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I leaned against the counter with my elbow, which suddenly slipped on something cold. I yelped, bringing the coach’s attention to me.
I held my hands up. “Sorry, I didn’t want to interrupt.”
Coach Ramstrom seemed to assess me for a second, before relaxing. Men like him dismissed women.
“You’re fine, was just talking strategy with the boys,” he said to me, then he turned to the two students he was talking to and said, “We can catch up later.” He patted one on the shoulder and the guys left, fresh pieces of pizza in hand.
I gestured to the cupcake tower. “I’ll just go ahead and finish that up and then get out of your way.” I scooted past him, feeling his beady eyes lingering on my body, paying very close attention to the curve of my ass.Again. I mustered up my best smile, but it took everything in me to fake it. You’d have to know mereallywell to know that my smile was filled with disdain and not joy.
I could feel Coach getting closer to me, his body taking up a lot of space. Several inches shorter than Jack, Coach had the look of someone who used to be fit but has gone soft, like a househusband from theReal Housewives of New Jersey. You know they worked out, but the heavy amounts of pasta and alcohol made them puffy and unattractive.
He squinted as if trying to place me. “I remember you. We went to high school together, right?” he asked, forcing his voice lower than it had been just a few minutes earlier.
Did that really work on the women he tried to seduce?
I laughed him off. “Oh, me?” I brought my hand to my chest. “I went to college in LA, worked out there for a couple of years before recently coming back to town. Not much of a story there.” The last thing I wanted to do was give him any sort of personal details about myself.
He inched closer.
I stepped to the side to open the next cupcake box, ready to continue placing the treats on the display.
“What year did you graduate from Haver’s Creek High?” He stepped forward again.
It felt like we were in some sort of tango. Me moving away, only for him to follow.
His musk made me want to gag, so I tried breathing in and out through my mouth instead of my nose to staunch the scent.
“Yeah, I went there,” I said, giving him the year I graduated. We were only a few years apart. But other than Jack, I didn’t hang out with the “cool” kids and despite his appearance, Coach Ramstrom must have at least hung out with the popular crowd if he played ball. That’s just how things went at Haver’s Creek High.
Coach took another step closer, his hand reaching out for a cupcake.
“Mind if I try one of these?” He took a blue and gold frosted cupcake from the display, giving me the opportunity to step back so I could get a good look at him.
He stared at me as he bit into it and chewed. The stare unnerved me, and not in the same way it did when Jack looked at me.
“How does it taste?” I might be repulsed by the guy, but I still wanted him to like my baking. He took three more bites, finishing off the dessert in just a few seconds.
“Delicious.” Lips smacked as he licked his fingers clean. I’m sure in his head it was an alluring move, but it actually just made me throw up in my mouth just a little bit.
I swallowed, getting back to the display case.
Jack decided it was a good time to chime in. “Well, that was disgusting.”
I couldn’t agree more.
Luckily, Jack whispered. I didn’t want his voice to accidentally be picked up by Coach given his proximity. “If you are going to go to his room somehow, Sprinkles, you’ll need a diversion.”
“Thanks, I’m glad you liked it,” I told Coach truthfully, while trying to think through how I could possibly get into Coach’s bathroom alone.
Then it hit me. “I know this might sound weird, but I was wondering if you could give me a tour of your home.” I gestured to the space around me. “It’s beautiful and I’m actually in the market for a place. Maybe I should consider this neighborhood?”
He leered and suddenly it felt like a hundred spiders decided to crawl across my skin. “I think that’s a great idea. It’d be nice to have more young singles in the neighborhood to spend time with.” Then he thought for a second. “You’re single, right?”
I nodded. “Mmmhmm.”
“Let me give you that tour.” His warm, sticky hand grasped the inside of my upper arm as he paraded me around the house.
Iohhedandahhedat the appropriate places and ignored the stares from the players who were confused by my being in their coach’s home. All except Jeremy who looked so nervous, I thought he’d give the whole thing away.
