I risked everything taking a swing at that kid, and for what? Because he was talking shit? Those taunts were nothing compared to the press I’d get for assault charges. Not to mention the team supplying alcohol to minors.
Coach is right. We’ve only got a few games left. I need to keep the team focused and out of trouble. For the title and my reputation. No one wants to draft a troublemaker. I’ve worked hard to keep my nose clean. I’m not about to throw it all away now.
Not when everything I’ve ever wanted is within my grasp.
Coach Collins turns to the rest of the coaching staff. “These boys have energy to burn, so let’s work ’em hard. I want ’em too tired to make trouble when they leave this field today.”
There’s a rumble of dissent, but one scathing look from Coach squashes it. We line up for warm-ups, and the staff puts us through the wringer. It’s the hardest workout of the year. By the time the practice is over, my muscles feel like Jell-O. I couldn’t do another burpee if I tried and sweat is pouring off me like a waterfall. All I want to do is hit the showers, but when the team is dismissed, Kennedy hangs back. The weight of her gaze is crushing, making it clear she wants to talk. Probably about the incident at the football house.
Damn. So much for the brutal workout squashing her curiosity.
I drag the back of my hand across my forehead and make my way to the thirty-yard line where she stands, helmet wedged against her hip, waiting expectantly. There’s a light breeze and despite the chill, it feels like heaven against my sweat-soaked skin. The wind catches the end of Kennedy’s ponytail, making it flutter around her head like a halo. Fitting, I suppose, since even sweat slicked and exhausted, she looks like an angel.
My angel.
For now anyway. We’ll see how long that lasts when she hears what went down at the football house. Something tells me she didn’t like being singled out by Coach today and there’s going to be hell to pay.
Kennedy
“What happened Saturday night?” Judging by the way Johnson and Tate gave me the side-eye at practice, it has something to do with me, which just figures. You know, since I wasn’t even there. The last thing I need is Coach breathing down my neck. I haven’t forgotten his threat to bounce me out on my ass if I cause trouble.
Given the way he came down on me during practice, he’s more than happy to make good on the promise.
Austin scrubs a hand over his face and wipes it on his jersey. Desire stirs low in my belly, spreading through my limbs like a current. The man is dripping sweat, and I know I should be grossed out, but I’m so not. It’s possible he’s never looked sexier than he does in this moment with glistening muscles and ruddy cheeks. I’m tempted to scrap this whole discussion and invite him back to my place.
Which is exactly why I need to focus on the matter at hand.
“Nothing to worry about.” He smiles but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. Which mean he’s shutting me out or he’s falling back on his captain’s laurels, assuming it’s his job to shoulder all the hard stuff. “Just guy stuff.”
“Guy stuff?” I snort. He can’t actually expect me to buy the half-assed lie. The wind howls around us, and dried leaves cartwheel across the empty practice field. “Try again, Reid, because I’m not buying it. Why did Johnson and Tate stare me down when you said the baseball team was talking shit?”
Frustration flashes in his eyes and he crosses his arms over his chest, helmet dangling from his right hand.
“Oh, for crying out loud. Can we not do the whole strong and silent thing? I have a right to know,” I say, determined not to let him stonewall me. “Coach just singled me out in front of the entire team, and he’s made it clear he’d be more than happy to give me the boot if I don’t walk the line.”
Austin raises a brow, the corner of his mouth inching skyward. “Coach isn’t going to bench you because I took a swing at some asshole from the baseball team. Our rivalry predates you joining the team.”
It sounds so reasonable when he says it, but I haven’t forgotten Coach’s hot breath on my face or his prior warnings. “Yeah, well, forgive me if I’m not willing to stake my scholarship on your word. And stop deflecting. What happened?”
He gives a long-suffering sigh. I can’t tell if it’s in reaction to my persistence or the story he’s about to tell. “Johnson and a couple of the guys were supposed to be keeping an eye on the recruits while I was at study group. Instead, they got them wasted and decided to chill with our rivals. It was a total cluster. Campus police showed up right after one of their guys made a derogatory remark about you.”
I frown, fighting the urge to ask exactly what was said.
It doesn’t matter, and I doubt Austin would tell me anyway. I can’t decide if I’m touched he had my back or annoyed I’ve become exactly the kind of distraction Coach Collins was worried about. Assault charges against
