I remember walking onto the football field the summer before my freshman year—well, actually, Tyler dragged me there—and that had been the first time I’d met Coach Hammer. I’d been a knobby-knee, reed-thin, awkward teen with big feet and, without a father in my life, virtually no idea how to play the game.
I’d also met his fire-plug-sized daughter that first day and admired the way the other boys—some twice her size—followed her through drills, listened as she yelled at them from the tackling sleds, and watched teenage boys fall to their knees while she passed them running suicides uphill.
I knew then that I had to be friends with her.
“No one touches Coach’s daughter, so don’t get any ideas,” Tyler had said.
I didn’t even know what to do with a girl back then. But I knew she was special.
And so was her dad. Coach Hammer had filled a void in my life, giving me direction and discipline. He’d believed in me and pushed me to my limit. He’d taught me the very basics of throwing a spiral and, later, called recruiters, begging them to come see me play. I owed him the career I have now.
One thing that had always been a touchy subject, though, was my friendship with his daughter. He’d been fine with our group of friends, but he hadn’t liked Kelcie and me being as close as we were. More than once, he’d sat me down, reminding me there were plenty of girls out there that weren’t his daughter.
I’d tried not to be hurt by his uneasiness with our relationship. Hell, I’d even teased him about my unworthiness. But he’d never wavered, even though we’d reassured him repeatedly—by dating other people, even double-dating sometimes—that we were just friends.
He hadn’t had trouble with her dating—just with the idea of dating me.
Yeah. That wasn’t insulting or anything.
Not more than twenty minutes after Aaron gave us the heads up, Holden Hammer was on our porch. I opened Kelcie’s front door to meet him eye to eye. He hadn’t changed much over the years. His walrus mustache was perfectly trimmed but downturned, and his hair was unruly under his Carolina baseball cap. Coach Hammer was probably two inches shorter than me, and even though I was stronger and more fit, just his glare could still halt me in my step.
“Coach.” I forced a pleasant smile. “Come on in. Aaron told us you were back in town.” I would normally go in for a hug, but I could tell that he wouldn’t appreciate it. His body was rigid as he rocked back on his feet.
“Why don’t you join me outside for a moment first?”
It was cold enough to see your breath outside. But his tone brooked no room for dispute. “Okay.”
I closed the door behind me and walked a few steps away from the door, knowing this wasn’t something Aaron needed to overhear.
“How was your trip? You’ve been gone since the summer, right?”
He leaned against the porch railing and crossed his arms over his chest. “Last I heard, you were going to rehab that shoulder and get back to Charlotte. Why are you still here?”
Straight and to the point. “I am going this week. The clavicle takes longer to heal than other bones. I still can’t play. But yes, I’m heading down tomorrow?—”
“Dad?” Kelcie walked out, closing the door behind her and wrapping her arms around herself against the cold. I just caught myself from reaching out to her. Given our audience, that would throw me in the deep end of the pool before I could swim. “Why don’t you come in? It’s freezing out here. I just made some dinner. Where is Maria?” Maria was Coach’s wife of twenty-some years.
Kelcie’s mom hadn’t been part of her life since she was a baby. I learned from Kelcie that she’d expected Coach to be a big football star. However, that dream disappeared when he blew out his knee shortly before the draft and after Kelcie was born. Inevitably, her mom decided she could do better than being the wife of a high school football coach.
“Home. Unpacking.” His eyes shifted, measuring the distance between the two of us as if daring me to touch her. He pointed back and forth at us. “What’s going on here? Aaron said you’re living together?”
“No, Dad. Shaw is living next door.” She nodded toward my house.
He eyed her, remaining silent, as if waiting for our real explanation. Finally, he asked, “Then why is he answering your door at night?”
“He’s having dinner. Jeez,” she said, motioning to the door. “Which is probably burning. Can we please go inside?”
I shook my head. I was fine with her wanting to take some time telling Aaron, but I didn’t want to lie to her dad. I stared up from my shoes and said, “Kelce…”
She caught my gaze, and one of those heavy moments passed between us—the kind that occurred between people who knew each other’s thoughts and didn’t need to put words to them. This meant something to me—to tell her dad. It was a step to making this real.
She drew in a breath then walked back over and stood between the two of us. Staring up at her father, she said, “Fine. Dad, Shaw and I are dating. We’re…together.”
And with those words, my smile couldn’t be contained.
“Aaron doesn’t know yet because we are still figuring things out, and I don’t want to tell him yet. So, please don’t make this a thing.”
Coach opened his mouth to say something, and she stopped him. “I know you don’t approve, but know this: Shaw has always been the closest person to me. You know that. It’s always been us. We’re older now, and we’ve held back our feelings for each other for too long."
