“S’mores!” Gabi clutched her hands dramatically against her chest. “Lucca Romano, I love you.”
FIFTEEN
For the next two weeks, Gabi managed to avoid working with her mother by returning to the sheriff’s department to fill in for one of Zach’s deputies who requested family leave to stay home with his newborn baby. Lucca divided his time between Aspenglow and the school’s gymnasium, where he worked with the basketball team and with Wade in particular. In the first awkward exchange between Lucca and Richard, the contractor made an “I won’t hurt your mother” assertion and Lucca replied with a “Good, because I’ll be watching” caution. After that they managed to revert to their prior working relationship.
Hope, meanwhile, continued her dawn-to-dusk schedule, though she found it more difficult to get through the day without running out of steam. Her fatigue bothered her with an unacknowledged concern fluttering at the back of her thoughts like butterfly wings. Three times during the week while grading papers on the sofa in the teacher’s lounge during her conference period, she’d ended up taking a nap. With an extra-early start scheduled for the next day—a special preseason tournament had been organized in Serenity Valley to raise funds for a local student in need of a kidney transplant—she regretfully decided that she’d better skip that night’s date with Lucca in order to go to bed early.
When he arrived before practice, she took him aside and said, “I’m sorry, Lucca, but I need to cancel our date tonight.”
“Okay.” Concern creased his brow. “Is something wrong?”
“Not really. It’s been a long week and frankly, I’m just exhausted. We need to leave before daylight in the morning, so I’m better off going to sleep early.”
He studied her with a frown. “That’s the third time I’ve heard you mention being tired recently. Maybe you should see a doctor.”
Those butterfly wings of worry fluttered again, but she quickly swatted them away. “I’m fine, really. I’m still catching up from the sleep I missed when Daniel was here.”
His tone droll, he said, “If I weren’t a confident man, I might find statements like that worrisome.”
“Hey, Coach!” one of the players called as a group of students entered the gym. “Would you settle an argument? My dad says Michael Jordan had a better jumper than Derek Fisher. What do you say?”
Since the question itself proved that the student wasn’t talking to her, Hope turned her attention to her practice notes. She was amazed at the progress the team had made since the beginning of the season. Lucca saw the difference in the players, she knew. What she wondered was whether or not he saw the difference in himself.
He enjoyed coaching. She found it endearing that he obviously derived just as much pleasure from the efforts of their benchwarmers as he did from the starters. She wondered if it had always been that way for him, or if the pressure of high-stakes competition had stolen that joy. Well, whatever the answer, she hoped that when he returned to collegiate coaching, he would take the lessons learned in the Grizzlies’ gym along with him.
She gave her head a shake, then focused on the business at hand. The boys were full of energy that afternoon and excited about the first away trip of the season. At the end of practice, she called them together to pass out travel information for the players to give their families. “I still need signed permission slips from Billy and Brandon.” She made eye contact with the two in question. “I won’t let you on the bus without them. Meet in the parking lot at five a.m. We’re leaving at ten minutes after. If you’re late, you’ll have to find your own way to Serenity Valley. Coach Romano, any final words of advice for our team prior to the tournament?”
A shadow crossed his face. “I’ll save my pregame remarks for tomorrow.”
She looked at him for a beat. “All right, then. In that case, we’re done here. See you all in the morning—and go to bed at a decent time tonight!”
As the boys holding basketballs lined up to place them in the rack, Lucca signaled for one to be tossed his way. He held on to the ball, spinning it in his hands, until the last of the students exited the gym. Lucca turned toward Hope. “Where is Serenity Valley?”
“It’s southwest of here. About a hundred miles away. Well, actually the short route is a hundred miles, but this time of year we use the longer route to avoid a couple of passes.”
“But not Sinner’s Prayer Pass.”
The direction of his thoughts suddenly clicked for Hope.
Grimly, he asked, “You said you take a bus?”
“Yes, we take my school bus. I drive.”
He winced, and his expression grew downright haggard. She placed her hand on his arm. “Lucca, you surely knew the team traveled to away games.”
“Yes, of course.” He shoved his fingers through his hair. “I knew it, but I never thought about it. The actual transportation part. Easier not to think about it, I guess. Why do you do the driving?”
“Well, because we have only three licensed bus drivers. It’s my bus, my team. I get paid extra for driving and, frankly, it’s income I need. Daniel doesn’t charge me for his time anymore, but I do pay the expenses he incurs in connection with looking for Holly. The driving job helps.”
“Basketball season happens in the winter,” Lucca said, frustration sharpening his tone. “This is winter in the mountains. Snow happens. Sleet happens.”
“And I am very careful. The schools are very careful. This isn’t our first winter, Lucca. We pay close attention to road conditions and we reschedule games if the forecast looks dicey.”
Lucca bounced the basketball, then took it toward the hoop. Hope stood watching, debating what to say to him. Was there anything she could say that would ease his mind? “Lucca, I’ve never had an incident with the bus. I’ve never had a car accident. I’ve never even been cited for a moving violation of any sort.”
He took half a dozen shots. She stood waiting, since it was obvious he was working something out. When he finally turned to her, he asked, “Will it break any rules if I ride along with the team?”
“Lucca, this isn’t something you need to put yourself through. Why don’t you—”
“Will it break any rules?” he interrupted.
“No.”
“Then I’ll ride with you. I’ll meet you at the bus in the morning. Now, why don’t you head on home? I’m going to stay and shoot for a little while longer. Sleep well, Hope.”
The man obviously wanted to be alone. Understanding the need to sometimes wrestle with one’s demons in private, Hope nodded and left him to it.
She slept well that night and awoke at four-fifteen to the sound of her alarm, feeling better than she had in days. She showered, dressed, and checked the latest weather report while eating a quick breakfast. The slight chance of snow they’d called for the day before had disappeared from the forecast.
“Good,” she murmured, closing her laptop. This trip needed to be as smooth and as uneventful as possible for everyone’s sake.
She’d made arrangements with a teenager to watch Roxy, so she made sure to leave the front door lock disengaged as she departed. As she glanced next door, her stomach sank in disappointment. It was a quarter to five, and Lucca’s house remained dark. Under other circumstances she might have called or knocked to see if he’d overslept, but not today. Recovery came in fits and starts. This particular hill would be a high one for Lucca to climb.
With such thoughts on her mind, Hope was surprised to arrive at the school parking lot to discover Lucca already waiting. “You’re here.”
“I said I would be,” he said, his voice tight with anxiety. “How do you feel this morning? Did you sleep well?”
“I did. I feel great, and I’m so glad to see you.”
He tugged her around to the back of the bus away from the glow of the street lamp and gave her a thorough and slightly desperate kiss. “I’m so afraid that I’m going to embarrass myself. Promise me that if I start
