Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
I kissed him in the batting cages, allowing myself to fall completely for the man he was that day. Still, even if I wanted the lingering thoughts of doubt placed by the media to disappear, those quiet voices in my head were still trying to convince me otherwise.
Love didn’t cure self-doubt.
Sometimes it only made it louder.
40
NATHAN
“Calling for your suitcase in the car, Avery! The plane will leave without us!” I shouted through the house as I carried my duffel bag to the front door. Last night, I saw Avery packing two suitcases. We were going to be gone for forty-eight hours, not forty-eight years.
She walked over to me with no suitcases.
I chuckled a little. “I know I mentioned you should pack a little lighter, but this is a bit extreme.”
“I can’t come,” she mentioned.
“What do you mean? Is everything okay?”
“Yeah. Everything’s okay. Everything’s better than okay, I think, it’s just…Yara’s in labor. I just got the call.”
“Oh shit,” I said, shaking my head in disbelief. “That’s crazy!”
“I know. I want to be there at the campus with you and Cam, but—”
“Don’t worry about it. I know that campus inside and out, and I’ll be fine with Cam and Adam. You get to the hospital to be with your sister.”
“Okay, okay, okay. I need my keys.” She paced the foyer as if she were forgetting something.
I placed my hands against her shoulders. “Avery.”
“Yes?”
“Your keys are in your hands.”
“Right. Yes. Okay.”
“Take a deep breath, Auntie. You’re gonna do great. Tell them I said congratulations.”
She nodded. “I will. And update me with how everything goes for Cam, will you? I’m so excited.”
“Talk about a victorious weekend.” I kissed her forehead and smacked her ass. “Congrats, Auntie Avery.”
“Can you believe it?” She smiled, her cheeks rising high. “A baby,” she sang, tossing her hands in the air from excitement. “We’re having a baby!”
We’re.
I knew she wasn’t talking about her and me, but then again…I didn’t hate the idea.
The weekend at Prest went as amazing as it could’ve. Seeing Cameron in his element was the best thing to witness in the world. Having Adam there with him was the icing on the cake.
Cameron even joined in on one of the workouts with Prest’s team. As he ran drills on the field, I stood in the dugout, watching it all take place.
“How does it feel to be back on your stomping grounds, Pierce?” Coach Reed asked me as he walked over with a clipboard and a brown envelope in his hand. Coach Reed was an older gentleman who’d been the head coach at Prest for the past twenty years. He was the one who got me into the big leagues. He was one of the best, and I was excited that Cameron might have the opportunity to work with such a legend.
“Feels like coming home,” I told him.
He nudged me in the arm. “I was hoping you’d say that.” He nodded in Cameron’s direction on the field. “The boy’s good. One of the best we’ve seen in a long time.”
“He can take it all the way.”
“I have no doubt about that. He has all-American written all over him. It would be a treat to coach that boy. He needs a little bit of work, but nothing I can’t help him with.”
“I know he’d be in good hands here,” I told him.
“You should know that,” he agreed. “Seeing how you’ll be joining the team as one of the head coaches, too.”
I narrowed my eyes as I looked at Reed. “I beg your pardon?”
“It’s no secret that you’ve had quite the turnaround with your career, Pierce. I’ve been watching you, like the rest of the industry, and your small town turned the game upside down. I even saw some articles on your team on ESPN.”
“They’re a solid team.”
“Because they had a solid leader.”
“That’s true, they did. Avery Kingsley has done remarkable things with that team this year.”
He waved a dismissive hand my way. “I’m not talking about that girl. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure she’s talented, but this is about you, Pierce. We want to offer you a position at Prest. You would be the coach of our dreams, and I couldn’t think of a better one to take over once I retire.”
“Retire?” I asked. “You’re planning on retiring?”
“I’m old,” he explained. “My wife said if I don’t, she’ll leave me. So you know.” He shrugged. “I figured I should start looking for a replacement.”
I smiled and patted his shoulder. “I’m honored, but I think I’m good.”
He held out the brown envelope. “Inside this is a contract. One that is probably much more impressive than that lil’ ole high school one you got. You have a big talent, boy. Not many people get second shots like this. Just give me your word that you’ll consider it.”
I took the envelope. “Thanks, but I think I’m settled where I am.”