Page 150 of The Coach

“I suppose we’ll see.”

Then, like before, she turns on her heel and walks off.

Cassie sighs, turning to me. “Okay,nowcrisis averted.”

I stare at her. “Cass. She knows.”

Cassie waves me off. “Maybe. But she won’t say anything unless it’s beneficial for her. You’re fine.”

I bite my lip, glancing toward the field, where Jackson is pacing the sideline, barking orders.

Fine.

Sure.

But for how long?

The car ride after the game is quiet. The hum of the city, the blur of neon lights, the weight of everything that happened this weekend—it’s all sitting between us.

I shift in my seat, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.God, this is weird. Harder than I expected.

“Sucks that you lost the game today.” My voice is soft, careful.

Jackson exhales, jaw flexing. “Yeah. Tough one.”

I hesitate. “I wasn’t…a distraction, was I?”

His head snaps toward me, eyes sharp. “Of course not.”

I study his face for a beat. His furrowed brows, the slight shake of his head—like he’s actually offended I’d think that.

Finally, I nod. “Okay.”

He grips the wheel tighter, glancing at the road. “Next week’s in New York.” A pause. Then, softer: “And after that…bye week.”

My stomach flutters.Bye week.Which means a whole weekend off, with no team travel on the weekend.

“So,” he continues, glancing at me from the corner of his eye. “When am I going to meet your family?”

My heart stumbles.

I blink. “What?”

Jackson smirks slightly, but his voice is steady. Serious. “Your family. Your mom, Carl. I mean, they know you’re pregnant, right? You said they don’t know about me yet.”

I swallow.

It’s not that Idon’twant them to know.

It’s just…I don’t knowhowto tell them yet.

Jackson sighs. “Look, I get it. It’s a lot. But they’re gonna find out eventually, right?”

I nod slowly. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right.”

I just have no ideahowto introduce them to the man who got me pregnant in one wild night and then ghosted me (kind of).

Before I can spiral, we pull into Union Station.

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