Page 70 of He Has It All (Boston Brawlers Hockey)
Chapter 18
Chelsea
Maggs calls me first thing in the morning and insists we have lunch.
“I’m only a few weeks on the job, Maggs. I can’t afford to have a long lunch.”
“Fine, we’ll have a short one. We don’t even have to eat, really. But I need to talk with you.”
“Okay. I’m not sure I like this. What’s it about?”
“I’ll tell you when we meet—at noon at The Harp on Causeway Street. Gotta go.”
I swear she hung up the phone so she wouldn’t have to explain herself. I yell to my mother that I’m leaving and pull the back door closed behind me. Stepping into the cool fall morning, I take a deep breath of the crisp air smelling of decaying leaves and car exhaust. A rush of childhood memories assaults me as I get in my car. And Ryan is front and center. Of course he is. I put him out of my head because I don’t dare get my hopes up, because it’s been a long time filled with disappointment and disillusionment and I should have learned my lesson by now. Right?
The morning goes by while I sit at my computer composing press releases and draft feature stories for the team’s website, mostly about the new players on the team. My phone buzzes and I jump. It’s ten to noon. My stomach clenches as I shut down my computer and get up to leave, because I know Maggs is going to have something to say that I don’t want to hear. I know her like a sister and I can read the signs.
She’s already sitting at a table when I get to the restaurant, so I take a deep breath and remind myself how tough I am as I join her.
“I know why Ryan put the kibosh on you testifying as a witness,” she says. No preamble.
“Hey, I like your sweater,” I say.
She scowls. “Don’t be a baby. You know you want to know.”
“I do and I don’t,” I admit.
“Tim’s bastard lawyer is claiming your job is a bribe. Can you believe it? He’s threatening to make a stink, saying that Ryan bribed you to testify by getting you a job. Ryan and even Levi are worried that if we go with your affidavit, you’ll lose your job. The bastard attorney made a veiled threat to get you fired.”
The news is nasty, but in a good way, and I almost smile. Ryan is protecting me. He’s still that knight. But the cost is huge as the consequences to him fall on me like a doomsday cloud.
“This sucks, Maggs. For Ryan, not me. I can’t let him sacrifice all that money, his honor, hell, maybe even harm his career just for this job. You know I never wanted it, right? I felt funny taking it in the first place, like I’m a pathetic girl who can’t keep a job and needs a handout.”
“Look, you know I feel terrible for putting Ryan up to getting you fired at the casino—so losing that one is all on me, not you.”
I snort, literally. “Who cares about the casino? I don’t even know what the hell I want to do, but I know it’s not waitressing. And I know I need to quit this job and take that whole threat out of the equation for Ryan.”
“What about money? You know I’ll help even if you don’t want me to—”
“I have some money. Eli helped me get a severance check from the bastards at BTSB, so I have a three-month cushion now.”
“He did? What a guy.” She smiles for real for the first time since I walked in and that makes me smile. The waitress hovers, but I hold her off with my index finger.
“Yeah, we talked about it when I was drafting my statement. He was appalled when I told him about the nude photo saga. It turns out BTSB has been sued before and they agreed right away to the severance to avoid another lawsuit.”
“I’m happy for you, Chels. That must give you some satisfaction. Closure on the whole chapter.”
“It does.” I wonder what it would take to get satisfaction and closure on the Olympic experience? Not money or a lawsuit. I’m not vindictive, but I am wounded.
It’s no use pretending that I haven’t been wandering around with a figurative limp for years and it’s gotten worse, not better because I keep walking on it instead of getting treatment. Or something. Maybe just a rest would help.
But a rest from life and responsibilities isn’t in the cards for me.
“Now all I need to do is find a new job.”
“You sending out tapes?”
“No. My heart isn’t in broadcasting. Even if I wasn’t effectively blackballed. The only reason I went into it in the first place was on the recommendation of my advisor and my coach. They thought it was a good match.”
