"You realize we're talking about Emily, right?"
Becca paused and held up her hand. "The same Emily that almost broke your neck in that pillow fight. I think she may secretly be a boxer or a fighter. I swear."
"Good point," I laughed. "Stay behind me."
…
Unknown: Come to practice early tomorrow.
Kinsley: Who is this?
Unknown: Liam.
Kinsley: Prove it…
Liam: She thought she could, so she did.
Kinsley: Okay. You pass the test, lover boy. How early are we talking? And is that a good idea?
Liam: You're supposed to be the young and reckless one... 5:15.
Kinsley: What if there are photographers?
Liam: I'll make sure there aren't any.
Kinsley: Did you just make me an accomplice in their murders?
Liam: My bad. Delete this text.
I scanned through our text exchange three more times before dropping my phone onto my chest. I had no clue what he wanted from me, but I knew I had to see him.
After telling Becca that she'd have to drive herself to practice because I was going early to meet with Liam (to which she squealed in my ear for thirty minutes), I picked out a cute workout outfit and attempted to shut off my brain to no avail.
At 5:00 A.M., I rolled out of bed, pulled on my clothes, and threw my hair up into a messy ponytail. If he wanted me to be anywhere at 5:15 A.M. other than in my bed, then he better not expect me to have actually brushed my hair. No way, Jose.
When I got to the practice field there was a white Toyota parked where Liam's car usually sat. There wasn't anyone behind the windows, but when I checked my phone, I saw a text from Liam that he’d sent a few minutes prior.
Liam: I just got to the field house.
Before I went inside, I turned around to make sure there weren’t any lurking photographers. The fields were completely abandoned, so I ducked inside and made sure to close the door securely behind me. I hadn’t realized I’d been holding my breath until I exhaled slowly.
We were officially sneaking around.
I’d never been to Liam’s office before. It was down the main hall, past Coach Davis' office and the conference room. When I walked up, the door was open a little bit and I could see Liam sitting behind a desk scrolling through his phone.
I tapped on the door before pushing it open gently.
"Morning," I said, suddenly feeling nervous.
"Morning," he answered with a small smile, dropping his phone onto the desk and giving me his full attention. "Are you hungry?"
I nodded and pushed the door closed behind me. The room suddenly felt tiny. Well, it was actually really small, but Liam filled the space and made it so I couldn't take a breath without catching a whiff of his bodywash.
"Nice office," I said, glancing around. Clearly he hadn't changed a thing since the other assistant coach had left for maternity leave. "My favorite part is your ovulation calendar." I pointed to the wall beside his head and he shifted his gaze toward it and cracked up.
"I guess I should have actually looked around, but I'm hardly ever in here," he laughed, then shifted his focus toward me. It was too much. Standing across his desk with his dark eyes pinned on me made me fidget in my running shoes. I dropped my cleats and water bottle on the chair in front of his desk, and then for one brief moment, I felt bold.
Bold enough to walk around to the back of his desk where he was sitting. "I'm kind of nervous. This is a weird situation and you seem much too calm."
While he was sitting, I had the height advantage and I liked it. He was the one in control of our situation. He was the one in the position of power, but right then I felt like I had the upper hand.
He reached his hand out and wrapped it around my waist. He didn't pull me toward him, he just rested it there. My power evaporated as quickly as it had arrived.
"You should eat. Give your body time to digest a bit before practice starts."
I hadn't even noticed the plethora of food sitting on his desk. There was fruit, protein bars, two smoothies, and some granola. I reached for one of the smoothies because it seemed like the easiest thing to eat. I wasn't that hungry. My body was focused on other, more important things.
"Is that your truck out front? The Toyota?" I asked, turning gently toward him so that his hand pushed up the top of my workout tank by default.
His gaze followed his hand and he narrowed his eyes before answering me. "It belongs to one of my roommates. I let him borrow my car for the day so that I could travel without people following me."
So that's why there weren't any photographers outside.
"Good thinking," I answered, letting my focus fixate on the smoothie in my hand.
"Kinsley, I know this isn't a normal thing, what we're trying to get away with. I know I'm putting you in a terrible position," he began, but I turned and cut him off.
"We're both in terrible positions."
He nodded, but his brooding expression didn't change.