“Okay.” She hesitantly sat down on the sofa too, but kept a respectable distance. “What is it?”
“It’s big. The favor, I mean.” He looked downward and rubbed the fingers of one hand, as if he was trying to get some dirt off. He looked back up at her. “See, I need a ride to my folks for Christmas break.”
Sara’s eyes widened. Was he asking what she thought he was asking? Her mind started racing a mile a minute, along with her heart rate. She didn’t know what to say, so she stalled. “Don’t college football teams play on Christmas Day?”
“Not all teams,” he explained. “Coach Fairchild is a firm believer in family. Says that people get re-energized by spending time with our families.”
“He obviously never met my family,” Sara mumbled under her breath.
“I need to be back by New Year’s Day. Barracudas are playing in the Flamingo Bowl on January 2nd and—”
Sara’s voice went up an octave. “You’re playing?”
“No, no, but I’m traveling with the team. I’ll be on the sidelines cheering. If they win this one, I might be backing up the quarterback in the championship game in mid-January.”
Sara nodded slowly, searching her brain for more stalling tactics. “Um. What about Carter?”
“What about him?”
“Couldn’t he drive you?” Sara wasn’t even sure why she was putting up roadblocks.
“He’s going home for Christmas too.”
“Oh. Um. What about your girlfriend?”
Philip squinted at her. “What girlfriend?”
Was he playing games now? “The bi—” Sara stopped herself before the word bimbo escaped her lips. “Um. The girl you were with the first time I came to your room. The cheerleader. She was sitting on your lap. Remember?”
She could almost see Philip’s inner wheels turning. “Oh. You mean Brittany. She's just a girl who likes to party with the guys. She's not my girlfriend.”
Sara eyed him with more than a little skepticism. “Really? Then why were you kissing her?”
He answered somewhat hesitantly. “Well, if you were paying attention you’d know I wasn’t kissing her. Technically she was kissing me.” He shrugged. “She was just messing around. She does that with all the guys. It doesn't mean anything.”
Surely he could do better than that, Sara decided. “Could have fooled me,” Sara shot back disdainfully, “the way she had her tongue down your throat.”
Philip looked puzzled. “If I didn't know better I'd think you were jealous.” Busted! Sara apparently asked him one too many questions. “Look, she's not my girlfriend, okay? I don't have a girlfriend right now.”
She worked at hiding the smile she felt coming on. Those were exactly the words Sara had been fishing for.
“So…Will you do it? Will you drive me?”
Sara searched Philip’s eyes for an ulterior motive, and she got lost there. His golden brown eyes looking back at her were starting to make her feel squishy inside, and she wished she hadn’t left so much space between them when she sat down. She briefly imagined herself sliding closer and putting her arms around Philip. In her fantasy, he responded by pressing her onto the sofa and kissing her until her lips were raw.
Sara blinked and remembered he was waiting for an answer. She forced herself to look away from his face. In truth, the thought of spending so much time together driving to Naples both thrilled her and terrified her. She was bound to either say something stupid or he’d realize she was not all that interesting.
“Listen, I’d drive myself, but the doctor doesn’t want me putting pressure on my leg for that long a period. It’s a three-and–a-half-hour drive.”
Staring off into space, Sara mumbled, “When are you going?”
Philip paused before answering, looking at Sara as if he was trying to read her thoughts and gauge whether she was leaning toward a yes or a no. “The Monday before Christmas. See, I’m gonna be signing autographs for a fundraiser on campus with some of the other Barracudas the weekend of the twenty-first so I can’t leave until the twenty-third. Can you deal with that? I mean, you said you didn’t have plans for Christmas, right?” When she didn’t answer right away, he added, “I’ll pay for gas.”
Sara had a million questions, like why wouldn’t he take a bus or a car service or why wouldn’t one of his parents come pick him up? But deep down she knew if she asked many more questions, she’d be looking a gift horse in the mouth. This was an opportunity most girls would kill for. There were probably a million other people he could ask, a million other girls who’d say yes in a heartbeat. How could she say no, and why would she want to? Looking back at him, she nodded, but showed no emotion. “Okay. I’ll do it.”
Philip opened his mouth, but he appeared speechless. Finally he said, “Awesome. Thanks Sara.” He surprised her by leaning over and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek before he started to get up.
When Sara saw how much difficulty he was having, she got off the couch and held her hands out. Philip grasped her hands and rose to his feet, appearing to be in some pain. “You okay?” she asked.
“Yeah. I’m fine.” He looked down at their joined hands and made no effort to pull away. Sara looked from their hands to his eyes, unsure of what she was supposed to do. Her own discomfort got the best of her. Sara slid her hands out of his and stepped aside to give him clear passage. He picked up his crutches and made his way to the door. As he opened the door, he turned back toward her as if he wanted to say something, but he merely looked at her for a moment and then left.
As soon as he was gone, Sara covered her mouth with both hands to keep herself from squealing too loudly with delight. She clapped her hands and ran in place for a moment. She’d never been so excited in her life. Or so scared.
In an instant, the elation left her body and her shoulders slumped. She knew that the more time she spent around Philip, the harder she was going to fall, and the greater the likelihood she’d get her heart broken.
Chapter Nine
Sara was on pins and needles during the next week. She was counting down the days to the road trip to Naples, literally marking them off on her tablet’s calendar app. She wasn’t just excited; she was nervous, she couldn’t sleep, and she was almost too stressed to eat. All she could think about was spending three and a half hours in a confined space with Philip. She was so worried she’d have nothing to say that she planned out a list of things to talk about during the drive so Philip wouldn’t think she was as dry as stale toast.
Meanwhile, the on-campus fundraiser was taking place a few days prior to the trip, and everywhere Sara went, she saw flyers and posters promoting the event. It was announced in the EFUsion newsletter and in email blasts to every student on campus every other day.
The fundraiser was being held on the football field at Barracudas Stadium and it was open to the public. Proceeds from the event were going to be split between Toys for Toddlers and the school’s own athletic scholarship program.
She wondered whether Philip would think she was stalking him if she decided to stop by. Would he be annoyed she came, or would he be glad to see her? She wasn’t someone who normally attended any kind of anything having to do with sports, but this was for a good cause, she convinced herself. So she decided to go.
Before heading over to the sports complex, Sara came up with an idea. She went to the Special Ed Department office to use the printer, and she printed off a hard copy of a document from her tablet. She watched as the piece of paper slid out of the HP printer, and then she plucked it out of the paper tray. “Yes! This is perfect,” she told herself as she looked at the item she printed out.
Philip and a bunch of his teammates were stationed at long rectangular tables on the fifty-yard line, signing autographs for twenty dollars apiece. Sara paid the cashier and queued up for an autograph. She wasn’t really surprised to see that the longest line was the one for Philip’s signature. As she got closer, she could see Philip scribbling his name across photo after photo
showing him poised to throw a football in his Barracudas uniform. She could hear people asking when he thought he’d be returning to the active roster.
Many of his fans asked him to pose with them for selfie-type pictures. He was always gracious and gave them his twenty-million-dollar smile. Sara sighed as she watched him from her spot in line. His smile was so natural, so charismatic and genuine. He truly was a celebrity, and he handled himself like a pro.
Sara’s first thought was that he was really out of her league, and she should simply stop fantasizing that she could ever be anything more than his tutor. Brushing that thought aside, she took a step forward when the person in front of her departed the line.
Philip had his head down and his pen poised over a photograph as he said, “Who should I make this out to?”
Sara took a deep breath and set a piece of paper on the table in front of him. “I’d like you sign this instead,” she told him.
Philip looked at the document for a long moment. It was his second essay, the one about the moment that changed his life. His head jerked up, and his eyes were wide as he looked at Sara. His surprised expression turned stern. Sara had been smiling a moment before, proud of herself for being so creative, but one stone-faced look from Philip turned her smile upside-down. He looked back down at the piece of paper and quickly signed something. Handing it back to Sara, she grasped it, but he continued to hold onto the other end while looking at her intently.
When he finally released the piece of paper, Sara turned and walked away as fast as she could. Tears pooled in her eyes, knowing that wasn’t at all the reaction she wanted from him. She wanted him to be surprised and pleased. She wanted it to be a personal moment just between the two of them. She wanted him to read between the lines. Instead, she just made a fool of herself.
Why on earth did she think this was a good idea? In a couple days she’d be taking Philip for a three-hour drive knowing he thinks she’s an idiot. He probably did read between the lines and figured out she has feelings for him. He’d likely avoid future contact with her, cancel the trip, and fire her as his tutor.
Crossing the forty-yard line, she finally looked down at the piece of paper she asked Philip to sign. She blinked several times to clear the tears so she could read what he wrote.
Sara—Thanks for seeing the real me.—Philip.
Her lips parted and she read it again. And again. She clutched the piece of paper to her chest and turned back around just as Philip looked up from signing another autograph. Catching her eye, he smiled and held up his hand in a quick wave. Before she had a chance to wave back, Philip’s attention was diverted by another fan taking a selfie with him.
Relieved, Sara let out the breath she’d been holding. Maybe this wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
Chapter Ten
Driving southward on I-75, Sara was distracted by all the clatter coming from the passenger side. Philip was looking through Sara’s CD collection and clacking the jewel cases together. “Don’t you have anything decent to listen to in here?”
“Well, definitely not my passenger,” she snarked, shooting Philip a dirty look. Her intent to be a sweeter, kinder Sara just flew out the window. She immediately regretted implying she didn’t like listening to Philip. That wasn’t true. It was just her knee-jerk defense mechanism. “Um. Some of those are pretty old,” she admitted, using a much softer tone of voice. “I guess I don’t edit the CDs in my car very often. One day, I’ll get around to moving my favorites to digital.”
“That’s okay,” he said, reorganizing the discs and placing them back into the CD holder beneath the center armrest. He leaned back on the headrest and smiled broadly. “We don’t need music. Check this out.” She glanced over, and he held up his mobile phone. “I’m powering off.”
Sara gasped in an exaggerated fashion. “What? How will you live without your sports updates?”
“I guess you’ll just have to entertain me,” he said with a wink.
She tried to remember the subjects on that list of conversation starters she had created, but that wink and his sexy smile erased her memory; she couldn’t remember even one. “It’s good to see you smiling like that,” she improvised.
Arching his brows, he turned his head toward Sara. “I didn’t know you cared.”
She felt her cheeks warm and hoped he couldn’t see her blushing. “Well, I don’t,” she said, smiling. “But still.”
“I guess I haven’t had a lot to smile about until now. Hey,” he said, lightly tapping her elbow with his fingertips. “Thanks for driving me. I mean it.”
She tingled at the all-too-brief tap, inwardly thrilled by that moment of physical contact. Shrugging, she said, “I had nothing else to do, and you had no one else to take you, so…” Her voice trailed off. She really didn’t want him to know how much this road trip meant to her.
Looking downward, she wondered if Philip thought she was overdressed. She had on a pink short-sleeve pullover and a short black skirt. Her freshly-shaved legs were bare, and she was wearing her most comfortable pair of sandals. She wanted to look feminine. She wanted him to notice she was a girl, but didn’t want to look like she was trying too hard. She wanted to appear casual, rather than looking like she spent two hours getting ready this morning. She rarely wore makeup unless she had a date, and then only mineral powder foundation and mascara. Today she added a touch of blush and tinted lip balm.
Oh God, he probably did notice her extra efforts and thought she was making a fool of herself. And she was. Her insecurities made her wonder if she was being used. Was he only being nice because he needed her right now? Pushing that thought aside, she changed the subject. “Um. Did you say your family lives on an orange grove?”
“No, they don’t live on one,” he said, chuckling. “We own a huge one. It’s about five hundred acres. We own a general store that’s adjacent to the grove and we sell and ship fresh citrus fruit all over the world.” She could hear the enthusiasm in his voice as he promoted his family’s business like he was recording a commercial. “And we also carry orange candy and orange soft-serve and orange jelly and citrus soaps, perfumes, and lotions. Oh, you’d love this,” he said, touching her shoulder this time. “There’s a nature trail. The place is kind of a tourist attraction. You can look it up on Trip Advisor. Naples Orange Groves.”
Sara just loved listening to him. His voice was so masculine and sexy and smooth, and his tone was so upbeat when he spoke about the family farm. She could easily listen to Philip Mason all day, every day. “So you grew up on a farm. I didn’t know you were a country boy.”
“Yeah, that’s me.”
“So, do you love or hate citrus fruit?” she wondered.
“Love. Hey, I have to love it,” he said, laughing. “Oranges and a scholarship put me through school.”
Sara laughed, too. Regardless of whether or not he was using her, she was already having a great time on this little trip.
“What about you?” he asked. “Like oranges?”
“Oh, I love oranges.” Her enthusiasm was sincere and natural.
“Good,” he replied, turning to face forward. “I’ll take you to the grove.”
Sara turned her head to look at Philip, and her nerves took over. “Oh. I can’t stay,” she said. “I’m just dropping you off.”
“Why? Why can’t you stay? What else have you got to do?”
Sara looked out the windshield, trying to come up with excuses. She began to nervously play with her neck chain. “Oh. Well. Plenty. I have books to read, and papers to grade and lesson plans…”
“Hold on.” He cut her off and turned slightly to look at her. “We’re on holiday break, remember? So what have you got to do that doesn’t involve school and homework?”
Sara got quiet for a few moments—maybe a few moments too many. She didn’t really have anything to do.
“I’ll take you to see our grove,” he reiterated. “It’s pretty cool.”
A small smile crossed Sara’s lips. De
spite her nerves, she liked the idea of Philip showing her around his family’s business. Her fear about having nothing to say for the entire ride had long since vanished, and she felt herself starting to relax. It turned out Philip was easy to talk to and easy to listen to. Even the prolonged silences here and there didn’t seem awkward. They were merely natural breaks in the conversation.
∙•∙
Philip had told his parents he’d be arriving at their house by around four o’clock, and he figured his estimate was pretty accurate. Traffic was lighter than expected, considering it was a couple days before Christmas, and they were making decent progress.
They were about two and a half hours into the three-and-a-half-hour drive, and Philip was really enjoying it. He’d been feeling pretty cooped up for weeks and this was a welcome change of scenery. Even though it was December, this was Florida, and the temperatures still got up into the seventies. The breeze hitting his face through the partially open window on the passenger side refreshed and renewed him. He promised himself he wasn’t going to worry about the condition of his knee while he was on break. There would be plenty of time to worry when he got back, because it wouldn’t be long before he’d be on the field. He still held out hope that he could join the team for the last game of the postseason.
He was lost in his own thoughts when he felt something on his leg. He was wearing a pair of khaki shorts and a blue EFU polo shirt. He hadn’t worn long pants since the surgery. He looked down and saw Sara’s fingers tentatively touching his thigh. “How’s your knee?” she asked. “Do you need to take a stretch break?”
He looked up at her face, and he could see that the girl he didn’t think gave a damn about him actually did seem to care. The confounding part was that he cared about her, too. That’s why he came up with this semi-elaborate plan to get her to drive him to his parents, ostensibly because he didn’t want her to be all alone at school for the holidays. But when he searched his soul for his true motives, he realized there was much more to it. It was he who didn’t want to be away from her for that long. To his surprise, he was starting to have feelings for her.
Pass Interference Page 6
