“Hey, we’re not closing our doors, and no one’s bailing on me.” Yet. “We’ve got a lot of people on this.” Before he left, he wanted to address her boyfriend. “If you want, I can talk to Steve, reassure him we’re not a thing.”
She snatched a tissue out of the box. “He knows about your rule, you know? That you don’t hook up with women you’re going to see again. That’s one of the reasons he’s always been so comfortable with me working with you. But now this—two pictures in less than two weeks? He feels like a fool.”
“I can talk to him, if you think it’ll help.”
“What about you? Are you in trouble for this? I didn’t even ask.”
“For being seen with two beautiful women?” He shrugged, faking a big smile. “Listen, I have to check on Walker, but we can talk about this some more, if you want. I’ll let you know what we find out.”
He started out the door, when she said, “Cassian? Is everything okay with Gigi? I mean, she’s caught up in this, too.”
“I can’t imagine a Lollipop carousing with someone like me’s a good thing for her career, but…” He shrugged, like Not my problem.
“What were you doing with her last night? I mean, why were you carrying her?”
Fair question. “It was her idea to give Walker another chance. She came with me. I was just…really damn happy she’d gotten through to him.”
“Are you sure there’s nothing going on between you? Anyone can see the way you look at her.” She came around the desk. “You can tell me, you know.”
“There’s nothing to tell. I know her through her dad—been friends a long time.” He didn’t like lying, but he had no choice. He’d done enough harm to Gigi.
He’d protect her at any cost.
Chapter Fifteen
Cassian stood on the side of the field, watching the running back drills. After a rough morning, the kids had asked if they could try again in the afternoon. He liked that. How much they cared.
“Foot back, shoulders squared.” Andre had the kids working on stance. “You’re leaning, Walker. What’s bad about leaning?”
“It tells the other team where I’m going to run.” Walker sounded bored. “But I’m not leaning.”
Andre gave him a challenging look.
“I’m not.” Walker straightened. “This isn’t leaning.”
Cassian noticed the other kids’ frustration. Once again Walker was disrupting their session. “Walker.” He flicked his fingers. Come here.
The boy’s features pinched into a foul expression. “I didn’t do anything wrong.”
Cassian didn’t waver. Letting out a huff of indignation, Walker started off toward him.
“Andre doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” Walker said.
“Of course he knows. The guy averages eight yards per carry.” He stopped and faced him. “But we’ve already talked about respect, and badmouthing the man who volunteers his time to help you learn your position is unacceptable.”
He scowled. “Are you sending me home again? Jesus, make up your mind.”
“Instead of asking me that question, which makes it all about you, I’d rather hear you tell me how generous Andre is to give up his very limited free time to help you out. I’m not sending you home, but I do want to talk to you about something.”
“Talk later. This drill’s almost over. Can I get back to my group now?”
Cassian pinned him with a hard look. It took a few seconds, but the boy finally relaxed his stance. “Yesterday, I asked you about your goals. You said you wanted to drive fancy cars and live in a mansion. But, today, I want a serious answer. Why are you here?”
At this point, he recognized the kid’s facial expressions. He really hoped the boy had the courage to get real with him.
Walker dug the toe of his cleat into the grass. Without looking up, he said, “I like football. I want to play on my school’s team.”
Thank Christ. “That’s a good reason. And we’re here to help you get on the team. But, if that’s your goal, why aren’t you listening to what a professional player’s telling you to do? You’ve got less than a week here. You could really up your game if you just paid attention, instead of fighting every step of the way.”
“Whatever.”
“I can promise you right now if your attitude is whatever, you’re not going to make it to the next level. And, trust me, you’ve got a lot of levels to pass through to make it to Andre’s.”
“I have natural ability. Everyone says so.”
“That and five bucks will get you a burger and fries. But it won’t get you on a team. Look, think of it like this. You’re at the bottom of a mountain. No one’s allowed at this base camp unless they have natural ability. So, that’s a given. That’s your ticket in. Now, you’ve got to make it all the way to the top of the mountain. Ninety-nine percent of the guys standing beside you won’t make it to the top. You know why? They’re going to get distracted. They’re going to want to party with their friends or blow off practice, or they’re going to get sick of working so hard when it looks like they’re getting nothing out of it. And there will be a lot of days when you think you’re not getting better, will never get better. The only guys who make it to the top are the ones who push through those days and keep on working their asses off. You hear me?”
“Yeah.” He stopped digging and looked Cassian right in the eye. “I hear you.”
This is good. Really good. “When I was your age, I went to my first football camp. I came home thinking I was a badass. I was going to be a football god. But a week later, I got a letter in the mail. Turns out, coaches send the athletes evaluation forms. So, I’m reading mine, and of course I’ve got all tens for the drills. I kicked ass at them. Scored high for athleticism, agility, speed, but I got the lowest possible score for coachability. I didn’t even know what that meant, so I ignored it. Until I applied for an elite camp in Florida a few months later and didn’t get in. Couldn’t believe it. I was the best, right? But guess what? Coaches won’t work with kids with attitude. Why? Because if you’re not open to learning from them, then they can’t help you. That was my wake-up call.” Because he’d hated letting Tyler Cavanaugh down. “After that, I became the most coachable football player the world had ever seen.” He grinned.
The kid looked down at his grass-stained shoes. “I want to make the elite team.”
Well, hell. The kid was finally getting real with him. At the end of the season, Cassian hosted one last session. He and the coaches picked a total of twenty kids—the best athletes from the summer—and held an intensive one-week session. No more art or cooking. Just football. Watching tape, talking strategy…everything to get them on the right path.
“I wish I’d known that from the beginning.” In fact, in the form the campers had to fill out about their dietary restrictions, allergies, and sleep issues, there was a box at the bottom that asked if they were able to attend the final session if invited.