Page 48 of Succeeding Love

With a soft cackling laugh, she lifted a leg and pushed me back onto the bed with a sharp heel on my bare chest.

“You chose this,” she sneered.

Right as she was about to drop the robe, I gasped loudly, scaring myself awake. I broke out in a cold sweat all over my body. The sweat soaked my new sheets.

Looking around the room, I felt disoriented until I realized I was in my new condo, not Arlene’s apartment. Boxes were stacked near the closet, and my suitcases were still lined up on the other side of the bed. It was dark outside, but the dawn was breaking.

“Damn it,” I muttered, dragging my hands down my face. “Shit.”

What started out as a happy memory, one from when the kids were still very little and I was new to the law firm, quickly turned into a nightmare.

I wish it had remained the dream of a memory from happier times. What started as a shitty week turned into a great one as Fay helped me to stay focused and keep a steady head. She had sacrificed her entire paid vacation, that was meant to be used to visit her retired parents in Florida to be my rock.

“I’m such a damn fool.” I dropped my head in my hands. I tried to hang on to that image of Fay as she smiled back at me, leading me to a place I could find peace, but all that I felt was guilt and remorse.

~

Preston

“Hey, Micheals!” The assistant coach, Coach Anderson, stopped in front of me as I was getting my cleats on. “Your mom’s coming today, right?”

With a slight frown, I answered, “Yes, sir. She should be.”

“Good. Good.” He slapped my shoulder. “You’re going to do great today.” He slapped my shoulder one more time, then kept walking.

Mason, a senior I’m friends with that happened to be sitting beside me, laughed. “It’s true. I feel bad for you,” he snickered.

Other guys were smirking and laughing softly under their breath. “What?”

“Oh, nothing,” Carter gave me a knowing look. “Just that Coach Anderson has the hots for your mom.”

“Are you fucking serious?” I groaned. “Is that why he keeps asking me those questions?” The coach was asking me about my parents’ divorce and shit like that since we got on the bus yesterday. I thought he was just a creepy, over-concerned coach, but now it makes more sense.

“Yep,” Mason said. “I heard him talking about your mom to the head coach last night after you went to your room.”

“When did he even meet my mom?”

“Last spring at the awards dinner,” Carter said. “And at the chili fundraiser. He talked about both.”

“That’s so creepy.”

“Eh,” Mason shrugged. “Make the coach your step-daddy. That’s a sure way of getting on varsity next year.”

“Huh,” was all I could grunt out. There were two juniors on JV that should have been before me to move up to varsity with the injury. I thought I was asked first because I was better, but maybe not.

Coach Anderson isn’t a bad guy, at least not that I know of. I just don’t like it. The idea of him trying to hit on my mom makes me want to throw up. He’s at least two or three years younger than mom and slaps my shoulder too much. Plus, the other players call him hot links because he’s got fat fingers that he’s always waving around as he yells at us.

“Hey man, my stepdad is a dick. I would trade him for hot links any day.”

“I don’t think my mom is looking for a step dad for me right now.” I wouldn’t mind if she dated. I actually encourage it. It would keep dad from messing with her.

“I can be your step daddy,” Carter wiggled his eyebrows.

“Fuck you.” I threw a towel at him as he dodged it and laughed.

We had to be at the field to warm up, and were still bull shitting with one another, more of the guys teasing me about becoming my step dad and crap like that.

I was wishing I had told my dad about this game. I don’t want him with mom again, ever, but him being here would at least keep other ass holes like him away from her. Hopefully, she found a good friend to come with at least.

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