Chapter 20
CHAPTER TWENTY
RYAN
I strolled into the barn in my team gear, my laptop bag slung over a shoulder, ready for our first day back after our division win. Our flight home had been delayed, so we’d gotten in late last night and Jonah had gone home and not come over. It hadn’t stopped him from taunting me with his jacking-off text messages. Was he for real with those, or had he been messing with me? All I knew was my dick was on high alert every time I saw him now. Or thought about him. Like now. Fuck. I looked down as I strode through the hallway into my office, my cock plumped.
I held my hand over the bulge and stepped into the office I shared with Coach Patterson.
All the coaches were standing around the room, Finley to the left, Hammett to the right, and Patterson behind his desk. Every one of them held a folded paper. Every one of them had a grim look on their face.
My pulse kicked up and I mumbled, “Oh fuck.” I set my bag down on my desktop, my hands trembling. That fucker Owen must have struck while we were away. Swallowing through my tightening throat, I faced them. I might as well be honest with them all. “Yes, I’m in a relationship with Jonah Boehm. ”
Hammett stepped toward me, shaking the paper, his free hand fisted. “What the?—”
“Stop, Hammett.” Patterson held his hand out to him. “Let’s hear the whole story before we make any judgments.” He rounded his desk, then leaned his ass against the front of it.
Finley shook his head and huffed.
I breathed through the nerves fraying inside me. This was it. I’d probably lose my job and go home with my tail tucked between my legs. I’d be outcasted from the league and never coach again. Laurent had been right. I forced my gaze to meet with Patterson’s. “I met the man who gave you those letters when I first moved here. We, uh…” These guys wouldn’t understand a story about cruising a gay bar for a washroom hookup. “We were together for a short time, and after I ended it, the man wouldn’t leave me alone. I had to block him, but he started stalking me.”
“Who is it?” Patterson’s forehead wrinkled.
With a shake of my head, I said, “I don’t know him all that well. I only know he’s a student here.” What else did I know about Owen? Nothing. I hadn’t cared to know anything about him.
“And anyway, one night, he attacked me at the bar, and the squad was there. Boehm threw the guy off me. In the scuffle, I tweaked my knee and Boehm brought me home.” I rubbed a knot in my neck. I wouldn’t tell them we were all at the gay bar down the street. I dipped my gaze to the floor, then flicked it up to Patterson’s, my pulse slowing. “It started that night. We, uh, got together then, and we’ve been together ever since.”
“Jesus Christ.” Hammett huffed and crumpled up his paper, then threw it on Coach Patterson’s desk.
“Cool it, Hammett.” Finley glared at him.
At least Finley was on my side. Though, he was probably more worried about the championship than anything else. “It’s mutual and consensual, and I haven’t done anything to get between Boehm and Finley. I’ve kept things strictly professional there.” I glanced at Finley.
“He’s right, Patterson. In fact, you saw how Boehm’s been playing.” Finley stepped toward Patterson. “The guy’s headed off to play with the Leafs this summer. We could keep this thing quiet and let it be. We’re only a few games away from?—”
“I know.” Patterson gave him a stern look. “Fuck, I know.” With a scowl, he shook his head. “This puts us all in a very dangerous position. If this Owen character doesn’t stop here, if he goes on to lodge some sort of complaint with the university and they discover we’ve covered this up, we’re all in for a reprimand.” He pursed his lips.
I slumped my shoulders. Fuck. My phone buzzed in my laptop bag. I flicked my gaze toward it. “Just a second.” Maybe it was Jonah. Maybe he’d found out what was going on somehow. I slid the phone out of a zippered pocket. Mom scrolled across the screen. My heart jumped in my chest. She knew I’d be working right now. This had to be important. “I’m sorry, I-I have to take this.” I jogged out of the room and answered the phone, ducking into our situation room and closing the door. “Mom?”
“Oh good, you answered.” She sighed. “Do you have a moment? I’m sorry to call you at work.”
“Yeah, I always have time for you.” I pulled a chair out at the long conference table and sat down. “What’s up?”
“Well, oh shoot.” She huffed. “Maybe I should have waited to tell you this.”
Trembling started up inside my chest. No, fuck no. “Mom, talk to me.” I planted my elbow on the table and held my forehead.
“Well…my cancer’s come back. I have a lump in a lymph node in my neck.”
The room spun around me and the edges of my vision sparkled. “What?” I croaked out. No, this can’t be happening. Not now. Not right fucking now. A knot balled in my gut and my eyes stung. “H-how bad is it? ”
“It’s well, since it’s a recurrence, it could be bad. They’ve run some tests, and I’m meeting with the doctor next week to see what I’m up against.” She breathed into the phone. “I’m sorry, honey. I didn’t want to wait to tell you. I knew how upset you’d be at me.”
“Damn right.” I wiped at my wet lashes. Fuck, don’t break down. I had to be strong for her. “I’m going to see if I can get up there and be with you for your visit.” She shouldn’t be alone through this. She’d be in no mindset to hear the docs or make decisions. I knew the drill. But fuck, the championship! “Mom, we’re, uh, we made it to the Frozen Four.”
“Oh, that’s good news.” She huffed. “Don’t you dare come up here now. I’ll be fine. My friend Kathy will go with me to my appointment. She went through this with her sister, and she’ll know the right things to ask.”
An ache wormed through my chest. But I should be with her. Scrubbing my face, I said, “How about if you take Kathy with you, but you put me on a FaceTime call with you so I can hear what the doc says firsthand?” That should keep me from being a total wreck the rest of this week.
“Are you sure?” she asked. “I really don’t want you distracted from your coaching.”
“I’m sure. In fact, this will give me some peace of mind.” I rubbed the heel of my hand over my chest. Would I still be with the team? Shit, I had to get back and find out if I was even coaching the team.
“Okay, honey. Don’t you worry about me. We caught it early. I’m sure it’s nothing a little radiation and meds can’t fix.”
“Yeah, sure. I’ll talk to you soon, okay?” I pursed my lips, the conference room table blurring. My whole life was going to shit. Well, all of it except for Jonah. At least I still had him.
“Yes, talk to you soon. I’ll text you the day and time of my appointment. I love you.”
“Love you too, Mom. Bye.” I ended the call, then stood up. How the fuck was I going to face the coaches? And what about the team? Gritting my teeth, I strode out of the room, down the hallway, passing a few players along the way, then ducked into the office.
“Everything okay?” Finley peered at me
“Uh…” Did I tell them about my mom? Not yet. It was still too fresh and the last thing I wanted was to break down like a baby right now. I shifted my stance and glanced at each of them, all in the same positions like they’d just stood there and waited for me to come back. “Yeah, all good.”
Bumping off his desk, Patterson said, “We need you, Gibson. Your contribution to the team, short as it’s been, has been instrumental in getting us to this point. Carlson and Hodge have found a groove under your guidance, and we need you right now.”
I stared at him. Had I really made that much of a difference? Sure, I’d brought some more advanced techniques with me, but damn. “Thank you.”
“But I’m afraid I’m going to have to take some action here. Normally, we’d recuse you from your duties, but as Finley stated while you were gone, you’re not technically coaching Boehm. And for Christ’s sake, the season is almost over.” Shaking his head, he rubbed his temple.
“What does this Owen person want? Maybe you can talk to him.” Finley tensed his mouth. “If you reason with him about the situation, would he back off?”
“I don’t know.” The guy was a fucking psycho as far as I was concerned. “I’ll try. Give me a few days.” Though I’d blocked him, I still had his phone number. Heat sparked inside me. If I saw him, I might beat the crap out of him. And Jonah? Shit, I’d never be able to keep him off Owen.
“Okay, so for now, let’s keep this quiet. The team doesn’t need to hear about this.” Patterson’s gaze landed on Hammett, whose jaw was clenching. “Right, Hammett?”
“Yeah,” he gritted out, then flicked a glare at me. “Let’s get this shitshow on the road.” He stomped out of the office .
“I’m sorry.” Hanging my head, I bit my lower lip. I’d jeopardized the whole team.
“Don’t worry, he’ll get over it. Hammett can be a hot head, but it doesn’t last.” Finley patted my shoulder, then walked out.
Nodding, I followed him.
I’d kept my distance from Jonah during practice and focused on my guys. Now more than ever, I needed to act professionally. Afterward, I gathered my things from my office and strolled down the long hallway to the parking lot.
As I walked through the glass doors, my gaze snagged on Jonah, standing by my car. Shit, should I tell him what was going on? If I did, would it make everything worse? Forcing my pulse to slow, I strolled to him. “Hey.”
“Hey.” He eyed me up and down. “What’s wrong?”
Shaking my head, I unlocked my car. “Nothing, why?” Fuck, I shouldn’t tell him. I needed to deal with this on my own.
He stepped next to me, grabbing my arm and yanking me to face him. “Don’t bullshit me. I could see it all through practice. Even Archer confirmed it for me in the locker room. Talk to me.”
With a scowl, I took a quick look around us. Owen could be anywhere. My gaze wound to his. “Not here. Come back to my place, and we’ll talk.” I had to tell him something .
“Okay.” He freed my arm and stepped back. “See you over there.” He touched his nose, then mouthed, Love you .
My eyes stung. What the hell was I going to do? If I told him about Owen or my mom, would it affect his playing? I didn’t want that. With my heart sinking, I climbed into my car.
Soon after entering my apartment and setting my laptop bag on the kitchen island, my door clicked and Jonah walked in .
“Hey.” He strode to me and wrapped me in a fierce hug, breathing me in and kissing my hair. “Whatever this is, we get through it together. Okay?” He freed me, his blue-eyed gaze locking on mine. “Okay?”
My vision blurred, and I winced. Fuck, I was going to lose it. “Yeah, okay.” Sniffling, I grabbed his hand and led him to my sofa. We both dropped down, facing each other. The last time we’d been here together it had been so different. We’d had so much hope for the future. Now, I had no idea what it held. I squeezed his hands and rested them on my thigh. “Jonah? My mom’s sick again. Her cancer came back.” I’d start there. A lump crawled up my throat.
“What? Holy shit.” He widened his eyes. “What can I do?”
“Nothing. She’s seeing her oncologist next week, and we’ll learn more about it then.” I lifted a shoulder. “It might be easy to deal with, or it might not.” I inhaled deeply. “In any case, I’ll be on a FaceTime call with her when she’s at her appointment. She has a friend going with her too.” I tilted my head. How much did Jonah know about things like this? Probably not a lot. “It’s important to have someone acting as a patient advocate through things like this. There’s a lot of information to process, and she can’t do it alone.”
Nodding, he said, “Yeah, I hear ya.” With his throat dipping, he said, “So, are you going home after the championship?” His brows knitted.
I hadn’t even thought that far ahead. “Yes, I probably should.” I was supposed to have gone on some scouting trips, but who even knew if I’d still be working for ASU by then?
Brushing his thumb over my knuckles, he said, “Guess we won’t get to finally hang out around campus together.” He choked out a soft laugh. “Maybe you’ll need to stay with her, I mean, you did last time, right?” He pressed his lips together.
“I don’t know, Jonah. Everything is up in the air. It all hinges on what the doc says at her appointment.” A deep ache knotted in my chest. He was right. If it looked bad, I’d need to drop everything to go home. She’d need me.
“I understand.” He nodded and hung his head. “I’ll miss you. Fuck, I miss you now.” His gaze swept to mine. “I just want to be with you like a normal couple. We’ll do that someday, right?”
“We will.” I cupped his cheek and pressed a deep kiss on his lips, then set my forehead on his. “No matter what happens, we’ll find a way to each other. I promise you that.”
Wrapping his arms around my shoulders, he drew me into his chest and whispered in my ear, “I want you now, Ryan. It’s been so long.”
“Come on.” Fuck it all to hell. We needed each other, Owen be damned. I rose up with his hand still entwined in mine and guided him to my bedroom. “Can you spend the night?” We could have tonight before the mess caught up to us completely.
“Hell yes.” He dropped his team sweats and underwear to the floor and shucked off his athletic shirt. “I can study from here, right?” He gave me a coy smile.
“You can.” I undressed, tossing my clothing to the floor, then climbed into bed and under the covers. We might not leave my bedroom all night. I lifted the covers for Jonah as he slid in.
We lay on our sides facing each other, gazing deeply into each other’s eyes, our hands tucked under the pillows.
“Were you really beating off when you sent me those text messages?” I skimmed my hand down his side and over his rippled stomach muscles.
His breath hitched and his abs clenched. “I’m not telling.” He leaned in and brushed his lips to mine, tentative at first, then harder, as if kissing me for the first time. Winding his hand around the back of my head, he shifted closer.
I slanted my mouth over his, deepening the kisses with my tongue, my cock tingling and lengthening as if seeking him out. I groaned. “God, I missed this.” Shimmying even closer to him, my solid cock brushed against his. A shiver swept over my heated skin.
“Need you,” he said in a husky voice, nibbling down my jaw and neck.
Skimming my hand lower, I wrapped my hand around both our cocks and stroked as my hips rocked, rubbing our shafts together. Sensation coiled inside me.
He gasped. “Oh fuck. Feels good.” Finding my mouth again, his kisses grew hungry, claiming me again and again.
We needed to be together. I didn’t want to end up apart for months at a time. As a shudder flickered up my spine, my breath caught. “Fuck me, Jonah, and make it last.” Who knew when we’d have each other again?
“Yeah?” He brushed his hand over my nipple, then kneaded it between his fingers, his rocking hips matching my rhythm.
Pleasure pulsed from my chest to my cock and it jerked in my hand. “Fuck…” I left him to roll onto my back. He was everything to me. All I’d ever wanted in the world. “Come on.” I guided him between my legs, then slid the nightstand drawer open and fished out the lube. “First, more of this.”
As he hovered over me on his straight arms and knees, I slathered lube on my fingers. “Okay.” I set the lube aside on the nightstand and waved him down. When his cock neared mine, I stroked it, slicking it, then my own.
“Oh, damn. That feels good.” With a smirk, he dropped to his elbows and rutted against me, our slippery cocks rubbing together. With a gasp, he ground on me, his brows tensing, then bit his lower lip. “This maybe feels a little too good.”
“Don’t stop.” I clutched the globes of his ass, urging him on. “Kiss me, Jonah.” My gaze met his as a shock of desire wound through me.
He freed a stuttered breath. “Slow down, I’m close.” As his mouth dropped to mine, he snuck his tongue between my lips.
Tangling my tongue with his, I slowed our pace, our bodies writhing together in a carnal dance. If only he knew what I was willing to give up for him. How deep my love for him was. As sensation built to a dangerous level, I halted our motions. “Fuck me now.” I pushed on his shoulders.
Through heavy breaths, he said, “Yeah.”
As I lifted my knees on either side of his hips, he sat up on tucked legs and lubed his fingers and cock, hissing as he stroked himself. “You’ve really got me worked up right now. I’m surprised I haven’t blown all over you yet.” He arched a brow at me.
“It’s a testament to your unwavering self-control.” I snickered and caressed his inner thigh, watching the skin pebble.
“Uh-huh. With you, I usually have none.” He fell over me but angled to the side and slipped his fingers into my crevice. “I’m having a hard time not just sticking it in, you know?”
“Don’t worry, I don’t need too much prep.” I quirked my lips. In fact, I wanted it to hurt so I could feel him after. As his finger circled my hole, my dick bobbed off my stomach and dribbled precum.
“Okay, ready?” He glanced at me, then worked his finger inside me, his own dick leaking over my stomach. Pumping his finger over my prostate, he groaned. “Fuck, Ryan, this is torture. I want inside you.”
“Then do it.” As we shifted on the bed, I pulled my knees into my armpits. I was ready enough. My balls ached and drew up.
He slipped two fingers inside me and angled them just so. “Fuck…” As he hissed, he pressed his dick against mine and they both twitched against each other.
A spark of pleasure tingled through me. “What are you doing?” I was so ready for him. “Do it.”
“Okay, okay. Demanding much?” With a quick grin, he kissed my mouth, then nudged his dick into my hole. “Can’t say I don’t like it.” He flashed his darkened eyes at me, his almost black bangs framing them .
“Fuck me good and hard then, Boehm. Like you mean it,” I said in a rasp.
His dick jerked inside me. “Shit, made me come a little bit.” He pushed all the way inside me, his balls resting on my ass, then lay over me, his forearms curled around my head, my cock pressed snug between us. “Let me just look at you for a moment.” He gazed deeply into my eyes. “I love you, Ryan. I’ll be by your side no matter what, okay?” He brushed a curl from my forehead.
With a nod, my eyes stung. Damn it, not a great time to be emotional. “Show me, Jonah.”
As he pulled out and thrust inside me, he devoured my mouth with penetrating kisses. His thrusts grew quicker and urgent, and a deep moan rumbled out of his chest.
With pleasure swirling through every nerve in my body, I hooked my ankles around his hips and met his thrusts with my own. I broke the kisses and, wrapping my arms around his neck, sucked his earlobe into my mouth, then said, “Faster, Jonah.”
With a grunt, he quickened his pace, his solid cock impaling me again and again.
As he hit my prostate, shudders lit up my spine. “Fuck yeah.” I bit at his earlobe, then flicked my tongue inside its shell.
He whimpered while his body trembled over mine. “So close.” His thrusts grew erratic.
“Come for me, Jonah.” I pushed on his cheek and claimed his mouth with my own.
“Mmph.” He shoved his cock all the way inside me and held it, his face tensing, then his mouth dropped open, and he gasped. “Coming, oh fuck.” He pulled out and pushed in again and again.
Sneaking my hand between us, I pumped my weeping cock, slick with precum. As pleasure engulfed me, I fell over the edge, harsh contractions milking him. My dick erupted in splashes of hot cum, coating our chests .
As it slowed, he fell over me. “Holy hell, that was good.” He panted against my neck.
“The best.” Winding my arms around his torso, I hugged him against me and kissed the side of his head. This was enough to see me through what I had to do.
He lifted onto his elbows and his gaze searched my face. “Hey, are you okay now?” He skimmed his knuckles over my cheek. “Because there were times when…” He pursed his lips. “When you looked emotional.”
“I’m fine, Jonah. Whenever I’m with you, it’s all good.” I slapped his ass and forced a smile. I’d come clean with him after the big games. Right now, he didn’t need that kind of bullshit in his head. His dick slipped out of me. “Let’s clean up.” I knew what I had to do tomorrow.
The next day, I had some time to kill before practice started. I sat in my car in the parking lot at the rink and unblocked Owen, then called him. The phone rang a few times and picked up.
“Well, if it isn’t Coach Gibson.” He scoffed through a snicker.
Heat exploded in my chest. What an asshole. “Owen, we need to talk.” I pinched my lips.
“Oh, now you want to see me? I wonder why.”
I breathed in deeply. “Are you on campus?” I was tired of his games.
“I am,” he said.
I should meet him someplace public, in case things got ugly. “Meet me over at the Starbucks on Mill.” It was close enough for me to walk to and people were always in there.
“Okay. Give me ten minutes.” He hung up the call.
I stared at my phone for a moment. He wasn’t wasting any time. Gathering my resolve, I stepped out of my car.
I strode in mid-afternoon sunshine into the Starbucks, tucked under an older, two-story brick building on the street corner, and spied Owen ordering a drink. What, did he think this was a social visit? The fucker.
Blowing out a breath, I stiffened my shoulders and stepped to him, then tapped the back of his shoulder. “Owen.”
He paid for the slushy coffee drink, then twisted to face me. “Hello, Coach.” He gave me a wicked grin.
Fuck, now the whole place knew I was a coach. “Let’s go have a seat, shall we?” I waved him over to a small table with two chairs in the corner. I dropped into one while he fell in across from me.
“So, I take it the coaching staff is enjoying my letters?” He sipped his drink.
“They aren’t taking too kindly to them, Owen.” I glared at his smug fucking face. “Why are you doing this?”
Leaning forward and stabbing the table with his finger, he said, “Because you’re not supposed to date your players. It says so in the school policy. I looked it up.”
As heat rose in my chest, I fought to calm myself. “I’m not his coach, Owen. I’m?—”
“You’re a hockey coach, and he’s a hockey player. How fucking clear does it have to be?” He clenched his jaw. “Besides, you’re an asshole and a player.”
“What? Me?” I pointed my thumb at my chest. He didn’t even know me. “I am a lot of things, but I’m not a player.”
“Then why did you cut me off after our date?” He lifted his chin, his gaze growing hard.
Date? Hookup, more like . “Because I wasn’t feeling it with you, and you wouldn’t take no for an answer,” I said through my teeth. “Jesus, Owen. You need help.” And a lot of it. With a scoff, I threw myself back in my chair and gazed around the room. A few students glanced our way. Fuck, the whole place was hearing this. I should get to the point. “Listen, Owen. You win, okay?” My chest pinched. I hated doing this, but I had no other choice.
“What do you mean?” He cocked a brow and sipped his drink, eyeing me.
Throwing my hands in the air, I said, “You win. I’m quitting. I’ll be moving back to Toronto.” My heart ached. I might be jobless, but I’d have Jonah. We’d spend all summer together. So, in the most important way, Owen was not winning. But he wouldn’t know that.
“Are you shitting me?” A smile spread over his lip, then dropped. “Prove it.”
“The announcement will go out after the championship games this weekend. The coaching staff doesn’t want anything to upset our players and mess up our chances.” I sucked in a breath. Would he buy it? I wasn’t sure exactly how things would go down, but I was almost certain when I handed in my resignation that Patterson would want to wait to announce it. “But…” I held up my finger with a smirk. “If you file any complaints about me or the other coaches to the university, then I won’t quit, and you’ll lose.” I looked down on him. “As I’ve tried to tell you, Owen, I’m not Jonah’s direct coach, and it’s almost the end of the season. The head coach is willing to overlook the affair because it’s better for the team.”
With his brows furrowing, he dropped his mouth open. “No, you need to go.” He shook his head. “I’ll wait until after this stupid championship, and if I don’t see your resignation announcement, I’ll file my complaint.”
“Fine.” I huffed. “We got a deal?” I held out my hand.
“Deal.” He shook my hand.
After leaving Owen at the Starbucks, I headed back to the rink and had Patterson call an impromptu meeting for all coaching staff after practice. I had to see this through. It was the only way to leave here with my head held high, and if Jonah didn’t have a load of shit hanging over his head, he’d surely make it with the Leafs.
During practice, Jonah had sent me absent smiles and touched his nose in silent support of my mother’s new cancer diagnosis. Little did he know the other shitshow that was going down.
After the post-practice showers and team meeting, Patterson huddled the coaching staff into the situation room and closed the door. “What’s this update you have for us?” He sank into a chair at the head of the table.
I crossed my fingers over the table surface and looked around the room, Finley seated across from me and Hammett next to him. “I was able to talk to Owen. He is the one sending you all the letters.”
With a scoff, Hammett leaned back in his chair and threw his forearm on the table. “What the hell did you do to this guy to make him hate you so much?”
I blinked. “I just didn’t want to date him anymore. That’s all.” Had I brought this whole thing on myself? Fuck no, Owen was mentally ill. It wasn’t me.
“Bunny boiler,” Finley said under his breath.
“What?” Wrinkling his brows, Hammett turned to him.
“You know, the movie with Glenn Close where she boils the kid’s rabbit after the guy she’s having an affair with stops seeing her?” Finley lifted his brows at Hammett. “Owen’s a bunny boiler.”
“The movie was Fatal Attraction .” Shaking his head, Patterson drew a circle on the table with his finger, then faced me. “Anyway, what does he want? Did you figure that out?”
“Yes, he wants me to resign.” As a tight knot grew in my gut, I said, “But I have to anyway. I would have, I mean.” I shifted in my seat, my gaze landing on each one of them, all staring back at me. “My mother’s cancer is back, and I need to go home. She needs me.” Well, I wasn’t sure how bad it was yet, but this was the best way to save them all from questioning my decision.
Everyone stared at me for a long moment, their mouths hanging open.
“Shit, I’m so sorry, Ryan.” Patterson creased his forehead. “We hate to lose you, but we understand.”
“Shit.” Finley tightened his jaw and fisted his hand on the table.
“But you can stay until after the championship?” Hammett’s gaze softened.
“Yes, I can stay. I’m hoping they’ll take me back in the juniors’ league.” Pressing my lips together, I stared at the table, my mind filling with Laurent’s words, Come home to me . It wouldn’t be so bad to go home, especially if I had Jonah by my side.
Finley focused on me. “Hey, Gibson, I have a friend who coaches over at the University of Toronto.” He glanced at Patterson. “I can see if they’re looking, and if they are, maybe we can put in a recommendation for you?”
Nodding his head and with a slight smile, Patterson said, “Yes, I’d be more than happy to recommend you.”
“Plus, if we win the championship, you’d have that on your resume.” Hammett smirked at me.
Warmth crept through my chest. Even with all the bullshit, these guys had my back. Just like when Patterson first recruited me and understood my need to help Mom through her cancer treatments before coming here. “Thank you all. I’m, uh…” I cleared my throat. “I’m not sure what to say.”
“Don’t get too excited, Gibson. You’re still leaving an NCAA Division One school.” Hammett blew out a breath. “It sucks it had to go down like this.”
“How do we know Owen won’t file a complaint even with your resignation?” Patterson narrowed his eyes at me.
I couldn’t tell them my threat of not quitting if he did that. “We don’t, but by then, it will be over. The season will have ended, and I’ll be on my way home.” My throat constricted. There would be so many things to figure out to make it happen. “We shouldn’t post my resignation until after the championship game.”
“I wasn’t going to anyway. We don’t want anything hanging over the team. The players need to be focused on winning and only winning.” Patterson’s gaze hardened as it roamed the room. “Right, everyone? Not a word of this leaves this room.” He tapped the table with his index finger. “Not a word.”
“You got it, Coach,” Finley said,
“Yeah.” Hammett’s gaze met mine. “I want a full analysis of the players I sent your way before you leave.” He smirked. “I do still value your opinion.”
A grin teased my lips. My reputation wasn’t completely ruined. “Of course.”
A few days later, I waited in my apartment for Mom’s oncology appointment phone call, pacing past the patio doors, overlooking another sunny day. I’d taken the morning off from work. I glared at the time on the screen. The appointment should have started twenty minutes ago. Should I call her? But maybe the doctor was running late?
I dropped onto my sofa and stared at my phone, willing the call to come through. After waiting a few more minutes, I scowled. “Fuck.” I’d call her. I dialed her number, putting the phone on speaker, and it rang once.
“Oh, Ryan. I’m so sorry. We forgot to call you,” she said.
“Mom, how could you do that?” My chest squeezed. I was under so much pressure already, and now this?
“I’m sorry. We were distracted by… Oh, it doesn’t matter. We have everything written down. Kathy took good notes.”
“Can you send them to me? Maybe take a picture of the notes and send them over.” I rubbed my brow. I should have known. Kathy was a good friend but a little scatterbrained at times, and the two of them together? Who knew how they got anything done.
“Sure, honey,” she said.
“Tell me what he said, anyway. What’s the treatment?” I braced myself. Against my better judgment, I’d Googled all sorts of articles on lymphoma to the point of making myself sick. Of course, I’d kept most of this from Jonah. He needed to focus on the championship and getting through his finals.
“I’m going to have radiation, followed by chemotherapy,” she said with a huff. “I wish they’d just cut it out of me like they did for my breasts, but it’s not the best option in this case.”
“Okay, so when do you start and what will it do to you?” I breathed through a hitch in my chest. I couldn’t believe we were back here again. I mean, I always knew it was a possibility, but…
“I go in for a bunch of imaging tests next week, then I think after that we’ll start the radiation treatment.” She sighed. “It won’t do anything to me besides make me tired. It’s the chemo I’m worried about. But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
“Okay.” I threaded my fingers through my hair and pulled on it. There was nothing more to be done here. “I’ll talk to you soon, okay?”
“Yes, I’ll call you if there’s any news, and in the meantime, I hope you pull off the win.” She chuckled.
“Yeah, thanks, Mom. Love you.” I sank into my sofa and spread my legs out in front of me.
“Love you too, dear. Bye.”
“Bye.” I hung up the call and huffed a ragged exhale, my mind racing. I had to get through these next games and then I could plan out what was left of my future, and hopefully, Jonah would still be in it.