My hand jerked on the wheel and I barely managed to stay in the same lane. “What do you mean?”
“He’s my foster dad. My real dad is in prison.”
I was thankful the light up ahead had just turned red, forcing me to come to a stop. I needed a minute to take in that news. Harrison was a foster child? I had no idea! It took all my will power to keep my features calm as I looked over my shoulder.
“He is?” I asked in a careful tone.
He nodded meekly. “Yeah. I’ve been with him for a year now. Ever since Mom and Dad stole the money from their work and got in trouble.”
I had no idea what to say, too stunned by the news.
“I like Wyatt though.”
“Yeah, he seems like a nice guy,” I agreed. “And he likes to bake, I take it? Does he ever bake you anything?”
Harrison nodded, looking back out the window. “All the time. The banana bread is my favorite.”
I smiled. “I like that too.”
The rest of the drive was silent, but I couldn’t help looking back at Harrison in the mirror every so often. I wondered what made him want to tell me and why now. I was more than a little surprised, and a little bit in awe, that he’d trusted me with something so huge.
The team was already gathering on the field when we arrived, and Harris ran off to meet them, but I lagged behind. My feet felt heavier after the news Harris had just delivered, my heart torn. I had no idea Harrison had such a heartbreaking past, and it made me even more thankful for the day I’d discovered him on the sidelines. I was glad I was able to get him involved in the clinic. He deserved this, maybe more than anyone else on the team.
“All right, kids! Listen up!” I hollered at them to get their attention. All twelve heads snapped in my direction. “We’re going to learn another new play today, but you’re going to need to work as ateamto make it happen. Think you can do that?”
The unified “Yes, Coach!”was sweeter than any song I’d ever heard.
“Great. Jordan, you’re leading. Come here.”
* * *
The following day,I put in a good workout at the inn’s gym before heading over to Harrison and Wyatt’s home. Harrison was still at school when I arrived, so I offered to fix the gutter first. The metal gutter was bent but not damaged, so after installing a few new screws to secure it in place, it was as good as new. After that, I had Wyatt walk me through what needed to be done to the sprinklers. I frowned when he showed me the crack in the main line. That would need to be replaced and I’d need to check the other lines as well before I could test the rest of the sprinkler heads. I could already see at least a few of them were broken beyond repair.
After showing me around, Wyatt quickly made his way back inside. I suspected it had very little to do with me and more to do with the work being too strenuous for him to be much of assistance. He’d struggled to keep up with me as we walked around the small yard, and I’d heard the muffled groans of pain when he bent to show me the cracked pipe.
He already had some of the supplies to replace the pipes, so I made quick work of digging up the trenches. I’d just finished the main line when Harris returned home, running up to me and giving me a huge hug.
“Hey, Coach!”
“Hey, buddy.”
“You said I could help!”
“I did. I still have this line here,” I said, gesturing to the one leading to the center of the yard. “But you need to check in with your dad first, okay?”
Harris ran off, returning less than a couple minutes later with a pair of leather work gloves. They were far too big for his small hands, so I had to stifle a laugh. Replacing the last piece of pipe took nearly an hour longer than it should have thanks to Harrison’s “help,” but seeing the determination and pride in his face helped pushed aside any impatience I might have had. When it was finally done and the trench covered, we both sat back and brushed the dirt off our hands.
“Great work. Now we just need to install the sprinklers, but that means a quick run to the store.”
“Can I come?” he asked.
“If it’s okay with your dad, sure.”
Wyatt seemed surprised when I explained I’d already replaced the lines, but that relief was quickly overshadowed by concern when I explained I needed to head to the hardware store to buy some new sprinkler heads.
“I can’t pay for the parts,” he said in a rush, worry lacing his tone.
“Oh, you don’t need to,” I quickly reassured him. “I’ll cover it. It shouldn’t be much.”
