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Instead, I hustle through a shower and getting dressed, then give Laney a quick kiss goodbye before hurrying out to my car.
I’m a wreck the whole drive to the practice facility where Denton has his office. I feel like I’m a dead man walking as my strides eat up the long hallway leading to Denton’s open door. He has a second office in the locker rooms at our stadium, but I’ve always thought this office at our practice facility was way nicer.
I rap on the door with my knuckle, trying to steady my nerves. “Coach?”
“Come on in, Smith.”
When I open the door, he gestures to the large chair in front of his desk. I take a seat, not daring to look around the room when I’m trying to prove to him I’m focused and worth keeping.
He leans back in his chair and crosses his arms over his chest. “I’ve been putting off this conversation.”
My stomach drops.
His stern expression doesn’t change as he watches my reaction to his words. I try to brace myself for what’s coming. I knew this was possible, but it doesn’t make it any easier to swallow.
“And I’m glad I did,” he continues. “Rich was convinced you were a lost cause.”
Rich is our general manager and a real piece of work sometimes.
“But I wanted to give you a little more time to see if you could turn things around. So far, you have. Pretty tremendously I’d say.”
He leans forward, and his stern expression feels like it’s burrowing into me, trying to suss out anything I might be hiding. “So, I’m going to cut to the point and you better not bullshit me, ya hear?”
I nod.
“Is this for real? Have you really pulled your head out of your ass or is this just so I won’t trade you, and you’ll turn back into an idiot once the season gets going?”
I can’t even argue with him that I’ve been an idiot. “This is real, sir.”
He arches a brow.
“There’s been a lot going on…a lot I haven’t handled well, but I’m doing my best to turn things around for good.”
“That’s what I hoped you would say.” He leans back in his chair, and his pose is much more relaxed than it was earlier. “I told Rich if he wants to win another Super Bowl, we need the Fierce Four to remain intact. But Dom, I’ll be watching you closely this coming season. Keep up with your workouts and conditioning in the offseason because you have a lot to prove once we get back out on that field.”
My shoulders sag as I let out a relieved breath. “Thank you so much, Coach. I won’t let you down.”
“Better not. I don’t like being wrong, especially when it comes to Rich.”
“You won’t be wrong.”
He nods. “Now, tell me what’s been going on.”
I tell him about my dad—his cancer, not about our strained relationship—and how Laney’s ultimatum helped jump-start my conviction to turn things around.
“It’s an eye-opener when the one person who’s always had your back through any of your fuckups finally has enough. I won’t mess up again because I refuse to let her down anymore. I’ve done that enough.”
“I believe you.”
Then I do something even more out of character and confide in him. “She’s the girl you bring home to meet your parents, the girl you build a life with. I was in no frame of mind for anything that serious before. I wasn’t even sure I believed in love.”
I don’t tell him how witnessing what I thought was my dad’s infidelity shaped my beliefs—or lack thereof—about love. But after my talk with my dad, my whole view of relationships has changed. What I grew up believing before I thought he cheated—that true love existed—was real, and now that I’m more convinced than ever I’ve found my girl, I want to shout it from the rooftops. I can admit I wasn’t ready for her—for what we could be—and maybe I never would’ve been if my life hadn’t imploded and I hadn’t finally faced my dad and had the tough conversation we needed to have.
Sometimes timing really is everything.
“I can’t stop thinking about the future and what I want.”
“And what’s that?” he asks.
