She reaches for a box of tissues and hands them to me. “Would it help if I went to talk to your dad with you?”
“No. I need to do it by myself.” If there’s one person I want with me to have that conversation, it’s Billy. I always feel stronger when I’m with him, but it would be unfair of me to drag him into my drama. It would only make my dad hate him more.
Tears fall faster as the truth of this situation really hits me. As much as I’m attracted to Billy and as much as I enjoy spending time with him, dating me would be disastrous for his football career.
And I won’t do that to him.
When Debbie sits behind her desk again, she folds her hands. “I might have a way you could stay involved with the squad. It won’t solve your financial aid issues, but I know you must miss this.”
That gets my attention. I nod because I’d do anything to help. “What do you need?”
“Paige could really use some one-on-one tutoring. We have nationals coming up in a few weeks, and she isn’t ready. You used to train high school kids over the summer, and you did such a great job helping with our choreography. I thought you’d be the perfect person to help Paige get her confidence.”
A smile tilts my lips as I sniffle. “I’d love to help.”
12
BILLY
“Sorry, man,”Jake says to me as he picks up his son. “You okay, Ash? Did Uncle Billy take good care of you?”
Asher jams his thumb in his mouth and nods.
“I gave him some stomach medicine, the pink stuff, but he threw that up too.” I scrub my hand down my face, exhausted. “The hurling finally stopped around five this morning.”
“I owe you.”
“It’s okay. Ash was a trooper.” I hold out my knuckles to the kid, and he pulls his thumb out of his mouth long enough to bump me back. “Hope you feel better, buddy.” I look at Jake. “How’d your meeting go? The guy gonna lock you down?”
Jake’s serious demeanor breaks, and he gives me a wide smile. “I got myself an agent. A good one too.”
“Awesome. Happy for you, dude.” Jake’s been through the wringer in college, and I’m glad his hard work is paying off.
After they leave, I collapse on the couch. I have no idea how I’m supposed to work out today, but I have to get to the gym by one. Somehow I manage to drag my ass to the shower, where I catch another whiff of puke and almost lose it again. I debateskipping conditioning today, but if I call in, I’ll just give Santos another reason to think I’m a slacker.
Where’s my phone anyway? I search my room, high and low, and finally find it under a pillow.
I frown when I realize I have missed calls from Roxy. I’m about to buzz her back when I get a call from R. Klein.
Who the hell is that?
Hold up. Is this Randolph Klein, that agent my father mentioned?
I juggle my cell in my hands and almost drop it before I manage to calm the fuck down. “Hello?”
“Billy Babcock?”
“Yes.” I clear my throat because I’m afraid my voice will crack like I just hit puberty. “Speaking.”
“This is Randolph Klein from Endzone.”
Endzone Elite is one of the best management companies in the country.
Be chill. Be. Chill.“Hey there. How’s it going?”
“Your dad wanted me to call you to give you some pointers for the offseason and help you have a shot at the draft next year.”
I’m almost afraid to ask, but the curiosity is killing me. “He mentioned that you two had spoken. How do you know each other?”
