Chapter 8
brUCE
“Sorry you have to wait with us,” Cooper says morosely.
He’s a mess of sweat and dirt, and I had to search my truck to find him and Liam a couple of granola bar snacks to feed their post-practice hunger.
Even then, they gave half of the crumbly bars to the ducks that swarmed up on the edge of the pond as soon as we walked over.
The ducks didn’t seem to mind the stale snack in the least.
But all laid out in the grass with the darkness getting blacker, their bellies are starting to growl again.
So’s mine, and one of the guys at home probably already snuck into the kitchen and ate the plate Mama Louise leaves for me on football practice nights.
Looks like a drive-thru is in my future before I head out to the farm tonight.
I mess up his hair, trying to stay casual. “No worries, kid.” Realizing my mistake, I make an exaggerated face of disgust and then wipe my sweat-soaked hand on my jeans. “So, how does this carpool run for you two?”
Cooper raises his hand like he’s in school, and I lift my chin his way, giving him unspoken permission to speak.
Coach’s rules still apply, I guess. “Our moms make this big official schedule. There’s a calendar meeting once a month and everything, though it’s mostly just our moms with pens, highlighters, and glasses of wine.
They work on it together and then stick a copy up on both our refrigerators and keep another copy on their phones.
We sneak out as soon as dinner’s done.” Liam and Cooper roll their eyes at each other, laughing at the antics of adults.
“The after-school babysitter dropped us off today, but it’s supposed to be my mom picking us up,” Liam explains. “Since she didn’t answer the phone, though, I’m guessing she’s stuck at work.” Unconcerned, he plucks another blade of grass to add to the pile he’s already accumulated beside his thigh.
When practice had ended and all the other parents had left with their kids, Cooper and Liam were the last men standing.
I volunteered to stay with them so Mike and Evan could get home.
After a few minutes waiting to see if she was just running late, we’d called Michelle and got sent straight to voicemail.
Then we’d tried Allyson, both her cell and her work line, where I talked to a lady named Debra who’d worriedly said that Allyson was in a closed-door meeting.
After reassurances that I was fine hanging out with the boys until someone got here, her appreciation had bordered on overwhelming.
I bump Liam’s shoulder, having learned my lesson to keep my hands off their sweaty grossness. “What’s your mom do again?”
“She’s a nurse at the hospital. She works twelve-hour shifts a few days a week in the operating room so she can be home with me most of the time.
When she’s not, that’s where Ms. Allyson tags in.
” Liam holds his hand up and Cooper slaps a high-five to his palm, not giving a single shit about the dirt they’re smearing between them.
“Tag!” Cooper says a little too loudly in the quiet evening air. “Mom works days at Mr. Rick’s law firm, so Liam gets to stay with us when his mom’s working overnight or when his dad’s home. They call it ‘village parenting’.” Cooper’s voice says he’s heard that saying more than a time or two.
Liam picks back up. “My dad does sales and travels all the time, so it’s usually just me and Mom. And then we he comes home, they take a night to ‘date’ and then we all hang out as a family.”
Even in the dark, I can see the flash of the boys’ white-toothed grins, and they giggle as they make kissy noises and both say, “Date! Ewww!”
I chuckle along, acting offended. “What? Old people can date.”
Cooper groans. “We know that means sex, Coach B. Gross.”
“Oh, uh . . .” I stammer, not sure what to say to that.
I mean, he’s not wrong, at least about ‘date’ being code for sex, but it’s definitely not gross.
Knowing this is definitely not my place to add any details to their discussion, I stick with as little as I can say as possible.
“You might feel differently about that when you’re older. ”
Liam gives Cooper’s shoulder a friendly shove. “At least your parents aren’t having s-e-x every time they see each other while you go on sleepovers at my house.” They giggle again, wrestling around a bit.
“So, what about your dad, Cooper?” The words blurt out before I can stop them.
Part of me is desperate to hear his answer.
The other part wants to shove my big paws over his mouth to stop him from saying a word.
I don’t want to cause him pain if it’s a hard story, but my curiosity overrides my reticence when he doesn’t burst into tears or show any real emotion.
“I don’t remember him. And Mom doesn’t talk about him. Ever.” His complete lack of emotion is suddenly more telling than if he were upset. He’s swallowing a lot, keeping it bottled way down deep. It takes one to recognize one, and I’ve definitely been accused of being a stoic robot a time or two.
Problem with that is, it’s gonna come out one way or another eventually.
I grind my teeth together as I try to figure out what to say.
A boy and his father is a special bond, one Cooper’s missing.
Allyson can do, and is doing, so much for this adorable pipsqueak, but he needs someone to show him how to be a man.
Silently, I vow to do as much as I can over the course of the season as his coach.
I lean my elbows on my bent knees. “My dad was different from both of yours, but I guess that’s true of everyone. No mom, no dad, no girl, and no boy is exactly the same. That’s what makes the world go ’round.”
I hope I sound wise and sage, not like I’m pulling shit outta my ass, which is closer to the truth.
Cooper looks over at me, eyes wide with curiosity. “What was your dad like? And your mom?”
So many answers to such simple questions.
I swallow thickly, knowing that I can’t tell them the whole truth.
No kid needs those seeds planted in their heads.
“When I was about the age you two are, my parents were pretty great. I have two brothers and a sister too, and my family owned a farm. We all worked together, and it was pretty awesome. I’d get up in the morning and do chores—”
They groan. “Ugh, chores are the worst!”
“They were the worst, or at least I thought so at the time,” I agree.
“Looking back, though, it wasn’t so bad.
I took care of some of the animals and did a whole lotta work in the fields.
Less when I was younger.” I hold my hand up, palm down, measuring about how tall I was back then.
“And then more as I got older.” I move my palm to the top of my head, measuring myself now.
“That’s my non-coaching job still. Work in the fields every day, just like my dad taught me. ”
Liam puts one and one together. “Is that how you got the peaches for practice?”
Smart kid. “Yep, picked them myself for the team. Guess I like you guys a little bit.” I hold my finger and thumb up an inch apart but move them further and further until my hand is stretched wide.
Cooper laughs, bubbly and light, and I feel like he needs that. Especially as he says, “A mom and dad, brothers and sister, and a farm? It sounds like a Disney movie!” There’s a brightness to the words, but I’m pretty sure there’s a hint of jealousy hiding underneath.
I can’t stop the bitter laugh that barks its way past my lips. “It definitely was not that picturesque. My mom and dad loved each other a lot, and I’ve got some great memories from when I was a kid. Later was a different story.”
Any reasonable adult would hear the silent request to leave the topic alone, but eight-year-old boys have basically zero social skills. “You don’t like them now?” Cooper asks with his eyes narrowed like he can’t imagine not liking Allyson.
“Well, they’re gone now. Both of them passed away, and we sold our farm to the neighbors.
But now, it’s like I’ve got an even bigger family of brothers and sisters.
” I’m trying to make it sound like one of their big sleepover parties, but the truth is, it’s been a hard adjustment for us all.
But we’re doing better now, with minimal authentic threats of loss of life and limb over the evening dinner table.
I keep a close eye on Cooper, gauging his reaction as I say my parents have passed.
I’m still not sure what exactly is going on there, and even though it’s really none of my business, I have a burning need deep inside to know everything there is to know about Allyson.
And this seems like it’s a big piece of what’s turned her into the she-devil she seems to be now.
Cooper blinks a couple of times, long, dark lashes covering his pale blue eyes, and I’m afraid he’s about to cry, but mostly, he seems to be processing what I just shared. He doesn’t seem upset or sad, like he’s having feelings about his own dad at all.
Before I can ask any follow-up questions, a car pulls into the parking lot going too fast. The headlights flash over us, blinding us for a moment.
“Bet that’s one of your moms.” As the words leave my mouth, another car comes peeling into the lot.
From here and half-blind, I can’t tell what kind of cars they are.
I hear doors slam and feminine voices apologizing. “Oh, my God, I am so sorry!”
“No, I’m sorry! I was stuck in a meeting.”
“I was stuck in the OR!”
I grin at the boys. “Double-shot of mom. Come on, guys.” We all get up and start to walk across the field. I can see Michelle in scrubs and a messy ponytail and Allyson in another skirt and heels combo, both running this way looking harried.
Cooper puts a hand on Liam’s arm and looks back at me. “Hey, Coach B?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t get mad, but you gotta take advantage when you can, ‘kay?” Cooper’s teeth flash again, and Liam chuckles but covers his mouth with his hands.