“Your man with Coach too?” Aly asks. I turn to see her walking toward me. A smile forms on my lips. It’s so nice to have a girlfriend. Someone to share things with.
“Yeah. Yours too, I take it?” Owen has to be. Classes are over for the day and he’s usually attached to Aly. There aren’t many things that he leaves her side for, from what I have seen and Carter has told me. A meeting with the coach would be one of the few exceptions.
“Yep.” She walks over to me. “I love watching you lean up against Carter’s car. Most won’t even walk by it.”
I laugh, holding up the keys. “We can take it for a spin if you want.” He gave me the keys in case I got cold and wanted to wait inside the car.
“I could go for a milkshake before sewing club.” She dons a wicked smile.
“Sewing club?” I laugh. “That’s a thing?”
“Yep. Owen takes it with me.” That makes me laugh even harder. I’m not even remotely shocked that he would enroll in that club to be with her as much as possible.
“That man will do anything to be near you, won’t he?” We both climb into Carter’s car. We buckle our seatbelts and I press the brake and push the button to start the car. The engine roars to life, giving me a taste of the power that it holds. My hands get a little sweaty with excitement. I’ve never driven something so fancy before.
“You sure Carter’s going to be cool with you driving his car?”
I shrug my shoulders, put the car in drive and hit the gas. I think he’ll be more worked up over me leaving and not telling him. It’s not like he won’t know where I am. I watched him flick on the share locations on our phones.
“How do you think Owen will feel that we left?” That’s the real question. When it comes to Carter’s car I can get away with anything. Aly’s eyes shoot to me and I push down on the gas a little harder. “That’s what I thought. We’ll be back before they even know we are missing.” Aly nods her head as we head toward our milkshakes. The car drives like a dream. I can see its appeal. It’s sleek, smooth and powerful, mimicking the attributes of its owner. I can see why Carter is so uptight about caring for it. I’ll never admit that to him because it’s fun giving him a hard time about his precious car.
The thrill quickly dies when I see the red and blue lights behind us. My stomach drops. There isn’t anyone here to protect me this time. I can even see the panic on Aly’s face. I pull over knowing I have no other choice. I swallow that lump that forms in my throat knowing I’m about to lose it all.
Chapter 27
Carter
“There are several media that have requested to be present during signing day.” Coach hands Fast and me a sheet of paper. I don’t even look at it because there’s nothing more unappealing than sitting in front of a bunch of cameras while doing anything. I just want to play ball and love my girl. Is that too much to ask?
“No thanks.”
“I didn’t think you would be interested but I’m obligated to ask. Owen, what about you?”
“What all does it entail? Would it increase my chances of starting?” He leans forward, eyes scanning the page.
“No one can promise that, son, but publicity isn’t a bad thing. I’d suggest—”
The beeping of my phone sends a faint look of irritation across Coach’s face. He’s used to our complete attention as phones and other devices are strictly prohibited in the locker room and team meetings. I used to have the phone on permanent Do Not Disturb but the season is over and I want to be available to Mallory at all times.
“Sorry,” I say without a speck of remorse, but out of respect for our four years together, I pull the dumb thing out of my pocket and am about to turn it off when I read the message. I grab Fast and drag him to his feet. “Sorry, Coach. We have to run. There’s an actual emergency.”
Coach stands, too. “What is it?”
“Family,” I shout and push a confused Fast ahead of me. “Give me your keys,” I demand.
“What? Why do you want my keys?” he says as I half shove, half haul the wide receiver down the corridor. The man is faster than the wind, but he’s trudging along like I’m hauling him to church.
“Because my car is at the police station.”
“The police station?”
I bust through the double doors. “I think Mallory got picked up while driving my car.” I shove my phone in his face. Thankfully he has good coordination and is able to run and read at the same time.