“Got it,” Brad said with alacrity. “When does Peggy leave?”
“Three hours,” Kyle replied.
“Plenty of time,” Brad said. “You don’t want her to go?”
“Nope,” Kyle answered. “She had a pack of condoms in her luggage and she is still bound and determined she’s going to get revenge for that thing with Ann Blakely I told you about. You remember?”
“Yeah…’nough said,” Brad remarked. “I’ll make the call when we get off the line. I’ll try to see that it doesn’t get back to her that you’re the one making this happen too…but you’re going to need to get ready for some fireworks anyway,” he said in an amused tone.
Kyle hadn’t thought of that. He’d been intent on salvaging what he could of his marriage. He hadn’t come to terms with her escalation of lying yet. It was true she usually threw a fit when things didn’t go her way. There was no denying Peggy was going to be livid whether she found out about Kyle’s part in the cancellation of the trip or not. The thought bothered him, but he was still going to work on saving the marriage. He sighed. It was loud enough for Brad to hear. Brad chuckled.
“Hey, I appreciate it, Brad,” Kyle said sincerely. It was time to end the phone call and let his friend do what he could in Kyle’s behalf.
“Not a problem,” Brad protested. “This is nothing. If we have to file for divorce…well, we’ll call it even for that time you blocked the defensive end in the Seguin game, okay?” The lineman had been about to cut Brad in two when Kyle had taken him out with a nasty little block that left the defensive end laying in a heap the field.
“I would still owe you for the linebacker on the next play though,” Brad continued. The linebacker had been intent on getting even for the humiliation of the defensive end. When Kyle took his legs out from under him, he’d swapped ends, cartwheeling in mid-air and landed, dazed, flat on his back. Brad had dodged left and raced down the sideline for a tying touchdown. Kyle laughed. It was his first since his daughter had made him chuckle earlier.
“Okay, okay,” Kyle said. “Someday you got to let those go, friend.”
“Huh-uh,” Brad replied quickly. “I view the preservation of my wonderful, if no longer perfect body, as a really great thing…and you were in charge of preserving it for many a season, big guy.”
Kyle laughed again and changed the subject to something more neutral. They talked for another few minutes. They agreed to meet for lunch somewhere in town in a week or two. They decided Kyle would call Brad when he knew what his schedule would be and then they ended the conversation. Kyle punched the off button to kill the connection. Thoughtfully, he strolled back into the house, dropping his cell phone into his right front pocket as he walked.
********
“Hello?”
“Mrs. Whitley? This is Sam Macmillan.”
“Hi, Sam. What can I do for you?” Peggy asked. Sam was her immediate supervisor, a man she disliked for being the man he was, as well as for being in a position in the company she wanted. She knew she could do a better job than Macmillan was.