Chapter 24

I was beginning to come into my own, all the extra work with Josh was paying off in huge dividends. I had become one of his favorite receivers, especially in clutch situations. The more I spent time studying with him, the more my thoughts meshed with his. I had scored eight touchdowns on a total of fifty nine receptions thus far. Finally our bye week arrived, it was well needed. Several players needed the extra time to heal up, everybody was battered and bruised. We watched film that Monday, had a light workout on Tuesday, then we were dismissed until the following Monday morning. Since I had close to a week off, I decided to fly home for a couple of days and surprise Ashley. I caught the red eye out of LAX on Tuesday night, I would get in early Wednesday morning. I slept pretty well on the plane, until shortly before we arrived on the ground. I had only packed a small carry on bag, so I made my way straight to the car rental counter and inquired about a car. Being the Thanksgiving holiday and with no reservation, the only thing they had were high end expensive cars left. The only thing they had ready was a Mercedes E350, I had to take it. They brought me to the car lot, handed me my keys and paperwork, I hit the highway.

I arrived at my house, sometime around nine that morning, Ashley’s SUV was in the driveway. I walked around to the front door, ringing the bell, which I knew would catch her off guard. I heard someone scurrying behind the door, then the door open just a crack, Ashley peering out carefully.

“Oh my God, Briannnnnnnnnnnnn.” she said, flinging the door open, jumping into my arms.

“Hey Ash.God it’s good to see you.” I whispered in her ear.

I set her back down on the floor, as she straightened her short robe on her body. It was obvious she hadn’t been up long, but nonetheless, she was still adorable.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?” she screamed, excitedly.

“It was a last minute thing, we have the next five days off.” I replied.

“Well come on in, I’m glad you’re here.” she said, grabbing my hand.

I went in, went to my old room and tossed my bag on the bed. I went back to the family room and sat down with Ashley, she had a million questions. We lost track of time, before we knew it, the clock read twelve thirty. I was rather hungry, I suggested we go out and get a bite to eat. She quickly went into her room and dressed, she was back in a flash. As we exited the back door, she saw the rental car parked behind her SUV.

“Whoa hotshot, you living large huh?” she laughed.

“They didn’t have much left, it was all they had other than a town car, they were both the same price.” I told her.

We drove over to the diner, had a quick lunch, then headed back home. I dropped Ashley off at home then drove over to the gym to say hello to Carl, it had been well over a year since I had visited him. We talked for a while, catching up, the thanked me for stopping by. On the way back through town, I happen to pass the local bank, I pulled over into the parking lot. I was wondering, if perhaps Jasmin was still working in the bank, or perhaps she had moved on. I decided to pop in and check, it had been years since we had seen each other. I walked through the large glass double doors into the lobby area of the bank. I noticed a woman sitting at a desk in the middle of the lobby, the plate on her desk read “Customer Service”, I figured she could help me. She noticed me as I was walking towards her.

“Yes sir, how can I help you today?” she asked, smiling politely.

“Does Jasmin Thomas still work here mam?” I asked.

“Yes sir, she does, she works in the financing department. She has an office upstairs. Do you have an appointment with her?” she asked.

“Oh, no mam. I went to high school with her, I am back in town, I just wanted to say hello, no big deal.” I replied.

“Let me ring her, whom should I say is here?” she asked.

“Brian Stevens”, I answered.

She looked back up at me like she had been hit by a bolt of electricity, then reached over and pressed one of the many buttons on her large phone. After a few seconds, she spoke into the receiver.

“Ms. Thomas, there is a Brian Stevens here to see you.” she said, softly.

She hung up the phone, then looked back at me, a smile on her face.

“Ms. Thomas will be right down.” she told me.

“Thank you mam.” I responded.

“You’re the Brian Stevens from here, the pro football player?” she asked.

“Yes mam, I am.” I answered.

Just at that time, I door open at the other side of the room, a beautiful young woman walked out. I could immediately tell it was Jasmin, but how she had grown. The once very pretty teenager, had blossomed into a beautiful young woman. She was dressed in a business suit, her hair had been cut a lot shorter than I had remembered it. She ran the last few steps jumping into my arms.