by Lexi Ward
I slam my hand into the crack just before the door closed shut. Kyle wasn’t so rude to slam my fingers in the door. My fingers cost several million, and he didn’t want to lose his job over some petty drama. I didn’t even acknowledge him as I pushed my way into the room.
“Oh hey Noah,” she says so exaggeratedly normal, I almost laugh. “What are you doing here?”
I don’t bother with the ‘I work here’ line because I’m angry. “So you didn’t hear me calling you?” I growl.
“Nope,” she squeaks.
“So you didn’t get my calls?”
“No,” she shakes her head.
“None of my texts either huh?”
“Uh uh.” She shakes her head, no, and I step so closer.
She’s seated in front of Kyle’s desk, gripping the armrests so hard her hands are turning white. She looks so small and tired.
“Ok. Then I’ll make it easy on you and tell you what they all say.”
“Oh, you don’t have to do that. We’re bothering Mr. Barbour.”
I lean closer to her face so she can see how serious I am. “Do I look like I give a damn about some meeting you’re having with Kyle?”
Her eyes flicker, and I can see she’s getting angry.
“Harper, I love you,” I declare and she gasps as tears come to her eyes. “It took me some time to figure that out, but I do.” Her hand is over her mouth as tears stream down her face. I wipe them away. “Baby don’t cry.” She sniffs.
“I heard you were considering a job somewhere else, and I just had to tell you. If you go to Wisconsin, I’ll have to switch teams, and you wouldn’t believe the paperwork that’s involved in breaching a contract,” I say lightly. “But I would do it. I would do anything for you.”
I pull her onto her feet. “Harper without you, nothing feels the same. Not even the game I love feels the same. I can’t live without you girl. Tell me you’re not leaving me.”
She shakes her head sniffing and wipes away more tears.
“Say it Harper.”
“I’m not leaving you.” Those were the sweetest words I ever heard. I wrapped my arms around her tightly and put my nose into the familiar scent of her hair.
“I love you, Coach,” I whisper.
“I love you too Slim,” she whispers back.
~A few weeks later~
“It has been an emotional night for us this game. So close as the Broncos bring us into overtime. It’s a tie here folks, but this last play should be the determining factor. I have never seen Noah ‘The Engine’ Alexander looks so intense. It's clear he plans to be unstoppable tonight. Can he make it happen for Carolina? Fifteen seconds on the game clock; second down and eight yards to go for the Panthers. Alexander sends Quincy Adams into motion, Alexander takes the snap and drops back looking down the field for an open receiver. With time winding down Alexander throws up a Hail Mary to a double covered Quincy Adams; and he’s got it! Quincy makes a move up field, and goes down the sideline before he is brought down from behind and tackled out of bounds to stop the game clock with 4 seconds remaining. The pass from Alexander to Adams was a forty-eight yard pick up. With what should be the last play of overtime Alexander and the Panthers line up one final time choosing not to opt for a field goal for three points, which would tie the game and send us into double overtime. But to go for a touchdown for six points and win it all on this play. Alexander hikes the ball and drops back getting protection on a blitz on the outside edge with a block from the running back Patrick. Alexander passes the ball to an open Adams in the end zone and he pulls it in for a six-yard TOUCHDOWN in overtime! The Carolina Panthers have won the Super Bowl ladies and gentleman! What a fantastic way to end the year for Noah Alexander, and his Carolina Panthers. First getting engaged and now winning the Super Bowl. He truly can’t be stopped.”
Bad Rookie Habit
CHAPTER ONE
It was always a treat when Ms. Khela Caldwell came to watch the team practice. No one on the team particularly knew much about her, but seeing her standing next to Coach Dennison was a rare and welcome sight. Usually, she did all her managing from her little office on the other side of campus, and players were never allowed to go and see her. There wasn’t a rule about it or anything, but she quite pointedly ignored players unless it was extremely necessary, so no one had ever been able to secure a meeting in her office.
Dean, personally, loved seeing Ms. Caldwell. She was the epitome of professional beauty in her black pencil skirts and well-fitted jackets, and her smile, though not usually sent in a player’s direction, made her entire face light up, even when it didn’t reach her eyes. With her ebony skin, curly hair, and dark intelligent eyes, Dean wouldn’t be surprised if she was the fantasy of every member of the Stablesmith University Scorpions. She was certainly Dean’s, but he would never dream of disrespecting her wishes to make his fantasy come true.
A fly ball came zooming towards Dean out of virtually nowhere, and he was able to stop staring at Ms. Caldwell just long enough to spring into action, his strong legs propelling him forward as he dashed forward. He was just about able to catch the ball before it flew off into some corner of the field, tossing it back to another position player before the batter was able to get to second base.
“Williams!” yelled Coach, his voice strained to a furious roar. “Quit daydreaming! There’ll be a foot up your ass next time you do!”
“Sorry, Coach!” Dean called back, grinning and barely sorry at all. He understood the pressure that Coach Dennison was putting him under, though. The name Dean Williams was the most talked about in all of college baseball news this season, and he had to live up to what was expected of him. He was the best batter the sport had seen in years, and one of the fastest center fielders in the league. Whether he liked it or not, he had a lot to live up to.
Although he was a good player, the Scorpions had tough competition. Training hours had reached intense new lengths, and regimens were getting stricter and more difficult to follow. Coach was careful never to let the boys fall under more strain than they could handle, but they were still exhausted and pushing themselves harder than ever.
Maybe that’s why Ms. Caldwell had come down to watch them practice today. Maybe she was worried about how the Scorpions would fare under the new training, or concerned that they weren’t training hard enough to get far enough in a league filled with amazing teams. Dean could see her speaking to Coach now, her brow furrowed slightly, her lips moving quickly. He didn’t know much about Ms. Caldwell. She was relatively new to the university, but she’d been an Athletic Director for another institution before. Rumor had it she’d been fired from her previous job, but there was no way to know for sure.
Dean had tried to get on the director’s good side for a while. He knew how to work out his public relations, and he wanted a good business relationship with his team’s Athletic Director, especially since he was looked to as the leader of the team and would need to speak with her on the Scorpions’ behalf. But she’d never let him into her office, only waved him away or told him to go through Coach.
He’d call her a terrible director for that, but she’d done well so far. She was very involved in the team and often discussed strategies and tactics with Coach, having been an avid player herself in youth. And most of the things she’d suggested worked really well. But Dean wished she was a bit more open to the players, maybe a tad friendly instead of distant and aloof. He wondered, absent-mindedly, what lay beneath that hard, stony exterior. A part of him really wanted to find out. Maybe he would.
CHAPTER TWO
Khela Caldwell was proud of Stablesmith University’s baseball team. She would probably never admit that out loud, because it might make them complacent, but they were doing extraordinarily well. The improvement in the team’s playing was significant to say the least. She knew they were going to go far this season, and they had a much better short of bringing the university’s name to fame than any of the other teams in the school.
&nbs
p; She’d kept a close eye on all teams, noting everything about them and the way they were structured, including who the natural leader was and who was most likely to crack under pressure. Her observations had been careful and shrewd, and Coach Dennison was thankfully a good-hearted man who seemed to want nothing but fair success for his team. Knowing her extensive background and experience in the field of athletics, he valued her opinions.
There was a knock on Khela’s office door. She glanced up and looked through the small glass pane in the door that she could see through. Standing outside was none other than Dean Williams.
Ah, Dean. Star athlete of the university, while also, last she checked doing extremely well intellectually, if his examination results were anything to go by. Smart, intelligent, poster boy Dean, who was, as far as she knew, the only boy on the entire team who wasn’t taking advantage of the numerous girls fawning over him. His head was in the game and his mind was on his team. She admired that.
Dean opened the door as soon as he saw that she’d seen him.
“Mr. Williams,” Khela said. “You know I don’t see players, you’ll have to talk to Coach Dennison.”
“Oh, it’s nothing game-related, Ms. Caldwell,” Dean assured her. His green eyes briefly swept over the office before coming to rest on her. “The team’s going out for a drink tonight with Coach and we wanted to invite you along.”
“That’s sweet, but I’ve got plans tonight,” Khela replied. It was a flat-out lie, but she wasn’t interested in a night out on the town with her baseball team. Well, to be fair, it did sound enticing, but business and pleasure wasn’t a mix she wanted happening. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to work.” She returned her attention to her computer and proceeded to pretend Dean didn’t exist.
“Actually, Ms. Caldwell,” Dean said suddenly. “There’s something else I wanted to ask.”
Khela made a clicking sound with her tongue. “Maybe some other time.”
“It’ll be quick,” Dean promised.
Khela sighed and leaned back in her chair. If this were any other team member, she would have shooed him away fast, but Dean was special, and not just because of his value to the team. It was just hard to say no to Dean. There was something about his manner – assertive and confident without being arrogant, dominant while maintaining respect – that made Khela want to go easy on him. “Ten seconds,” she allowed.
“I was thinking, it’d be good for the team if you came to our practices more often,” Dean said.
Khela didn’t want to do that. “Dean, you must understand that I am a busy woman. This university has so many sports teams. I can’t spend all my time on you guys.”
“But Ms. Caldwell, I’ve asked the other teams,” Dean said. “You never show up at their practices except on the first and last days of training. You already show up to our days more often than theirs, why not make it more common? We won’t tell.”
Dean was a persistent, intelligent guy. He’d gotten Khela cornered. Khela had always enjoyed watching the baseball team practice, mostly because Dean was there – he was a true sportsman, extremely skilled, and humble despite knowing how good he was. It was like watching an artist at work. She couldn’t resist an occasional peek.
“Since you already know I spend more time watching your team practice, it’s unreasonable to ask for even more,” Khela replied shortly. “Out of my office, now.”
“But Ms. Caldwell, the team does so much better when you’re there,” Dean protested.
“Doing well at practice is nothing compared to the real game,” Khela replied simply. “If you need me to be there in order to perform well, then there’s something wrong with the team, not me.”
“Then maybe you could give the team more support during games?”
Khela narrowed her eyes at Dean. He looked like he was trying his hardest to look innocent, which was an odd sight on such a muscular guy. Her eyes trailed over his form for a moment before she shook herself. She was more than ten years his senior, she had no place being attracted to him. “That is your coach’s job, not mine,” she said coldly. Dean was standing directly in front of her desk now, looming over her as she sat in her chair. Everything about him exuded confidence and determination. Khela shook herself again. They were entering dangerous territory.
“But if we perform amazingly when you watch us practice, imagine how good we’d be if you were cheering us on during the actual games!” Dean pressed on. “Ms. Caldwell, the team would benefit so much from having your open support. Promise, the results will be obvious!”
Khela fought to keep from rolling her eyes as she fought to stop herself from being too nice to him. “Perhaps you should put more effort into your training, Mr. Williams, if you need someone to spew a bunch of words at you in order to perform well.”
Dean’s expression darkened immediately, but being smart, Khela knew he would understand that it was time to retreat. “As you wish, Ms. Caldwell,” he said brusquely. He turned and walked out of the office, closing the door politely behind him, but Khela could feel the anger radiating off of him in waves. He was fuming, and Khela understood. After all, he only wanted the best for his team.
Khela didn’t know what to make of Dean. A part of her enjoyed his attention, as he seemed very selective about whom he paid extra attention to, and she was flattered by that. The other part of her recognized that her undeniable favor of him was something she should be concerned about. She couldn’t deny that there was something about him that was interesting, and he was mature in ways that even men her age weren’t. And he had the added benefit of youth and being good-looking. Khela knew liking him was perilous, so she had to be careful – even if it meant being a little cruel.
She shook off thoughts of Dean and turned back to work.
It wasn’t long before she looked up again and noticed the clock marked 8pm. She knew it was unhealthy to work unpaid overtime just because she wanted to, but she had so much work to do. Admittedly, she was a bit of a workaholic and would often stay late to fill her otherwise empty evenings. She could do other things if she wanted to, but this kept her quite happy until she could go home, have dinner and a glass of wine, and read a good book. Or maybe spend a night out with her friends.
Actually, a night out didn’t sound too bad. Khela began to pack up as she thought about it. She could do with a good drink and some company. She hadn’t gotten laid in a while either, which was mostly her fault as she’d been too wrapped up in the upcoming sports seasons to go out and take someone home. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to try and change that.
CHAPTER THREE
Dean was still mildly annoyed at Ms. Caldwell’s unreasonable behavior as he and his team hit up a local campus bar for the night. He refused to show it, as he wouldn’t want to put his team out of their high spirits, but he was frustrated by her continued refusal to act like an Athletic Director should.
Perhaps asking her to come to a night outing with them was a bit of a stretch. After all, she almost never came to practices, maintained her distance during games, and never spoke to the players unless she was unable to ignore or avoid them. For her to agree to go to a bar with them would have taken a miracle.
What was her problem? Dean would question whether she was any good at her job, but she clearly was. The sports teams had shaped up after her discussions with the numerous coaches on campus, and Dean definitely knew she was intelligent and sharp. But why was she refusing to connect with any of the teams she was managing? It didn’t make any sense. Knowing the teams better would help her make better judgements and decisions, right?
Dean was jogged out of his thoughts by one of his teammates slapping him on the back.
“Come on, Dean, we want a toast,” he grinned.
The other team members perked up at that, laughing and adding, “Speech!”
Dean chuckled and shook his head. “Nah, man, this here’s about all of us, not just me.”
But the Scorpions weren’t having it.
�
�Speech! Speech! Speech!” The whole team began chanting, attracting the attention of the other people in the bar, who began to look over curiously.
Dean laughed and gave in, standing up. The rest of the team cheered, which only gained them more attention. Dean knew this could go one of two ways – either they’d simply watch in mixed feelings of interest, annoyance at the noise, and indulgence, or they’d recognize him or the team and come up to ask for autographs. He didn’t mind either, and he’d gotten quite used to being mildly famous over the past year.
“Alright team!” he said, his voice loud enough to be heard by his whole team, and consequently the rest of the bar. He picked up his mug of beer and his teammates quieted down to listen to him. “As you all know, the season begins next week, and our first game is against the Carrowhead Eagles. The Eagles did pretty well last season. Formidable foes. I’ve heard a few of you talking, and I know we’ve all got those first game nerves.” Dean paused to look around at his team, and saw their eyes staring at him, riveted. He glanced over at Coach, who nodded as their gazes met.
