“I don’t know if I can help in any way, but I’d like to do something,” she told him, letting go of his hand with a gentle pat. “Maybe I can be a water girl.”
He had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing, though it felt good to find humor in something. April Hale, a water girl? Now, that would be the day. But then he stopped to consider how his players would respond to a sweet, older lady. They might like it. “We’re still outlining our needs, but I’ll let you know.”
“Good. I’m here on another errand as well. I was a bit surprised to be called, but since you were my son-in-law once...”
Now, she’d piqued his curiosity. God, he hoped it wasn’t some fundraiser. He loved to support good causes, but he wanted to stay out of the public eye as much as possible at the moment, especially given how much Natalie seemed to dread gossip about their relationship.
“The head of the local school board called me to ask about your plans. I went to school with Cormack Daly way back, and he was always a big thinker, if you know what I mean.”
He didn’t, so he took a drink of his water and waited for her to continue.
“Cormack reminded me that the high school was looking for a new coach; he’s head of the selection committee. They let the last guy go because the administration wasn’t happy with the past couple of football seasons.” She shook her head. “This is so silly. I can’t even believe I’m asking you this.”
Now he saw where this was going, and his heart started to race.
“He wanted to know if you might consider coaching the high school team. They were about to make an offer to someone else, but then you showed up, and they decided to hold off. I told him I didn’t know your plans, but Cormack can be very bull-headed, and he insisted I ask you. If it’s crazy, I can tell him that without blinking an eye.”
A high school football coach in Dare Valley? He could stay close to Natalie. Then his belly knotted. “I don’t have any coaching experience.”
“Cormack didn’t care about that. He said, and I quote, ‘Quarterbacks lead men into battle, and if Blake Cunningham can lead the Raiders to the Super Bowl, he can lead a bunch of snot-nosed kids to the state championship.’”
“That was a pretty good imitation,” he said even though he had no idea if Cormack sounded like he had a deviated septum.
“So what do you think?” she asked.
“Did he mention when they’d want the new coach to start?”
She shook her head. “No, but if they were already that far along in the hiring process, they probably want someone soon.”
He frowned. His upcoming camp and Natalie were his two biggest priorities. And then there was the big question: did he want to coach? Could he be good enough at it to win? “Let me mull it over. My life…is still shaping up. I’m open to new possibilities.”
“And Natalie will be here for the foreseeable future,” she added with a twinkle in her eye.
“Yes, I know.”
“So you’re planning to stay?”
It was a question that kept him awake at night. How long was he willing to stay in Dare Valley if Natalie and he weren’t together? Would there come a day when he was forced to accept there was no hope? He stopped those negative thoughts right in their tracks. He needed to stay positive. Like he had always been about his career, about a game, about…winning Natalie after that first night he met her.
“I plan on staying as long as it takes and giving it my all,” he replied, his heart hammering in his chest.
She patted his leg and stood. “I figured as much.”
He rose as well.
“You always did cast a long shadow, Blake,” she commented, pointing to the Herculean one filling up most of the patio, beside which her own shadow seemed diminutive.
“Shadows are only illusions, April. It’s a person’s actual presence that counts.”
“Hmm. You always were a wise boy.”
Boy? He hadn’t been called that in a while, but to her, he supposed it was true.
“April, do you have any advice for me? About Natalie?” He wasn’t above asking for help, and her mother knew her in a way even he didn’t.
“Don’t back down. Natalie is so much like her father sometimes. I told her so the other day when we fought about you.”
She’d fought with her mom too? She never fought with her mom—or her sisters. Poor babe had to be shaking like a leaf inside for this to happen.
“I don’t envy you, Blake. She’s a tough nut to crack. Out of all my children, she’s the toughest, the most self-contained. You’re going to have to get her to crack about Kim’s death and her feelings for you if you want to give things another go. Neither will be easy.”