15. Chapter 15 #2
“Now, AJ, that’s a serious allegation to throw around based on a rumor,” Martinez says, crossing his arms over his chest.
AJ nods. “Yes, sir, but I believe the rumor is true.”
Silence fills the room once again, and Danners’s eyes land on mine. Is that anger in his gaze? Is this motherfucker still holding a grudge over something stupid that happened years ago?
I’m tucked in a corner, nursing a beer with Q as I watch Sav from across the room.
She’s dancing on the makeshift dance floor with some of her sorority sisters.
I spot Danners out of the corner of my eye.
Dressed in khaki cargo shorts and a short-sleeve patterned button-up, he’s got a plastic cup in his hand.
I glare daggers at him as he approaches Sav, leaning in and saying something against her ear. His hand is touching her arm. I growl into my beer as Q quirks an eyebrow at me.
“You good?” he asks, and I shake him off. I’m too focused on watching the shitshow unravel.
She laughs politely at whatever line he throws her way, and I can see it in his eyes. He thinks he’s finally going to get with Savannah Holycross. Too bad she’s mine.
When he leans even closer, and her back stiffens slightly, that’s my cue.
I cut across the party, shoving drunk assholes out of my way, until I’m sliding behind her like I belong here…
because I do. My arm slips around her shoulders as I drop a kiss to her temple.
Her head tips up, eyes landing on mine as I drop another kiss on her lips.
Driving home the point that she’s mine. Taken. Unavailable to punks like AJ Danners.
Well, technically, Savannah and I aren’t official, but there’s an unspoken rule on the football team. No matter how complicated things are with Sav and me, my eyes have always been on her.
Savannah sways closer to me, leaning into my side. I watch as Danners’s expression sours. Serves him right; he knows exactly who I am and exactly what Sav means to me.
My lips tip into a smirk as I nod in his direction. “Sup, Danners?”
He clears his throat, and instead of addressing the room, he speaks to me as if there’s no one else around. “They didn’t say a name, but…there’s context. She’s pregnant, living off campus with a football coach.”
The room stills. I don’t move, don’t breathe.
More mutters. More speculation, but it’s obvious who AJ Danners is talking about. A seedy smirk slowly spreads across his face as he shrugs at me.
Martinez turns his attention to me. “You got something to say, Coach?”
Silence.
I swallow hard. The pressure builds so fast it’s like a vise squeezing my damn chest. The unspoken question is thick in the air. And with Danners practically calling me out, there’s no way I’m going to talk myself out of this mess.
I don’t hear the door swing open as I blurt the one thing that pops into my head. The one thing that might make this situation better.
“She’s my wife.”
“What did you say?” My dad’s voice cuts through like a blade as the door slams behind him.
Fuck . Me.
My eyes widen as heads whip in Dad’s direction as he steps farther into the room. His movements are slow, calculated, as he tries to wrap his head around what he heard. Meanwhile, I’m trying to wrap my head around what I just said.
How the hell am I going to explain this?
Fuck that. How the hell am I going to tell Savannah I announced our marriage—when we haven’t even officially dated?
Was it just this morning we slept together for the first time in almost a year? She opened the door for more, and now I’ve gone and sprung this on her.
“You married a student?” Martinez questions in disbelief as my dad stands ghostly still.
“She’s not just a student,” I start, leaning forward until my elbows are resting on the table. “It’s…complicated.”
The room explodes with more whispers and murmurs.
“This is bad,” Hawk mutters. “There’s a clear policy—”
“Forget about the policy,” Martinez snaps.
“There’s optics,” he adds with a heavy sigh.
“Rumors are already swirling about nepotism because you’re the head coach’s son.
And now this? Ethics, Campbell. Is it your kid?
Sleeping with—and marrying—a student? What does that say to the administration? The donors? The media?”
I can’t answer. I know how it looks, but this is more than me sleeping with a student. We have history. We’re the same age—just at different places in life. She’s only a student for one more semester. If she’d graduated with me last spring, none of this would be a story.
My dad hasn’t moved. His shocked silence is alarming, especially as he lets Martinez go on his high horse.
Finally, I watch as he runs a hand through his dark hair before muttering a curse under his breath. Then he straightens and looks at the room, eyes hard.
“Enough.” His command is harsh. “This meeting is about football and our game plan for the first game. This isn’t gossip time.”
The silence that follows is suffocating.
As the room shifts back to strategy, I’ve completely zoned out.
I’m itching to get out of this room and figure out what the hell I’ve done.
I sink back into my chair, heart pounding, ears ringing, and replay the three words that just changed the trajectory of my life…
She’s my wife.