I hadn’t even had those feelings before mixed up with my caring for someone else. Although I’d never really cared for anyone the way I cared for Avery.
I would have never stopped, but Micah saw me coming down the street and waved me down. Turned out even though I had a bad reputation, some people missed me. He had asked me where I’d been and if everything was okay, which was just the kind of guy he was.
I had only been there about ten minutes when Avery saw me, and thankfully, she called me back later that night and told me all about her sister and her suspicions. I wasn’t sure where that left us or if things would change, but I hoped they wouldn’t.
Coach blew his whistle, and I knew that was my cue to get my head back to the task at hand. “Mills, let’s see the first play again.”
He blew the whistle, and we lined up in our positions. When he blew it again, we sprang into action. I made a throw and pushed my way down the line to the goal, and when the ball came back to me, I was right where I needed to be to score.
Coach blew the whistle again. “Perfect. You guys have done a great job today. This is giving it your all.” He blew his whistle one more time. “Be ready, boys. That next game is going to be brutal. Now hit the showers.”
As the others left the field, he walked over and patted my shoulder. “Good job, son. You really tore it up today.”
“I have a good coach,” I said, knowing it was always better to suck up to Coach Carr than not.
“You and your flattery tell me you’re in a good mood. I take it things are going well with your girlfriend after all?”
“I knew it was only a matter of time before you found out.”
“Well, some of your teammates are snitches. Don’t go robbing any banks with them.” He chuckled as we walked in. “Whatever she does for you, it’s not so bad. Just keep it up.”
He walked ahead of me into the building, and I went to the showers once inside. Despite the whispers from Motor and Carver, everyone else was quiet, too tired from working hard to have much gab left in them.
I went to the shower and washed up, thinking of how much Avery inspired me to do my best. I hadn’t missed any of the wild parties, and even being outside with Micah the night before was the closest I wanted to come to Omega House without Avery. I was ready for everyone to know that we were a thing. Damn them all if they didn’t like it.
I finished up and walked out of the locker room to head to the Jeep. Instead of finding Avery waiting for me, I had two other special visitors.
Clara stood next to Dillon’s truck with one hand on her hip as if she was about to give me a piece of her mind. Dillon rocked on his feet with his hands in his pocket as if he’d rather be anywhere else. He gave me a sympathetic look as I approached.
“Not who I was expecting. Is everything okay with Avery?”
“I’m the one here to ask questions,” said Clara, who was looking a lot healthier than the last time I saw her, despite how thin she still was. It was like a scrappy kitten hissing.
“Ask away. Avery told me that you knew about us.”
“All I want to know is that you’re not just dicking around with her. That you really care. Because she’s a great girl, and if you’re just playing with her heart, you can fuck off now before you break her heart.”
I glanced over at Dillon as he took a deep breath and let it out. “Look, I think we all need to calm down.” I could tell he was worried about her being too excited.
“I am calm!” she said.
“You promised me you were here to talk,” Dillon gently reminded her. He looked at me as if I needed to answer the question.
I sympathized with him. Avery had the same temper at times, and from what little I had seen, I didn’t want to see her when she really got angry. “I care about Avery, and I’m crazy about her. And I know that nothing I tell you is going to make you believe that, so why don’t we just all four go out to dinner and you can see for yourself?”
Dillon was the first to react positively. “That’s a good idea. Isn’t it, Clara?”
“That’s fine. I’ll give you a chance to prove it. But only because my sister cares about you. And you better be good to her, or I’ll kick your ass myself!”
Dillon pulled his lips in tight, and I could tell he was trying not to smile. “Okay, I think that’s enough excitement for today, Clara.” He put his hand on her shoulder and turned his attention back to me. “You and Avery work out the details and give me a call.”
“Tonight good?”
“Yeah, sure. The sooner, the better.” He turned around and saw that Clara was giving him a hard look. She was tougher than Avery, and that surprised me. That and how much I was actually intimidated by the little girl. If she had been anyone else, I wouldn’t have cared, but being that she meant so much to Avery made it matter.
Dillon opened the door to his truck, and once Clara was in, he shut it and turned to me. “Hey, man, don’t screw this up.” He shook my hand and walked around to get in.
I got in my Jeep and waited for them to drive away.
And I thought the practice had been intense.
Chapter 17 Avery
With the playoffs wrapping up
