"Thank you. Miss Lily, would you mind if I borrow a vase for these?"
"Just give them here. I'll put them in a vase and take them up to your room for you. You two get going and have a nice time." Miss Lily took the flowers and headed to the kitchen as Will placed Kenna’s purple shawl over her shoulders. She noticed his hands linger for a moment on her shoulder as he trailed a finger down her arm.
He held out his arm for her. "Shall we?"
Kenna placed her hand in the crook of his elbow and felt his muscles tense in response. "What do you have planned for tonight?" she asked as he led her to a silver Corvette parked in the driveway. "Is this yours? What happened to your truck?"
"I do own more than one car. I thought you deserved a nice car for a romantic night out on the town." Will stopped by the passenger door and opened it for her. He waited until she was seated and closed the door. She let out a nervous breath. She wasn't quite sure why she was nervous. They'd seen each other countless times in the past couple of months but this felt different. This was all or nothing, and she knew it. Either she was going to fall head over heels in love, or she was going to need to find the strength to walk away from Will forever. As she watched him make his way around the car, she had a feeling she'd already made the choice.
Will opened the car door and reached into the back seat. "I got you something for tonight."
He handed her a box with a blue bow on it. He'd already gotten her flowers. She didn't know what else he could've gotten her. She opened the box and pulled out a black sweatshirt with KHS Football written across the front in royal blue.
"Thank you! It's great. Now I'll be part of the team." She took off her shawl and pulled the sweatshirt on.
"We have to get there a little before the scrimmage starts so I can talk to the boys. But you shouldn't have to wait too long. Cade Davies, one of Paige's older brothers, is my assistant. He's going to show you around some and then Paige will be there after she closes up to watch the scrimmage with you."
"You didn't have to drag Paige out to babysit me. I would've been fine watching by myself."
"Paige comes to all of the games to support her brother. Also, I think football games provide an outlet for her normally undetectable aggressive side."
They pulled into the parking lot at the high school. As Kenna waited for Will to open her door, she saw the steady stream of young men walking into the locker rooms. Some were laughing and joking around. Some were seriously discussing game plans with each other. Yet others were just listening to music and paying no attention to anything around them. Will opened the door and gave Kenna his hand to help pull her out of the low-riding car.
Her breath caught and her heart stopped when she heard the sharp whistle. "Looking good, Coach! You're pretty dressed up for a game." Trey Everett nudged the guy next to him as they both broke out into laughter. Kenna released her breath and smiled.
"That's how you get women, Trey. Of course, by your record, you haven't learned that yet," Will shot back, a smile making his dimples stand out as he put his hand on the small of Kenna’s back. Trey's friend pointed at him and broke out into a new fit of laughter.
"Wait here. I'll get Cade to show you around. Then I'll see you after the game and we'll go out to dinner at Marabella's," he said as he came to a stop outside the locker room entrance.
He slid his hand from her back to her hip and pulled her toward him. As he lowered his head, her lips raised instinctively to his. She sighed when he placed his lips on hers, gently brushing them back and forth before settling in for a heartbreakingly sweet kiss. He ran his hands up her back so softly that it felt like a whisper.
"That was for luck," he whispered into her ear before heading into the locker room.
Kenna turned away from the door and stopped dead. Two young boys stood with their mouths hanging open.
"Wow, Coach has game," one said to the other as they walked past Kenna to the door. They nodded to her, "Ma'am," and then they disappeared behind the old steel door.
Kenna's face flushed when she heard the cheers erupt from the room soon after and thought about running away when the door opened again. This time a man about her age stepped out with a grin on his face. He was an obvious participant in the ribbing Will was getting inside.
"You must be Paige's friend. And well, we all know you're Will's special friend after the clinic you both put on out here."
"Oh God," she groaned. "Let me guess, by tomorrow morning everyone will know I was caught making out with Will under the bleachers. I feel like I'm in high school again!"
The man laughed and held out his hand. "Cade Davies. It's nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you from Paige and Will."