“What makes you think that?”
“Come on, Kerry. Why else would she have helped me? You’ve tried loads of other schools, and they all had the same response.”
“Don’t forget that I’ve agreed to coach the school team, too.”
“Do you really think she did that to bribe you?”
“I never said it was a bribe. It was an agreement.”
“Call it whatever you want, but I think she did it to help you out.”
“M-me?”
She stares at me, her expression serious.
“I don’t think you’re doing much better than me – and I think she knows that.”
Niall
“Is it normal for a fifteen-year-old girl to talk about certain things?”
“What kind of things?”
“Serious things. Mature things.”
Tyler looks at me as I switch on the ignition. I’ve come to pick him up on the way to training. I’m glad he’ll be with me – it makes me feel less uncomfortable. He knows everyone, too. Who doesn’t trust a fireman? I’m sure that him being there will help me out.
“That depends. Are we talking about your daughter, here?”
I nod, fixing my gaze firmly on the road.
“She seems pretty switched-on. Must’ve got it from her mother.”
“She is,” I say, a little sad.
“Nervous?” he asks after a few seconds of silence.
“Nah. Why would I be?”
“I was just asking… From what I can tell, you’re not used to being around kids.”
“All I have to do is make them play. It can’t be that hard.”
“If you say so…”
“I thought you were supposed to be giving me a hand, not making me more nervous.”
“I thought you said you weren’t nervous.”
I scowl at him and he laughs. “You were a kid once too, right?”
“Years ago.”
“It hasn’t been that long.”
“I don’t know what to do around kids. Look at the mess I’ve made with my own daughter.”
“Just think of it as extra experience.”
