That lasted all of a couple of minutes until my tummy said something was wrong. I jumped up and made my way to the nearest bathroom. Cassidy saw my dilemma and had trailed me. She pushed me into the girls’ bathroom, where I found an empty stall. The good thing about a liquid lunch is that when it comes back up, it’s still liquid. I think the ‘moonshine’ drink was a bridge too far. I’d had experience with Everclear punch and should have known better. Whenever you can taste the Everclear, it’s too strong. I think it had tried to burn a hole in my gut.
When I came out, I found something interesting: women’s bathrooms are much nicer than the men’s. I think there’s some kind of discrimination going on. I made my way to the sink and rinsed my mouth out. Cassidy hustled me out when I spit in the basin and received angry glares. Maybe it was because of things like that that guys didn’t get nice bathrooms.
“We better get you something to eat,” Cassidy suggested.
I think Cassidy was hungry. We found Chick-fil-A, and I immediately ordered waffle fries. I needed something salty. Cassidy ordered food for everyone. She looked at me when the woman told her it was almost $200. I mean, seriously, I understand that stadium prices are going to be higher, but even I thought that was excessive.
“Have you ever paid for anything?” I asked Cassidy.
For my smart comment, I had to carry most of the food back to where we were sitting. I made the mistake of grabbing a spicy chicken sandwich. It must be a Southern custom to try to use enough cayenne pepper to make you sweat. The Alabama fans thought I was a wimp.
By now, all the parents were back, and I was glad Cassidy had ordered so much food.
The second half found the Crimson Tide down 14–13. I’d missed Texas A&M’s comeback. Alabama got their act together and came roaring back to win 33–14. I had to grin when a group of fans was sweating the margin of victory. They’d bet on their team and had to cover the 18-point spread.
◊◊◊
After the game, I needed a nap. I’d been up half the night traveling or learning I had three more children.
Fortunately, the effects of the alcohol I’d drunk before the game were gone. It was probably for the best that my stomach had revolted and gotten rid of most of it. To be honest, they’d warned me about the ‘moonshine’ drink. I noticed most of the regulars had sipped theirs.
Tim and Wolf had made plans to catch dinner with Jim. I told them to text me where the party was, and I would meet them there. Brook thought a ‘nap’ sounded good. I let her have her way with me. For some reason, guys tend to go to sleep after a good orgasm.
◊◊◊
Mom sent us a text to meet her and Dad in their room. When we got there, she was on the phone.
“I think he needs to hear that from someone other than me. I agree completely,” Mom said, and then spotted me. “Speak of the devil. Here, talk to Ms. Dixon.”
“What were you thinking?” Ms. Dixon began and then started to laugh. “You really should be a cautionary tale for all my celebrity clients. You just made a couple of stalkers a lot of money.”
“I don’t think they slept with me just to make money,” I complained.
“Hmm … let me ponder this. You expect me to believe that two college juniors played sex games with a high school kid?”
“You seriously don’t think I could go out right now and find two college women to come back to my hotel room with me?” I asked incredulously.
“You better not,” Brook warned.
I just frowned and pointed at the phone. I heard Ms. Dixon sigh.
“The sad part is I do think you could. Now we have to figure out what to do about it. Your parents have arranged dinner for everyone tonight to talk about this. I’ve had a chance to review the bodycam video Fritz sent me this morning. I just want to give you some advice before you talk to them.
“First, and I’m telling you this first because it might help you have some peace of mind, their families’ financial situations are encouraging. The key is whether their parents are like Cal and whether we can get past egos or religious issues. If those don’t get in the way, from what I heard, extended support issues may—and I really am emphasizing the word ‘may’—not be insurmountable. I’ll need a lot more information before we know for sure.
“Next, just because they put you down on the birth certificate as the father doesn’t make it so. I think you remember some of this from when you and Pam first discovered that you might be Coby’s father. We can take any of three paths. The first is you sign a document that establishes you as the father. Second is to let the courts decide. The third is to insist on a paternity test before getting into any serious discussions.
“I don’t expect that we’ll know which the best route is until you meet with the parents and have gotten to know them. If they’re reasonable, I would try to stay out of court. Once they get lawyers involved, it’ll get expensive,” Ms. Dixon reminded me.
“What am I looking at if we go to court?” I asked.
