Bluegrass State of Mind (6 page)

"I take it your son is the D.A.? Well,
in that case I will do you one better and start a scandal right
now." She leaned over and placed a kiss on his paper thin cheek and
then whispered in his ear, "If I get a job, do you think they'll
all say I kissed my way to the top?"

Roger chuckled and looked at Will
while giving Kenna's hand another light pat, "Son, I hope you don't
mind, but I am going to encourage my Paul here to ask this one out.
She reminds me of my sweet Martha, god rest her soul." He squeezed
her hand and then slowly started to work his way back to his
table.

"I will gladly take my great Uncle's
suggestion. May I call you at Miss Lily's sometime this week?"
Will's hand found its way back to her waist and as if staking a
claim. He pulled her a step closer to his side. "After all, Will,
you know as well as I do that no one can outlast Whitney. So you
may as well save yourself the time."

Kenna saw Will's jaw clench.
Apparently there was a story there. Maybe Will wasn't as free as
she thought, even though he appeared to be singling her out. Either
way, she didn't like to be treated like she was spoken for, so she
smiled at Paul. "I'd love that. Thank you, Paul".

"It was great meeting you, Kenna. I am
glad you have come to Keeneston and look forward to seeing you
soon. Good luck with your interview with my uncle," Paul said and
then turned to head back sit at his table with his great
uncle.

"Come on, you two, sit down and eat.
Violet took charge and brought you out tonight's special on the
house as a welcome to the town for Kenna." Miss Daisy ushered them
back into the booth and placed a plate loaded with meatloaf, garlic
mashed potatoes, and some steamed carrots in front of
Kenna.

"Thank you, Daisy Mae. This is so nice
of you both."

Miss Daisy harrumphed and went to
fetch more orders.

"I have to apologize for my actions
with Paul" Will said after a couple of bites of dinner. "We have
been rivals since high school. He was a couple of grades behind me
and a star on the soccer team. We often clashed over girls. He's
right, I have no claim on you. But that's not saying that I
wouldn't like to," Will said as he looked her right in the eyes. He
lowered his gaze and went back to eating. Periodically through the
meal, patrons would come up to the table and introduce themselves
and talk about the law with Kenna or about the town in general.
However, most came to talk to Will about his horses or how the
football team would look in the fall. After the tension between
Will and Paul, it was a nice break to meet so many of the town and
avoid thoughts of either man. After all, it wasn't as if she was
looking for a boyfriend. She was pretty sure she was cursed in that
aspect anyway.

When they finished dinner, they got up
from the booth and Kenna noticed Will leaving a twenty on the table
even though dinner had been on the house. He placed his hand at the
small of her back and navigated her out of the cafe as people waved
and said they'd see her later. She had never felt so close to a
group of people before.

"How about we walk up to Miss Lily's?
It's such a nice night out," he said, helping her slide on a light
jacket.

"That would be great.” As they crossed
Main Street and headed up to Miss Lily's, she turned to Will. His
face was in profile as the moon light came down to show a slight
scar on the bridge of his sharp nose. "How did you get that scar?"
Kenna asked, gently running her finger over it.

"I got it during a game. We were
playing an away game and were in Green Bay during December. It was
freezing outside. Snow was covering the field and this strong wind
was blowing. My receivers couldn't get their feet under them and
that left me in the pocket longer than normal. One play, while
waiting for my receiver to get open, I got hit from behind by a
huge lineman. I wasn't prepared for it, so I hit the ground full
force with my face leading the way. My helmet slid down a little
and cut the bridge of my nose. The good thing was I had just
managed to get the ball off and we ended up winning the game with
that touchdown. The other good thing was that it was so cold that I
didn't feel much of it. When the doc looked at me after the game
the blood had frozen and there was very little mess."

"I know you played in the NFL in D.C.
for a couple of years, but that's all. Did you always intend to go
pro?"

"No. I went to the University of
Kentucky on a football scholarship. I was red shirted my first year
though. They had a great QB and a junior backup so I wasn't really
needed. Also, I was still pretty scrawny. I didn't really bulk up
until the end of my freshman year. I grew taller, and the strength
coach kicked my butt daily. I filled out and by the time the QB in
front of me graduated, I was ready to play. Anyway, I went on to
start my Junior and Senior year. We had this great Air Raid offense
that really padded my stats too. Because of my red shirt, I had
five years of college. So while it was technically my senior year
of football, I had already graduated and was enrolled in the MBA
program."

"You got your MBA while playing
football? That must have been tough."

"Actually, I only got one of the two
years completed then. I had a pretty good Senior year and started
to get scouted by some pro teams. I thought I would give it a try
since there was some interest, so I entered my name in the draft. I
ended up being drafted late in the second round to D.C. Halfway
through my first year; I was content riding the bench and watching
one of the best NFL QB's picking apart team after team. But late in
October we were playing Falcons. It was a battle of the top teams.
They were first in the NFC and we were second. We were neck and
neck through the first half. But then in the third quarter, they
started pulling away. They were ten points ahead when our QB got
rolled by one of our lineman and went down."

"What does 'rolled' mean and why did
your lineman do it?” she asked.

"The offensive line is made up of the
big men that have the job of protecting the QB. Well, one of the
defensive players on the Falcon's knocked over one of the lineman.
When you knock down a three hundred and twenty pound man, the
momentum sends him into the QB's leg. In this case he rolled onto
the QB's foot, trapping it. When he hit the leg, it resulted in
almost snapping the bone. It tore a whole bunch of ligaments and
tendons though. Put him out for the rest of the season."

"So, with number one out, you got your
big chance." She smiled and jumped in front of him pretending to
pass a football down the street. "I bet you won the game by
throwing the winning touchdown," she laughed.

"Actually, far from it. I caused us to
lose. I threw the losing interception. I got cussed out by the
coach and slammed by the talking heads. I was totally unprepared to
be the starter. I hadn't played a single down before that game but
was suddenly expected to lead the team. Lucky for me, Doron, the
injured QB, helped me out a lot. He would come in early for
practice and spend an hour with me teaching me the system and what
to look for."

"So, how long did you stay in the NFL?
Were you fired?"

"No, I wasn't fired," Will laughed as
they stopped on the front porch of Miss Lily's bed and breakfast.
He turned and faced her, "Although I kinda sucked for the next
month and we fell in the ranking, we managed to get into the
playoffs and by that time the extra practice with the coaches and
Doron really paid off. I started throwing more touchdowns and fewer
interceptions. We ended up the runner-up in our division that year,
which was a big accomplishment for a rookie like me."

"They kept you around, huh?" she said
as she playfully nudged him with her shoulder.

"Yeah, they decided I wasn't that bad
and paid me a nice bonus to extend my contract with them. Doron and
his wife had been trying to get pregnant for over five years and
they didn't think it would ever happen. Then she found out she was
pregnant with triplets right before the NFC championship game."
Will chuckled, "You should have seen Doron's face when he came into
the locker room after finding out. His face was drawn and his eyes
kinda crossed. He announced to the whole team that after ten years
of playing in the NFL, he was quitting to become a stay at home
dad. He had even purchased a minivan on the way to
practice."

"That certainly sealed your fate then.
How long did you play for?"

"I played for seven seasons. All with
D.C., which is pretty rare. I loved every moment on the
field."

"Why did you stop then?

"I stopped because I got a phone call
from my mom saying Dad was in the hospital. She was in tears. She
had found him unconscious in the mare barn. He had suffered a heart
attack and luckily she came upon him right after it happened. The
stress of running the farm was just too much for him. I decided I
would use my MBA to run the farm. Every summer for three years, I
took summer classes and finished my MBA. I focused in agricultural
management, but I also learned enough from my first year in the
program to be careful with my money. So I didn't really need to
play anymore to live comfortably. I quit at the end of the season
while I was at the top of my game and took over the farm. I still
get together with the guys a couple times a year, so it's not like
I have left it totally behind. But I am having a lot of fun with
expanding the farm. This year, we actually have a chance for
back-to-back Derby wins."

"Wow! I am taking it that is hard to
do?"

"Very. Speaking of the farm, you
haven't seen it yet. Would you be interested in coming over for
dinner one night? I can show you around the place." He eagerly
looked at her, waiting for her answer.

"That would be great. I would love to
see the place and some of the horses."

He smiled wide at her answer. From
jumping around throwing imaginary footballs a lock of her auburn
hair had escaped from behind her ear and was dangling by her eye.
He slowly reached over and brushed his fingers gently across her
cheek on the way to tuck the errant strand back behind her
ear.

Kenna froze the moment Will's fingers
touched her cheek. It was so gentle she thought maybe it hadn't
happened, but she saw Will's eyes lock onto her lips and felt her
own part in response. His hand fell to her shoulder and pulled her
to him. He smelled like the outdoors and fresh cut grass. She saw
him bend his head towards hers, and as he angled his head she
closed her eyes.

Suddenly, from behind her closed
eyelids, the world became bright. And it wasn't from the kiss she'd
been expecting. Kenna opened her eyes and saw Will's face inches
from hers. "We're totally busted," he said to her and
winked.

Kenna looked around and found that the
porch, which just seconds ago had been romantically light by the
moon, was now awash in bright lights. The front door opened and out
came Miss Lily with her broom. Ignoring the couple on the porch,
she started sweeping, "Don't mind me, and finish saying your
goodnights. I just saw a leaf I wanted to take care of before the
morning. Oh, and William, I expect you to say goodnight like a
gentleman. There's no hanky panky on my porch until you're
officially courting." And with that, she started sweeping the
imaginary leaf to the edge of the porch. The bright lights did
nothing to hide Kenna's fierce blush of embarrassment. But Will
didn't seem similarly affected. Instead, he leaned down again as if
to kiss her goodnight on the cheek. She backed up not wanting to
suffer another embarrassment in front of Miss Lily. Thwack! Miss
Lily's imaginary leaf had apparently landed on Will's perfect
bottom, because Miss Lily smacked it again as Will laughed out
loud.

"I was just seeing if you were paying
attention, Miss Lily." Will laughed holding up his hands up in
surrender.

"Sure you were young man, now scoot."
Miss Lily, standing on the porch in an old yellow bathrobe, used
her broom to sweep Will off the porch as he chuckled and waved
goodnight to Miss Lily and Kenna.

"Now, young lady, I know they play 'em
fast and loose in New York. But that is not how it is done here.
Now, come inside before you catch your death," Miss Lily said as
she shooed Kenna inside. "And you tell me all about your night out
with young William," she added with a wink to Kenna.

Chapter Four

It was dark. The light from the back
room was casting eerie shadows off the cubicles and down the hall.
The base of the music was loud. She could feel it vibrating through
her body. She walked slowly toward the music, and toward the
screams.

Her heels made no noise on the thick
carpet as she crept forward. Her heart was beating fast. Her palms
were sweaty. Her breathing was coming in shallow gasps. She stopped
dead when she heard a creak coming from the floor. Taking a breath,
she moved closer to the cubicles to keep hidden. Her hands skimmed
over the rough industrial fabric as she got closer to the
room.

She bent down as she slowly made her
way forward, using the cubicles to hide behind. They wouldn’t like
her being here. There was only one cubicle separating her from the
room. Quietly, and on unsure legs, she crept into it. She was so
close to the source of the music that the loud base was shaking her
whole body.