Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 119650 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 598(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119650 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 598(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
Bri gets into the car, and I watch as her friends step away, giving her room to pull out of her parking space.
“MORGAN,” my name is hollered across the field, and my gaze snaps toward Coach Wyld, finding a pissed-off expression across his aging face and the rest of my teammates already huddled around him, taking a knee. “Either get your head in the game or I’ll find someone else who can.”
Fuck.
“Sorry, Coach.”
Hurrying along, I drop down beside Riley, and he gives me a hard stare before silently ramming his shoulder against mine. “The fuck is wrong with you?” he mutters, knowing damn well that Coach Wyld is going to have all our asses for my slight moment of distraction. When one of us fuck up, we suffer as a team.
My lips pull into a cringe. “Sorry, man,” I murmur, turning my attention back to Wyld to listen to his rundown for the rest of our week.
“—versus Langford Boys Academy on Friday night. These assholes nearly got us last season, and I’m not about to let it happen again. You need to be ready. They have a strong defense, and their running back is like none other—” Wyld pauses before glancing toward Logan. “Sorry, kid. Just facts. He’s good and he’s in better shape than I’ve ever seen him. Scouts will be at this game, and I want their eyes on you, not him. You need to be ready.”
Logan scoffs, the cockiness in his tone knowing no bounds. “You talking about Rockman?” he questions, watching Wyld’s curt nod before his lips pull into a twisted smirk, looking more like his brother than ever before. “Oh, I’m ready. Fucker can’t beat me. I’ve got this in the bag.”
“Leave the attitude for the field, Logan,” Wyld mutters before going over his game plan for today’s session.
The moment he’s done, he excuses the team to get started on their warmup, and just as I get back to my feet, he steps toward me. “Hold up, Morgan,” he murmurs, his tone lowering.
My brows furrow, and I wait back as the rest of my teammates take off around the field. “What’s up, Coach?” I ask, itching to take off. Coach Wyld rarely holds any of us back, but when he does, it’s usually because he thinks we’re in too deep.
“Heard what happened to your sister,” he says. “How’s she doing?”
My lips press into a hard line. “It’s not looking great,” I tell him, not bothering to sugarcoat it. “The fucker who hurt her is probably going to get away with it, and as for Addie being in a coma … I don’t know. Her scans are looking good, but there’s been nothing to suggest she’s going to wake up. At least, not any time soon. Doctors are hopeful though.”
“Shit, kid. You should have come and talked to me. I could have eased up on your training.”
“With all due respect, Coach, that’s exactly why I didn’t tell you,” I explain. “I don’t need any favors, and right now, training with my team is one of the only things keeping my head on straight.”
“You don’t need to do that, Tanner,” Coach murmurs, lowering his voice as the boys come heading back up the field. “You don’t need to always have your shit together. You’re allowed to break every now and then. No one is going to hold it against you if you want to sit out a few games.”
I shake my head. “Being a mess at Addie’s bedside ain’t helping nobody,” I tell him. She wouldn’t want me to do that, and honestly, I don’t think my mom could handle it either. With Dad still out on business, I’m all they’ve got.
“That’s fair enough, but you need to watch yourself. Don’t be taking any unnecessary risks,” he warns. “Don’t think for two seconds I’m not aware of your illegal racing on the twins’ property after game nights. You’ve always had your head screwed on right, Tanner, so I’ve let it go, but I don’t want to see you end up wrapped around a tree and paralyzed because you needed an outlet. If you’re going to keep training through this, then channel that recklessness into your game. Throw harder, run faster, be better, but don’t be fucking stupid. You hear me?”
“Yeah, I hear you, Coach.”
“Good, now do I even want to know why that girl you’ve been drooling over for the past few weeks was the one arrested for all of this?”
I shake my head, a flare of anger bursting through me. “She had nothing to do with it.”
“Are you confident in that?” he questions, making me want to pulverize him. “She’s new here. How well do you really know her?”
“She had nothing to do with it,” I repeat, my tone full of venom. “She shouldn’t have been arrested yesterday. I know exactly who attacked my sister, and one day soon, the bastard will get exactly what’s coming for him.”