Jagger palmed his dick. “Right here.”
“Bullshit,” Pike scoffed.
“Want to bet?” Ross grinned. “Let’s put your money where your mouth is, beach boy. First one to fu—”
“Ross!” My voice boomed, my neck hot with anger. “You might want to think real careful about your next words. Trinity is a part of this team. An authority figure to you at that. Youwillkeep your thoughts to yourself and show some fucking respect.”
The locker room went silent. The only sound was the distant voice of the announcer prepping the microphone. Locker room talk was normal. Hell, it was almost a rite of passage. But not abouther.Not on my watch.
Pike cleared his throat. “Sorry, Coach. I didn’t mean to…” He glanced at my expression. “Sorry.”
I cut my eyes to Jagger.
He held up his palms. “My apologies, Coach.”
His smirk showed he wasn’t sorry, and I had to step away before I lost my career for clocking him in the jaw.
I turned on my heel, feeling the eyes of Wesley, Theo, and Shaw.
When I passed Wesley, he caught my arm. “You all right, man?”
“Fine.” I stepped away. “Meet you out there.”
Striding down the hall, I veered to the left, pushing through the door of the bathroom. I needed to get my shit together.
The door practically bounced off the wall as I forged inside, but I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw Rodney, bent at the waist, a deep cough radiating through his chest. His fist rose tohis mouth as he attempted to hold in the next cough. He leaned forward, bracing his forearms on the sink before he expelled a strangled sound from his throat. Panic laced around my chest when a streak of blood spewed out, coating the white porcelain.
“Rodney.” I reached for the paper towel dispenser, tearing off a piece before handing it to him.
He flipped on the faucet and I watched in confusion as he wet the towel before wiping his mouth.
“What’s going on?” I asked when he met my gaze through the mirror.
He stood, splashing the blood from the sink before he turned to face me.
“Please. Trinity can’t know.” His hoarse voice had my stomach dropping. “It’s…I finally…I just got her back.”
I reached out to squeeze his shoulder. “It’s okay. Just tell me what’s going on.” I searched his eyes, the ones that matched his daughter’s. “This is why you’re retiring?”
He finally managed to get the words out. “Stage three. Lung cancer.”
Shit, Rodney.
“I know I should have told you.” He scrubbed a hand across his face. “It’s just if the press gets wind…”
“I understand.”
I did. I understood all too well about being in the limelight. They thought just because you played pro and were on television, it gave them a free pass to know every detail of your life. Even the painful ones.
“I promise to fill you in later.” He straightened his shoulders before tossing the paper in the trash. “But right now, we have a game to win.”
My fist pumped into the air as soon as the clock ran out. Another win under our belt, and I couldn’t be prouder of this team. Krew threw a fifty-six-yard touchdown, and Lawson ran it through the end zone like he was out for a walk in the park. Clean and wide open.
We headed to the field, shook hands with the other coaches, and made the necessary rounds. Rodney stopped to talk with a reporter, while I spoke with some of the refs.
Once the guys started to filter into the tunnel of the stadium, I made my way back to the bench to grab my headset and my playbook.
“Good game, Coach.”
