“Really? Isn’t that like a dream come true?”
“Sure is, and the money is nice, until it’s all broken down for you, and you realize how much you have to pay an agent, taxes, rent, and living expenses. Then you see that your mid-six-figure deal isn’t a lot when it comes down to it.”
I added, “And on the other end, you have a scholarship to a top-notch college, which means a guaranteed education and some life skills, all for the price of playing the game you love.”
“You chose college?”
“I did, for the first three years. At the end of my junior year, I was drafted again. This time around, I went higher in the draft and had a much better contract.”
“So you won regardless.”
I nodded again. “I did. My parents were happy, and so was my wife.”
Cutter’s mouth dropped open. “You’re married? How come Mrs. Schmidt isn’t at our games?”
This was what happened when I got carried away in a conversation. I’d never had any intention of telling him about my wife or that part of my life. People tended to define you by your marriage and subsequent divorce, which was something I didn’t want to happen.
“My ex-wife lives in New York.”
“Oh, sorry.”
“Don’t be. Here, put these on.” I handed Cutter a pair of safety glasses and asked him to recite the safety rules on the saw. He did so effectively.
“Okay, are you ready to cut?”
He nodded but looked apprehensive.
“Do you want me to show you?”
“No, I think I got it.”
I put my safety glasses on and nodded for him to continue. Step by step, he followed the instructions I’d taught him. When the saw went effortlessly through the wood, I applauded.
“Nice cut.”
“Thanks. That was sort of fun.”
I patted him on the back. “Now for the really fun part. We need to pull up the old one and pray the brackets underneath are stable and don’t need to be replaced.”
“Because that would be hard?”
“And time-consuming.” I didn’t want to tell him I was concerned about his mom’s mobility. While she could walk today, with her diagnosis, which Carmela had filled me in on, who knew how long it would be until her legs gave out on her?
“Now, we’re going to lift that board,” I said as I picked up the crowbar. “Normally, we’d dismantle everything.”
“But not today.”
“Nope.” I held the crowbar up. “Do you want to do this part?” If I were in his shoes, I would absolutely want to do some damage to whatever I could.
“Yeah, for sure.”
“Don’t break the window, Cutter,” Nova said from her perch on Carmela’s lap.
“Ha ha,” he said as he stuck his tongue out at her. I gave him a short lesson and let him go to work on getting the board up while I measured a few more. Once he had it up, we pulled old nails, and I checked the bracket for any wood rot. With everything looking and feeling solid, we hammered the new board in place.
“It doesn’t match,” Nova pointed out.
“Nope, we’ll stain it to match in a few days.”
