“Will you marry me, Mom?”
His mother burst out laughing. “I’ll make sure your future wife has all of my recipes, honey.” She was quiet for a few seconds. “How’s that going?”
“I met someone, but it’s not going to work.”
“Why not?”
“I’ll tell you, but you have to keep it between us.”
“Of course.”
“She runs another team. She doesn’t live here. I’d get traded or benched and she’d probably be in a lot of trouble if we keep seeing each other.”
“That’s crazy. They can’t tell you who you can fall in love with. Are you sure it won’t work?”
“Yeah. I’m sure.” He heard Owen call out, “Soup’s on!”
“I have to go. Could we talk again later?”
“How about tomorrow morning, honey?”
“Okay then. It’s a date. I’ll call you when I wake up. I love you, Mom.”
He heard her blow a kiss through the receiver. “I love you too, honey. Take care of your dad for me.”
“Will do.”
Owen was loading the dishwasher when he emerged from his office, and his dad was already sitting at the kitchen table. Drew was a little surprised to note the table was already set.
“Did you do this, Dad?”
“Gotta earn my keep.”
Two hours later, his dad was asleep in the guest room upstairs, and Drew was relaxing on the couch in the family room and watching a little TV before he went to bed. It was a jam-packed day, but he wasn’t sleepy yet. He couldn’t stop thinking about Kendall, and how she’d looked when he awoke this morning in her bed. He wondered if she thought of him too, and if she felt as frustrated as he did about the fact that any romance between them couldn’t last.
He heard the chirp of an incoming text.
I can’t stop thinking about you. Good night.
Chapter Ten
* * *
KENDALL SHUT THE conference room door behind her. She’d been up to her ass in alligators since yesterday, when she showed up at the first meeting of the day having done exactly zero research and even less preparation. The only reason she managed to get through it at all was the fact she over-prepared every other day and she had a great memory.
She’d had to play catch-up all day yesterday and most of last night. She was ready for them this morning. Unfortunately for her, the front office group decided to dispense with the original meeting agenda and embark on a fun new one.
“Is Drew McCoy of the Sharks dating someone who lives in San Jose?” The Miners’ owner, Donald Curtis, took a sip of coffee and set his mug back down on the table.
She almost spit her mouthful of triple-shot latte across the conference room table. She managed to recover her composure in milliseconds and glanced around the table to make sure her reaction wasn’t detected. None of the guys noticed anything wrong. Sydney gave her a raised eyebrow, though. Damn it. She’d be asked about it later. She dabbed at her mouth with a paper napkin and attempted to look unconcerned with the topic.
“How the hell should we know or care who McCoy’s dating? He’s still with Seattle,” the head coach said. Jack Phillips hated these meetings and never passed up a chance to let everyone in the room know it.
“There were photos of him in the San Jose airport with some UCLA alumni on Twitter the day before yesterday, according to a sports website. If he’s involved with someone in the area, it might be easier to persuade him he’d like to live in California and play for us,” the director of scouting for the team chimed in. He was looking for any possible angle (that didn’t cost money) to pry Drew McCoy away from the Sharks.
Rod Carpenter, the director of player personnel, steepled his fingers as he listened.
“You know, it’s not the worst idea I’ve ever heard to follow up on that information. Why else would a player fly anywhere for twenty-four hours during the season? That’s odd, especially since it’s not like he can’t afford to have a woman meet him in Seattle instead.”
“Must have been a hot date,” the head coach said and snickered. The other guys at the table laughed out loud.
“Maybe he couldn’t find anyone he’d rather have in Seattle.”
“Those Sharks aren’t hard on the eyes.”
“He’d be laughed out of the locker room if he dated a cheerleader,” Jerry Berggren, the director of scouting, said.
Kendall needed to get this meeting back on track.
“Maybe he has a family member in the area, or maybe he wanted a good look at the Golden Gate Bridge. Let’s get back to the agenda,” she said, glancing down at her iPad screen. “We lost Tarvaris Walters to a hamstring injury for the rest of the season Sunday. His backup will play, but we’re now looking for another starting cornerback in free agency. What’s the progress been since this morning? Did you talk with Chase Adams’ agent?”