“Yeah,” she replied, clasping her hands around his neck and rising up on her toes. “I’d like that.”
Except when she kissed him, Levi’s brain short-circuited again, and he had to fist his hands in the cotton of her robe to keep from blurting out the words again. What the hell was wrong with him? And even worse, why was he bent out of shape at her responding exactly how he hoped she would?
“I should shower,” he told her, pulling away because… Hello? Asshole who has no idea what he’s doing.
“Oh,” Haddie replied. “Okay. Well, there will be coffee waiting for you when you get out. Also, good news. No more early meetings this week, so we can ride together if you want.”
Something inside him sank like an anchor. He was happy that Ramirez and Kostas had done their part in simply being good humans and respecting Haddie’s privacy. But part of him thought that maybe she’d tell him about it once it was all over.Hey, you’ll never guess this stupid thing that happened at the car wash…But she hadn’t.
“Really?” he asked, giving her another opening to tell himsomething real. “No more meetings? That’s great. What changed?”
She gave him a noncommittal shrug. “I guess admin took pity on us and decided to give us our mornings back. Lucky us, right?”
Levi nodded. “Yeah. Lucky us.”
When they got to school, Haddie stealthily gave him a quick peck on the cheek. “See you after practice?” she asked, perky as ever.
Levi might have been lacking in experience when it came to having big feelings for someone and admitting those big feelings, but he was pretty sure it wasn’t a great sign that she was so relieved he wasnotactually in love with her.
You know, except for the part where he was.
“Yeah,” he said absently. “See you after practice.”
She hopped out of the truck and slammed the door, giving Levi the privacy to throw his head back against his seat and swear.
“Nice going, asshole,” he mumbled to himself. “What’s your next rock-star move?”
Sadly, for the success he’d had in the casual dating arena, when it came to shit getting real, Levi had no moves at all. Zero. Zip. Nada. All he had was a woman who’d gotten under his skin, flustered him, and made him forget how to human.
He laughed to himself, wondering what Haddie would say if the tables were turned. The only French he knew was Voulez vous coucher avec moi? Yet somehow he didn’t think sex was the answer to his problem despite how fun it would be to try to solve it that way.
His phone buzzed in the cup holder beside him, and since he hadn’t yet turned off the car, the caller’s ID popped up on hisBluetooth screen.
He answered it immediately.
“Chancellor Barnes,” Levi said upon answering. “I’m surprised to hear from you, sir.”
“Coach Rourke,” the chancellor replied. “There’s been an interesting development in your…situation.”
Levi swallowed and braced himself for the blow. “Okaaay…” he replied, drawing out the word. “Whatever it is, I can take it.”
Chancellor Barnes groaned. “Your temporary replacement is an abomination to the title of coach. I know we paid good money for your talents, but I was always a little skeptical about how much a coach could really do if the team already had some star athletes that knew what they were doing. But it is abundantly clear that the answer isa lot. This abomination on top of the news hitting about what you’ve done with a high school soccer team in the matter of a month? Well, I daresay your talents are invaluable to our university.”
Levi’s heart leaped into his throat. “Sir, are you saying that I’m going to be reinstated early?”
The chancellor barked out a laugh. “Oh, goodness no. I may be a powerful man on campus, but there is not a whole lot I can do against the word of the law, especially after you’ve been sentenced. But, if you can have Principal Crawford write a letter of recommendation and get your court-approved therapist to agree to some telehealth sessions, I think I can get you back on campus as a consultant to the…” He sighed.
“Abomination?” Levi added, aiming to finish the chancellor’ssentence.
“Yes. Yes. That’s the one,” the other man replied.
“Um…” Levi continued, unable to form cohesive words.
“Um?” Chancellor Barnes asked. “I was expecting something closer toYes, sir. I’ll get right on that, sir.”
“Yes, sir,” Levi parroted. “I will get right on that, sir. Do you have a time frame you’re looking at to get me back in the saddle behind the scenes? Because my brother’s wedding is in a few weeks, and I’d like to stay at least through that.”
After a long pause, the chancellor replied. “How about the second Monday of October, then? I’ve also already sent a short contract via the USPS that should be arriving any day now. Sign it and send it back ahead of your arrival to help expedite getting you on the payroll again.”
