Page 10 of Bad Call

“Come to Daddy. Come on girl, come to Daddy.”

The dog park was relatively empty today, which was great because Rawlings was in the mood to ignore commands. I tossed the frisbee again, and she darted after it, chasing it down. But instead of returning it to me so I could throw it again, she ran laps around the park with it gripped between her teeth. She had the zoomies today, and it was best to let her run it out.

“Come here, girl,” I tried again, only to be ignored.

Plopping my ass down on the bench, I took my phone out of my pocket and started scrolling online. Last night, lying in bed after having come again to the image ofhisface, I had a genius idea to try a dating site where I could screen my hookups better than I could in a crowded dark club.

The more famously gay ones like Grindr were out of the question. The risk of running into one of my players or another athlete in our division from another school, or hell, any student from my school, was too high. My face was too easily recognized. I thought maybe if I used an app more catered toward straight men and dating rather than just hooking up, I might have better luck remaining anonymous. Those apps were notorious for catering to men like me who were looking for other men, but wanted to keep everything quiet.

As I lay there in bed, I made a profile, using a pictureof the curve of my ass in hopes it would act as a beacon for gay men. This way, we could chat a bit before I decided if I wanted to take things further. After I screened them to make sure they weren’t students. It was a much better plan than the crapshoot gamble I risked at the club.

Rawlings trotted up to me with the frisbee between her teeth, panting and drooling, and I took the frisbee, wiped my hand off on my jeans, and reached for my water bottle.

“Here you go, baby girl.” I drizzled some in her mouth and she lapped it up greedily. “You finished? We can stop for aPup Cupon the way home.”

Those two words worked like magic. Rawlings barked and wagged her tail furiously. She was a whore for Pup Cups fromStarbucks. Something about that mini paper cup filled with whipped cream made her entire day.

Unfortunately, the line atStarbuckswas twelve cars deep, but at least it gave me plenty of time to scroll my phone and check my email. I clicked on the one from Austin Healey, my star pitcher.

“Coach, I hope you’re well. Marcus and I would like to invite you over for a barbecue this weekend. You’re welcome to bring a plus one. Even if it’s your dog. Don’t worry about bringing anything, we have everything covered. Just show up onSaturday at twelve. Let me know if you can’t make it. Sincerely, Austin.”

What a great guy. Marcus was a lucky man. Again, I was hit with that pang of jealousy that he was out of the closet, living his best life with the man he fell hard for, even though their relationship had raised a few eyebrows.

More than a few. I guessed it was their age gap and the fact Austin was once Marcus’s student and a player on his team in high school. In fact, I remembered reading the headlines where Marcus got fired for that. But it didn’t stop them and they were still going strong. Someday, when I didn’t have a season to win and a faculty to kowtow to, maybe I could have that as well.

HittingReply, I typed out,

“Sounds great, I’d love to come. And yes, Rawlings is my plus one. See you Saturday.”

“We’ve got a date, girl.” I rubbed between her ears, and she licked my face. “You and me on Saturday at the barbecue.”

CHAPTER SIX

BAYLOR

“This meat tastes incredible.It’s making my mouth water.”

“That’s what he said,” Austin joked.

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. “Really? You’re not too old for those?”

“You’re never too old for a ‘he said’ joke. Right Coach?”

My best friend looked like he was caught between a rock and a hard place, because he was.

“You know what I want to say to that, Austin. But you know I would never throw you under the bus, so please, keep me out of it.”

I bowed to him. “You are a diplomat of bullshit.” A truck I didn’t recognize pulled up in the driveway and parked behind my truck. “Who else did you invite?”

“Just my…”

Casey fucking Collins climbed out of the truck.

“Coach… and his plus one,” Austin finished.

Perfect. Just what I needed, to be stuck with Casey and his date all day. No doubt he knew I would be here and brought someone to dangle in my face. Before he could shut the door, a golden retriever jumped down after him.

He has a dog? A cute dog? That doesn’t make him more likable.

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