47. JT

CHAPTER 47

JT

We’ve been home from the hospital for a week, and I don’t think I’ve ever been happier. Or more tired.

Sweet Calla still has her days and nights mixed up and she does this thing where she nurses for about three minutes then passes out. She repeats this trick every hour. We love it.

Just kidding.

It’s making us question our sanity. And it’s depriving Maggie of her own much-needed sleep. It’s seven in the morning and Maggie hasn’t gone to bed yet. That’s why I snuck Calla out here to the living room half an hour ago.

She’s lying on my chest, totally conked out, and I’m hoping it lasts at least until Maggie wakes up.

I’m about to drift off myself until I hear the faint buzzing of my phone. I don’t even bother looking at the screen. I just pick up. Mickey’s learned to do laundry without shrinking everything, so he’s been our one-man laundry service, and I’m guessing he’s calling to see if now’s a good time to stop by.

“You ready for more shitty laundry?” I ask.

“Uh…no?” An unfamiliar voice comes through the line.

“Oh, god. Sorry. Uh, who’s this? ”

“JT, buddy, you okay? This is Vince DeAngelis. I know we haven’t talked in a while, but I’ve got good news.”

My heart rate slides back into the normal range as I realize my agent is calling.

Holy shit. Why is my agent calling?

“Hi, Vince. Sorry about that.”

“It’s all good. You sitting down?”

I’m lying on a too-short sofa with my daughter cradled to my chest. I think that counts. “Yeah, what’s up?”

“Portland’s ready for you.”

It takes longer than it should for me to process those four words.

“What?” I sputter.

With great patience, Vince repeats himself. “They called up Hughes, but he’s not working out, so they’re looking for other talent. Your name is at the top of the list.”

Portland is ready for me.

It’s happening.

I’ll be doing what I love and making a life for my family.

Holy. Fuckballs.

Those words should be screamed at the top of my lungs, but Calla is fast asleep and so is Maggie, and I don’t want to risk waking them, so I settle for a silent scream.

Calla.

Maggie.

My girls are here. In Maryland.

I can’t go to Portland.

“Come again? JT, did you just say you can’t go to Portland?”

I guess I said that out loud. “Uh, yeah. Vince, I’ve got kind of a unique situation here.”

“Hate to break it to you, Norris, but I’ve been an agent for twenty-seven years. Nobody’s unique. But go ahead.”

“I’m a dad.”

“Try again,” he says, imitating a buzzer .

“My girlfriend had our daughter last week. She’s so little. I can’t leave her. Or Maggie, my girlfriend. I’m her support system right now. Leaving just doesn’t feel right.”

I can hear Vince frowning. “Does a signing bonus feel right? What about the words contract player?”

“Yeah, they sound great. But they’ll sound better in a year or two. Now just isn’t the right time for me.”

“All due respect, I’m not sure you get how this works. When they call you up, you go. It’s not your choice. It’s theirs. And right now, there’s an open spot waiting for you. An opportunity like this isn’t gonna come again.”

My silence tells Vince everything he needs to know.

“Look, you’ve got a baby. You’re probably not getting a lot of sleep. Take a rest, get your head on straight, and I’ll call you with the details tonight, okay? I might be able to buy you a couple weeks. Let me see.”

The line goes dead and I’m still staring at my phone when Maggie pads through the living room ten minutes later.

“You need your sleep,” I say, wrapping a hand over Calla’s little diapered butt. “I’ve got her.”

“I know, and I had a great power nap. But now I’m starving. Hey, are you okay?” she asks, forgetting her mission for food and settling in next to me on the couch. “You’re just staring at your phone. Is Mickey trying to teleport through it, perhaps?”

I laugh. “That’d be awesome. But no. Vince called.”

“Vince is…”

“My agent. Portland’s calling me up. I’ve got a job. Yay!” My feigned excitement rings hollow.

“Portland as in Maine?”

I shake my head. “Oregon. I’m a Sasquatch, Cinderella.”

Maggie’s quiet as she processes the information. “That’s pretty amazing. I mean, that’s what you want, right?”

“It’s the chance of a lifetime, seriously. I mean, when you get drafted, there’s no guarantee. They could keep you, cut you, trade you. They’re basically just calling dibs. But this? This is real. I’ll have a job. An income. A signing bonus. Our very own healthcare.”

“Wow, that’s amazing. And you get to do your thing. Watching you was pretty incredible. So, do they make Sasquatch onesies? And off-the-shoulder tees? Because Calla and I need to represent at your games.”

In this moment, I’m not sure I could love Maggie more. I just told her we’re moving our week-old baby across the country. She knows the travel schedule is insane, and all she can say is that she and our infant will be my cheering section.

“I don’t want to go,” I tell her honestly. “I mean, I do, of course. It’s the dream. But right now? No. Across the country? Nope. And constant travel? It’s not fair.”

Maggie leans her head on my shoulder. “Life isn’t fair. Sometimes you get a crappy hand you don’t deserve. And sometimes, for no reason at all, you win the jackpot. A wise man once told me to enjoy the good stuff, so that’s what I’m going to do. And you and Calla are definitely the good stuff.”

“You’re right, and I know it, but it just feels…off. I’ll be traveling constantly. The schedule is grueling. We’ll have a couple weeks to get settled, but then training camp starts. I’ll barely see you, and I’ll miss so many moments. I don’t want to be absent, like my parents were. It’s different, but still. I don’t want that for her, or for you.”

“Can you tell them no?” Maggie asks as the baby stirs. In just a week, she’s become an expert. I watch in awe as Calla roots around and latches on. Maggie hisses out a breath before turning back to me.

There’s no way I can leave these two.

“I guess we’ll find out,” I tell her.

Twenty four hours later and I’m sweating my balls off. Vince thinks I’m crazy as a shithouse rat. For real. Those were his exact words. And now I’m on a Zoom call with the GM of the Portland Sasquatch. Diana Corley is a force and the look on her face tells me she thinks I’m wasting her time. And that only fools waste her time.

“Vince tells me you need a refresher on how the draft works?” she drawls, sparing me a glance before she takes a sip of her coffee.

“No, ma’am. I realize that I belong to the Portland Sasquatch until you decide I don’t.”

“That’s correct. So what’s the problem? We have a relocation team ready to help your family get settled. I was hoping you’d be ready for the game against LA on Tuesday, but I’m willing to give you an extra week, seeing as your daughter’s just been born. We’re in the midst of a playoff run, Mr. Norris, or hadn’t you heard?”

I wonder once again if I’m the biggest idiot on the face of the earth. But Maggie’s curled up in a recliner pumping milk while I’m padding around the apartment, rubbing Calla’s back and willing her to sleep.

If I go to Portland, we’d have a house. I could hire a nanny. And I’m going to the NHL, not off to war.

I look down to see my sleepy little Nugget yawn and the words fall out of my mouth before I can stop them.

“I’m worth the wait,” I say. “You know it and I know it. All I’m asking for is one year. Like you’ve said, it’s your choice.”

Ms. Corley’s mouth opens. Then it closes. When it opens again, her words are clear and firm.

“You do realize we could just trade you. Or cut you?”

“Yes, ma’am,” I answer. “But you won’t. Because you know a good thing when it comes your way. Even if you have to wait just a little longer to get it.”