“Do you have everything you need for class?”
“Mostly.” I moved over to the kitchen area, where I had my laptop and the few books that had been delivered this morning.
“I should have everything ready for next week,” I added.
“Everyone is excited to meet you.” He smiled wider this time. A spark of pride. “Julia especially. She can’t wait for another female to join the team.”
Part of my curriculum for finishing my degree involved logging hours of clinic or hands-on experience. My father being the head coach of the football team came in handy. I was approved to shadow Julia, the athletic trainer for the Cougars to gain my credits. Part of me thought it was fate, and the other thought everyone would say I was only given the opportunity because of who my father was. It didn’t help that I was a woman in a male-dominated industry. I’d have to prove my worth if I ever wanted to be taken seriously.
Truthfully, I had a few issues when it came to my self-worth. But one thing I knew was that I wasgoodat what I did. I had the knowledge, the determination, and apparently, the same competitive nature ran through my veins as the man in front of me. Which meant I never shied away from a challenge. I took any form of pushback life threw at me head-on. I was ready to prove myself. Not just to Rodney Maxwell and his new family, but to every player and coach on that team. I was capable and I had no intentions of accepting failure.
5
Trinity
“We gotta stop meeting like this. People will start to talk.”
I faced the voice that sent a pleasant but unexpected shiver across my flesh.
Preston, the man who had haunted my thoughts since the last time I saw him in this establishment, casually pushed his empty shopping cart toward mine.
“Affair on aisle seven. Scandalous.” I waggled my brows up and down as he came to a halt across from me.
He was wearing something similar to last week. A navy T-shirt and some gray joggers. They molded to his thick thighs and his shirt stretched across his broad chest. It was impossiblenotto look. Painful even. But I somehow managed to remind myself that although he was good eye candy, he was in thenever againcategory.
“How was your week, Trinity?” He smirked.
A flutter took flight at the fact he remembered my name and I cursed myself. “It was fine. Busy.”
I turned, grabbing a box of Apple Jacks from the shelf to keep from showing the blush spreading across my cheeks.
“Let me guess. You have a coupon.” His lips shifted to a full smile, mischief gleaming in his blue eyes.
The pale blue was parallel to those Caribbean postcards. Dreamy.
“What do I look like? An amateur?” I scoffed.
He barked out a laugh.
“I’m a veteran couponer.” I straightened my shoulders. “Saved forty-seven dollars last week.”
“Impressive.” He leaned down, resting his forearms on his cart.
The termarm pornnow made perfect sense. His were perfect, and to make him even more attractive, said forearm was decorated in black ink.
“How was your week, Preston?” I volleyed back.
He blinked, then I swore the man blushed. “Long.”
We stood at our carts, not voicing that we felt whatever weird energy hovered in the air between us. My instincts told me to end the conversation. Say goodbye and disappear into the sea of people.
“What deals do they have today?” he asked before I could move an inch.
“I thought you weren’t a coupon guy?” I lifted a brow.
He shrugged a shoulder, glancing around at the shelves. “I mean, I guess it couldn’t hurt.”
Maybe if I shared my secret, he’d leave. I pulled my phone from my pocket. “Here. It’s an App. All you have to do is download it and you can see every deal offered for the week.”
