She sighs and closes her eyes. “Maybe that prank was a bad idea.”
“Probably. It won’t scare him, and it’ll definitely make him mad.”
“Damn. Maybe we should’ve broken into his house with knives and threatened him.”
I raise an eyebrow. “That seems a little extreme.”
“Well, I don’t know what else to do.”
“I’ll figure it out, I promise. For now, it’s nice out, we’re alone, so let’s just try to enjoy it.”
She gives me a look and laughs before moving across the blanket to lean against me. I run my fingers through her hair and kiss her cheek.
“Okay, fine, since you don’t want to talk about Erik. Let’s talk about your family.” She grins up at me. “Tell me about your dad.”
I sigh. “He’s a sort of an old-school guy.”
“What was that like, growing up?” she asks.
I shrug. “My mother died when we were young. My sister needed more attention than I did. She was a few years younger and she just… I don’t know. She sort of bonded hard with my dad and I was left to take care of myself. I think that’s why I start to rebel as I got older.”
“Rebel.” She laughs. “And yet you’re this fancy football coach. How’d that even happen?”
“It’s not an interesting story.”
“Tell it anyway.”
“Basically, I got a job coaching high school, did really well with that, and got scouted for the next level.”
“Okay, yeah, not a good story.”
I laugh a little. “An old friend of mine got me the job. We went to school together. I used to buy weed from his older brother.”
“Right, sure. Got it. Totally normal.” She stretches. “And here I am, totally boring.”
“Boring and normal can be a good thing, you know.”
“No, I really don’t think so.”
“Well, what do you want out of all this?” I ask her.
“What do you mean?”
“College, life, whatever. What do you want to do when you leave here?”
“I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately,” she says. “The job market sucks. I don’t want to move back home with my parents. I want to do… something. I just don’t know what yet. And I’m not exactly majoring in something that’s really useful, you know?”
“Doesn’t matter what you major in,” I say. “I was an accounting major until I dropped out of college.”
She sits up. “You’re a college dropout?”
I grin and tilt my head. “I didn’t mention that?”
“No!”
“Oh, well. I dropped out of school and was bumming around Europe for like four months. That’s when my friend messaged me and offered me that coaching job. It didn’t pay much but I just… flew home. I guess it felt like the right move, and I’m glad I did it. Started nice and young.”
“Huh,” she says. “That sort of explains a bit.”
“Yeah.” I smile and tilt my head, staring at the fountain. “I’m glad I ended up here. I mean, I didn’t know what the hell I wanted to do either, you know? But life has a way of throwing choices at you, and it’s up to you to try and make the best of them. I made my choices, ended up here, and I’m happy about it. That’s just how it goes.”
“You make it sound easy. All I have to do is wander around Europe for a while until someone offers me my dream job.”
“It wasn’t my dream job,” I say, nudging her. “But sure, more or less, that sounds right to me.”
She sighs and lays her head down in my lap. I run my fingers through her hair as her eyes flutter open and shut. I can tell she’s tired form staying up late last night, but I have absolutely no regrets. She was delicious, delightful, and incredible, and I’d let her ride me again and again if given the opportunity.
I suspect, as my eyes roam down her body, that I’ll have that chance very soon.
“At least you found something,” she says.
“Well, what would you do, if given the chance?”
“Teach.”
I snort. “You can teach.”
“I know. But I mean, college.”
“You can teach college. You’ll have to get a doctorate probably, but you can become a professor.”
She eyes me. “Think you can put in a good word for me here?”
“Doubtful. Pretty sure I’m going to get fired sooner or later.”
She laughs and sighs. “Don’t joke about that. I already feel bad.”
“Don’t.” I stroke her hair and kiss her.
“Should we be doing this?” she asks suddenly and sits up. “You work here. I just sort of realized that. And I’m a student, and I technically work for the team, and…”
“And I’m over ten years older than you?”
“Something like that.” She bites her lip. “It’s dangerous for you.”
“It is,” I agree. “And if Erik caught us, we’d be done. I mean, he’d make sure we both fried for this.”
She stares at me with surprise in her eyes. “Why would you set this up then? I mean, I know we’re a little hidden, but…” She trails off as I reach out and pull her against me. I kiss her slow and deep, tasting her lips, letting my heart beat fast in my chest.