Page 17 of Love is a Game

He hesitated as if he had more to say, then turned and walked to his car. She didn’t wait for him to drive away, just went back into the house and straight to her room without saying good night to anyone. She would find a way to get in touch with Robby. She would convince Maddox that the purchase was a good idea. Like everyone said, she was a hard worker. She could make it all happen, no matter what Andrew had to say about it.

Chapter Six

Sadie adjusted her grip on her putter and squared her shoulders. She had a chance at a birdie if she could make this shot, but she wasn’t confident she could from this distance. She took a deep breath and then gave the golf ball a sharp tap. It rolled across the grass, wobbled slightly as it approached the flag, then landed with a satisfying clunk into the hole. She pumped her fist and let out a quiet cheer.

Her dad patted her on the shoulder. “Well done. I wasn’t sure about that one.”

“Me neither,” she admitted.

He tallied up the final score on their score card as she put her club back into her bag. She’d been golfing with her dad since she was thirteen years old. It had started as a way to get her out of the house when her teenage hormones were getting the best of her, but she quickly discovered that she enjoyed it, and her dad was thrilled to have someone to share his hobby with. He’d told her that knowing how to golf would open doors for her in her future career and that had certainly proven to be true over the years. She found that meetings with clients and with her superiors at Maddox tended to feel less formal when they took place out on the green. It didn’t hurt that she was good at it too.

“You’re only down by six,” Bob told her. “I think that’s the closest we’ve ever been at the end of a game. You’ve obviously been practicing.”

“When I can.”

“Well, I’m glad. It’s good for you. Keep it up, and maybe you’ll beat me next time.”

Sadie shook her head, smiling as she lifted her clubs over her shoulder. “You’ve got twenty years experience on me,” she said. “I’m not sure that’s ever going to happen.”

He laughed. “Maybe that’s for the best. I’m your old man. I’ve gotta have one thing that I can still beat you at.”

“Sometimes I think that’s the only reason you go with me,” Sadie teased.

He shook his head. “Don’t be ridiculous. I love spending this time with you. You’re always so relaxed with a club in your hand. I don’t usually get to see that side of you.”

Sadie wasn’t sure what to say to that, so she just smiled and squeezed his arm.

They loaded their clubs into the back of his car and got in. Sadie tried not to look too eager as she pulled her phone out of the glove box where it was stowed. Back in high school she’d made a deal with her dad that he wasn’t allowed to have his phone on him when they golfed. She didn’t want him taking calls when he was supposed to be focused on teaching her how to play. Now that she was an adult, he took great pleasure in holding her to the same standard, but she hated being unavailable even for a couple of hours.

“Do you mind if I listen to this voicemail?” she asked, seeing that she had missed a call from Archer. “It’s my boss.”

“What’s he doing calling you on a Saturday?” her dad asked, pulling out of the parking lot.

“We don’t all work bank hours, Dad,” she reminded him. “Archer puts in a lot of time on the weekends.”

“Ah, and you want to be promoted so you can work weekends too?”

“Quiet, I’m trying to listen,” she said, putting her phone to her ear. She didn’t want a good day of golfing to be ruined by complaints about her job.

The voicemail was a bit rambling, which was typical for Archer. When she was working in Seattle, he would stop by her office a couple of times a day to sit and chat. She could tell that he missed that when she wasn’t there. At the end of the extraneous babble, he told her to call him back.

“Sorry, Dad, I have to make a quick call.”

Archer answered right away. “You know, I think they changed the way they make their Reuben sandwiches at Little Lunchbox,” he began. It sounded like he was talking around food. “Maybe I should go back to Ricky’s.”

“Ricky’s moved to the U District.”

“Did they? When was that?”

“Last year, I think. You asked me to call you back,” she reminded him, hoping he had something more important than sandwiches to discuss.

“Right. How are things going out there?”

“Oh, you know, usual problems. Nothing I can’t handle.”

“That’s good to hear. If you have any more trouble with that contractor, you let him know Maddox is not afraid to cut ties. I’m sure there are plenty of other qualified people who can do the job.”

“I’ll let him know.”