16
Will avoided everyone all week. Leah came back from college on Tuesday, and Will used that as an excuse to cancel his study date with Jack. From the looks Birch had given him in school, he thought their kiss was the reason Will wasn’t sitting with them at lunch. Amanda seemed happy. Jack looked extremely frustrated when Will continued to dodge him.
His only solace was Gabriel. They texted each other. A lot. Neither mentioned what happened at Gabriel’s house, and Will hadn’t been back since. But even if neither brought it up, their interactions felt different to Will. He’d wait those few extra seconds after study to talk to Gabriel alone. Gabriel would always pass by his desk close enough to brush against him—even if they didn’t say it, there was something there.
Jack stormed right over to him at volleyball. Will bounced the ball in his hands and focused on that instead of his erratic heartbeat. “Want to pass until we start?” Will asked.
Jack grabbed his wrist and dragged him out the side door.
Eileen raised an eyebrow as they passed.
There was a light drizzle, but Jack put himself between Will and the doorway. He was a lot less intimidating than Gabriel had been when he’d done the same thing.
“What's up?” Will asked.
Jack was scowling at him. He said nothing, staring hard at Will until the scowl lessened. “Stop avoiding me,” he said. “I don’t like it.”
Will had taken the plunge on the weekend and read all of Jack’s texts. All of it was reassuring Will that everything was fine between them, nothing had changed, and Jack was sorry for making him uncomfortable. “I’m not avoiding you.” Will still clung to his calm image, despite both of them knowing it was fake.
Jack gave him another one of his looks.
Will sighed. “I needed time.”
“Do you need more?” Jack frowned, guilt creeping into his expression. “I can give you space if you need it. But not forever. You’re my best friend.”
His words both warmed and stung Will’s heart. “Amanda’s your best friend.”
“Amanda’s my cousin,” Jack said. “And a girl. I can’t be open with her about everything.”
That didn’t make Will feel any better. “That’s what Birch is for, right? Can’t talk with me about everything either.”
Wow. Will really sounded jealous. No wonder Jack had known.
Jack’s expression was sinking. He stepped toward Will with his eyes wide. “Will…we’re not going to stop being friends, right? That’s not what you’re doing, right?”
No. That was the last thing Will wanted. But his throat was tight, and words got stuck. He felt sick again.
“Will, don’t.” Jack gripped his wrist, squeezing it tightly. “I know you want us to stay friends. I’m sorry I made you uncomfortable. I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry—please don’t push me away for one slip up.”
Jack’s eyes were watering. Will turned his face away.
He should be happy. Jack desperately wanted them to stay friends—and a part of Will was touched that Jack cared about him this much—but the horror that he’d been seen through for their whole friendship was still fresh and sharp. “I’m not going to stop being friends with you,” Will said honestly. “And you didn’t do anything wrong.”
Jack waited.
“I was embarrassed,” Will relented. “Still am. I’ll get over it.”
Jack smiled and gave him a quick hug.
That’s when Eileen made an appearance. Jack’s back was to her. Not realizing this, Jack started to speak. “Then—”
Will’s heart jumped, afraid of what Jack would say. His hand was over Jack’s mouth before he realised it. Jack’s eyebrows shot up, and so did Eileen’s. Jack followed Will’s gaze and craned his neck around to Eileen, pulling Will’s hand away. “Has training started?” Jack asked.
Eileen looked between the two of them. Curiosity filled her face. “It has…but if you two are…busy back here…doing…” She left it open for one of them to answer.
“We were just coming in,” Will said with a tight smile. “Thanks for letting us know.”
Eileen gave him a narrowed eye look before nodding. “Okay. I’ll just imagine what was going on.”
“Eileen.”
“Time for training.!” Eileen darted back into the gym.
Will and Jack went with her.
With Riley was a familiar face—Nicolas. And next to them was an even more familiar face. A little thrill went through Will’s chest as he laid eyes on Gabriel. He was wearing his workout clothes, and his wavy hair was messy as if he’d just rolled out of bed. Seeing him in the gym, on Will’s home turf, sent a jolt of excitement through him. Gabriel hadn’t spotted him yet. His head was bent toward a little girl who was standing next to him. With effort, Will tore his eyes from Gabriel. The girl had the same dark auburn hair that Gabriel did, the same dark eyes—the only difference was she had a splatter of freckles on her nose. She stood with her arms crossed studying Amanda and Birch who were passing the ball back and forward.
“Hey,” Will greeted, coming over. He exchanged a smile with Gabriel before looking at the little girl. “New recruit? Let me guess…hmm…you look like a Sarah .”
Sarah’s eyes widened, and then she turned suspiciously to Gabriel.
Gabriel was sporting a surprised expression. “Whoa. Can you guess mine?”
Sarah looked back and forward between them.
“I’m sensing something with a ‘G.’” Will made a point of looking him over, and Gabriel grinned broadly. “And there’s something angelic about you. Gabriel?”
Sarah squealed. “That’s right!”
Gabriel choked on his laughter. Will smiled, glad he’d made him laugh.
He held his hand out to Sarah. “I’m Will.”
“Sarah O’Connor,” she said formally.
“Want me to show you how to play?”
She nodded eagerly.
“Before you get to that,” Riley interjected, “Nicolas wanted to have a word with you.”
Will glanced over. Nicolas wasn’t wearing anything sporty today, just jeans and a blazer. “Okay.” He looked down at Sarah. “Who would you like to teach you? That one’s Jack. He’s super-duper nice and patient.” He pointed across the hall, “The next one is Eileen. She’s funny.” Amanda was next in line, but Will didn’t mention her. “So, funny or super-duper nice?”
“Funny,” Sarah said.
“Eileen,” he called and then waved her over.
Will left Gabriel and Riley supervising Sarah and followed Nicolas into the changing room. Nicolas had Will sit and plonked himself down onto the bench in front of him.
“I don’t want to keep you from training, so I’ll just get straight into it,” Nicolas said. “I coach the Irish National Men’s Volleyball teams in Dublin. Riley contacted me a few weeks ago about a player he thought I might be interested in, which is why I came down to watch you train. I told Riley not to mention anything about recruitment to you until after I’d seen you in action. But now I have, and I like what I saw.”
Nicolas paused as Will took in what he said.
The Irish National Volleyball teams? As in the Ireland teams? “Which team would you want me for, exactly?” Will asked.
“Under eighteens until your birthday, and after that, the men's team.”
Will was struggling. “As in the team that plays against other countries?”
Nicolas smiled. “Yes. That team.”
Will stared at him in disbelief. “Seriously?”
“Yes.”
“You want me on your team?”
“Yes.”
“And you want me to play?”
“Yes.”
Will was close to heart failure. A wave of anxiety rose up. How would he be able to compete with professional players? In matches that have stakes? What if he embarrassed himself? Next, starting as a little buzz in the pit of his stomach that gradually spread through his body, was excitement. It overshadowed the anxiety in an instant. Nicolas wanted him on the team, which meant he thought he was good enough for it. Professional matches. Will could play professional matches?
“You can think it over,” Nicolas began.
“I’ll do it,” Will said eagerly. “I’ll play.”
Nicolas smiled. The corners of his eyes crinkled with the gesture. “I’m glad you’re excited.” He held out an envelope to Will. “But I’m still going to give you the rest of the pitch.”
Will nodded. “Okay.” The brown envelope had his name written on it. Whatever was inside was thick enough to be a book.
“Training is on Saturday and Sunday, from nine until three. That will mean a lot of physical exercise, but that will be mixed in with mental training and match technique—I have sheets in there that detail the training.” Nicolas nodded to the envelope, “Now since it will take up a lot of time, that’s where the perks come in. If you’re on my team, representing our country, then when you want to go to college, not only are you guaranteed a sports recommendation, you’ll also be funded a scholarship. I know that your grades are something you struggle with, and this will ease that worry for you.”
Will listened to every word Nicolas said and assured him that the answer was still “yes” at the end. The only problem was that Will needed parental permission, and the prospect of asking his mom for anything right now was…horrifying. But his dad…his dad would sign anything sports-related.
When Will went back out, training was already over. The talk with Nicolas took longer than he’d expected. He saw that Gabriel and Sarah were by the exit. His excitement lessened, disappointed that he’d missed the chance to interact with them. He trotted over, following them outside of the gym. It was dusk, and the chill in the air made Will shiver. Gabriel and Sarah both stopped on their way to the parking lot to wait for Will.
“How did you get on?” Will asked Sarah.
Sarah grinned. “It was fun. I’m not very good, but Gabriel got a volleyball so I can practice at home.”
“He did?” Will sent Gabriel a questioning look and knew from the wince that the volleyball was his.
“Here.” Gabriel dug his keys out of his pocket and tossed them to Sarah. “Go get the car warming up for me.”
Sarah dashed off.
Gabriel flicked his eyes toward the closed gym door, and then Sarah’s back. They were alone. “I was hoping to see you in action today.”
“Next week,” Will promised. “That was a coach from… I’ll text you about it later. I think if I start now, I’ll be gushing nonstop.”
Gabriel studied him. “Why don’t you come over Friday? You can tell me all about it in person.”
Will shifted his weight from one foot to the other, fighting back a nervous smile. “Okay.”
Gabriel stepped closer, reaching out to give his arm a squeeze. His hand lingered, warm against Will’s skin. His lashes were long, casting shadows down his cheeks as his head bent down.
Will’s breath stalled.
Gabriel’s gaze moved up from his mouth.
“See you later,” Gabriel breathed.
Will watched him leave, his heart in his throat the entire time.