The One Novel – Rose Goingforty in a parking lot is probably a bad idea. But I want to be in my seat before the game starts. That’s what’s expected of me anyway. I don’t want to mess with Brody’s pitching mojo or anything. I park in the VIP parking at the stadium where my husband Brody is playing. I’m running a little later than usual, and I’m frustrated with myself for doing so. As I turn off the engine to my car and snatch up my purse from the passenger seat, I’m startled by a horn honk. I get out of the car and notice that the sound is coming from the team bus that is parked close to the VIP entrance. I look up in time to see Kaden, one of the players who was suspended from playing in today’s game because of a DUI. It was all over the news today, and I know Brody and the rest of the team are going to be disappointed. Kaden is a valuable player, and he will definitely be missed. He’s clearly drunk and looks pretty pleased about it.
He has a busty bimbo on each arm and why shouldn’t he? His marriage to that pretty, happy, nice lady Tracy is over. He’s free to do what he wants now. I watch the three of them groping each other as they head for the players’ entrance to the stadium. It wasn’t so long ago that Kaden was a straight arrow kind of guy, like my Brody. What happened to Kaden to make him forget about his wife and kids and take such a sharp turn away from who he started out to be? I can’t help the anxious feeling rising in my gut. Kaden and Tracy married only a couple years before Brody and I, and they’d married in college just like we did. Everyone was surprised when we heard about their divorce. They always seemed so happy. Tracy told me she couldn’t handle the pressure anymore, and at the time I didn’t get it. But now I do. There’s so many away games, women throwing themselves at the players, late nights, parties, so many temptations. I get it. I really do.
And now, well, I’m starting to feel it. If Kaden, a seemingly happily married man, can stray, what’s stopping Brody? I pick up the pace and follow after Kaden and the two women, all the way scolding myself for comparing Brody to Kaden. Brody is a good husband and doesn’t deserve that. Anytime I’d seen Brody around the hot women that follow ballers, he’d only had eyes for me. And after I finished school, Brody asked me to travel with and follow the team, to attend the games and be with him. He wouldn’t ask me along if he wanted to be hooking up with loose women like Kaden did. — Rose He doesn’t even realizehe forgot to send me our signal from the pitcher’s mound before the first pitch. Brody talked non-stop about the game and interviews, and I didn’t want to be a killjoy for him. It was obvious that he was really happy about how the game went and the benefits of his performance paying off with the added attention clearly had him over the moon.
Brody wasn’t the kind of guy who coasted through life. He’d worked his butt off to get where he was, and now that it was finally paying off, I couldn’t bring myself to tell him about what I was feeling. I get into a hot, silky number and get into bed to wait for him. Brody is downstairs in the lobby with his agent for hours, and I wonder why I’m wasting my life following him around when it really doesn’t seem to matter if I’m there or not. If I wasn’t following the games, he’d be taking the team bus, spending his time in training or on the phone with his agent, and going out with his friends to blow off steam just as he’d done while I’d been finishing school. When Brody comes to bed still wet from a quick shower, he groans because he’ll only get a few hours of sleep before he has to report for the team meeting, then if he’s lucky he’ll have time to pack before we travel to the next town for the next game.
He’s tired, and I don’t want to start a discussion with him now, knowing that we won’t be able to finish it and work it out. Brody peckes me with a quick peck before falling asleep. Lying there with one of his arms draped over my stomach, I realize I only spoke with Brody three times the entire day. Once to wish him good luck and to be safe when he left the hotel really early that morning, and then again to brush off his lateness in reaching the parking lot from the game, and then the third time when I told him I wouldn’t be joining him and his agent. It hurt to face the truth of my situation. Following him around as I am, I am losing myself and my self-respect, and though it is happening slowly, I am losing Brody’s respect as well. At least when he’d been back to visit me between games when I was in school, he’d turn his phone off and give me his full and undivided attention.
He’d ask me about what was going on with me and wanted to know. I couldn’t blame him for not asking me those same questions now since all I am doing is fighting traffic, and beginning to recognize some of the hotel staff from when we’d come through town the week or month before. I can’t keep doing this. I need to find my sense of purpose and figure out what I’m doing, and find out if this is really the life I want. — Brody The team meetingwent over in time, but I’m not going to complain since it was the praise I received from the coach and team manager that put the meeting in overtime. I wasn’t too worried because I knew that Rose would notice that I wasn’t back, and she’d help me out by beginning to get my things packed up.
I use the hotel fob key to open the hotel room, and I’m pleasantly surprised to find that Rose has already packed up all of her things as well as mine. She seems a little nervous, and I figure it’s because I’ve gone and let my job monopolize so much of our time again. Last night she looked so hot, and I’d wanted to devour her, but I’d seen how tired she was when I climbed into bed next to her. I mentally kick myself for not at least telling her that she was beautiful. Rose is worrying her lower lip as I peck her. “Thank you for getting us both all packed up.” Thinking I can make up for my fumble the night before, I run my hands down her arm suggestively. “How about a quickie?” I suggest, nuzzling her neck. She pulls back and cocks a brow at me.
“We have twelve minutes.” “I know I can make great use of that time,” I tell her, pulling her shirt off her shoulder and pecking her collarbone. “We need to talk.” She interrupts me and I know it’s serious that instead of staying in my arms, she pulls completely away and walks across the room, turning back to me with her arms crossed in front of her. “I’m feeling invisible to you and to myself lately, and I feel like I’ve lost my purpose.” She seems to go on and on, but all I’m hearing is that I should have had intercourse to her last night so she’d know she’s right where she should be. Taking her hands in mine, I peck her fingers. “I’m going to make it all up to you when we get to Seattle.” The timer on my watch goes off, signaling that the twelve minutes is up.
“We need to get downstairs and board shuttles and busses.” I pick up my suitcase and go to pick up hers, but Rose takes it, insisting that she’d better take her own. We start down the hallway toward the elevator, and I try to pick up where we left off, promising I’ll make it up to her when we’re in Seattle. I push the elevator button, still talking, and as the bell dings, signaling the elevator to the left has arrived, Rose tells me, “You know, things have been rough for a while between us. We have intercourse and it’s like a Band-Aid, but it’s not fixing anything.” “What are you talking about?” “We need some time apart to re-evaluate our situation and what we’re doing,” she says. “I know what we’re doing, and we’re right on track.” The elevator doors open, and I’m glad there isn’t anyone inside. We get in, and I press the lobby button. Rose takes a breath and turns to me as she says, “We both need to take a step back, whether you realize it or not. I’m not going to Seattle.
I’m going home to Forest Grove for a little while.” What does that mean? Is she leaving me? We’re splitting up? Why? Controlling my emotions as I have to do in games, I calmly ask the most important question of the many that are firing in my head. “Is this a break, or are we breaking up?” “It’s just a break, a few weeks, maybe a month of me not following you around on the road.” “The rest of the summer?” I can’t help keeping the bite out of my tone. The doors open, and more people get on the elevator, preventing me from insisting as I want to do that she come with me to Seattle so we can discuss things further and in private before she leaves.
Limited in what I can say without causing a scene, I say, “There may not be any flights available this late. You might as well take the flight to Seattle, and from there you can—” “I already arranged for my flight back,” Rose says, cutting in. Panic pumps through my veins, but I remind myself that Rose and I are solid. This is just a breather, that’s all. “You were lucky to get a flight change so quickly on the same day.” Rose’s lips curve in a cordial smile as she gives me a nod. The elevator doors open, and the team bus is out front with the engine running. There’s no time to do any of the things I want to do, including try and change her mind.
I give her a quick hug, and as I go in for a peck, we’re bumped by a rush of people trying to catch the shuttle to the airport. “I need to get on that shuttle,” Rose says. The bus driver for the team bus honks the horn at me, and it seems there’s no time for a long, heartfelt goodbye. Giving her a quick peck, I give in to feeling angry and turn away and get on the bus, not bothering to watch her go. It was underhanded of her to make such a big decision about our marriage without talking to me about it first.