FULL NOVELXO Class Act: Chapter 10
“Hmm.”
“Em.”
Em? My eyes flew open and connected with Coach’s. The car door was open, and he’d already unbuckled my seat belt. He rested the hand he’d been using to tap my cheek against my skin. Before he could remove it, I caught it with mine and leaned into his touch while inhaling deeply.
I was safe.
“Emery, we’re at my house,” he said hoarsely.
I took pity on him and let him go. “The more you interfere and help me, the harder it’ll be, you know.”
“There’s nothing hard about the situation. I’m a married man.”
But he wasn’t happy, was he? Mandy had told me things about her parents’ relationship, sharing her fears that they would eventually divorce. Sometimes when she was pissed off at her mother, like tonight, she was all for them separating, and then other times, she was a little girl dreaming, wanting her parents to be together forever.
Coach stepped back, and I slowly got out of the car. Thankfully, the medicine the doctor had injected me with was still working. On the way home—home—Coach had stopped to fill my prescription.
He led me inside the house. The few times I’d been here, I’d felt uncomfortable at the luxurious feel of their home. It didn’t seem to suit Coach Cooper at all. I’d never imagined all the white and ivory walls and chairs to be his kind of thing. I’d expected darker hues and bolder furniture.
“Your home’s lovely,” I said.
“Thank you.” The woman’s voice startled me. I hadn’t seen her approach. “My special touch, of course. If I left the decor up to Abe, he would turn the entire house into his man cave.”
Mandy’s mother.
She looked stunning in an off-the-shoulder dark blue cocktail dress that ended several inches above her knees. Diamonds glittered around her neck and dangled from her ears. I’d only met her once. Coach Cooper was the one usually around when Mandy and I hung out.
“Teresa, you’re home.”
“Yes. I tried calling you, but I guess you were busy.” Her gaze traveled over me, and it took everything in me not to shuffle behind Coach’s back to hide. Under her scrutiny, I felt like a naughty little boy trying to play adult games.
What had I been thinking? Coach Cooper had this stunning woman at home. How could I have insinuated earlier that he had feelings for me?
Shit.
“I had to take Mandy’s friend to the hospital,” Coach said. “Emery’s staying in the guest room for the night.”
“You couldn’t have told me?”
“I would have if you had bothered to answer your phone.”
“I tried calling you back, but you didn’t pick up.”
“We were busy at the hospital. It’s been a rough night. Let me show Emery to the guest room, and then we can talk.”
“Umm, I don’t want to be a bother,” I said. One could cut the tension between them with a knife.
“You’re not.” Coach took my arm. “This way.”
I fought my instinct to look back. Was she watching us go? My heart pounded inside my chest. Flirting with Coach was one thing, but seeing him together with his wife made me panic. What the hell was I doing?
Up the stairs, Coach turned left and led me down the hall to the room at the end. He pushed open the door and gestured for me to enter.
“The room has its own bathroom. Take a shower and get settled in. Are you hungry?”
“A little.”
“I’ll fix you something to eat. After your shower, you come down to the kitchen.”
He walked out of the bedroom and closed the door before I could even utter a thank-you. I sat heavily on the bed and emptied my pockets of my phone, some coins, and a pack of cigarettes.
The room was as fancy as the rest of the house, with an ivory bedspread and a gazillion pillows. I kicked off my shoes and dug my toes into the soft fiber of the carpet. I opened the closet. It was empty except for a pile of towels and bed linens. The window overlooked the backyard with a pool. I’d never used it. Mandy wasn’t big on swimming, and I’d always thought it would be awkward to ask if I could take a dip.
The bathroom was compact, clean, and nice, with unopened bath supplies for guests. I stripped off my clothes and stepped into the shower. The water felt good on my skin, especially over the bruised ribs on my left side. Finally, a decent shower without someone yelling at me to turn off the hot water.
I dried off with one of the big fluffy towels and returned to the bedroom. Damn, I couldn’t put back on the clothes I’d been wearing all day. I wrapped a towel around me and called Mandy to lend me something of hers, but there was no answer.
Shit. Was she already asleep? She always slept like the dead.
Knuckles rapped on the door. “Emery?”
Did it matter that I sat here in a towel? I was more covered now than in some of the clothes I wore.
“Come in.”
Coach entered, his eyes scanning my body with such intensity I might as well have been naked.
“You’re not dressed.” He turned his back, and I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help smiling.
“I was trying to call Mandy to borrow something of hers to wear.”
“Mandy’s sleeping. I’ll bring your stuff from the car.”
“Don’t bother. They’re all dirty. I only brought what was essential, knowing I would be back home this evening. Maybe you could wake Mandy and—”
“No,” he snapped. “It’s not appropriate for you to wear her clothes.”
I frowned. “Friends borrow each other’s clothes all the time.”
Coach didn’t respond. Just walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. What to do now? My stomach rumbled, reminding me I hadn’t eaten in a while.
With a sigh, I lay back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. I should just leave. What good was being here? I was only delaying the inevitable. Eventually, I would have to go home. It would be me and Dad then, with no one to defend me against his fists.
But for one night, I could sleep without fear.
The door opened again, and I jerked up. “Fucking hell.” A flare of pain ran up my left side. I panted, waiting for the nausea to pass.
“Come on. Take slow breaths.” Coach sat on the bed, gently assisting me to sit up the rest of the way. “That’s it.”
He stroked my bare arm and talked to me in that calm voice he’d used before when I had an anxiety attack, but when I leaned into him, he jumped away and climbed to his feet.
His jaw was clenched in a hard line.
Don’t take the rejection personally. He’s not available anyway.
“Here you go.” He dropped a gray shirt on the bed. “You can wear that for now.”
I rubbed my thumb over the soft material. “Whose is it?”
He swallowed. “I’ve left out a sandwich for you in the kitchen, and I’ve also thrown your things in the washing machine for you, so you’ll be able to wear your own clothes tomorrow. Turn the lights off when you’re done.”
He stalked out of the room. “Wait.”
“Good night, Emery.”
“But I—”
“Stop it!” His eyes flashed a hard glint. “I’m doing the decent thing by helping you. I don’t need to know the rest—of what you think is happening here. This is just me being a good person. I’m a happily married man with a daughter and a career I would never jeopardize.”
With that, he walked out, closing the door behind him. I blinked away the tears and pulled the shirt over my head. Why did it have to smell so much like him?
I would have preferred to stay in the bedroom, but I was hungry, so I tiptoed into the hallway. Too bad the guest room was at the end of the hall, and I had to pass the other rooms to get to the stairs.
“… times are you going to do this, Teresa? If tonight wasn’t a wake-up call for you, I’m not sure if anything can be.”
Startled by the outburst, I froze.
Coach.
Anger and hurt laced his voice. What was it like to have someone love you so much that your actions caused them to feel so much pain?
“You’re being unfair, Abe,” his wife snapped. “Why do I have to give up my professional life because I have a family? Can’t I have both?”
“You can, but at least act like you have a family. Do you know what’s happening in your daughter’s life, Teresa? Do you even care to know?”
A slap rang out, and I took a step back, my heart racing in my chest. I needed to move, but my legs wouldn’t cooperate.
“How dare you? Is it my fault you’ve settled? I’ve tried to push you to move on from your current job, but you have no ambition. If not for me, we would still live in that crappy two-bedroom apartment, barely able to make rent and take care of our family every month. Everything I’ve done I did to put this family at an advantage.”
I clapped my hand over my mouth. The words cut deep, and they weren’t even meant for me.
“No, Teresa. At least be honest with yourself. You didn’t do this for your family. You’re doing it for you. I practically raised Mandy on my own since she was a baby for you to pursue your career. And all these years, I’ve never wanted to limit your potential, so I’ve stood by your side, waiting for you to have enough, but you’re never going to have enough, are you?”
“Only you would make ambition seem like a disease, Abe. Because of my career, we’re able to move in circles we never have before. Our daughter can go to any college she wants.”
“But that won’t make up for you not being there. Dammit, Teresa, I’m a married man, and the few times you’re home, I have to beg you to have sex with me. Do you know how humiliating that is?”
“Is that what this is about? Sex? Do you want me to give you a pass to get it from someone else? If that’s what it takes for you to accept that my career is important to me, then fine, you can have sex with whomever you please.”
“You don’t mean that.”
The heartbreak in Abe’s voice drove me away from the door. I hurried down the stairs and to the kitchen, my whole body shaking. I had no business eavesdropping on their conversation, but a lot Mandy had confided in me about her family finally made sense. Why she was so close to her dad and spoke about him more than her mother.
Was that the reason Abe was drawn to me? Because he was sex-deprived, and I seemed easy?
Just the thought of sex with Abe made my cock perk up.
Slut.
I sighed. The man’s marriage was in trouble. I needed to stop flirting with him and giving him the idea I would be open to sleeping with him. If he was single—which he wasn’t—then yes, but he was still a married man.
The conversation I’d overheard played in my mind as I ate the roast beef sandwich Abe had made for me. I helped myself to a Coke from the fridge and slowly drank it. When I was almost finished, Mrs. Cooper came into the kitchen.
I couldn’t get over how beautiful and sophisticated she looked. She had on a silk nightgown, sans bra. Could a material belong to someone? Because the way she moved made it seem as if she was the silk and the silk was her.
I jumped to my feet, then winced and rubbed my side. Getting up so quickly wasn’t a good idea. My ribs hurt like hell.
“Emery.” She smiled at me. “Don’t leave on my account. In fact, I could do with the company.”
“Okay.” I sat back down on the chair.
She took a bottle of wine from the fridge, poured herself a glass, and gulped it down. “God, I needed that.”
Instead of returning the bottle to the fridge, she poured herself another glass and sat across from me. She downed the second glass and started on the third.
“Abe explained why you have to stay with us,” she said. “If you need to stay longer, please do. Our guest room is available, and I know Mandy would be happy to know you’re in a safe space.”
I gave a curt nod. “Thank you, but I think I’ll go home tomorrow.”
She eyed me and cocked her head to the side. “You’re awfully pretty for a boy.”
Woah, where was she going with this? I squirmed in the chair. “Thank you. I can’t take any credit for what I was born with.”
She chuckled. “Funny too. Hmm, you leave high school this year, right?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She made a face. “Please, call me Teresa.”
“Okay.”
“How old are you?”
“Nineteen. I’m repeating my senior year.”
“I see. What are your plans after high school?”
I shrugged. I so wanted to escape these questions, but I had no idea how to do so gracefully. “I’d love to go to college, but I don’t think I’ll be able to afford it.”
“There are ways to afford college, Emery, if you really want to go.” She pointed a finger at me. “All you need is ambition, drive, and the right attitude, and the world can be yours. And it doesn’t even matter what you have to do to get on top. It’s all just business after all. Do you understand what I’m saying, Emery?”
“I-I think so.”
The way she scrutinized me made warmth spread over my cheeks. “I can’t get over how beautiful you are.” She shook her head. “Here I am rambling when my marriage is crumbling. I just don’t know what to do anymore. When the person you love is stifling your growth, what’s left to do?”
“I’m sorry. I hope you can work everything out.”
She chuckled softly and rose to her feet. “I’m not sure everything will work out this time. Will you continue being a friend to Mandy? She might need someone close for a while.”
“Of course. I love Mandy.”
She returned the bottle of wine to the fridge. “Think about what I said, Emery. I haven’t known you for long, but I like you. I can see a fighting spirit in your eyes. If you ever need my help, I know a lot of wealthy men and women who are drawn to certain types like yourself. It might be worth your while. Good night, dear.”
My jaw dropped, and I stared after her. Had she seriously been hinting at me selling my body to her wealthy colleagues in the name of ambition? It was one thing to expose my body online—that had been my own decision—but for my friend’s mother to make me this proposition was mind boggling.
The more I learned about Teresa Cooper, the more I disliked the woman. For the way she treated Mandy and how much she hurt Abe. She didn’t deserve a man like Abe at all.