Chapter 22

Off we went, hand in hand, to the miniature golf course. I hadn’t played this game for nearly a century, and I figured he couldn’t possibly be any worse than he was at baseball. Perhaps he’d even win. Unlikely, but it was possible. Not that I was a star putter, but Strawberry seemed to have a DNA deficiency for gaming. 

We stood on the little green mound that marked the beginning point of Hole #1, both of us holding our clubs like a couple of professional putters. Suddenly Strawberry got very serious. “All right,” he said, “I’d like to wager a bet. If you win, I’ll buy you a whole cheesecake*. If I win, you have to consider the two of us being exclusive.”

Gulp.

I swiveled away from Strawberry, and stared at the drawbridge connecting the manicured mound and the big white castle in front of us. Did he say exclusive?

“OK, c’mon. There’s people waiting behind us,” he pressured. “What’s it gonna be?”

Uh oh, he wasn’t going to give me time to think about this.

“Deal or no deal?”

“Deal,” I must have mumbled.

“Good. You go first,” Strawberry said, taking control.

Following orders, I swung the club, and the ball plopped directly into the stream under the drawbridge, making a big splash. Way to go. I fished it out of the lime-looking water and completed my turn, scoring six on a par-three. I was confused. Was I suppose to win or lose? Strawberry or cheesecake?

He then very confidently laid his ball down, eyed the path to its final destination and swung. I watched as it went over the drawbridge, through the castle, down the steps, across the garden and into the little round cup. Hole in one.

I was gobsmacked.

“You didn’t tell me you were good at golf,” I said astonished.

“I wanted to surprise you,” he quickly responded. “Ready for the next hole?”

Why that sneaky Strawberry. Turns out not only did he play semi-pro golf right after college, but then he moved on to the putt-putt golf circuit and won the Tri-state championship five years in a row. The things they forget to tell you.

I needed to take a nice deep breath. Even though we’d been dating several months I had no clue this new deal was coming. But nothing stays the same, and the only constant is change. I know. I know.

I was wild about Strawberry, adored Charlie, and Natalie had moved clear to Kentucky for a new job raising rabbits. Just kidding. But she did temporarily relocate to Kentucky to work on some big tort case where she could continue to hone her maverick skills. Thank you, Kentucky.

So things were good. Yeah, they were good…just the way they were. Exclusivity with him certainly had its appeal, but I knew it meant relinquishing some freedoms, including my dalliance with Colin. No more tail-twirling or wandering around in the pasture.

Was I going to have to choose?

Evidently. Because Strawberry won with the best putt-putt score this place ever had. Stand by.

to be continued...

*Check out the divine White Chocolate Cheesecake recipe on the Recipes page.