified of losing her. Hell, I know the feeling. I’m married and still afraid Sav will walk out of my life.
“Then comes babies!” I shout as I walk toward my tee. “Diaper duty’s not so bad.”
“No one thinks that but you,” Cody calls back, and Q grunts his agreement.
After two hours, we’re finally on the ninth hole. We banished Cody from ever driving, and he pouted in the back, but whatever; I didn’t want to die. It turns out, I’m the best golfer, which surprises everyone. Cody isn’t bad, but he dicks around more than the effort he puts into his swing. Q is by far the worst. It’s nice to see he’s not good at everything.
We’re walking up a small hill as Q falls in step beside me. He’s humming a song, and I stare at him, brow furrowed. “Are you humming ‘Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma’?”
“Don’t knock Luke Combs,” he says, but as I just stare at him in question, his shoulders sag in defeat. “Wilder is obsessed with the movieTwisters.”
I snort a laugh, but it’s Cody who turns the conversation.
“Do you wish you would’ve found a coaching position somewhere else? One where you aren’t working under your dad and the pressure that comes with that?”
Q and I share a look. It’s a conversation we’ve both had multiple times. “Not for a second. This is where I’m meant to be. Besides, I would’ve missed my second chance with Sav. Even if I did miss playing, I could never regret my decision because it gave me her and my daughter.”
I glance down the fairway and try to imagine what my life would be like if we hadn’t had our second chance. One thing’s for certain; I’d be a lonely, miserable sonofabitch. She brings me happiness and a purpose.
“That’s fair,” Cody says, voice lowering. “Okay, man. I know you said married life is better than you imagined, and that’s great, but c’mon. What’s really going on? I mean, not that we didn’t want to visit, but there’s a reason Brynn called Chloe freaking out yesterday.”
I take a breath as my best friend nods at me, giving me the push to speak freely. “It’s an adjustment. I can tell things are getting harder for her, not easier. She’s shutting me out, and I’m worried about her.”
Cody lets out a deep sigh. “Think it’s like postpartum depression?”
“Maybe not depression, but postpartum anxiety.” I pause, heart heavy, and ready to lay my cards out. “I found house and apartment listings on her computer.”
“You snooped?” he asks with a wince.
I shake my head. “I was cleaning the kitchen and moved her laptop. The screen lit up, and right there was a house listing.”
His eyebrows rise. “Wait, what?”
“I think she’s planning on leaving.”
It’s Q who chimes in at that. “I told you, she’s not going to up and walk out.”
“Yeah, man,” Cody agrees. “I don’t see her leaving.”
