Page 83 of Ready to Score

“You can have a seat.” He pointed to the cushy chair on the other side of his desk as he sat in his chair.

They stared at each other silently for what felt like forever. Every beat that passed made Franny’s tongue heavier in her mouth. Her body didn’t seem to know whether it wanted to go as dry as the Sahara or flood with sweat.

She felt completely ridiculous, but there was nothing for it.

“You did very well out there tonight,” Landry complimented her.

“Thank you, Coach. I, uh… I just followed Carr’s lead.”

“No, you didn’t,” Landry said. “You took the reins with the O-line today, same way you’ve been doing all summer. The boys listen to you, and they respect you, which is important. Just as important as, if not more than, knowing all the technical stuff.”

Franny nodded.

“You’ve still got a ways to go now. You need to ramp up your confidence, and you need to build up stronger bonds with the players than you already have. You know the game well; there’s no denying that. But there’s a lot that goes into coaching at this level.”

“Yes, sir, I realize that,” Franny said. “I’m working on connecting more with the players and their parents. I know that being a true leader to them will come with time, but I’m more than willing to spend it.”

“You sound like somebody else I know.” He chuckled.

“Unfortunately, she’s right more often than either of us would like to admit.” Franny smiled just thinking about it.

“She speaks highly of you as well,” he continued. “She thinks that you deserve a real chance on this team.”

Franny was immediately conflicted. It felt incredible to hear that Jade had spoken kind words to Landry about her. It felt good to know that Jade had almost certainly meant them too. The womanwas practically allergic to lip service. But Franny wanted to succeed on her own merit and nothing else, and she needed him to know it.

“I appreciate that, Coach. I really do. But I’d rather your opinion of me be based on your own observations.”

“Lim, I’ve spent twenty years raising this team. It might as well be my child at this point. I promise I don’t make decisions about it based on what other people want.” He leaned forward on the table, clasping his fingers together. “That said, I also need to make sure the team is stacked well for the person who comes in behind me. They need people they can trust and rely on. Maybe some people they can grow with too.”

Her heart almost seemed to stop pumping blood completely. Her breath followed, halting the flow of air in her lungs as her body seized up in anticipation.

“In the spring, Carr will take over responsibilities as the D-line coach, and I’d like you to step in as the head of O-line.” He slid a stack of papers across the desk toward her. “Until then, we’ll bring you on with the assistant coach title, and you’ll shadow Carr. We’ve already got your background check and necessary credentials, but this should tell you a bit more about additional pay and stipends. Look this over and get it back to me by the end of next week, and we’ll get your info in to payroll.”

“Are you serious right now? Like, for real? I got it?”

“You got it.”

“I’m a coach?”

“You’re a coach.”

“Holy shit!”

O n the way home, Gladys broke down. They’d taken the truck to the game to soothe one of Jade’s game-day superstitions. Afew weeks ago, Jade had taken Gladys in for an oil change and had come home with heartbreaking news about the old gal’s transmission. Franny had held her girl in her arms for over an hour while they talked through options. Only to end on the one that made the most sense for their lives right now—Jade would use some of her riches to just rebuild the damn thing. She’d had a lot of change recently and they anticipated more to come, so keeping this one constant seemed reasonable.

In the in-between time, though, they were sitting on the side of the road in the pitch-black, waiting for someone to come scoop them up.

“C’mon,” Franny said. She grabbed her water bottle and opened the door on the passenger’s side. “It’s too hot to sit in here.”

They ambled out of the truck and into the bed, laying down some tarp as makeshift protection against the hard ridges. It was still hot outside. The air was thick and wet, and the heat clung to their skin. But it was better than sweating up a little tin box.

Jade put a hand on Franny’s knee, her thumb rubbing against the warm skin. “I’m sorry the truck broke down… again.”

Franny shrugged. “It’s all right. This is pretty romantic, honestly.” She squeezed Jade’s hand, and they tilted their heads up to look at the sky.

On any given night, she could look up and see stars. It was one of the things that made Greenbelt so intoxicating for her. Some were twinkling and bright, others farther away and duller. But they were there. Not hidden behind a thick haze of pollution or obstructed by buildings. Even the suburbs back in Houston weren’t far enough away from it all to get a view like this.

Jade giggled. It was light, almost girlish, and Franny immediately looked over at her, taking in that beautiful profile. The curve of her jaw, the way her eyelashes were so long they brushed against the tops of her cheeks every time she blinked.

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