Page 30 of The Penalty

“I can’t tonight. I’m going to be off super late.”

She stares at me as if she’s trying to communicate something with her eyes. “Are you sure?”

I nod and smile to try to reassure her that I’ll be fine.

“Ok, but if you change your mind, text me.”

“I will.”

Tyler looks a little confused by our conversation, but he doesn’t say anything. I’m still trusting that he doesn’t know anything about my situation. Kylie promised she wouldn’t tell him.

I let them enjoy their meal, and when they’re done, I offer them their free dessert. Tyler refuses, but Kylie accepts, so I bring her the biggest piece of chocolate cake we have.

They leave while I’m busy with another table, so I only get to wave goodbye. I grab their check before the table gets bussed, and my jaw drops when I realize Tyler left me a one hundred percent tip.

It’s not like their bill was a hundred dollars or anything, but still. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten this big a tip before.

He did something probably so minuscule for him but with such a huge impact for me. Something else I can add to the list of things that make Tyler so great.

And it’s certainly not helping the crush that’s blooming in my head.

THIRTEEN

TYLER

I’m stressed, but I’m trying not to show it. Koby Jones, our star running back, came out of last week’s game with a slight ankle injury. He’s walking fine, but every time he picks up speed, it twinges him enough that he has to stop.

La Vista has a history of being a strong running team, and Koby is well on his way to being one of the strongest running backs the university has ever had. He averages a hundred yards a game and has been our top scorer for the past two seasons.

He’s currently with the medical staff getting evaluated, but I’m not getting my hopes up. I feel like he’s going to be out for at least our next game. Our second-string running back is good, but he doesn’t quite jive with Hayes as well as Koby. We’ll be fine, though. I’ve just got to convince the rest of the team to believe that.

Ryan is a strong wide receiver, so we can pivot our plays for this week if Koby is out. We’ll make it work. I know we will. But my belief in the team doesn’t stop the stress and anxiety from creeping in.

Back in my office, I occupy myself with emails that I avoided all last week, including one from McKenzie’s professor asking how she’s doing so far and if I’m having any issues.

I quickly respond and say that McKenzie has been great to work with and there are no issues to note. I keep it short and sweet. If I sang her praises too much, Professor Moore might get suspicious, seeing as I typically don’t want anything to do with the journalism students. But McKenzie is different. She’s friends with Kylie, of course, and Kylie has specifically asked me to not be a jerk to her.

But it’s more than that.

I can’t quite put my finger on it, but I like having McKenzie around. She’s easy to talk to. Easy to be around. She’s the first student who’s worked with us that I actually care if she succeeds. That should probably worry me more than it does.

My phone pings, and I reluctantly look down at a text from one of our medical advisors saying Koby is out for the next game.

Shit.

Looking up at the ceiling, I let out a big exhale.

Alright. Time to make some quick changes. I pull up the group text with all my coaches and ask them to meet in the conference room in fifteen. I’ll let them know what’s going on and come up with a plan for the remainder of practices for the week. We’ve got plenty of time to prepare for the game on Saturday, and we can still come out on top even if we are playing one of the best teams in our division.

We can do this.

And that’s exactly what I’ll preach to everyone for the next five days.

After a long afternoon of meetings, going over plays and talking with the offense about the plan for the week, I’m finally on my way home, way later than I had originally planned. I’ve likely already missed dinner with Kylie, which sucks. I told her that my schedule is crazy during the season, but I still feel like I’m disappointing her at every turn. Hell, I’m disappointed in myself.

My phone rings as soon as I pull off the campus, and the screen shows me it’s Shae, Kylie’s mother. I’d love to ignore the call, but unfortunately, we still have to co-parent our adult child.

“Hey,” I say into my car speaker.