Page 123 of Fear of Love
“Poor baby,” Josie cooed, moving to sit down beside Mateo. He pouted dramatically, resting his head on her shoulder, then shot Wyatt a smug grin.
“Little shit.” Wyatt cursed at his brother as the rest of us snickered.
I leaned back against Landon’s chest as everyone talked. My feet hurt from walking in my heels all day, and my hand ached a little. As if sensing I was tired, Landon kissed the top of my chest and wrapped his arms around me.
Everyone was mid-conversation when I caught sight of Evelyn heading toward us, but she wasn’t alone.Oh, shit.
Across from me, Tasha saw my expression and mouthed,what’s wrong?I made a little motion to turn around as the pair got closer to us. Tasha peeked over her shoulder before whipping back around.
I tensed in Landon’s arms as Evelyn and Coach approached the group. This could get awkward.
“Hi, everyone,” Evelyn greeted. I watched as Trevor and Bryton stiffened when they caught sight of their coach.
“Oh, hey, Coach,” Bryton said, but his eyes darted to Wyatt.
“Boys,” Coach greeted. “Ladies.” His voice softened slightly when he looked at us four.
“I thought you left.” Josie smiled in Coach’s direction.Steven. His name was Steven,I mentally told myself. I hadn’t even known his first name until a few weeks ago and was still trying to break the habit of calling him by his title.
“We have something we wanted to tell you,” Evelyn said, glancing at her sons nervously. Those of us who knew stood there awkwardly. Trevor and Bryton looked like they’d rather be anywhere else.
“Is something wrong?” Landon asked from behind me. I could sense the tension in his voice, and I didn’t need to turn around to know he was already running through every possible worst-case scenario.
“No, no, nothing's wrong.” The nerves were clear in her voice as she shifted on her feet. I just knew this was a conversation she didn’t want to have with her sons.
“Mom?” Mateo asked, sitting up with a concerned look on his face.
Evelyn glanced over at Coach—Steven—and the two exchanged a silent conversation. He reached down, took her hand in his, then looked around at us. “Evelyn and I are seeing each other.”
You could hear a pin drop in the silence that followed. Wyatt, Mateo, and Josie stared at Evelyn and Steven with open mouths. I couldn’t see Landon, but I could feel how still he was, his body a statue behind me.
Trevor and Bryton shifting on their feet. Trevor went to open his mouth, but Tasha jammed her elbow in his side, shutting him up. Bryton looked at Mila for help, but she did a quick shake of her head.
Well, this was awkward.
“How did this…” Wyatt spoke first, pointing a finger between the two of them. He was staring at them like he wasn’t sure what he was seeing.
“We ran into each other a few months ago and started talking,” Evelyn explained, glancing up at Steven with a gentle smile.
I watched her lean into him, their hands intertwined, and though the moment was brief, I caught the three gentle squeezes Steven gave. They looked so sweet together. Steven loomed over Evelyn, his build easily twice her size. Though he was probably a decade older, neither looked their age.
I liked the way he gazed at Evelyn. If I thought Landon was gruff and grumpy, Coach Steven Barnum had him beat, but when he looked at Evelyn, I could see the way his eyes softened. The corner of his lip quirked up.
Landon, Wyatt, and Mateo stayed silent, staring at the couple. Part of me wanted to break the silence, but I knew better. Evelyn was their mom, and this was between the four of them.
“So, you and Coach are together?” Wyatt asked.
“We are,” Steven answered, meeting Wyatt’s gaze head-on. There was a tension in Coach’s shoulders I hadn’t noticed before. It was hard to tell, but I think he was nervous announcing himself as Evelyn’s boyfriend to her three sons. Her sons who would go to hell and back for their mom.
“Are you happy?” Mateo asked, his eyes fixed directly on Evelyn.
“I am,” Evelyn replied after a pause. “After your father left, I wasn’t sure I wanted to be with anyone again. And as the years went by and I got older, I didn’t think I ever could. But Steven…” Trevor and Bryton choked at hearing their coach’s first name. “He makes me happy.”
When she looked up at him with a tender smile, it took everything I had not toawww.
“I’m not trying to replace your father,” Steven started to say.
“The asshole bailed years ago. He’s not our father,” Mateo said before he could finish.
