It twinges a bit, but I’m not telling him that. “No pain. It’s all good.”
He considers me for a moment. “What’s your range?”
“So far, fifty-two yards,” Roman answers for me.
Coach works his jaw. “How long have you been practicing?”
“Since we got out.” If I had to guess, that was maybe an hour ago.
He nods to himself. “Alright. We’ll try it your way. I want you out of training and practice for the next three days to rest.”
I open my mouth to argue. No way can I take three days off if I’m going to get where we need me to be. We’re playing Rydeville U. They’re a solid team, and while I’ve always forced myself to throw with both arms, I’m right handed. Throwing consistently with my left isn’t a cakewalk for me. I need the practice. “Coach—”
“Three days!” He waves three fingers in my face as if I need a visual. “After that, you throw and you do cardio. That’s it. No weights and nothing that can strain your right shoulder. You practice with your left arm and only your left arm. I catch you so much as tossing a towel with your right and I’ll bench you. Understood?”
I grit my teeth but nod. I know a losing battle when I see one. Coach is an alright guy. He puts the players' health and well-being first so I have no doubt he’ll bench me, even if it means we lose next week's game.
“Good. If this is day one for you and you’re already at fifty-two yards, you’re ahead of Hunt. We’ll make this work. But, if you have a bad performance next week, you might screw your own chances of being drafted early and some of these guys might even decide to look you over next year when the time comes. You prepared to take that risk?”
I nod. Football after college isn’t in the cards for me. No matter how bad I may want it. My parents would never stand for it, and despite what some might believe, my parents do in fact have both the money and the means to ensure I go down the path they’ve carved out for me. This isn’t one of those scenarios where I can call their bluff.
Sheridan Peretti Price and Richard Price have enough clout that they’ve landed themselves on the Business Insiders top ten most influential businesses in the United States six years running. As the founders of Peretti and Price, a multi-billion dollar tech company, they rub elbows with everyone from CEOs to celebrities and grossed over one hundred and eighty-two billion dollars last year alone. Yes, billion. Not million.
The amount of money my parents would need to throw around to ensure no team picked me up is barely a drop in the bucket to them. So no, I’m not worried about fucking up my own chance. I never had a real one to begin with. “It’s worth the risk, Coach.”
“Have it your way. Now get your asses home and rest. Valdez, keep an eye on him, and if I get wind that you or Chavez are on the field with him these next three days, I’ll make you both run so many drills you’ll be begging to be benched, do I make myself clear?”
Rome nods. “Crystal.”
“Good. Get out of here.”
Coach stalks off the field toward the locker room and we head the opposite direction toward the parking lot. “You good, man?” Roman asks once we reach our vehicles.
I nod. “I’m good.”
He hesitates, which isn’t like him, so I spit out, “What?” only to see him frown.
“What was up this morning?”
“What do you mean?” I open my door and lean against the frame. I have a feeling I know where this is going and I don't like it.
“With Baby Henderson. If she’d asked us to help her move in, we would have. The girl’s one of us but …” he trails off and shakes his head, running a hand through his sweat-drenched hair.
“You’re reading too much into it,” I tell him, hoping he drops it.
He doesn't. “Nah. I don’t think I am. Where’s your head at these days? I know you had a thing for her back in high school, but—"
I cut him off before he has a chance to finish. “It’s not like that. She’s Aaron’s little sister.”
Roman snorts. “Which meant fuck all when we were in high school and you gawked at her ass every time she walked by.”
“Like I said, you’re reading too much into it. That was three years ago. Things change.”
“Exactly. Have you seen her lately? Kasey's is all grown up and she's filled out in all the right places. Don't pretend you haven't noticed.”
I lift a single brow. “Allie know you’ve been checking Kasey out?”
He chuckles. “No cabrón, because I’m not. But I’m not blind and neither are you. The girl has grown up. A lot. Tension with you two has always been thick, but lately …” He trails off, giving me a knowing look.
