Second Chances

3- No Holds Barred

"Oh wow, Caleb."

The doors to the elevator opened and the entire restaurant was decorated in daisies and sunflowers, my favorite. The ambiance was light and airy, thanks to all the windows and doors being open, and there was a gorgeous sweetheart's table set up in the middle of the room.

"I hope you like it. I know that you love sunflowers and daisies, and I remember that you cherish your privacy." I almost teared up at the sight because not even my husband has gone through this much trouble to make me feel special.

"It's perfect, Caleb. I love it." He led me out to the roof and held me close as we surveilled the city.

"You know, every day could be like this, Selena." He placed a kiss on my temple, then we went back inside for lunch. He pulled out my chair, another thing that Mike doesn't do, then signaled for the waiter to take our drink orders.

"I'll take a Pinot and for the lady.....Get whatever you want, baby."

"Well, what's good around here?" The cute little Latina smiled exuberantly and showed me a set of beautiful teeth.

"We have a House Sangria, which is freshly prepared every day and a very popular Chardonnay."

"You had me at 'sangria'!" With a head nod, the cute server strutted away to get our drinks, and once they were sitting in front of us, I decided to begin the conversation.

"So, what do you do for a living?"

"Well, I fell into a grave state of depression after my injury and since I didn't have you to comfort me, I became addicted to painkillers. For so long, I blamed everybody else for my wrongdoings, and if it weren't for Coach Watson making me wake the hell up and see the bigger picture, I wouldn't be sitting here today." I shed a few tears while he spoke because I never thought that Caleb would go through anything like that. In my eyes, he was indestructible.

"At the end of my sophomore year, I checked myself into rehab, and during that time, I was forced to come to terms with my sour actions. From losing you to hurting my knee, I was to blame. After running from it for so long, I decided it was time for me to deal with the pain head-on. I changed my major from Kinesiology to Business, then I got licensed in Real Estate and Property Management. I'm also a licensed home inspector in ten states."

"Damn!!! That's impressive, Caleb!!!" Not only was I impressed, but I was also turned on. Caleb was always a brilliant student in school, but he used to eat, sleep, and breathe football.

"That's not even the exciting part! Right after I graduated, I received a call from Mama saying that my father has died. Now, mind you, I've never met the bastard, but when she told me that we were summoned to the reading of his will, I was curious."

Caleb was only eight months old when his parents divorced, and learned that shortly afterward, his father was informed that he was an illegitimate heir to a wealthy tycoon. He was awarded a ridiculously large lump sum, and instead of telling Caleb's mother at that moment, he put it in the will that Caleb would receive his inheritance when he graduated college.

"All in all, the son of a bitch left me one hundred million bucks, a fully operational warehouse, twenty million in stocks, and a beach house in Spain. Not knowing what to do with all that money, the first thing I did was spoil Mama, then I gave ten million to the Jackson State Tigers, with strict provisions that the football team gets taken care of handsomely."

"Ahh, so that's how they got those new uniforms and the new arena. That's awesome, Caleb. What else do you have your hand in?" By this time, the server had returned to take our food orders and refresh our drinks.