“I can just see the NCAA on our doorstep the next day.”
“Please, you know I would pay for the tickets. Maybe I could catch a ride with a booster who has a private jet,” I suggested.
“Son, we’re not Ole Miss,” Bo said, getting his shots in.
“They don’t care about the NCAA. All they care about is they’ve beaten Alabama three times in the last twelve years.”
“One of those didn’t count because we had to vacate one of the victories as part of NCAA penalties.”
“Bo, you better quit while you’re ahead,” Tanya suggested.
I just smirked. He knew I would never do anything to jeopardize my eligibility. He was in the SEC, though, and I was sure he’d seen some questionable stuff, as he would at most every Power 5 school.
I decided to turn my wit towards Tanya.
“Did Bo pay for boarding school for Jordan?” I asked.
It was no secret that I thought her daughter was a little self-centered, to put it kindly.
“No, but there are days I wish he would. I invited her, but she didn’t have kind words to say about you. We thought it would be better that you two not have to suffer through dinner together.”
“For that, I am in your debt,” I said sincerely.
The waiter came and explained about the beef.
“We only use corn-fed beef from one source so we have strict quality control. We only select the highest-quality meat with just the right amount of marbling. This makes the meat very moist and flavorful when prepared properly. We dry age all our beef for at least 28 days. The moisture evaporates, but the beef stays tender and gets a nutty flavor. We think our meat is so good we only season it with kosher salt and cracked black pepper, and then finish it with butter.”
“What’s your best steak?” I asked.
“How hungry are you?” he asked.
“This boy could eat a side of beef by himself,” Bo said.
“We have an award-winning 32-ounce bone-in New York strip that’s normally for two. It’s carved tableside.”
“Bo, let’s get that. We can always take the leftovers home,” Tanya suggested.
Two pounds of meat sounded like it would be just about right. I doubt anyone was surprised when I decided to get one too. Fritz chose the regular-sized New York strip. Our waiter talked us into roasted wild mushrooms. He was right because steak goes with mushrooms. We also selected onion rings, steak fries, and creamed spinach.
The steak was better than advertised. You could cut it with your fork, and it almost melted in your mouth. I would be back for sure.
I almost passed on dessert, but they had a gooey pecan pie served warm with praline ice cream.
Even though the food was to die for, seeing Bo again and talking about weddings, football, and life was the highlight of the evening. We’d become friends over the two-plus years he’d worked to turn me into a quarterback. I owed him a lot. If Bo ever asked me to come to Alabama as a personal favor, I would do it without thinking. What made him such a good friend was he wanted me to go where it was best for me. I respected the hell out of that man.
◊◊◊ Tuesday July 12
Our hotel had a free breakfast, and eight seemed to be the time a lot of businesspeople decided to eat. Dave was sitting with M.E. and Kelly, so I walked up to say good morning.
“What’s good?” I asked.
“The bagel topper’s okay,” Dave said as he pointed at a premade bagel with egg, cheese, and mystery meat.
“I like the waffle,” M.E. said.
Kelly didn’t seem to be very talkative this morning.
“My sister says you’re meeting some girl you met at the pool yesterday,” Dave said.
I looked around but didn’t see Mercedes.
“I may have gotten stood up,” I admitted. “What’s the schedule for today?”
“Sign-in is eleven to one. At one-thirty, we have a team meeting, followed by practice and then a game tonight,” Dave supplied.
I made my way through the food line and loaded up on eggs, bacon, and sausage links. They had tea and juices, so I also got an OJ. A couple of businesspeople were just leaving, so I was able to snag a small table. I was just finishing when Mercedes’ friend sat down with me.
“I know you’re going to be devastated, but Mercedes hooked up with some random dude last night, and I haven’t seen her this morning.”
“And here I had such high hopes that she was the one.”
“I bet you did. You handled her very well. Did you have a good dinner last night?”
“Yeah, I sure did. We went to Pappas Brothers Steakhouse,” I said.
“I’ve heard good things about that place. I think I’m jealous,” she said. “Would it be okay if I ate with you?”
“I think I’d enjoy that,” I admitted.
I glanced over at Dave, and he was staring at her. Kelly was obviously unhappy with him. Mercedes’ friend joined the breakfast line, and when she came back, she had loaded her plate up almost like I had. I liked a woman who could eat.
“So, what brings you to Houston?” I asked.
“We have cheerleading tryouts.”
“Who with?”
“The Houston Texans.”
“No way. I know some of them. Well, ‘know’ is a little strong. They worked at a football camp I attended for the last two years, and I met them there.”
“You play football, too? I thought you were here for baseball.”
I was startled when someone sat down with us. It was Kaitlyn, the Texans cheerleader I was smitten with.
“Oh, Honey, this one is trouble.”
“Hey, guess who turned 18?” I asked with a big smile.
“Wait, you’re only 18?” the girl who hadn’t given me her name yet asked.
Turned out, her name was Rebecca. Kaitlyn told her what a flirt I was and how I made all the other guys at the football camps jealous, with her help.
“You have new pictures up on the website,” I said and waggled my eyebrows.
“I wish you were older,” Kaitlyn said, ruining my morning.
“Oh, I’d go easy on you. I’d hate to see you break a hip.”
“I’m not that old,” Kaitlyn complained.
“Thank God. I was worried about you. Give me your phone,” I said.
I put my number into it.
“I’ll be here the rest of the week and then through Monday of next. Except for Saturday when I have to fly to LA for the day. Call me, and I’ll take you out.”
Mom said that you had to assume the sale. Kaitlyn at least looked amused. Rebecca suddenly became my newest best friend.
“If you don’t call him, give me his number, and I will.”
“Can I bring my boyfriend?” Kaitlyn asked with a smirk.
“He’d just be a third wheel unless you found him a date. I’d hate for him to feel uncomfortable.”
“Come on, Rebecca. We need to leave before I decide to go out with him.”
“Hang on. We need to take pictures,” I said and waved M.E. over.
She took our picture for me, and I sent Kaitlyn a text with a copy of it. Kaitlyn closed her eyes and shook her head when she realized I had her number. She should learn never to hand her phone to anyone; you might suddenly have a stalker. At least I was upfront about it when I sent the picture to Lily to have her plaster it all over social media.
When they left, M.E. wanted the scoop. So I wouldn’t have to repeat myself, I had her get Dave and her best friend over.
◊◊◊
I was planning to go down and work out when there was a knock on the door. I opened it, and Kelly, M.E.’s best friend, was there.
“What’s with the sign?” she asked.
“Oh, yeah … hang on. You have to sign this before you can come in,” I said, handing her the clipboard with the document Fritz had given me.
She read it, shrugged, and signed it. I wasn’t really sure what I was supposed to do with it once I got it, so I just put the clipboard on the desk.