Page 75 of Scoring with the Coach's Daughter

Ellie’s little feet slap against the hardwoodfloor as she hurries into the room, clutching a tablet. Her eyes are wide again, but not from tears this time.

“You bought a house,” Sam says breathlessly. “In Maine?”

I blink. “What?”

“It’s on the news,” she insists, shoving the screen at me. “See?”

And there it is. A real estate article with the headline in bold: Former Pro Athlete Buys Stunning Country Estate in Maine. There’s a photo of the house—huge, sprawling, with wraparound porches and a massive lanai overlooking acres of land.

Sam’s eyes dart between me and the screen. “Why?” she asks softly.

Her expression is unreadable. Guarded. I don’t know if she’s ready for this so I take a deep breath.

And then I look at Ellie, at the hope flickering behind her confusion.

“For us,” I say.

The way her little face lights up?

Priceless.

I think I’m ready to take the next step.

23

JAKE

I sitat the kitchen table, staring at the untouched cup of coffee in front of me, but my mind is stuck upstairs—stuck on the sound of Ellie crying, the way she bolted, the way Samantha followed after her without a single glance back at me.

The excitement of the house has faded as new complications arise.

I should have known this was coming and I should have prepared for it.

Instead, I let myself believe—for just a second—that maybe I could haveboth. That I could have my career andthis life I’ve started building with them. But that’s not how this works. That’s not how it’severworked.

I drag a hand through my hair, exhaling hard.

Then I hear the footsteps.

Sharp. Determined.

I barely have time to push back from the table before Samantha storms in, her eyes flashing with something I’ve never seen directed at me before—anger.

Raw, unfiltered hurt.

My chest tightens.

“We need to talk,” she says, voice clipped. She crosses her arms like she’s trying to hold herself together.

I nod. “Yeah.”

“Ellie is upstairs crying her heart out right now,” she snaps. “I can’t commit to whatever this is and Ellie knows you’re leaving, Jake. You just sprung this on me and now she thinks she’ll never see you again and that you’re going to forget about her. Do you have anyidea what that’s doing to her?”

I push off the chair. “I’d never forget about her.”

“But you’re still leaving.”

The accusation lands like a linebacker stacked like a refrigerator.

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