Page 174 of Play Dirty

“Coach,” I said.

He jerked his head once.

“Up here.”

I climbed out of my seat, ignoring the looks from the guys. Sebastian’s mouth twitched, while Ares didn’t even try to hide his smirk. Grayson just watched me go.

Mercer dropped into the front seat, next to the window. I sat across from him.

He didn’t say anything right away. Just stared out at the dark highway rolling past.

“You’ve been busy,” he said finally.

It wasn’t a question. I froze for a second.

“Just doing my job,” I answered.

He snorted.

“Yeah,” he said. “You are.”

A beat of silence followed.

“You see it?”

“The team?” I said.

He nodded, once.

“They’re different.”

“Yeah.”

“They’re winning.”

Also, not a question.

“Yeah.”

Another pause. Then—

“Don’t screw it up.”

I blinked. “That’s the pep talk?”

“That’s the job,” he shot back. “You got them here, now you get to keep them here.”

He finally turned from the window, his eyes shifting to me.

They were focused. Sharp.

“Because if this falls apart,” he added, “it’s not on them.”

It landed exactly where he wanted it to.

On me.

I held his gaze.