Chapter Twenty-nine #4
She stepped around Courtney just as the door burst open and people streamed out.
She recognized a lot of the committee members.
Ms. Hill was next, and she walked toward the exit with her nose in her phone.
The door slammed against the wall when Frank Bristol exited, angrily pounding the screen on his phone and charging in the opposite direction of his lawyer.
Finally, Angela and Razor exited.
“Well? What’s the verdict?”
They looked at each other and smiled.
“We won!” Angela shrieked with excitement.
Everyone converged on them cheering, creating a big group hug with Razor in the center. Ashton stood back and watched the celebration.
“So, what happened?” Summer asked once everyone settled down.
“Your dad is what happened,” Angela explained. “He came in and told them what he saw. He even had a video.”
Summer turned. “You didn’t tell me you had a video.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t think about it until I got in that room. Good thing, too. That Ms. Hill was tough.”
Everyone laughed and continued with congratulations. Ashton noticed Razor looking at her with gratitude. At one point, she even caught her mouthing Thank you, and Ashton’s heart stirred with a familiar longing.
“All right, all right, we are all glad to have Razor back. Let’s get out of here before we get disciplined for causing a disturbance,” Courtney said.
“Hey Coach, how about we have a party tonight to celebrate?” Tori asked. A collective affirmative went up.
“Sounds good. How ’bout we all meet at the Pizza Chef at six. First pie is on me.”
Cheers went up as everyone disbanded, leaving Ashton, Courtney, Razor, and Bill in the lobby.
“Bill”—Razor grabbed his hand in a firm handshake—“thank you so much. I don’t know what would’ve happened if you hadn’t shown up.”
Bill’s eyes narrowed. “I told you if you needed me, just ask. Next time, don’t wait so long.”
“Next time, don’t have a cow go into labor.”
He laughed. “I’ll try.”
Ashton couldn’t believe how relieved she felt.
She caught Razor staring at her and immediately recognized that look.
There was promise and hope in those eyes, and her heart fluttered.
She held out her hand, but Razor bypassed it and pulled her into an embrace.
She closed her eyes and reveled in the solid frame pressed against hers, breathing in the familiar, soothing scent.
They stayed that way, probably longer than what was considered friendly, until a commotion pulled them apart.
Everyone turned and saw an agitated Frank Bristol across the lobby, arms flailing, obscenities flowing as he shouted into his phone and paced back and forth.
“This is all your fucking fault. You had to push it with the complaint, and now I may lose my job.”
“You know,” Bill said, his voice too low to carry across to Frank, “I saw a lot of things that day. Especially after the game.”
“What kind of things?” Ashton asked.
He moved in closer. “I didn’t think anything of it at the time, but I saw that umpire there talking to one of your coaches.”
“One of my coaches?” Courtney asked.
He nodded. “That other female coach with spiky black hair. Had on a green windbreaker.”
Razor folded her arms and looked at Courtney. “Sound like someone we know?”
Courtney marched toward Frank with Ashton and Razor in tow. When he saw them, he stopped pacing and ended the call. “Come here to gloat?”
Courtney eyed him. “Who was that on the phone, Frank?”
“No one.”
“Didn’t sound like no one. Sounds like someone left you out in the cold.”
He eyed all three of them and smirked. “I don’t have to tell you anything.”
Courtney got in his face. “Trust me, Frank, when I tell you it’d be in your best interest if you did.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed. “How so?”
“USA Softball is going to investigate. There’s no doubt about that,” Razor said. “You tell us everything that happened, and we’ll tell them how cooperative you were.”
Frank’s eyes shifted between them as he weighed his options. After a grueling minute, he surrendered.
“Okay, I’ll tell you everything.”
“Let’s go to my office.” Courtney escorted Frank down the hall while Ashton and Razor trailed.
“Do you think it’s wise to let him off the hook?” Ashton whispered to Razor.
“I have a feeling USA Softball is going to come down hard on him no matter what we say or don’t say. Guys like him are usually repeat offenders. But he’s not our problem.”
“I know. If what Bill says is true, then we’ve all been deceived.” Ashton’s voice was tinged with sadness, realizing her fear of losing Nancy as a friend over Razor was about to come to fruition.
“Nancy and I had our issues, but what did I do to deserve this?” Razor asked.
“I don’t know. Hopefully Frank will give us some insight into her motive.”
Razor sighed. “This turned into such a mess.”
“Yes, but remember the positive.”
“What’s that?”
Ashton laced her fingers with Razor’s and gave a soft squeeze. “You get to finish your softball career on your terms.”
“Yes. Yes, I do.”
Light returned to Razor’s eyes, and she gave a final squeeze before letting Ashton’s hand drop. Ashton missed the contact, but it was okay. Razor was back, and Ashton was going to make things right.