The Guy Named Harrison: Book One

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Harrison and Carrie planned on going to dinner. That was until the light rain turned into a steady downpour. It was raining so hard that she couldn't even see the pool through the back window, only 20 feet away.

He came running back in the house with Gary and Wilson. It went from a sprinkle to a downpour in less than a few seconds, giving them no time to call the dogs. So Harrison had to go out into it to find them.

Being out there for less than thirty seconds, he ran in after Gary and Wilson, soaked from head to toe. Carrie closed the door behind him.

"We are not going to dinner tonight. It's supposed to pour all night."

"Nope."

As Carrie cleaned up the wet dogs, Harrison changed into a fresh pair of clothes. He came downstairs a few minutes later and helped her finish drying Wilson.

Gary was the easy one. He had short hair whereas Wilson had longer hair. Together the two of them finished drying the German Shepherd.

"What would you like for dinner?" He asked Carrie before rattling off all of her options.

"I'm not really hungry yet."

"Would you like to play a game of ping pong, darts or pool?"

Carrie had no idea he hand a ping pong table, dart board, or pool table. "Where do you have all this stuff?"

"I'll show you."

She followed him down the hallway past her office and the bathroom to a door she thought was a closet at the end of the hallway. It wasn't. Harrison opened the door to reveal a sweet game room.

There were classic arcade game machines lined against one of the walls. In the middle of the room stood the ping pong table and pool table. He even had a dart board hung on the wall.

Carrie took a few steps inside. He had a flatscreen tv on the wall in the corner near the arcade games. And on the other walls were decorations. Harrison had his draft jersey hung in a frame next to a 'keep pounding' flag.

His draft jersey was given to him when he was picked 3rd overall by the Panthers in 2011. It had his last name and number 1 on the back.

He noticed Carrie looking at it. "I wasn't even at the draft."

"Why not?"

"Because I didn't think I was going to get drafted in the first round. I was expecting to be second or third round. My dad and I were out fishing when I got a call saying to come home immediately because the Panthers were sending their private jet for me. I flew right to New York City."

"Look where you are now."

"I know."

Carrie continued looking around as he went and got two ping pong paddles and a ball. He decided to play her at ping pong.

"Where'd you get the guitars?" She asked, pointing to an acoustic and electric guitar on the other wall.

"I used to play."

"You?"

He nodded. "Yeah, a few of my friends and I had a band in high school. Want me to sing you something?"

"Let's hear it."

Harrison grabbed the tan acoustic guitar and swung it over his shoulder. Then he quickly tuned it. "So this is how you got so good at singing?"

"I guess. What do you want me to sing?"

"Doesn't matter."

He knew she would like the song When It Rains It Pours by Luke Combs. They sung it multiple times together in the car on the way to practice.

"Sunday morning, man, she woke up fighting mad.
Bitching and moaning on and on 'bout the time I had.
And by Tuesday, you could say that girl was good as gone.
And then when Thursday came around, I was all alone."

He kept going and Carrie realized he was pretty good. What couldn't he do? He could play football, was one of the best linebackers in the game, had everything going for himself, and could sing.

"And I've been on one hell of a redneck road for three weeks now.
And it all started on the day that she walked out.

That I won a hundred bucks on a scratch off ticket.
Bought two twelve packs and a tank of gas with it.
She swore they were a waist of time, oh, but she was wrong.
And I was caller number five on a radio station, won a four-day, three-night, beach vacation.
Deep sea, senorita, fishing down in Panama.
And I ain't gotta see my ex future mother-in-law anymore.
Oh lord, when it rains it pours.
When it rains it pours."

Harrison was out of breath. "I haven't sung like that in a while."

Carrie smiled. "You should sing for me more often."

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They were at the very end of a very intense game of ping pong. Carrie was winning 22-21. Harrison served and she hit it back. He tried to go to her backside, forcing her to use her backhand. But she easily hit it back.

He had to reach forward to hit one lightly back over. It took a perfect bounce, abnormally high off the table. Carrie hit it at the very top of its arch and sent a rocket off his side of the table.

She held her arms up. "Yes!"

"Best of 3?"

"Let's go."

The song Harrison sings in the chapter When It Rains It Pours by Luke Combs, is one of my favorite country songs ever. And he's one of my favorite artists.