Page 71 of Courtside

The flight passed uneventfully, and as soon as they deplaned Sage pulled out her phone and confirmed the bus that would take them to the hotel. As they walked to the baggage claim, her long legs made the rounds as she went to each player and confirmed their food order from the sub shop that was going to deliver their pre-game meal.

She was really damn good at her job.

Things continued to go smoothly at the hotel. As the head coach, David got his own room, while Tim and Jake shared and Sage, as the only woman on the trip, got her own room. The rest of the players were mixed between upper-classmen and younger players. It served to facilitate team bonding, and kept the younger guys from doing anything too stupid.

A few hours later, they were climbing back on the bus and going to the gym for their game. Harding’s campus was just outside of Baltimore, and they had a beautiful, newer gym that David couldn’t help but envy.

The bus dropped them off at the players’ entrance, and they all made their way to the visiting locker room. The guys that needed the trainer peeled off with Jake, while the rest started to get changed and settled.

Sage only lingered in the locker room long enough to make sure everyone had their equipment set up. She wore another one of those pantsuits with the slacks that cut off just above her ankles. It was purple, like the color of a ripe plum, and with the gray blouse she wore underneath she projected confidence, at ease in her authority as she bantered with the guys. The fact that she wore her Nikes rather than dressy heels just made her even more attractive in his eyes.

This woman in a pantsuit was going to kill him.

As they moved through warm up, Tim’s words from the day before echoed in his head. Rather than standing back while the guys went through their dynamic stretching routine, David went to the baseline, offering encouragement and reassurances.

He got a few odd looks, but the guys seemed to adjust to him being there fairly quickly. When they started chirping him about letting Jordan trim his beard, he gave them a teasing scoff and returned to the bench, where Tim stood watching. The assistant coach gave him a sharp nod, and David felt himself smile in return.

Immediately his eyes searched for Sage, out of a combination of habit and an actual need to confirm that they were good with the book going into the game.

Rather than her usual spot on the bench, she stood off to the side of the bleachers, her body turned away from them. Without thinking, David walked over to her, moving as quickly as he could without breaking into a run.

“Sage,” he said as he approached her.

She jumped, turning around to face him.

Immediately, he stilled.

It was like she’d shrunk before his eyes. Her expression was haunted and her posture had slumped, her shoulders curving forward as she gripped the tablet against her chest. Her mouth made the shape of a smile, but it looked like it had been painted onto her face by an amateur artist.

“Coach,” she said.

There was something off about her voice. “Are you okay?” he asked, concerned.

“Totally fine. Great. Good.” She tucked a wisp of hair behind her ear, refusing to look directly at him. “Just making sure we’re all good on the Wifi.”

David frowned. “Sage,” he began.

“I need to finish up the book.” She moved past him, her shoulder brushing against his chest.

He wanted to grab her and pull her against him. He wanted to hold her until she told him what the hell had her so spooked. He glanced up at the clock.Goddamnit.It was time to head back into the locker room.

He’d have to talk to her after the game.

CHAPTER19

WHAT A GIFT LIKE THAT MEANT

SAGE

No.

He couldn’t be there. How the fuck was he there?

Sage tried to keep track of the game. Her eyes bounced from the glowing screen of the tablet to the streaking splotches that she knew were bodies running up and down the court, but it was all blurring together. The colors, the lights, all of it swam before her eyes like paint smeared on glass.

Everything was fuzzy — the sounds muffled, her breathing shallow — but through it all she felt him.

At first, she’d thought it was just an uncanny resemblance. The world was full of tall men with skin the color of rich ochre and pale eyes. But then he’d looked at her from the opposing team’s bench, and there was no denying the fact that Evan White was there.

---