Page 120 of Courtside

David shook his head. “Don’t undersell it.” The sun filtering through Sage’s curtains shone golden on the bare skin of her shoulders, revealing a few freckles that had crept up as spring moved into summer. “You just accomplished something incredible and today we’re going to celebrate that.”

Daisy chose that moment to bound up from where she’d been curled up asleep at the foot of Sage’s bed. She stuck her wet nose right under David’s chin before twisting to lick Sage’s face. Within seconds they were all a giggling, wrestling mess as they tried to escape the tiny dog’s enthusiastic onslaught of affection.

“Okay, okay,” Sage shrieked, leaping up out of the bed in all of her naked glory. A grimace crossed her face, as she bent over with her hands on her knees. “Fuck, my quads are killing me.”

“You could stretch after we work out,” David commented mildly. “Or you could keep complaining about it.”

Sage muttered something under her breath even as she bent one knee and tilted her hips to the side, her nose wrinkling as she half-heartedly stretched.

David stared at her, letting his eyes trail all over her golden skin. He loved the bikini tan lines that cut across her chest, and the little triangles of pale skin over her breasts. He loved the soft curves of her hips and the strength of her thighs. He loved the triangle of curls between her legs that matched the brown of her eyebrows.

“Stop it.” Sage’s hands were braced on her hips as she glared at him. “We both know there’s no time for funny business today, and yet you’re laying over there looking all hot and hard and ready to eat me for breakfast.”

David glanced down, andyep. Her assessment was accurate.

He pressed his palm against himself and groaned. “What if I’mreallyfast?”

Sage’s eyes narrowed, but he could see the smirk curving the corner of her mouth. “Don’t go too fast, now. We’re supposed to be celebrating, for fuck’s sake.” And with that she launched herself at him.

Twenty-seven minutes later, David held Daisy’s leash in one hand and Sage’s hand in the other. It was one of those mild Charleston mornings that reminded David why he’d moved back. Why he’d always known he’d end up here.

They followed the sidewalk toward the coffee shop they’d taken to frequenting on weekend mornings. David wanted to treat them to pastries before Sage went off and started graduation prep. Apparently her sister was good at doing hair, whatever that meant.

He cleared his throat, squeezing Sage’s hand in what he hoped was a gesture of reassurance. “I heard some news yesterday.”

“Hm?” She looked up at him.

“I got an email that Harding is looking for an assistant coach.” He watched her face carefully. “Apparently Coach White was fired.”

If he hadn’t known Sage’s face like it was his own, he would have missed the fleeting flinch that tightened her expression. Her eyes darted down for a second before lifting to meet his gaze. “Figured that was coming,” she said, her voice softer than he was used to hearing.

Again, he squeezed her hand. “And how are you?”

She shrugged, tipping her head against his shoulder for a brief moment. “Okay, honestly. I think a part of me wanted to let the universe take care of it, you know? Hoped that eventually it would all catch up with him.”

“So what changed?”

“I thought about some kid like me. I thought about him doing it all again, and I hated knowing that I could’ve stopped it.”

David let out a harsh exhale. Something in him loosened, knowing that the man who’d hurt her was finally beginning to face the consequences of his actions.

It had taken every ounce of his self control to step back and trust Sage when it came to Evan White. So much of him wanted to drag that goddamn horrible excuse of a man through the mud until there was no remote possibility of him ever working or coaching again.

But he knew Sage. As excruciating as it was to do nothing, he knew that it wasn’t his choice to make. So he’d cared for her and supported her in the ways that he could, trusting that she would do whatever she needed to.

And,damn it, she had.

“You’re incredible, Lefty.”

Her expression softened and then she squeezed his hand, returning the reassurance that he’d offered to her. “I’m just trying to do the right thing.”

David shook his head, voicing something that he hadn’t realized had been bothering him. “It shouldn’t have been up to you.” He quickly added. “Not that you aren’t more than capable of handling someone like him. But it’s a goddamn tragedy that things like this fall on the shoulders of the people who survive them.”

Her fingers tightened again. “You’re a good one, David Hughes.”

* * *

David stood in the shade of one of the many magnolia trees that grew outside of the auditorium in the northwest corner of Southeastern’s campus. It was only noon and he already regretted wearing a jacket with his shirt and linen slacks.

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