Page 75 of Courtside

And when he pulled up in front of the hotel and she climbed out of the car, she didn’t look back.

CHAPTER20

ANYTHING, LEFTY

DAVID

David couldn’t sit still.

From the second Sage had walked out of the hotel he’d started pacing. Nervous, frantic energy coursed through him, preventing him from even a second of peace. Not when she was gone. Not when she was gone withhim.

Whatever he’d seen between Sage —hisSage — and Evan White had landed in his gut and curdled like spoiled milk.

It was obvious that there was some kind of history between them, and, based on what he’d just seen, it was probably a history that went way beyond what should have transpired between a high school player and her coach.

Bile rose in his throat.

It didn’t help that there were a million unsaid things between him and Sage. That he felt — no, heknew— that she was his, in some way. But there had been nothing between them except promises and exchanges of friendship. And then she’d kissed him, and they’d parted as friends?

He couldn’t figure out a goddamn thing, and until she was back and he’d seen for himself that not a single blonde hair on her head had been harmed, he was going to stay right where he was.

“Coach?”

He whirled around, not giving a shit that he probably looked maniacal since he’d lost the sweater after anxiety had driven him to sweat like he was playing in the fourth quarter.

“Tim?”

The older man approached him, dressed down in simple black sweats and tennis shoes. His eyes searched the rest of the lobby before he turned his concerned expression to David. “Is she still gone?”

David opened and closed his mouth. “What?” His voice was wrecked from the game, and he realized in that moment that Sage hadn’t given him a lozenge like she usually did.

“Fogerty. Is she still gone with that Coach White?”

“How do you —”

Tim waved off the question. “I saw him harassing her earlier. In the hallway.” He shook his head as his frown deepened. “That man is bad news.”

David felt his stomach drop. “What do you mean?”

Again, Tim shook his head. “I knew him back when I coached in Nashville at a junior college for a while. It was about five years ago, and he was fresh out of coaching club ball in California.” He scratched at his collar. “He got in some hot water for pursuing younger girls, and ended up leaving rather than making a scene. After the school let him walk away without facing any consequences I got the hell out of there. Couldn’t stand being a part of a program that let someone get away with that.”

David couldn’t suppress the shudder that went through him. “Damnit, Tim. She’s out there with him now, what should we —”

“We wait. Or, I should say,youwait, because it’s obvious that the two of you have something going on.”

“We, no, we don’t,” David stammered, panicking at the thought of now trying to explain away the closeness between him and Sage: the friendship, the maybe something more.

“Stop it.” Tim leveled David a look over the rim of his glasses that had him shutting his mouth. “I’m not here to give you a hard time. Do I think it’s wise? No. But she’s a grad student, an adult, and if I thought that you were the kind of man who would put the two of you into a compromising position while working together then we would have had this conversation months ago.” Tim’s face softened into a small smile. “But aside from all of that, it’s obvious that you arefriends, and that’s why I think that when she walks through those doors after whatever the hell is happening right now, you should be the one waiting for her.”

David could do nothing but nod. Tim returned the gesture before walking back to the elevator. As soon as he was out of sight, David resumed his pacing, never taking his eyes away from the door.

He had no idea how much time had passed when the doors opened.

Sage stood there with her head held high, her expression defiant, and silent tears streaming down her red cheeks.

Immediately he was running.Help her, help her, help herpounded in his head and he reached for her, gently gripping her shoulders as he lowered down to look her in the eye. “What happened,” he breathed, trying to control the maelstrom of emotions warring within him.

She sniffed once, shifting her gaze so she looked over his shoulder. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

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