Second Chances (15 page)

Chapter 25

              As Conner tossed another football toward the target, it dawned on Nick that he’d seen a real change in him.  He’d not only turned things around on the field – but had started getting real serious about turning up on his doorstep every chance he got.  With each throw, the kid became more focused.  He looked like a man on a mission. 

Nick lifted an eyebrow, impressed as he flew through his drills with intensity.  Finally, he lifted his whistle and blew.

              “That’s enough for today!”  He cupped his hands to his mouth.  “Bring it in!”

              His motley crew jogged over with Conner, at the helm, to take a knee in front of their coach.  His heart warmed to see the difference in their teamwork, and he knew his quarterback’s leadership had a lot to do with it.  With his motivation behind the scenes,  he had been leading by example.

              “I want you all to know how proud I am to have you on my team.  I’ve seen a turnaround in the last two weeks, and I can tell you from experience that the competition should be very afraid.”

              A collective yell went up.

              “Because you’re working as a team.  You stopped playing for you …”  He poked one of the kids in his chest, and continued, “And started playing for the man next to you.”

              He saw the serious stares and the heads nodding throughout.  They were totally bought in, which was good.  This was a team he could win with.

              “It doesn’t matter how many skills you have on the field if you’re not playing smart and with heart.  One player shining doesn’t do the rest of you any good.  But when I see you rising above yourself to bring glory to your teammates – I also see a champion team in the midst.”

              “Oorah!”  A few guys in the crowd yelled.

              Nick’s eyes filled with warmth for his guys.  “We have a game tomorrow against Woodbridge, who stomped our butts last time we played.  They’re going to think this is an easy win!  Are you going to give it to them?”

              “No, Coach!”  They stood in unison.

              “Good!  Go hit the showers!”  He grinned and spun on his heels.

              “Um, coach.”  He heard from behind.  When he turned, he saw a very apprehensive quarterback standing his ground.

              “Yes, Conner.”  He nodded, inviting him to walk with him.

              “I don’t know if you noticed, or not …” He wasn’t sure how to finish.

              Nick raised an eyebrow, waiting.

              “But I took what you said to heart.”  Conner turned back to face the field.

              “I noticed.”  He slapped a hand on Conner’s back.

              “So, does that mean I can start tomorrow?”  His curious eyes searched his coach’s face, looking for any indication.

              Nick grimaced, and decided to put the kid out of his misery.  “Yes.”

              “Sweet!”  Conner jumped in the air.

              “But only if you keep showing up to play.  If I see any hint of the Conner who was more interested in his game off the field versus on – then you’ll be on the bench.”

              “Nuh uh.  Not gonna happen, Coach.”  Conner trailed Nick toward the tunnels.  “While we’re talking…”

              Nick internally groaned.  He had a feeling this was coming.  He kept up a brisk pace, making Conner chase him as they took the corner to his office.

              “What’s up?”  He laid his clipboard on his desk and grabbed his jacket.

              “Well, if you haven’t noticed …”  Conner wasn’t sure how to bring up the subject of Katie.

              Nick wondered how long it would take him to approach him about his daughter. 
Oh, I’ve noticed.

              “
I’ve been to your house a few times but have missed getting to see Katie.  I didn’t think she’d be so hard to track down.  She avoids me at school.” 

              Nick grinned at the distress that was crossing the young man’s face.  He’d like to think of him looking like a toddler who was on the verge of tears, but he looked more like a young man fighting the tides of unrequited love.

              “Okay.  Where is this going?” 

              “Sir, I just wanted to know the best way to approach her.  And I just wanted to know if I’d done something to upset her.  It’s like I have the plague or something.”

              Nick chuckled, and thought about something Paige said a while back.  “Maybe you just need to prove yourself to her.  After all, it was only three weeks ago that you were flirting with a few girls on the practice field right in front of her.”

              “Well, that was before her transformation - and mine.”

              Nick shrugged.  “You’ll figure it out.  Girls like grand gestures from what I’ve heard.  Maybe do something big to get her attention?” 

              He walked away leaving the kid to fend for himself.  Since when did fathers give dating advice about their daughters?  All of the sudden he felt sick.  His baby was growing up and garnering the attention of the opposite sex. 

             
Ugh! 
He reached for his keys, slid into the front seat, and reached for his cell to call Katie.  He pulled her contact up and smiled at her lopsided grin, as her photo displayed across his smartphone.

              He was the father of a pretty impressive kid, who was not only a beautiful person inside and out, but she was just as brilliant as she was beautiful.  After all, she wasn’t making it easy for Conner, which made him proud.  His daughter was worth the effort, so he was pleased to see her make the kid work for her attention.  Now he just hoped his quarterback wouldn’t break her heart.

Chapter 26

It was as if the stars were staring down at them, as both, Paige and Nick, settled on a cushion in the back of his truck.  Nick pulled her close to breathe in her scent.  As the mixture of florals and fruit swept through his senses,  he was never more thankful she’d agreed for a drive after the dinner.

“You warm enough?”  He pulled a thick blanket from the bed of his truck to wrap around them.

“Mm-hm.” She dropped her head back on his shoulder to take in the dark sky.  “You ever wonder what’s out there?”

Nick chuckled.  “Nope.  I’m more interested in what’s going on right here.”

He swept her hair back from her neck and softly nuzzled her warm skin.

Paige let out a soft moan and twisted to face him.  “Do you have to do that?”

“What?” His face was full of feigned innocence.

“You know.”  Her eyes teased him through the dark.

“I can do much more than that.”  Nick raised an eyebrow and stroked the base of her neck before dipping his mouth down once more for another taste.

Paige closed her eyes, and could almost feel her heart beating through her chest.  She buried her hands in his hair and dipped her head back.

As his lips explored her neck, he slowly reached for the top button of her blouse. At that moment, everything felt so surreal.  Here they were making out, as they parked on the same football field, where she would fantasize about what one kiss from him would feel like when she was a teenager.

Paige shook her head and put some distance between them, just as he was about to free her from her blouse.

“Did I miss something?”  He grinned and leaned back on one arm. 

She took in the field around them, and shook her head, saying, “Did you know I came to every single one of your games in school?”

“Well, your brother was on the team.” 

“I didn’t come to watch Sam.”  She tilted her head.  “Heck, I didn’t even like him back then.  My brother was a pain in the butt.”

As Nick stifled a laugh, Paige watched his deep dimples and reached out to softly touch them.  “Every game, I sat in those bleachers and cheered you on.  And now here we are, and this is so, I don’t know.”

“I know.”  He understood.  Maybe he was moving too fast.  “Did you know that  I had the biggest crush on you in school?” 

“You did?”  She blinked.  “Why didn’t you ever say anything?”

“Sam wasn’t just a pain in your butt.  He’d have killed me – or anyone else that looked twice at his sister.”  Nick sat up to gently stroked her hair.  “Besides, I tried once.”

“I don’t believe you.”  She gave him a look.
              “Honest!”

Paige shook her head.  “No, I would have remembered something like that.”

“It was the last day of school - my senior year.  I figured Sam couldn’t hold it against me since I’d be leaving for college soon.  And, well.” He paused to stroke her cheek.  “I was going try to kiss you in the bus tunnel.”

She lifted a hand to her mouth and gasped.  “No!  I remember you stopping me that day.  I thought you were just trying to tell me something.”  She dropped her head and let out a laugh so loud; he was sure they could hear her over a block away.

“Shhh!” He chuckled, pulling her back in within his reach.  “They bust kids out here every weekend there’s an away game trying to sneak onto the field.  We don’t need to get caught too.”

She whispered through her now quiet laughter, saying, “So you wanted to kiss … me?”

All fun and games were aside.  Nick’s smoldering look spoke volumes.  “More than anything.”

Paige felt an electric current spread from her stomach and reach every fiber of her being as they locked eyes. Just like when they were at the bar, it was as if everything paled in comparison as every else thing faded into oblivion. As the music from the cab of his truck faded into the background, Nick reached for her wanting nothing less than to fulfill every desire he’d had for her. 

As his hands traveled up her back, she shivered.  How could he do that with just one touch?  She was in awe of the connection they had.  It was more than physical – it was almost spiritual.

As her legs entwined with his, Paige knew she was heading into dangerous territory.  As his full lips brushed across hers, every ounce of restraint simply slipped away.

“What are you doing to me?” He groaned. 

She looked into his eyes and softly shook her head, thinking the same thing.  She wanted him more than anything, as he’d awakened something within her she never knew existed. 

It was then that Nick’s cell phone began to buzz.  He pulled it from his jeans pocket, and tossed it to the side of his truck bed, ignoring the interruption. “Don’t you want to answer?” Paige panted between kisses.

“It’s not important.”  He grunted, working on unbuttoning his jeans.

Through the fog of desire, Paige still couldn’t ignore the continued buzzing that now vibrated throughout the vehicle beneath them. 

“Nick.”  She let the weight of her body drop completely over his and turned to look at the phone, which showed a missed call from his daughter. “Look.”  She brought the phone up to where he could read the screen.

He dropped his eyes, with the cold realization that the spell had been broken.  “She wouldn’t have called if it wasn’t an emergency.  She knows how important my time with you is.”  He quickly laid a kiss on her lips, saying, “Sorry.”

“No, don’t be.  She comes first.”

“Timing sucks,” he mumbled, dialing his daughter’s number.  As he waited for her to pick up, he remembered why he’d brought Paige out to the field to begin with.  His eyes lit up. “Remind me to tell you something when I’m off.”

After talking to his former teammate and friend, Tyler, about some changes his former coach was looking into, he’d received a call from his coach.  The two played phone tag, until yesterday when his coach tracked him down to come in for an interview, which was was set for first thing in the morning.

Nick was excited to share it with Paige, but their walk down memory lane had taken precedence.

Paige glanced at his eyes, which were dancing with mischief. 

“Okay.”  She watched them slightly change as he changed direction when talking to Katie.

“Hey - everything ok?” His concerned tone touched Paige’s heart.  He was such a good father.  She scanned the dark horizon with a grateful heart that God had given her a chance with Nick, who she knew took care of the people in his life.  As she counted her blessings, she heard his tone go from fatherly concern to hardened steel.

“Put her on.”  She heard him say. In efforts to give him more privacy, she slowly slid from the tailgate but what she heard next made her heart drop for the second time that night.  Only, this time, it wasn’t from desire but dread.

“Ariana.  What are you doing there?”  His face was as hard as stone.

Ariana smiled sweetly at her daughter and pulled her to her side before taking the phone to answer her ex- husband.

“Well, dear – I’m here to pay a visit to my family.”

Katie gently squeezed her mom, before taking a seat on the couch.  She pulled her knees up with a grin, wondering if she should throw some popcorn in the microwave for the show that was about to take place.  If she had to bet, she’d lay money on the odds that her mom wasn’t just here to see her.  She guessed she was here to stir up some trouble.

              Nick took the steps two at a time, wondering what to expect on the other side of his door.  His mouth clenched and eyes filled with anger; he prepared for battle. But before he could reach for the door, Ariana swung it open with an expectant smile.  He briskly stepped inside as he brushed away her attempt for contact.

                  “Nick?” Ariana abruptly jumped aside as he pushed his way inside.  “That’s some way to greet the mother of your child.”             

He was about to tell her what kind of mother she was until he saw the smile on Katie’s face. 

              “Sweetheart, could you give your mom and me a few minutes?”

              “Um, sure.” She wanted more than anything than to stick around but obeyed her dad, and quickly took the stairs to her room. 

              After his daughter was safely out of earshot, Nick opened his mouth to speak, but Ariana beat him to the punch.

              “Now, where were we?”  She sat and coyly patted the spot next to her. “Come and give me a proper hello.”

              He stayed glued to spot across the room, stupefied by her audacity. 

“Are you seriously walking into my house and demanding we pick up where we left off?  The last I heard you were married!  And while we’re on the subject of motherhood, what kind of mother rarely has contact with their child let alone deserts them on their birthday?!”

Ariana pouted.  “She seemed to be fine with it once I sent her a credit card for her birthday.”

“Well, she wasn’t fine with it.  She was heartbroken.  Thankfully Paige …”  Nick stopped short.

Ariana’s eyes narrowed, filling in the blanks.  “Is this the same Paige you’ve been bringing around my daughter?  It’s all I hear – Paige this and Paige that.”  She mimicked, still glaring from her seat.

“Oh, so now we’re down to it.  You’re not here to spend time with our daughter!  You’re here to check up on me.”

“I’m here to see Katie!”  She pointed toward the stairs.  “I’m her mother!”

Katie, who’d been eavesdropping at the top of the stairwell, slowly descended and cleared her throat. Both swung their gaze in her direction, wondering how much she heard.

“It’s okay.  Come here, sweetheart.”  Ariana beckoned.  “It’s okay if we have a girls weekend, isn’t it?”

She looked over the top of her daughter’s head as she drew her in for a hug, and grimaced at her ex-husband.

              “That’d be great.”  She wrapped her arms around her mother’s waist, wanting nothing more than that, but wasn’t ignorant to the fact that her mother had many missed opportunities the past year for this very thing.  While hoping her mother had altruistic intentions, she knew her mother was nothing short of selfish. 

              “We’ll stay up all night, and watch movies in the basement.”  Ariana lifted her daughter’s chin.

              “That would be great!”  Katie ignored her skeptical heart, deciding to enjoy her mother’s attention, no matter the reason.  She tossed an expectant look toward her dad, who looked torn.

              “Not here.”  He shook his head.  “You can get a hotel.”

              “Aw, dad.  It’s late.  Can she just stay tonight?  I’ll make the bed in the basement, and we’ll be quiet.  I promise.”  Katie’s eyes pleaded.

              Nick’s anxiety level spiked, but the desire to see his daughter happy soon won out.

              “Just tonight.  But, you stay out of my way, Ariana.  Tomorrow, get a hotel for the rest of the weekend.  Got it?”

              “Got it.”  Ariana gleamed, looking like she’d just cheated her way to first prize.

              “Alright!”  Katie pulled her mom by the hand down the hallway.  “It’s this way.”

              Nick slumped down in his easy chair, convinced he’d just opened a big can of worms. The question was, how big?