Page 119 of Unrivaled Love
“He’s ready. Dallas came out swinging but we swung harder.”
“Tell me about the go-ahead goal in the second.”
“Sure, yeah, it was an odd man rush and I knew I had Cap coming in behind me. Their defender had to decide who to cover and when he picked Forney I saw the lane open up and I took the shot. That’s all we can do, take the shot when we see it.”
“And hopefully you get plenty more shots in the games ahead. Thanks Bryson.”
“Thanks.”
I hand my stick over the railing to a kid and walk down the tunnel. I toss my gloves to our equipment assistant, Luke, and walk into the locker room. The boys are laughing and getting undressed. I clap a hand on Aiden’s shoulders because he’ll be hating the fact he let two in. He nods as he keeps his nose in his phone. Probably texting Harper.
I toss my jersey into the bin for washing and take off my shoulder pads. My undershirt is soaked with sweat but before my shower I pull my phone out.
A text from Jo is waiting.
Two in one game isn’t bad…but I’ve scored four already since the second half picked up. You’ve got some work to do.
I laugh because of course she’s giving me shit instead of saying good game. Or fawning over me. And that’s exactly what I love about her so much. She challenges me and motivates me to work harder.
Just gettin’ warmed up, Killer.
Call you when I get home?
Can’t. I’m out at a team dinner for Nat’s birthday.
Got it. Then call me in the morning before practice.
Your practice or mine?
Yours.
OK. Night!
Night babe.
Chapter 37
Jo
One of Those Days
Octobersoccerisexhausting.We’ve been playing for seven months and this year, the race for the playoffs is tight. It’s not quite a must win every game scenario, yet, but we’re on the edge.
One of our defenders tore her ACL and is out the rest of the season. We’ve had to adjust and everyone is tired. And after a late night out, I’m even more tired.
I drag myself out of bed to the bathroom. The bags under my eyes tell me everything. I didn’t drink, because I don’t during the season, but getting home at two in the morning, four hours after my typical bedtime, clearly took it out of me.
I brush my teeth, wash my face, and get dressed in my gear. When I head into the kitchen I catch the time and curse. I’ve got thirty minutes before practice starts and I’m easily twenty minutes away. I’m not late yet, but I like to be there early.
I swipe my keys off the hook and rush down the hall.
I don’t even hear the radio as I drive as quickly as I can through the city to our practice facility. We share the training campus with the Salt Lake City men’s team and Coach McEmbry wants to use every minute available to us.
The clock ticks away and I was in such a rush I didn’t even put the address into the GPS. I just started to drive. I reach over to the passenger seat looking for my phone and that’s when I realize I forgot it.
Shit.
And I was supposed to talk to Bryson this morning too.
