Page 108 of Playing It Forward

I drum my fingers on the steering wheel as I drive to the Coastal State University for practice and my meeting with Coach Knox.

I’m tempted – so fucking tempted – to phone Hudson. How dare he fire Terri for having a relationship with me? It’s not as if it’s a conflict of interest. What does he think I’m going to do? Tell off the bridezillas who make her life hell.

Huh. Not a bad idea. But it doesn’t solve today’s problem.

I promised Terri I’d let her handle the matter. I want to keep my promise. I need to keep my promise.

But it’s Terri. The woman I love who’s carrying my baby. I want to fight all her battles for her. I want to protect her from all the bad things in the world.

I arrive at the college stadium and park. The parking lot is already full. I check the time. I’m running late. I prefer to arrive before the rest of the players to set a good example. I shouldn’t have wasted time returning to the resort to get clean clothes, but I didn’t want anyone teasing me about where I spent the night.

I step out of my SUV and notice Corbin, Brock, Tanner, and Gage walking toward me. I lift my chin.

“You’re late,” Brock grumbles.

“I’m not late.”

“Late for you,” Corbin clarifies.

“Got stuff going on.”

Tanner dances around me. “What kind of stuff?” He waggles his eyebrows. “The naked stuff.” He feigns kissing someone. “Oh, Terri.”

I wrap my hand around his neck. “You do not make fun of her.”

Gage clears his throat. “It’s probably not a good idea to choke out the wide receiver before practice.”

I release Tanner. “I don’t need this shit. I have enough stuff to worry about.”

Brock frowns. “You worried about becoming a dad?”

“You shouldn’t be. You’re the leader of this team. You’ll be a great dad,” Corbin says.

Those words mean a lot coming from Corbin. He’s quiet and reserved. He only speaks when he has something to say.

I nod to him. “Thanks. But I’m not worried about being a dad.” I am worried, but not at this particular moment.

“What’s going on?” Gage asks as we reach the tunnel that leads to the locker rooms.

I slow my steps. “Terri thinks Hudson is firing her. He called her in for an early morning meeting. Something he never does.”

“Whoa. He can’t fire Terri. She’s an awesome event coordinator,” Tanner says.

My brow wrinkles. “How would you know?”

He shrugs and his cheeks darken. “She’s friends with Alaia.”

His relationship with Alaia isn’t fake anymore. Everybody knows it. Except him. He doesn’t realize how deep he’s fallen.

Brock grunts. “We’ll walk out.”

“Walk out? Walk out of where?”

“The resort. If Hudson fires Terri, we leave the resort as a team,” he says as we enter the locker room.

“Why are we leaving the resort?” Lamar asks, and all the chatter in the locker room dies.

“Hudson’s firing Terri for having a relationship with me.”