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That laugh told her everything. He thought he had the upper hand, but he was sorely mistaken.
“Thanks for the sign on the door. But I’m not the reject,” she said with confidence. “Oh, and the boys’ locker room is probably without towels. Seems someone took all the towels out of the girls’ showers.”
Shaking his head, he walked to his office. “Have a really great day, Miss Martin.”
“You too,” she said, thinking she wished he didn’t look quite so good. Sadly, her body still reacted to him. Sadly, her heart still warmed at that tempting smile of his.
“Miss Martin, can I see you a moment?” It was the principal, Mr. Townsend.
“Of course,” she said. “My office or yours?”
“Yours will be fine.”
They walked into her office and he shut the door behind him and then sank into a chair.
Shaking his head, he laughed. “This morning I’ve already received two phone calls complaining that you made your team come in at six a.m. and practice today.”
“Yes, sir,” she said. “It’s only fair that we share the center court with the boys’ team. So I made the decision that on the days we are not getting the center court, we would come in at six and practice then. In the afternoon, we’ll practice drills outside, but they need the inside center court practice every day.”
The man sighed. “Riley Hall has been the star player for the girls for the last three years. This is her senior year and her mother was one of the ones who complained. Riley told her she would be kicked off the team if she didn’t show up. Is that true?”
And Riley was also one of the biggest whiners.
“I’m trying to instill a team spirit in these girls. You would think that Riley would want that state trophy more than anyone since it’s her senior year. But, yes, I told all the girls that if they did not show up, they would be put on probation. If they missed two team workouts, they will be kicked off the team.”
The man laughed. “Plus, we’ve had several phone calls about that article in the paper. It’s your first week and you’re not fitting into the culture of Cupid High School very well.”
Just what she needed.
“The article in the newspaper is because a fellow teacher alerted them that I was here. The superintendent wants a winning girls’ team. His daughter is on the team. He said it was past time. I’m trying to use my skills as a professional to help these girls. And yet I have a teacher/coach, parents, and now possibly you, working against me. What is it you want me to do? I’m not a miracle worker.”
Oh God, if he learned about the shenanigans being played between her and Zach, she’d be walked out the door.
“Miss Martin, you’re new to teaching, and well, it’s not an easy profession. Not that I’m saying being a professional basketball player is either. But you have to deal with the parents and faculty, and well, you’ve got a hard road in front of you. If you take the girls to state, you’ll be a hero, but between then and now, it’s not going to be easy. So I’ll just say be careful about what you do. One little thing done wrong will have a platoon of pitchfork-wielding parents coming for you.”
She feared they already were.
Standing, he shook his head. “The position you’re in, I don’t envy you. You’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t. Just remember, I will always stand on the side of the students. Always.”
“Thank you for the advice, Mr. Townsend,” she said. “Let’s hope I last through the rest of the season at least.”
He grinned. “That will be a miracle.”
“Yeah, my thoughts too,” she said as he walked out the door.
The thought of the jock straps in her bottom drawer left her feeling uneasy. Maybe she shouldn’t do what she was planning. But then again…
CHAPTER5
Later that afternoon, Zach watched as Emily stood in front of her girls sitting on the bleachers. First, she showed them some new techniques and then she pulled up a video of the team they were playing next week and started going over the weak areas.
While he tried to pay attention to his boys’ practice, he was drawn to the way she coached her girls.
Finally, at the end, she gave them a pep talk that he couldn’t help but overhear.
“This morning everyone showed up but three. Thank you for committing to the team. Thank you for your willingness to get up early and prove to me that you want this team to get better. I’m going to add one more thing to your day and then you can hit the showers. To build endurance, I want everyone to commit to running three laps around the football field every day.”
There were groans.
