Love on the Sidelines: A Small Town Sports Romcom

24. Ava

I’m trying to change my mood, but it’s been rough for the past few days. The last tournament didn’t go as well as I would’ve liked, but the girls are young, playing up an age group, so I can’t complain.

And I can’t get Charlie out of my head. The way he looked when he knocked on my window that day and then how he was trying to talk to me. I should’ve let him continue, but I didn’t. In my mind, it was a sort of self-preservation. Now I wish I could rewind time and redo it all over again. Everyone keeps telling me I need to listen and I’ll admit it’s my biggest fault in everyday life.

“I still think you need a grand gesture,” Marsha says as we walk toward the gate at the airport.

I’m already exhausted from trying to clean up everything in Charlie’s house before we left. I’ve already threatened Marsha with her life if she doesn’t give him some money for a cleaner.

The one bonus to today, the girls opted to ride in the van with Whitney, leaving our van with all the luggage. At least there are no listening ears to our conversation.

“What do you mean?”

“Do you not watch chick flicks? It’s where one person proves how much they love the other person by doing something that means a lot to them.”

I reach out a hand to stop her, ready to say that we are not in love territory. But a strong crush? Check.

We drive farther, and I think about all the insignificant moments we’ve shared throughout this trip. I’ve never missed someone as much as I’ve missed Charlie since he left.

“He lied to me,” I say, trying to come up with something that will help me get back to regular territory. My safe zone.

We leave the vans at the rental car place and walk toward the entrance to the airport.

“The guy has a lot of money. I can imagine he’s sick of people trying to take advantage of him.” Marsha gives me a knowing look and I turn my head to stare at the check-in line.

“Then why would he so freely give it to our team?” I ask. Then again, he already told me the answer. He’d been on a team that could’ve used some outside funds to get them to the next level.

Marsha stops walking, not joining the girls in line yet. “Having known him for many years, and now as an adult for a couple of weeks, do you really think he would leave you without a word if you were dating?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, you’re the one who pushed him away. What do you want, Ava?” This makes me think of our conversation a couple of days ago.

My brain does a speedy power point presentation of all the interactions I’ve had with Charlie over the past couple of weeks. He’s changed a lot from when I was a teenager, but in a good way. And I’ve grown to see that he’s not as arrogant as he once was. He’s a good guy, one of the few people who hasn’t let his money change him.

I’ve been going about this all wrong. Instead of making a blanket assumption about all people who have over six figures in their bank account, I should’ve worked to see the character underneath.

Maybe he felt like he needed to leave some things out because of my attitude.

And for the first time, I realize that those strong crush feelings are bordering on the love spectrum.

How can I tell him I’m sorry? How will I make it up to him?

I wouldn’t mind if that starts with a kiss, but that might not be the best opening to an apology.

Marsha gives me a knowing look and then walks up to join the girls at the check-in desk.

Everyone is able to check-in, except for me.

“You don’t have a booking for Ava Hooper?” I ask. Why wouldn’t it be in there? Did Charlie’s refund cancel the return flight?

Whitney turns to me and says, “Maybe we can use some of the money we collected at the beginning of the season to buy a ticket.”

Marsha shakes her head. “I don’t think we can do that.”

I’m shocked by her response. “How am I going to get home?”

She reaches into her purse and pulls out a physical ticket. “This is for you.”

I take it from her and see it’s just like the one Charlie used for the private flight to Tennessee nearly a week ago.

“Where did you get this?” I ask, waving it in front of her.

“From Charlie.”

I frown. “When did you see him?”

“This morning. It’s time for that grand gesture,” she says, smiling.

“So, you drove me all the way here, already knowing that I wouldn’t be on the same flight as you all?”

She shrugs. “What’s a matchmaker to do?” I punch her in the shoulder gently and shake my head. It’s then that my brain focuses on the fact that Charlie bought me a seat on a private plane for the second time. But why didn’t he come see me so we could talk?

My stomach ties itself into knots and I’m suddenly just as nervous as if I were getting ready for a lacrosse game.

“Head outside and look for your name. I think the driver should be there now.”

I walk out to the pickup area where there’s a man with my name on his board.

“I’m Ava Hooper,” I say, wheeling my bag up to him.

“Perfect, Miss Hooper. I’m supposed to take you to the private airport.”

He opens the door and then takes my bag to the trunk while I slip into a nice seat in the back.

I try to relax, but I realize I didn’t get all of my questions answered. Did Charlie fly out in person to give Marsha my ticket? Or did he just do a video call and send a courier with it?

The driver is kind and we chat a bit before arriving at the smaller charter plane airport. I recognize it from our arrival a week ago.

I walk out onto the tarmac, wondering what is going to greet me. I’m not usually a fan of surprises, but this has been good. At least I’m not stuck in Tennessee trying to panhandle my way home.

“Miss Hooper, we’re happy to have you aboard,” the flight attendant says before I’ve even shown her my ticket.

“Uh, thanks?” I say, not sure what’s going on. I turn to walk down the aisle and realize that it’s completely empty except for one smiling face in a chair three rows back.

“You made it,” Charlie says, standing to take my bags and put them in an overhead bin.

“You didn’t have to do this again,” I say, trying to sound more serious than I am. This is it. The chance where I could fall and possibly get my heart broken.

Charlie turns to me, reaching up to touch my cheek with his warm hand. “Yes, I did. I’m sorry I left.”

“I would’ve done the same thing,” I say, offering a small smile. With him this close to me, I can hardly breathe. My eyes keep dipping down to look at his lips, my brain doing all the scenarios of what they would feel like against my own.

Charlie leans his forehead against mine and says, in a soft whisper, “I’m sorry, Ava. You’ve taught me a lot in the past few weeks, all about loyalty and dedication. I’ve been running from a relationship for so long, I didn’t know how to go about asking for you to be my girlfriend.”

I gasp and say, “You want me to be your girlfriend?”

He grins, sending my insides flipping like a gymnast on a floor routine. “Yes. I know you’ve had many people leave you in the past, but once I commit to something, I stick with it for as long as possible. Ava, your passion for lacrosse and your love for your team are unmatched. You are blunt, which is something I need but don’t hear often. I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you about the hockey team and everything. Just know that I’ve been in a type of survival mode too, ever since losing so many in my family. I liked you, even from that moment on the pickleball court, when you hit me in the face.”

We both laugh a moment, and I shudder as I try to breathe in. “I made you face your fear of needles.”

“Well, if I have to face my fears while adventuring with you, I’ll gladly do it.”

His eyes search mine and it’s all I can do to smile before reaching up and pressing my lips to his. It’s like fire meeting ice and I almost hear a sizzle. I wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him closer. This is like drinking from a water bottle on a hot day after being on the field for an entire game.

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” the flight attendant says over the intercom. “We’ll need you to take your seats before we take off.”

We pull apart and laugh. I’m not sure how this is my life right now.

“What next?” I ask, fastening my seat belt.

“How about a proper date that doesn’t involve Costco?”

I raise an eyebrow. “You thought of that as a date?”

He chuckles and says, “What’s a date more than two people getting to know each other? I feel like that was a good start. But I want to show you something even better.”

“That’s cryptic. Can you elaborate?” I say, giving him a cheesy grin.

“How about a quick flight to New York? We can take in the sights and then have lunch at my favorite place.”

My stomach drops and I say, “I need to check on Gran.”

Charlie reaches over and says, “Sorry, I forgot to show you something.”

He pulls out his phone and opens it to the gallery, clicking on a video. And there on the screen is my grandmother, with her faded bubblegum pink hair, sitting in the hospital bed.

“Ava, dear, you’ve been holding out on me. Since when did you start hanging out with Charlie Danielson?” She pauses and wiggles her eyebrows, making me laugh. “I hope what he tells me is true. If you like him, let him take you on a trip. I’ll be here for at least three more days. Enjoy yourself, be young for once instead of hurrying back for responsibilities. Tina and I will keep each other company while you’re gone.”

The screen pans over to the bed next to Gran and I see Tina smiling back. “Marsha will take care of Emily. Go have fun for the day and we’ll see you back here soon.”

The video cuts off and I’m stunned. “You visited Gran?”

He looks panicked and says, “I apologize. I just wanted to make sure I’d covered my bases and taken care of everyone before I whisked you away.”

I try to hold back the tears, but a couple of them fall, trickling down my cheek. Charlie reaches over with a finger to swipe it gently and says, “I’m sorry. We can ask the pilot to head home.”

Shaking my head, I say, “No, it’s not that. I’m just surprised that you took into consideration my family. Thank you.”

“Family means a lot to me, too. I just think you deserve some time exploring without having to figure out what to do next as an adult.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t listen. I let my views cloud the situation, making it so I didn’t see it clearly. You’ve done nothing but take care of me, even when it was the smallest acts. Will you forgive me?” I bite my lip, not sure how his answer will go from the somber expression on his face.

“Of course I forgive you,” Charlie says, his voice breaking on the last word. “A few weeks ago, I thought I was fine with working myself to the bone, because it helped me cope with the loss of my father and sister. But now I know that life isn’t the same when we’re running from it.”

“You’re right,” I say, grinning at him.

Giving me a shy smile, he says, “So, I’m not sure I heard your answer on the girlfriend situation. Do I need to write it on a piece of paper so you can check yes or no?”

I laugh, taking his face into my hands and pulling forward. “Charlie, I would absolutely love to be your girlfriend.”

We close the distance with a quick kiss before I sit back a few inches.

“I’m going to need the source of that chicken soup again.”

Charlie laughs. “Done.”

I lean over and kiss him deeper, grateful for that awkward moment on the pickleball court when I made him get stitches. And for every moment after that.