Off Season

Chapter 5: Saul Mellow

Chapter 5: Saul Mellow

Saul Mellow exits the boat after Tom. He wobbles to his left and right. It’s not because of the boat and the lake’s current, though. It’s because he’s drunk and stinks of bourbon. Saul is retired from the ESFL. He was the Vanmer Vipers’ fullback for eight years. Now he has problems with his knees, back issues, and drinking, or binging as I like to call it, consumes way too much alcohol lately, and God only knows what else.

He shakes my hand, exhales the strong scent of bourbon into my mouth, winks at me, and slurs, “It’s good to see you again, Jay. Are you working out more? You look pretty good. How much are you lifting these days?” He analyzes my forty-year-old and five-ten frame from the top of my head to my feet. The guy admires my coal black hair, light brown eyes, and medium build of one-hundred-and-eighty pounds.

“I can’t remember the last time I worked out.” It’s my turn to study his six-three frame, red hair, a matching beard that is trimmed short, dazzling green eyes, and two hundred and twenty pounds. I know that he’s thirty-six years old and does commercials for soap and window cleaner. I also know that he makes 3.2 million dollars a year, is quite arrogant, and used to date Thad before I came along and snatched the wide receiver away from him.

Saul ignores me and calls out drunkenly over his right shoulder to Brett, “Boy, bring my bag!”

Brett nods, happy to oblige. The last thing I want him to do is to turn into Gillian and Saul’s little fetching b***h. I haven’t paid the kid that much money to deal with their high-maintenance asses. Brett is a nice young man (I refuse to call him a boy), though, and means well. Without any effort, he hauls Saul’s athletic bag over his right shoulder, looks like a humpbacked troll, and ends up following Saul up to Holly Kill Cottage.

There are many things about the fullback that I despise. Saul is the type of man who believes that he owns the world. Although he isn’t super rich, he makes sure that everyone around him knows that he has money. Like Gillian, he’s into materialistic things, a constant name-dropper, likes to take trips around the world, and whatever else he can brag about to let anyone in his presence know that he isn’t hurting for cash. I believe what bothers me the most about the man is that he was intimate with Thad for two years, prior to our seven-year marriage. I can’t even look at Saul sometimes because all I can see is his mouth somewhere against my dead husband’s body. It is not uncommon for me to visualize Saul’s lips over one of Thad’s pumped n*****s or wrapped around Thad’s stiff c**k. I realize that such behavior on my part is repulsive, but I can’t help feeling this way and probably need some good therapy regarding these mental pictures, but will probably not seek a professional out anytime soon, if ever.

“Come, boy!” he snaps at Brett, which tells me that he is wicked, embarrassing himself, not at all charming, and half the man that he thinks he is. “Hustle! And don’t make me yell at you again!”

I roll my eyes, shake my head, and tell him, “You haven’t changed a bit, Saul. Welcome to the island again.”