Page 21 of Love on the Sidelines

Emily stands and walks to the fridge while I stare out the window and replay all my interactions with Ava. I'm not sure I know how Emily picked up on my interest in her. Maybe she just knows me too well.

Then again, Ava isn’t the kind of woman I usually go for. My past girlfriends and dates have had certain qualities and Ava doesn’t have those. Maybe that’s why I’m so intrigued. Too bad it won’t last long before I move on and find something else to obsess about. That’s how most of my businesses started.

But if it's easier for Emily, I've got to cool my jets with the lacrosse coach.

11

AVA

Flying with a head cold is probably the worst thing ever. My ears had this sharp stabbing sensation on the ascent and descent of the plane to Tennessee, which was hard to hold in as a grown woman. I just turned my head toward the window and tried not to cry.

I've taken a few types of medicine by the time we get off the plane, because I've still got to be the tour guide since I’ve been here several times. Sure, I don't have any reservations for the vehicles, but I'll be driving one, since I'm finally legal in the car rental company’s eyes.

"Are you all right?" I hear Charlie say from behind me. I'm sure my eyes are bloodshot and I'm just trying to get us to the hotel so I can sleep for the foreseeable future.

"Just great," I say with a little bent arm swing.

"You got a cold, huh?" he asks, looking me over with a serious expression.

Nodding, I take out a tissue and wipe at the underpart of my tender nose. "Yep. Gotta love it."

Emily gives him a weird look before lengthening her stride and walking to catch up with some of the other girls.

"It looks like she's making friends," I say, pointing toward her. I probably shouldn't be continuing the conversation, but I want to talk to him longer. Maybe this cold is weakening my resolve to stay away from Charlie.

There will be a few parents on this trip, but mostly, it's like I'm the bouncer at a very young frat party. Maybe a little adult interaction is necessary.

"Yeah, she says that your team is the only reason she hasn't hitchhiked back to Michigan."

I chuckle and say, "At least I'm doing my job somewhat."

"What got you into starting this team?"

I sigh, wondering how much to divulge of this really long process.

"My very first coach was amazing, but after that, I didn't have the best coaches growing up or in college. I think I wanted to make a difference somehow, to grow the game and to give girls the opportunity to learn under a coach who didn't constantly yell all the time. Marsha reached out to me when I moved back to help Gran, and I figured I could make it work. It gives me a little more time to remember the good times of lacrosse while not being forced into physical therapy for torn muscles again.”

Charlie frowns as we walk through the security gate and out to pick up gear and luggage. "That sounds painful."

"Yes, yes it was."

He mulls that over for a moment and I'm counting the girls, making sure they're all there.

"Is that why you coach now? Instead of playing?"

I swallow hard, the lump forming in my throat making it difficult. "Yeah. Three surgeries on the same leg meant I was now a liability for my team. I also didn't want to ruin my leg forever. I'd like to grow old without regrets."

"That's an interesting way to put things."

"Sometimes I think about the future and other times I hide from it." What can I say? Some days I just don't want to take responsibility. Those times are meant for brownies and pajamas.

We've rounded up all the girls and secured vehicles to take us all to the hotel.

"Okay, I'll go get the keys," Marsha says, and I'm just glad I can sit in the van. The humidity isn't as bad as I've played in before, but it's still enough to make this girl's hair go curly. And not the cute bouncy curls, but the frizzy, tangled ones.

"Are we ready for this weekend?" I ask, hoping for some response from the few girls in my van.

"Only if we can get some better music on in here," one girl says. We all laugh and I let Sarah take over as DJ, turning on the songs the girls want to listen to. I'm not that far out from the teen years, but there is a definite change in the genre of music being played these days. Geez, I sound like I should be at the nursing home with my grandma.

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