Page 9 of Sporty Girls Don't Fall For Loners

“Coby.” I shove him off me. “Watch where you’re going.”

“Me? You were just standing there in the middle of the field.” He looks toward the bleachers and grins at me. “You’re not crushing on that new guy, are you?”

“Are you insane?” I shove him again and get to my feet. “I don’t have a crush on anyone.”

“Good. Because we need you here, Mini Dynamo.” He slaps my arm and jogs away.

“I refuse that nickname!” I call after him.

He just chuckles.

I try not to groan. My mom’s nickname was Dynamo when she was quarterback, and my teammates have recently started calling me Mini Dynamo. As much as I love that I’ve followed in her footsteps, I want to make my own mark here.

“You okay, Zoey?” Uncle Brayden calls out to me.

I give him two thumbs up.

Practice finishes and Uncle Brayden compliments us and tells us to hit the showers. My teammates and I exchange fist bumps and claps on the backs, and then they head to the boys’ locker room and I head to the bleachers.

“Hi, Aunt Ally. What are you doing here?”

“I had a meeting this afternoon that ended half an hour ago. I figured that since I was already here, I would give you a lift.”

My eyes move to Kade. Does this mean he waited here just so my aunt could give me a ride? I bet he secretly hates me for that.

“Oh, you didn’t have to do that,” I tell her.

“I’m happy to, and Kade didn’t mind waiting, either. And I know your dad’s been stressing out about his new book. I figured I’d help him out a bit.”

“Thanks.” I hug her. “You’re so awesome. But I could have caught a ride with the Barringtons.”

“It was really no problem.”

“Okay. Just let me change and I’ll be out in a second.”

I head to the girls’ locker room. Rylee dashes over and flings her arms around me. “You were awesome out there!”

“Thanks. You were awesome, too. That routine is sick.”

“Right? Coach Abberton might be a witch, but she definitely knows her stuff.”

The cheer coach is Teagyn Abberton. She went to high school with Rylee and Mia’s moms and was very awful to them, especially to Rylee’s mom. And she was also horrible to Rylee last month when she tried out for cheerleading. What she doesn’t get is that we Musketeers won’t be intimidated or pushed down by anyone. We will always follow our dreams, even if we have to deal with jerks like Coach Abberton and her horrible niece, Tiffany.

After I change out of my gear, I say goodbye to Rylee and make my way to the bleachers, where Aunt Ally and Kade are watching something on her phone. I think it’s a funny video on YouTube. Aunt Ally’s laughing her butt off, but Kade has a teensy-weensy smile tugging his lips.

“Oh, come on!” Aunt Ally says with another laugh. “That was super funny.”

Kade lifts his shoulders. “Maybe a little.”

Aunt Ally notices me and stuffs her phone into her bag. “Ready?”

“Yep.”

We walk to her car in the faculty parking lot. Both Kade and I just stand there while my aunt gets in, like we’re not sure who is supposed to take the passenger seat. Technically, he lives with her now, so is that his seat? Or does he prefer to sit in the back?

He reaches for the door handle of the backseat and slides in. I guess it’s shotgun for me.

After we’re all buckled in, Aunt Ally pulls out of the parking lot. She releases a nervous breath as she clutches the steering wheel. “Can you believe I still have anxiety after all these years?” She laughs lightly. “I almost didn’t even go for my license because I was terrified. But Zack encouraged me. It took me nearly ten years to work up the courage, though.” She smiles at Kade through the rear-view mirror. “I was a bit of a scaredy cat when I was younger. You could say I was scared of my own shadow.”

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