As the elevator descends, I pull out my phone and text Colby.
Tessa: Everything all set?
His response comes through just as I reach the bottom.
Colby: All clear. He’s expecting you.
Tessa: Thanks. I owe you.
Delaney and I get into Asher’s Mercedes. She puts the key in the ignition, starting it up before turning to me.
“Where to first?”
I take a deep breath. “Levi’s Stadium.”
I STAND IN FRONT of the giant entrance. My heart is pounding inside my chest, and I feel like I may be sick, but that’s okay. Like Michael Jordan once said, “Being nervous isn’t a bad thing. It just means something important is happening.”
Delaney waits for me in the car. I glance back at her and she gives me a nod of support before I step inside. A guard needs to clear me into the main office, but soon, I’m sitting in front of the head coach.
“Miss Callahan,” he greets me. “I hope you’re well.”
I nod. “I am. Thank you.”
“Glad to hear it. Colby said you have something you wanted to talk to me about.”
“I do.” I pause to take a deep breath. “I think you should get Asher back onto the field.”
His brows raise. “And why’s that?”
“Because he’s the one of the best damn players this league has ever seen, and you and I both know it.” I keep my head held high, feeling the confidence I once lost for little while.
“I don’t disagree with you,” he says. “But Asher was taken out by an injury, and it doesn’t seem like he has the same push to get better as he once did.”
“Then make him an assistant coach, or a quarterback coach for that matter, but get him back where he belongs and with the guys who motivate him. It will push him to get better.”
His gaze softens as he looks at me. “You’re very adamant about this.”
“I am,” I confirm.
“Why?”
The question isn’t one I didn’t expect, but the answer chokes me up a little more than I thought it would.
“Because there was a time where I needed help becoming my best me, and he was there for me. I’d like to do the same for him.”
The corners of his mouth raise. “Has anyone told you you’re wiser than the average eighteen year old?”
I chuckle. “A few times.”
He stands up and puts his hand out. “I’ll see what I can do, and thank you for bringing the idea to my attention.”
After I shake his hand and thank him for hearing me out, I leave feeling a little more accomplished than I did when I got here. Task one, done.
DELANEY PULLS INTO THE driveway of the house we grew up in. I haven’t been back here since the day I took a baseball bat to my car—which, okay, may have been a little extreme, but I still think he deserved it. My knee bounces nervously in the passenger seat.
“Do you want me to go in with you?” Laney asks.
I shake my head. “No. This is something I need to do on my own.”