Page 61 of Mase
Better coach? Who the hell is he kidding? My gaze slices over to Tate, and he holds his arms stretched out to catch the ball. I shake my head. He’s holding them out incorrectly, for starters, and how the hell is he standing? Better coach, my ass. I need to get over there and undo his errors before there’s no coming back from the crap he’s telling Bryce.
I glance around the patio area and notice Ava has hold of her and Tate’s son, Sonny. Typical, he left her with holding thebaby while he opts to attempt to teach my son how to play soccer. I don’t know how she deals with his lazy ass.
“Ree-Ree.” I want to snap at her to shut up, but I exhale and will my patience to make an appearance. Or someone to take her and the donkey from me.
My fingers work quickly as I stab the keys to send another message.
Reed: You don’t know what you’re doing.
He has no clue, and I don’t think he realizes the impact it will have on my son. He thinks this is a game.
Tate: Bryce seems to think I do.
Anger like no other flashes through me.
Tate: Apparently, I’m the best.
“Ree-Reed. Cake.” For fuck’s sake. “Cake!” she screeches, the tone so high-pitched my eardrums are bound to be damaged.
“Cake!”
“Yes! You’re the best, Tate.” Bryce jumps up and down with glee, pumping his fist in the air.
That’s it. I’m done. D. O. N. E. Done.
“The greatest!” Bryce cheers.
Is he fucking kidding me right now?
I pinch the bridge of my nose, then drop my head back with an almighty groan. “That’s it! I’m fucking done!” I throw my arms up in the air.
Eleanor giggles. Fucking giggles. “Cake, Ree.”
Slowly, I turn to face the animal and the little girl with the cute pigtails and make a snap decision. Ignoring Eleanor andher ridiculous repetitiveness, I head toward the pool fence and tie the rein around the post. There, that’ll do it.
I’m going to drag Shaw out here and demand he look after his child, then I’m going to show Tate how to play soccer because the poor man clearly has no clue.
I bet he’s never read a soccer handbook in his life.
It’s about time my friends step up and take control of their responsibilities. I snort and shake my head. They thought I was the clueless one. Idiots.
MASE
Is he seriously tying the donkey to the pool post? I grimace, knowing damn well those things aren’t the most stable. That’s something I won’t need to fix. Nope, we won’t be here long enough to care. This place is going on the market the moment we step foot in New Jersey.
Bubbles makes a beeline for the donkey, and I wince and place my beer bottle on the table. The last thing we need is for the damn dog to spook the donkey.
She yaps and I frown, making my way over before things get out of hand. “Bubbles, no!” I shout toward the dog, but she yaps louder. The donkey rears back.Oh, shit. I slowly step forward with my arms out in front of me, trying my best not to scare the donkey as I inch toward it.
“Fuck!” Tate shouts and heads toward us, but his loud bellow doesn’t help the situation because the donkey backs up, appearing more flustered than ever. Thankfully, Eleanor grins a toothy smile, completely unperturbed as Tate stands behind it. He gives me a nod, and I step forward, but in the blink of an eye, the donkey jerks back, making a grunting noise I didn’t know they could make. It lashes out, kicking its back legs toward Tate.
“Holy! Fu—” Tate drops to the ground holding his groin, then stumbles backward.
My mouth falls open to warn him, but it’s too late, as he falls into the cake stand, and the cake wobbles before collapsing on Tate as he hits the ground.
Ugh, fantastic!
“Ahhhh!” Eleanor lets out a wail rivaling a war cry, and the donkey pulls away, taking the pool post and fence with it. I have the foresight to dash out of the way as the net fencing is dragged open.
