He slaps his hand with his baseball cap. “I did too, but my wife has been sick. And I want her to spend our golden years doing something other than sitting on hard stadium seats.”
“Damn. Is she okay?”
“She’s doing better, but I’d rather focus on her than the game.”
“Makes sense. So who’s gonna take over? One of your assistants?”
“Not sure yet.” He lifts a brow. “I’m taking applications if you’re interested.”
In the back of my head, I hear those ESPN announcers tearing into my mediocre rookie stats. “Thanks for considering me, Coach, but I’m hoping to return to the NFL.”
“Figured as much, but I thought it couldn’t hurt to ask.” The look of disappointment on his face makes my heart sink. I wish I could give him the answer he wants.
“Don’t you think taking over as head coach would be a big step for someone who’s never coached before?”
He chuckles. “Don’t be daft. You know this game inside and out, and you’ve always been a leader on the field. You were great out there with the kids this week. Sure, there’d be a learning curve, but I’m retiring, not dying. I could advise you for a while. Share my drills and schedule. Help you get your footing.”
I’m not sure what to say.
As we resume our trek inside the field house, a familiar face hops up and down in front of me.
“Maverick! As I live and breathe, are you a sight for sore eyes!”
Then Nicole throws her arms around me as though I didn’t see her earlier this month in my elevator.
Shit.
38
BAYLEE
When Mrs. Nashgets off the phone, I hold up the plaid blue western shirt. “Can I put this on layaway?”
“As long as it doesn’t take you five years to pay it off.”
She’s teasing, but my face still burns. I’m sure she doesn’t mean it as an indictment on my finances, but I can’t help but feel self-conscious. I hand her a five-dollar bill, and she records it in her ledger.
“Oh, that’s a nice shirt,” Paige says as she settles at the counter of the Prairie Rose Trading Post. “For Maverick?”
“I just wanted to get him something to thank him. He spent all day yesterday putting up security cameras at the salon.” I get upset thinking about how disproportionate his contributions to my situation have been. All I can do is fetch his lunch if he wants takeout, and that’s not enough to pay him back.
“He’s been bragging in the family chat that you made him a huge bowl of puppy chow.”
“It’s the least I can do.”
“Have you guys talked about what you’re going to do when he leaves?”
I shake my head.
“Baylee.”
“I know I’m burying my head in the sand, but I don’t see a way around this. My mother can’t come home from Amarillo to take over the salon, and I can’t ask Maverick to give up his NFL dreams.”
Paige frowns. “Would dating long distance be that bad? It would give you time to figure things out.”
“Sometimes I think I can swing it, but then I start obsessing about the what-ifs. What if he doesn’t call like he says he will? What if I can’t handle him taking photos with female friends? What if he doesn’t want to move back once he’s done with football? It’s making me mental.”
When she doesn’t say anything, I fill in the silence. “I feel terrible that my gut reaction is to always jump to the worst-case scenario, but it’s what happened with my parents.”
