8. Eden
8
EDEN
E den floated through the morning feeling off-balance and distracted, like she was seeing the day’s events unfold from behind a gauzy curtain.
No matter what she did, her thoughts kept returning to Axel Williams and the unexpected conversation she and Jack had with him on the porch at dawn.
Maybe she was just tired, and that was why this morning’s visit with Axel felt so… otherworldly. Last night, she had tossed and turned, sleepless with worry over Jack. And she’d been out on the porch before the sun was up.
But it was more than that. There was a practical element too. Axel was a former high school and college football player—something of a star, according to the other teachers—and then he’d spent years in the Army. Eden certainly knew what she expected when it came to someone like that. He was a man who was used to being tough and in control .
Discipline , he’d said to her that day in the gym as she watched Jack running.
But none of her assumptions had played out this morning when she watched him kneel in front of her son and apologize to him. How many men did she know who would do something like that?
Axel Williams had a big, charismatic presence, and he ran his class like some kind of royalty, which he seemed to enjoy even more than the kids did. But the moment Axel thought Jack was hurting, he had put all that aside and addressed him with humility. The things he had said kept floating through her mind.
I’m really sorry.
I’ve never coached kids before.
If there’s anything going on that you don’t like, you have to promise me that you’ll tell me right away.
Jack had never heard a male role model say things like that to him before. Just being there for it had been healing for Eden. She could only imagine what the moment meant to Jack—how many possibilities it opened in his mind of what a man could be.
She tried her best to instill those qualities in him herself—kindness, responsibility, and the desire to keep improving as a person. But seeing it all modeled so beautifully, by someone Jack admired so much… well, it would have to mean everything to him.
I misjudged him , she thought to herself for the hundredth time as she headed out with her kids for morning recess. I misjudged Axel Williams badly.
He had handled her misunderstanding with such grace though, and he’d made her feel better too .
He’d even made her laugh. And when was the last time a man had done that?
As the kids streamed out into the playground, she let herself think just for a moment about the look on Axel’s face while she was laughing. If she didn’t know any better, she would have said that he was watching her with something like wonder in his eyes.
It’s nothing , she told herself. He just came home from the service. He probably isn’t used to being around a lot of civilian women again.
But she knew for a fact that he’d had half the female staff of the elementary school fawning over him for days now.
Before long, the bell was ringing, and the kids were piling back into the classroom. She was almost relieved to know she would be teaching fractions next. The kids struggled with the concepts, but applying herself to helping them through each step would keep her focused.
Hopefully, it would also keep her mind far from a certain flag football coach and the way the frosty air seemed to turn toasty warm between them for a moment in the strange blue light of dawn.
“ Mom, Mom ,” Jack’s voice echoed excitedly in the hallway after school. “ I still had the ball in gym class, and all the kids cheered for me, and Coach let me keep it. ”
She slipped out from behind her desk to give him a hug as he came in .
Jack’s cheeks were flushed, but his blue eyes were twinkling and he looked so happy.
“That’s very impressive,” she told him, her heart squeezing with love. The whole world seemed brighter to her when Jack was happy.
“Coach was so proud of me,” he whispered in her ear as he hugged her back hard. “And this ball is really special.”
He let go, and she straightened up, smiling at his happy little face.
“It’s special?” she asked. She actually remembered Axel starting to say something like that.
Before I accused him of making the kids gang up on Jack.
“This is the ball that Coach and Ian Cassidy and those other guys used to win the championship with a Philly Special ,” Jack told her, his voice reverent. “And he’s letting me have it.”
“Wow,” Eden said, legitimately impressed. “I actually heard about that game.”
“It’s famous,” Jack said, nodding, his eyes wide. “And guess what else?”
“I don’t know,” Eden said. “What else?”
“He told me to stay after class for a minute,” Jack said. “And he told me maybe I really could be a tight end one day and that’s why I get to keep his special ball as a prize—so that I don’t forget that he believes in me.”
“Wow,” Eden said. “That must have made you feel so good.”
“It made me feel like I can do it, ” he told her, his eyes wide. “And I want to do it.”
“That’s so cool,” Eden told him .
“When we get home can we throw my ball?” Jack asked.
“Definitely,” she teased. “But homework first, yours and mine.”
“ But, Mom, it’s Friday ,” he yelled.
“It is ?” she asked, playing along with the running joke between them. “Well, in that case, we can save our homework for tomorrow.”
Jack let out a stream of delighted laughter.
He must have had a really good day, because he didn’t laugh like that unless he felt like all was right with the world. Eden found herself smiling again as she gathered her things.
She had just packed up her satchel and they were getting ready to head out of the classroom when Mrs. Hastings peeked in the door.
“Hey, Eden,” she said. “Is he really letting Jack keep the ball?”
“It seems that way,” Eden said, nodding toward Jack, who was standing by the window, clutching the ball loosely to his chest.
“That’s a big deal,” Mrs. Hastings said, her brows raised.
“I guess so,” Eden agreed, her eyes on Jack.
When she turned back, Mrs. Hastings was eyeing her strangely.
“What?” she asked.
“You don’t follow sports, do you?” Mrs. Hastings guessed.
“Not really, no,” Eden admitted.
“You should start,” the other woman said wisely. “Start by watching the game that ball was in. You can still find it on the internet.”
“I will,” Eden promised.
“Are we going home to play catch?” Jack asked, suddenly turning around.
“We sure are,” she told him. “And maybe we can watch a video of the day that ball became famous.”
“ Yes, ” Jack said, scampering up to her.
When she turned back, Mrs. Hastings gave her a little wave and headed back into the hallway toward her classroom.
“Do you know how to throw the ball?” Jack asked. “It works better if you can make it spin around. That’s called throwing a spiral. ”
“Well, I don’t think I can do that yet,” Eden admitted. “But our yard isn’t very big, so we wouldn’t want it going too far.”
“I’m going to catch it anyway,” Jack said, looking at her like she was from Pluto. “So it can’t go too far.”
Eden couldn’t help laughing. His confidence made her feel happy.
They headed through the hallway and down the stairs, Jack talking a mile a minute, giving her tips about how to throw a football. They had almost reached the exit when Axel came out of the gym, carrying a duffel with him.
“Hey, Coach,” Jack said happily.
“Hey there, Jackrabbit,” Axel said with a big smile for Jack. “Great job in class today. I think you’re getting faster already.”
Jack beamed .
“Thank you so much for giving him that ball,” Eden said. “That was… that was very kind of you.”
“It’s my pleasure,” Axel said gently.
“Well, I’m so grateful to you for taking an interest in Jack,” she went on. “He obviously really loves football. And I’d like to help him however I can.”
“Hey, that’s great,” Axel said. He was still steady and calm, but she could see by the twinkle in his eyes that he was excited, maybe as excited as Jack was.
“Could you point me in the direction of a good book to read about it?” she asked.
“I don’t know about that,” he said, looking a little surprised. “But maybe we could meet up tomorrow morning and throw the ball around a little, and I could show you a few things you can do with him.”
Jack began hopping up and down in place, looking like he was about to go off like a firework.
“That’s so nice of you,” Eden said. “Yes, we’d love that, if it’s not too much trouble.”
“Great,” Axel replied. “And it’s no trouble at all. I’m helping my brother load some stuff in up at the community market tomorrow, but there’s a nice field right next to it.”
“We were planning to check out the farmers market tomorrow anyway,” Eden told him. “This all sounds great.”
“Give me your phone,” Axel said, holding out his hand.
She slipped it out of her bag, unlocked it, handed it to him, and watched as he entered his information. Her phone looked so small in his big hands. A half smile played on his handsome face as his thumbs danced on the screen.
Something about it made her think of a scene in one of the romantic comedy movies she used to love when she was a teenager.
Eden had never really dated anyone except Jack’s father, and their dating days were so long ago. But a funny, floaty feeling bubbled up in her chest as she watched Axel with her phone—like something wonderful was about to happen.
Stop that, she tried to tell herself. This is just about football lessons.
“Here you go,” he said, holding out the phone to her.
When she took it, their fingers brushed. That playful feeling bubbled up in her chest again, making her feel like a silly teenager crushing on the captain of the football team.
“Thank you,” she said, looking away as she felt her cheeks heat.
What is wrong with me?
“See you tomorrow,” he told her as he moved to leave. “I’ll text you as soon as my brother lets me know what time he needs me.”
“Thank you again,” she told him, trying not to wince at the smile she could hear in his voice. She was blushing, and he had clearly noticed . “Come on, Jack. Let’s head home.”
But Jack ran away from her instead.
She watched as he chased Axel down and wrapped his arms around the big man’s waist .
“Hey, thanks,” Axel said, hugging him back. “What’s that for, Jackrabbit?”
“Will you be sad without your special ball?” Jack asked softly.
“Hey, that’s really nice of you to ask me that,” Axel said. “But I’ll actually be really happy, because I’ll know that you have it. Does that sound okay?”
“Okay, Coach,” Jack said, beaming up at him for a second and then dashing back to Eden.
Axel’s eyes met hers over Jack’s head, and she knew exactly what he was thinking.
What a special kid.
She couldn’t agree with him more.
Axel held the door open for them, and Eden and Jack headed out into the cold, fresh air together.
“See you tomorrow,” Axel murmured again before heading down the block toward his truck.
It’s nothing, she reminded herself. Just running around a muddy field in the freezing weather.
But she was excited about his text anyway.
More excited than she’d felt in a long time.