It was still early, but Cole was filled with a sense of destiny. The team was firing on all cylinders. Defense was a beast, holding teams to few or no points. Recorded sacks were off the charts, their best season so far. Offense was hot everywhere, from the running to the passing game. The offensive line was blowing open holes everywhere and giving Cassidy plenty of time to stay in the pocket and get the passes off. It was a perfect storm.
They’d even won on the road. Coming off two road games in a row, the team was confident there was no one they couldn’t beat. And Cole knew after playing in the NFL for a lot of years that confidence was everything in this game. You had to believe you could win.
They all believed they could win.
While he’d been playing, Savannah had been working on setting up his foundation. The paperwork had been set up and they were ready to get started on the first playground and community center. He’d been advised to wait until the off-season to begin work, but once the idea had formed, he didn’t want to put it off. He might not be able to be as hands-on during the season as he would be when he wasn’t playing, but there was no sense in delaying. The faster the playgrounds were completed, the sooner the kids would have somewhere to go.
After practice today he was meeting Savannah, the contractors, and family, friends, and teammates at the playground site. They were going to get their hands dirty. He was anxious to dig in.
Concrete had already been poured and construction started on the community center, but in the meantime they were going to work on clearing out the area for the playground. That meant mowing and weeding and clearing out trash.
That his teammates had offered to help meant more to him than he could say. Savannah had been the one to mention it to them. He never would have thought to say anything to them, but they’d all gone out for dinner one night after a home game, and she’d brought it up and said they could use some volunteers to clear the field.
His entire offensive line had spoken up and said they’d help. So had Grant Cassidy, the quarterback. So had Kenny, Jamarcus, and Lon.
He’d been surprised. Savannah had laid her hand on his arm and told him this was what it was like to have friends.
He was realizing that. People had his back now, both on and off the field.
Another thing he had her to thank for.
He picked up Savannah and they arrived at the field early enough to go over the plans with the contractor. Everything was on time and in order. The community center would take about six weeks to build. The foundation was already in the process of hiring staff for the center. Everything was falling into place.
His teammates and family arrived, and everyone dug in right away clearing debris and rocks.
“Some of this stuff is heavy,” he told Savannah as she bent to try to pick up a rock. It wouldn’t budge.
“You’re right. There’s no way anyone can pick this up. We’ll need a loader.”
Kaman, one of their linemen, nudged Savannah out of the way. “I got this.” He picked up the rock like it weighed nothing and toted it over to the trash bin.
Savannah looked to Cole, who shrugged and grinned.
Savannah was having the time of her life. So much of what she did involved sitting at a computer, challenging her mind. It was nice to get out and work with her hands. Even with gloves on it ruined her manicure, but she could get that fixed later. Just being with Cole’s family and friends was always a plus.
Not only had his team members shown up, but Cole’s family was here as well. Tara, Jenna, and Elizabeth had all said hello to Savannah when they arrived, and Savannah had noticed Cole’s sister, Alicia, his parents, and even his aunt and uncle.
Savannah went over on her break to grab some water. Alicia was there chatting with Tara, who was in charge of the drink tent, since she’d been given strict instructions by Mick to do no heavy lifting.
“How’s it going out there?” Tara asked.
“Good. Everyone’s doing such a great job.”
Tara sighed. “And here I stand, handing out bottles of water.”
Alicia laughed and shoved an errant hair away from her sweat-soaked face. “You can hardly move boulders in your condition.”
“I know, but it’s frustrating. I’m not incapacitated. I’m pregnant. I’m healthy. I do yoga. I work out all the time.”
“But you can’t lift heavy objects. And what if someone whacks you with one of those old rusty metal pipes or a board?” Savannah asked.
“I know. You’re right. I’m safer here. I’m just whining.” Tara handed out a couple waters to a few of the players who stopped at the tent.
Pizza was brought in for lunch. The guys came in, grabbed several pieces, then ran off to chat and eat, leaving the women to sit under the tent together. Savannah was more than happy to take a few minutes to sit down. She was in good physical shape, but all that bending and lifting was hard. Her back was going to be killing her by tonight.
“I’m exhausted already,” Liz said as she swiped the napkin across her lips. “I won’t need to work out for a week.”
Alicia laughed. “I know the feeling. Pilates was never this hard.”
“I was just thinking how nice a hot bath is going to feel tonight,” Jenna said.