Page 59 of The Coach

I turn, pulse still hammering.

Jackson’s assistant coach, Drew Michaels, is standing there, frowning.

His eyes land on me, then flick back to Jackson.

“The hell’s going on?” Drew asks. “Who is this?”

Shit.

I panic. FULL panic mode.

“Oh! I’m an influencer,” I blurt. Too quickly. Way too quickly.

Jackson visibly tenses.

Drew blinks. “Aninfluencer?”

“Yeah.” I nod aggressively. “Football lifestyle content. Behind-the-scenes coaching perspectives. You know,the usual.”

Jackson rubs his jaw, staring at me like I’ve lost my mind.

Drew doesn’t look convinced. “Huh. I don’t recognize you.”

“Not surprising,” I say smoothly, though my voice betrays me. “I specialize in, um…nichecontent.”

Jackson bites his lip. I swear he’s trying not to laugh.

Drew glances at him. “This true?”

Jackson pauses.

And then—to my complete and total shock—he plays along.

“Yeah. Totally forgot about it, though. My phone’s been crapping out on me all day.”

I blink.

He glances at me, voice dropping just slightly.

“Right?”

Oh. My. God.

I clear my throat. “Oh, totally.” I force out a casual laugh. “Yeah. You were supposed to get back to me, but your phone was acting up. Hate when that happens.”

Jackson nods, arms crossing. “Speaking of— I need your number again.”

I freeze.

“My phone wiped everything,” he adds, voice unreadable. “Come write it down for me.”

Drew is still watching us like we’re lunatics, but I don’t argue.

I follow Jackson into his office.

Drew follows us in, arms crossed, smirking like he knows something juicy is happening.

“So,” he says, glancing between me and Jackson. “What’s this about?”

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