Chapter Twenty-One Cash #2
Silence stretched for so long I worried the shock that had wanted to set in after that confrontation had shut her down. Then she started talking, her voice tentative at first. “His dad is some Wall Street big shot.”
I kept my hand moving and my mouth shut.
“But Barry has no vision, no people skills.” A mirthless laugh emphasized her words.
“As you saw. If he’s ever in charge of a project, it’s going to run so far over budget he’ll probably have to rely on his daddy’s investors to finish it because his lack of vision means he can’t stick with a decision.
” As she wrapped her arm around my shoulders and snuggled in closer to my chest, her voice took on conviction.
“If I let a bully like him threaten me before I even finish my degree, I have a snowball’s chance in hell of ever making it with the big boys. ”
“That mean you won’t be changing your schedule?”
The gleam that came into her eyes terrified me a little even though I was pretty sure it wasn’t aimed at me. After a quick, hard kiss, she hopped up off my lap without giving me a chance to return it. “You’re the best, Cash Donovan. Thanks for being here for me.”
“Always.” I stood and followed her to the door. “You haven’t answered my question.”
“After the fiasco last spring, I did some homework on Barnard Brown. This is his third film school since he started his undergrad six years ago.” As we headed back out of the facility, I noticed Saylor’s demeanor had done a one-eighty from what it was when we walked in.
“He’s so arrogant and reliant on his dad’s money that I doubt he has a clue that over the summer, I built some connections in the industry. ”
“Uh-huh. So what’s the plan, Stan?”
“I’m still working on it. But I need to catch up with some other students in our cohort before I can put it into play.” She slipped her arm through mine and squeezed. “One thing is certain—I will never work on a project with Barry Brown again.”
That was all I needed to hear.
Before we split up to head to our next classes, I ducked us into a quiet spot between some bushes whose fall colors were firing up.
Then I kissed her like she was my lifeline.
When we finally tore our lips from each other, I smiled in satisfaction at the fact she’d entwined herself around me like a vine.
“We’re still on for Sunday night?”
“Yes.” The word sounded dreamy, which was exactly the way I felt. Then Saylor’s eyes regained focus. “Good luck this weekend. Throw a TD on your first third down play like you did in the opener.”
“Is that a request or a command?”
Her brow shot up. “You have to ask?”
“Yes, ma’am,” I said with a laugh. “Your command is my wish.”
“Exactly.” Her impish grin told me I had my Saylor back.
Of course I got in the last word with a tap to her ass right before we split up to head to our respective buildings. It was only after I’d sat down in the lecture hall and pulled my iPad from my backpack that I remembered she was still wearing my hoodie.
Bax and Finn teamed up on the Idaho quarterback, with Finn going in for the sack that caused the guy to make a poor decision.
The QB’s errant pass dropped right in Bax’s hands as he jumped up to bat it down.
For a big middle linebacker, Bax had surprisingly soft hands and a quick reaction time.
Though the game to this point had been a defensive slugfest, on that last play of the first half, we went into the locker room up 14-0.
I hadn’t seen any action at all, which—not gonna lie—truly bummed me out.
On one third-down play early on in the first quarter, Patty had Danny wide-open for a touchdown, but he threw the ball short.
Pretty sure I would have dropped it right into Danny’s hands, but I wasn’t in a position to make the call.
Still, the halftime adjustments Coach outlined gave me some hope I might see some action in the second half.
No way could I have seen the reality of how that action would play out.
Midway through the third quarter, Patty chose to scramble on a run-pass option play.
After looking off the outside linebacker, who bit on the pass after Danny streaked by him, Patty made a mad dash for the hole that bit of subterfuge had created.
From where I stood beside Coach Wiley, I couldn’t quite see what had happened other than it looked like the middle linebacker and the D-tackle had crashed the gap Patty thought he had.
The referees raced to the pile of bodies on top of our QB, and a long, slow-motion minute later, the team trainers were gathered around Patterson.
One of the trainers sent a signal to the sidelines, and my stomach dropped to my knees. Coach Ellis ran out onto the field to join the staff gathered around Patty, while Coach Wiley turned to me. “Looks like you’re going in a bit sooner than we planned, son. Better toss some warm-up throws.”
Deliberately, I moved up the sideline away from where the team medics were working on my friend.
Having experienced it myself, I knew how disheartening it would be for him to glance over and see me warming up.
Though necessary, because we all knew the game would continue, I remembered how callous I’d thought it when my backup had been warming up when I was the one lying on the field hoping the injury wasn’t as serious as the horde of medical staff around me implied.
A couple of trainers slipped beneath his arms and hoisted Mick Patterson to his feet, but I saw where he held his left foot off the ground, the trainers acting as human crutches to help him off the turf.
The ref signaled for play to resume, and I jogged out to the huddle with Coach Wiley’s instructions still buzzing in my ears.
“Patty managed some good yards, so they’ll be expecting me to hand you the ball,” I said to Tarvi. “Which is why I’ll fake that play to you while Mitch runs a skinny post to the left and Danny runs one to the right. Danny’s my first read.”
Callahan grinned. “I love this play. Hop in behind me, Tarvi. We’ll give Cash two more targets just for the hell of it.”
We broke the huddle and surprised the Idaho D-line with our flawless timing.
All those times of playing pickup ball after lifting last spring meant the guys and I were on the same page with the cadence.
I sent Tarvi in motion, which forced the middle linebacker to move with him.
When I called hike, I faked the handoff, dropped back three steps, and grinned as Tarvi and Callahan broke into the secondary.
The backers bit on Tarvi, while the weak safety ran downhill toward Callahan.
When the safety dropped out of position, Danny raced upfield, giving me a clear shot at him.
Instead of the third down heroics my girl had demanded the other day, I zinged a sixty-yard strike at Danny on second down.
He caught it in stride and took it to the house, putting us up 21-0 and sucking all the air out of Idaho’s balloon. I hoped Saylor was watching the game.
That play seemed to maintain morale on our side of the field even though we didn’t score again. The defense did their job, and we headed home with a 21-7 win, but no one was celebrating. We all knew it was bad luck to speculate, but we were all hoping for the best for Patterson—me most of all.
LeSean caught up with me in the locker room after we returned home in the wee hours of Sunday morning. “Looks like you got your wish.”
“As someone who lost my job to a backup after I got hurt, I’d never wish injury on another player.
” After tossing my gear inside, I slammed my locker shut and leveled him with a glare.
“I want to win my reps, not get them by default because the starter can’t play.
You might want to keep that in mind, Call, because karma can be a bitch. ”