Happy Birthday: A Novel

The first thing on their agenda was a brunch at eleven, hosted by the network, followed by a luncheon afterward. Then he had interviews to tape with important players. He interviewed Valerie briefly first, and she admitted that she was a neophyte and knew little about football but was having a ball being there. After that, he did longer interviews of the major players, coaches, and team owners, and Valerie went to the pool. Jack worked till dinnertime, and there was another huge party that night, hosted by one of the major sponsors of the game. She wore a short gold dress and looked spectacular, and Jack introduced her to several legendary players, including Joe Namath, who had come for the weekend too. It was one of those unforgettable weekends, when everybody came. Jack was constantly talking to someone, being photographed, or introducing Valerie, signing autographs for fans, talking to players he knew, or posing for photographs with her or other Hall of Fame players. He never stopped. She watched him in awe as he worked the room. He was great at what he did, personable with everyone, and adored by all. The network knew what they were doing when they hired him, she realized. Before she knew him, she had just assumed he was some ex–football player. Jack was an icon in the football world. There was no question in her mind now as to who was more important or more famous. She finally understood that Jack Adams was a football legend whom generations would talk about and remember. No one was going to remember her weddings or her books in fifty years, but they would surely still be talking about him. She hadn’t fully realized that until today.

They went to three different parties that night, all around Miami, and wound up at a nightclub where some major movie stars and rappers were hanging out. It seemed like every famous person on the planet was in Miami for the game. They got back to the hotel at three A.M. The players didn’t stay out that night, they had to go to bed early before the game the next day. The game was starting at six, and Jack had to be there at noon, to do background newscasts, and interviews all day. This time, he followed her into her suite before he went back to his own. Although it was later, he looked less exhausted than he had the night before. He felt like his old self and was on a roll.

“What an evening!” she said, as they sat down in her room. “It was awesome! I am having an absolutely fantastic time!” She beamed at him. And she had had a ball at all the parties they went to that night. “I think I’m going to tell people to forget Super Bowl parties from now on, just come down for the weekend and the game.” He laughed as he looked at her. He was happy she was enjoying it so much. And she was much more fun for him than the girls he usually brought. She was beautiful, elegant, intelligent, fun to be with, she had a great sense of humor and talked to everyone, and she wasn’t drunk off her ass, flirting with some linebacker while his wife threatened to kill her. It was a lot easier bringing Valerie than the girls who’d come with him before. “It really has been a fabulous weekend.” She smiled at him. “Thank you for inviting me.”

“I’m glad I did. It’s been fun for me too.” He knew she had a VIP seat in a box the next day, and he wouldn’t see her until after the game. “Let’s have breakfast in your suite tomorrow before I leave. I’ll be gone most of the day.” She was planning to relax and hang out at the pool before the game. And then he reminisced for a minute about how exciting it used to be for him before a Super Bowl game. She had learned since they’d been there that he had been Super Bowl MVP of his team twice. And she had seen his four Super Bowl rings among his trophies in his den in New York. It all had more meaning to her now since she’d actually seen what a big deal it was. Being in the thick of it with him in Miami had already taught her a lot.

“It must have been hard for you to give all this up and retire,” she said sympathetically.

“I didn’t have a choice,” he said sadly for a minute, remembering. “My knees were shot. I was thirty-eight years old, and if I pushed it, I could have hung in for two more years, max, and maybe wound up in a wheelchair. It wasn’t worth it. I had seventeen great years in the NFL. That’s a lot. And they were seventeen very, very sweet years. It doesn’t get better than this, if this is what you love. It’s a lot of work, but I never regretted it for a minute.”

“That’s a nice way to feel about what you do.”

She loved her work, but she realized now that this was different. This kind of stardom was very different from hers. And there was a glory and magic that went with it, which was almost unique, except in sports. Major rock stars got this kind of adulation and acclaim, but athletes and their adoring fans were a very special world.