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She glances over her shoulder at the doors opening to the underground terminal.
Five minutes later, we stroll into the gymnasium where my mom is standing at the center of the court. She clutches her whistle between her fingers and raises it to her mouth. The group of twelve-year-old boys gather around her. Their eyes are wide and hopeful.
“I can’t believe I’m meeting your mom. This feels so… I don’t know. Like we’re dating. I don’t want her to get the wrong idea.”
I pinch her elbow to reassure her and heat pricks my skin. My God, I love touching this girl, stealing quick exchanges whenever I can even though I should stay far, far away from her.
“You’ll be fine,” I promise. “She won’t bite you.”
Her cheeks flush as if she’s thinking she’d like me to bite her instead. Or maybe I’m reading too much into her every move. It’s hard not to study Bex when she’s in my presence. I have trouble taking my eyes off her.
We stop next to my mom, who spins around when I tap her on the shoulder. She pushes a few strands of caramel colored hair behind her ears, a big smile on her face. Her gaze shifts from me to Bex.
“Preston,” Mom says as she hugs me. “You’re here. And early for once.” She releases me and takes a step back appraising Bex for a second before she says, “And you must be Bex. Preston has told me so much about you.”
No, I haven’t.
Bex stands straighter, her expression unreadable. She must be nervous, though she’s hiding it well. “Yes, I’m Bex Bryant.”
“Coach,” Mom says. “Or Charlie, or Charlotte, or even Coach Parker, but never call me Mrs. Parker.”
“Mom thinks that makes her sound old,” I add for clarification.
Bex holds out her hand for my mom to shake, her smile so wide it reaches up to her eyes. “Nice to meet you, Coach. I’m sure Preston already told you I’m a big fan of yours.”
Instead of shaking her hand, my mom pulls Bex into her arms and squeezes the life out of her. “It’s nice to meet you, too, sweetie.”
“Mom, don’t hurt her,” I quip. “Jeez, could you loosen up a bit? I don’t think Bex can breathe.”
They both laugh.
I can see it already. Mom will want me to invite Bex over for dinner, so my dad can meet her too. And then suddenly, the entire family will be there, which means my parents’ friends and their kids will all be in attendance.
“What?” Mom moves away from Bex, giving her some room. “I want to savor the first time I get to meet a girl you like. Between you and your brother, I don’t know who’s worse.”
“Bex is my friend,” I tell her.
“Right.” Mom rolls her eyes at me. “If you say so. Now, John needs to find a decent girl, and my boys will be all set.”
“We’re just friends,” Bex chimes. “I only met Preston a few days ago. We barely know each other.”
“But you must be special, or you wouldn’t be here.”
Bex’s mouth snaps shut, her expression stoic.
“Mom, would you stop freaking Bex out, please? This is kind of embarrassing.”
The buzzer sounds throughout the gymnasium giving Bex and me a reprieve from my mother’s comments.
“Duty calls. You can sit the first half out,” Mom says to me, and then turns her back to us to rally up the team.
“I thought Jameson coaches with your mom,” Bex says.
I cup her shoulder with my hand and steer her toward the bleaches. “He’s usually here by now. Something must have come up. It must be important because I know he wouldn’t miss the opportunity to join my mom in tag-teaming me until they embarrass the shit out of me.”
Bex drags her fingers down my forearm, the sudden contact too much for me to stand. “Don’t worry about it. My dad would do the same thing.”
“Not if it were me.”
