by Rayne, Piper
“I’m sorry, I haven’t met him yet.”
“He’s my boyfriend and a foreign exchange student from Scotland. I was thinking about going back with him after the school year.”
“Okay… but you’d still attend college, right?”
“No.” She shakes her head slowly and sucks in her bottom lip.
“And have you talked to your brother or another family member about this?” My heart is in my throat. From everything Austin’s ever said about Sedona, she’s the golden child.
“Not yet.”
Damn it. Why would she choose me to confide in? I’m really wishing Austin had been able to make this meeting.
“Well, I’d advise you to do so, since the end of the school year is approaching.”
Sedona glances at me through her long, dark lashes. “I heard you call the parents after the interview if they couldn’t be here. My friend Kali said you told her parents about her not wanting to go her dad’s alma matter. She said it lessened the blow when she got home.”
I tap my pen on the desk. She’s kidding me. She has to be. “Well…”
How do I politely say, “I’m not screwing Kali’s dad behind closed doors”? I don’t give a shit if Kali’s dad hates me. Sedona’s brother on the other hand…
I smile. “Well, I will touch on the subject of your wishes at my meeting with Austin, but I’m sure your brother is not going to be okay with it just because it comes out of my mouth.”
She smiles and grabs her bag off the floor, thinking our chat is over. “Yeah, he will. You’re her.”
“I’m sorry, what? I’m who?” The pen drops from my hand onto the desk.
“My sister Juno—did you meet her yet?” She waves me off before I answer. “She’s the matchmaker. It’s been passed down to one family member or another since our great-great-grandmother. Well, Juno has the gift, and she said one look at you, and she knew. You’re the woman who will open Austin’s eyes to love.”
I huff, my lungs constricting. “I can assure you, I’m not.”
She swings her bag over her shoulder, smiles, and heads to the door. Right before she opens the door, she turns back, and I try to appear as though a boulder isn’t stuck in my throat.
“Thanks a lot. Do I call you Holly or Principal Radcliffe?”
“Principal Radcliffe.”
“Okay. See you.” She breezes out the door.
My forehead falls to the desk. The bell rings for the period to be over. I groan. These Baileys are exhausting.
“Well, this isn’t a good sign.”
I look up.
“Sedona’s the good twin.” Phoenix walks in, shuts the door, and stands on the other side of the chair.
“Please sit.” I motion in front of me.
“No need. I’ve already informed my brother and sister, although she doesn’t really have a say except for the money aspect, that I’ll be heading to California after school to pursue a singing career.”
“Great, well, we can still chat about it. Maybe you want to attend college down there while pursuing it?”
She shakes her head. “Nope, and I only really need one thing from you.”
I tilt my head.
“I need you to stay away from my brother.”
I should really page Fay and ask her to get me a strait jacket. It’ll make the process of losing my mind go a lot faster. “As I just informed your sister, there is nothing between your brother and me.”
She rolls her eyes, something I’ve noticed she has perfected. “I’m not stupid. He came home late Saturday, and if I had to guess, he was at your place.”
“Don’t jump to conclusions. Not to mention that what I do in my private time is my business.”
She laughs. “You banging my brother is my business, because if he stays in Lake Starlight, I’m screwed.”
“Well, I can see we aren’t going to get anywhere today. Please head back to study hall.”
“Great. That was easy. You’re definitely not like my siblings. Always wanting to talk it out.” She leaves my office with a small wave, looking quite pleased with herself.
I swivel my chair and look out the window at the forest across the athletic field and the mountaintops far off in the distance. There’re still a few small patches of snow dotting the brown grass. Even at its ugliest, when winter has caused Alaska’s beauty to lay dormant, it’s still beautiful. Why does my kinship to Alaska feel so strong when it’s the polar opposite of my real home?
My dad comes to mind. Maybe because he’s here. Which is a ridiculous thought, since I don’t even know the man.
“Knock, knock.”
I swivel back around in my chair. Austin’s standing in the doorframe, wearing his million-watt smile.
God, my body hums from that alone. Or maybe it’s the way his muscles pull at his shirt in the perfect way.
“Is it already fourth period?” I ask, trying to keep my voice neutral.
“Sure is.” He steps out for a second and says to Fay, “I’m shutting the blinds because we’re working on an end-of-the-school year surprise, okay?” He steps back in.
“Don’t do it,” I warn.
He winks, shuts the door, and draws the shade. Continuing around the glass walls of my office, he closes them all, secluding us. The rational side of me is screaming bad idea, bad idea, like a warning light, but my body is saying hurry up, work those hands faster.
“There we go.” He wastes no time in rounding my desk and delivering a knee-weakening kiss, tongue and all.
He takes my hand, pulls me up, and my body is flush to his. His smell is intoxicating, almost overriding any thoughts in my head other than letting him take me here on the desk.
“I have some really good news.” He rests his forehead to mine.
“What is it?” Automatically, I think, I have some really bad news. My fingers fiddle with his shirt buttons.
“I have tonight available. My brother Rome is back in town, so he’s at the house and he’s going to take care of the twins.”
“Do they need watching?”
“No, but Sedona and her boyfriend are getting close and we’re all scared someone’s going to walk in on them doing the horizontal mambo one day. And Phoenix… well, you know Phoenix.”
I nod. Boy, do I.
“So, am I invited?” he asks, and I forget the question. He must notice my furrowed brows. “To your house tonight to rock your world.”
I laugh, lightly smacking his chest. “I’m not sure. You come in here and shut all my blinds, eliciting rumors all over this school no doubt, and now you want to come over tonight?”
He chuckles, his fingers running circles on the back of my neck. “I’ll make it worth your while…”
I slide my hands over his strong chest and around his neck. “Give me another kiss and I’ll think about it.”
“Well, I guess if I have to.”
His lips crash to mine and I’m transported somewhere else, maybe I’m floating above our kiss. All I feel is him. His hands. His lips. His thigh between my legs. As our tongues slide along one another’s, a moan slips past my lips, pulling a groan from him. His fingers tighten around my hair. My hand glides down his hard chest until I rub his length through his jeans. His hands venture to my ass, squeezing, making me grind along his thigh.
Knock, knock!
We break apart, panting.
“Fuck, okay, maybe keep it out of school until I learn to control myself better.” He looks down at the large bulge in his jeans. His lips are red and swollen.
I touch mine, but I already know they are too. “Who is it?”
“Phoenix.”
Austin’s head falls back. He opens his mouth, but I place my hand over his lips.
“What do you need?”
“I think I left my book in there.”
“Is Fay there?”
Austin shakes his head, annoyed that I’m even putting up with this.
“No, she must have stepped out.”
I
throw up my hands, and Austin presses his lips together to stop from laughing. “Well, I don’t see anything. I’ll have someone deliver it if it shows up. Maybe look in the lost and found.”
“Ugh. Fine.”
Austin leans into me, but I lay my hand on his chest. “No way, Romeo. No more in-school make-out sessions. They’re too risky.”
The smile on his face tells me he’ll be sure to test that theory.
Nineteen
Austin
I’m gathering my shit to head outside for practice when my phone rings. Seeing a number that’s not programed in, I try to remember the area codes of all the schools I reached out to.
Sliding my thumb over the screen, I answer, “Austin Bailey.”
“Austin, this is Dick Freeman from USC. How are you?”
I fall back into my chair, my heart nearly beating out of my chest. “I’m good. Thank you.”
“Good to hear. So, an acquaintance of yours dropped your resume on my desk. You’re doing great things up there in Alaska. Not exactly easy to make a winning team with your limitations in weather and practice time.”
“Well, we do tend to have thicker blood than you lucky people down in the lower forty-eight.”
He laughs. Thank God he has a sense of humor. “True. True. I went Iceland once—you know, the wife wanted me to go—and I nearly froze my balls off.”
“Man, but a happy wife…”
“Yeah, that’s one piece of advice I give all my players. Happy girlfriend, happy future. Some of these kids aren’t afraid to lay it out there. I mean, they take pictures of everything. Aren’t afraid to profess their love on all these stupid apps they use nowadays.”
From what I know of Dick Freeman, he’s in his sixties and might retire in a few years. He’s been trying to find a protégé who could take over for him someday. Getting in there would be a tremendous opportunity.
“True.”
“You married?” he asks.
“Nope.”
“I’d say stay that way, but in about five years, your life is going to be lonely as hell.”
I laugh. My eyes aren’t on a wife and family right now. They’re on getting this damn job and finally starting my own life. “I’ll take that advice to heart.”
He slaps something, but it echoes over the line. “All right, let’s get to the point of my call. You’re looking for a coaching position at the college level, right?”
“I am, sir.”
“And why do you want to leave”—paper crinkles through the receiver—“Lake Starlight, Alaska?”
“Well…” I stop myself from telling the real story. “Coaching college is a dream of mine, and as you’re aware, they just don’t have the teams up here.”
“But why now? I mean, you graduated nine years ago. I’m surprised you haven’t already gone down this path. Shit, nowadays they hire guys your age as head coaches. And just so you’re aware, I don’t agree with that line of thinking. It takes years to know how to coach a winning team.”
I nod, though he can’t see me. “I had some family commitments up here, but I’ll be done with those by the end of this year.”
“I understand family commitments. Well, let’s do this…” More papers crinkle and my heart feels as if it’s knocking against my ribs. “Let’s bring you out here for an interview. Our season has started, so you can grab a game, see my coaching style, we can chat, and we’ll move forward from there.”
“Perfect.” Excitement feels like electricity humming over my skin.
“Let’s do a Friday through Sunday. I don’t want you sacrificing your job for anything that’s not promised yet. So how about three weeks from now?”
“Perfect. Done.”
“Great! You’re going to hear from our guy Zeke. He manages all the travel, and if you wanted to bring your… oh, I forgot you’re not married.” A knock echoes from his end of the call. “I’ve got someone at my door. It was great talking to you, Austin. Look forward to meeting you in a few weeks.”
“You as well, Mr. Freeman.”
“Dick. Call me Dick.”
“Okay, thanks, Dick.”
I press End Call and drop my phone on my desk, staring at it in awe. I think a part of me didn’t think he’d actually call, that no one would want a washed-up high school coach from Alaska. A smile breaks across my face.
“You’re happy,” a sweet voice says from my doorway.
I look over to find Holly leaning on my doorframe, watching me. “Hey, I thought we were off-limits at school.”
“It’s the end of the day, but I’m on my way to detention.”
“Shut that door and come here. You’d be surprising how comfortable my desk is.” I pat the wood top.
She shakes her head. “No way. You’ll put me in a trance and some kid will walk in and then my breasts will be front-and-center on Buzz Wheel.”
“Well, they’d make a good headline. They are spectacular.” I laugh, leaning back in my chair and admiring her long legs. I cannot wait for them to be wrapped around me tonight.
“So, who was on the phone that brought out that smile?”
I look at the phone again and at her. She knows the drill. I’m leaving. She’s leaving too. But I don’t want to bring that up right now. I want to enjoy this feeling a little longer without the repercussions it brings. “I’ll tell you tonight. Now, you’re going to be a softy?”
I stand and stalk toward her. She shakes her head the entire time, but I swing my arm around her waist and pull her into my room as I grab the doorknob and slam the door. She giggles in my arms, and my lips fall to the crook of her neck.
“I can’t wait to explore you tonight,” I murmur against her soft skin.
“How are you going to sneak over?” she asks, her hands weaving through the hair at the back of my head.
“My bike. I’m not running back home at five in the morning.” I draw back and wait for her reaction.
“No sleepovers, remember?”
I laugh, trailing my tongue up her neck to her earlobe. “Yeah, I remember. But if we’re not sleeping, it doesn’t count.”
She shakes her head, and my teeth latch onto her earlobe, my hand running up and down her hip. “You’re trouble.”
“Only the best kind,” I say.
She pushes at my shoulders, but I shift our bodies, so I have her locked to the counter that runs the length of my classroom.
“Tell me how much you want me right now?” I whisper.
She blushes like I knew she would, and I slide my hand down the back of her skirt, feeling the soft silk of her panties.
“You keep doing that and I’m going to get fired, then this thing between us will stop before it even starts.”
I remove my hand. “True. I need to feel you come around my cock at least one more time.”
She inhales a quick breath. “You’re too much.”
I kiss her lips. “Go to detention and I’ll meet you at your place. In the meantime, just remember this.”
I place my lips on hers and take what I want, what she’s so willing to give. My fierce kiss shows her how much I want her. By the time I pull away, she’s gasping and clutching her chest.
“See you later. You can spend your time in detention guessing how I’m going to deliver your first orgasm of the night.” I wink.
She shakes her head again as though I’m amusing. “Fine, but remember, at midnight you’re gone, otherwise you turn into a pumpkin.”
I laugh, opening the door for her. “Noted.”
I watch her walk down the hall and around the corner to detention.
Damn. I’m man enough to admit that she’ll be a hard one to walk away from.
* * *
After practice, I catch Elijah and JP leaving detention.
“Hey, guys,” I say as they walk in opposite directions. “We need to talk.”
They glance at one another before looking at me.
“Fuck that.” JP turns and walks toward his truck.
&
nbsp; “Get over here.” I pat the picnic table in the courtyard.
Elijah walks over because he follows the rules, which will do him good when he lands on a college team.
“JP!” I yell.
He stops mid-stride in the parking lot. “What? I don’t need some lecture, okay? I’m in detention already, so let it go.”
I tilt my head. “Just come.”
He blows out a breath and treks back over to us. Yeah, I figured he was acting like a tough guy, but what he really wants is to mend his relationship with Elijah. He drops his backpack on the picnic table and sits down.
“Listen. You two have been friends since kindergarten. What’s happening is ridiculous.”
They remain silent. No surprise there.
“You know Coach Jack?” I ask.
They nod.
“He’s been my best friend since third grade. Have we had fights and disagreements? Hell yeah, but nothing like this. Nothing where we let a girl come between us.” I turn to JP. “Do you really want Becca?”
He shrugs. Elijah huffs.
“My guess is you don’t, but something is making you want to stick it to your friend. I get jealousy.”
“I’m not fucking jealous!” JP spits, the first reaction I’ve seen from him.
“Then why?” Elijah asks. “Why are you fucking with my life?”
JP glares at him, silent for a minute. “Because you’re the fucking golden boy.”
“No, I’m not.”
JP rolls his eyes. “You are.”
I’m wondering if I should’ve had this conversation with JP by himself.
“Well, I don’t feel like it,” Elijah says and looks off into the distance.
“Whatever, man, you’re getting out of Lake Starlight next year to go to some fancy college and play baseball. My baseball days are over after this season. Becca will probably follow you. You have everything.”
“No, I don’t,” Elijah bites out.
The two stare at one another for a minute and seem to come to a silent understanding.
“Still. I have a dad who doesn’t really give a shit about me and a mom who’s so wrapped up in her grief that she’d Saran Wrap herself to me if I let her. I’m going to community college next year because my mom can’t stand to have me far away.” JP runs his hand through his dark hair and stares at his lap.
