Page 18 of Coach Sully
“Shit, I’m sorry. That was insensitive… What about your dad?”
“You didn’t know.” I shrug with a smile. “My dad served in the Army and died during a tour in Afghanistan when I was young. I lived with my grandmother until college. Mom passed away my senior year. So I’m ridin’ solo.”
“That must have been tough.” He’s giving me his full attention. His gaze is trained on me, but I refuse to return it. If I have to look into those blue eyes, it’ll break my put-together facade.
I roll my lips together and nod. I’d love to not talk about this. “Thanks…” I chuckle. “Sorry for bringing down the room. What a buzzkill.”
“Pretty sure the party didn’t start until you walked through the door,” he says, and I glance at him in time to see his wink. I will miss those winks.
For the first time, the silence between us feels a little awkward. I don’t know what to say. We’re both victims of bad timing and unfortunate circumstances.
Sully looks down into his glass. “Do you think I should have turned down the show?”
My head cocks back. “And give up a head coaching position with the Rogues? No.Hell no. You have to go after something like this.”
He nods but doesn’t seem pleased.
“And hey, now I don’t have to keep trying to make a deal with that basketball player and his agent. So really, you’ve made my job a little easier. Which reminds me, thank you for bargaining to keep me on as a producer.”
“Sorry you don’t get to take the lead.”
I shrug. “Maybe next time, but for now, it’s pretty good. Jeremy Bowers is a great producer. I’m looking forward to working with him. I’ll learn a lot. This could open many doors. There aren’t many young Black female producers who get this kind of opportunity. Don’t get me wrong, I would have loved to see what happened between us, but I think we would both always regret not taking the leap in our careers.”
He gives a shake of his head. “Damn, you’re driven,” he says before taking a sip of his whiskey.
“I have to be.” There are no handouts. If I want this, it’s up to me to get it.
“Can we still be friends?” he asks.
“That’s cold, Sully.” I feign surprise. “Are you really dumping me at a party?”
He chuckles.
I smile and tap my elbow against his. “Yeah, we can still be friends.”
He drops his arm and wraps it around my back. His caress sets fire to my skin, and I opt to clear my throat rather than suck in a breath.
“Can I still teach you how to skate?”
The memory of being in his arms on that slippery fake ice warms me from the inside. I wrinkle my nose and scoot away from him. I love his touch, but it burns too hot. “That’s probably not a good idea.”
He drops his gaze to his lap with the rejection, then stares out to the crowd. “Yeah,” he mutters before taking a sip from his water. My drink sits untasted in front of me. I need to keep my wits about me when Sully’s near.
We look on as a few of the A/V guys pack up their gear. The show is really happening, this was only a warm-up. Soon, I’ll be sitting in the front row, watching his possible love story unfold. One hell of a spectator sport. One of our cameramen, Lance,heads toward our table. He nods to Sully before speaking with me. “We got some great shots. I’m going to head home, but I’ll upload everything tonight and will put together some highlights tomorrow morning. Is there anything else you need from us before we take off?”
“Nope, all good. Great work tonight. Be sure to take some leftovers from the dessert table home to Maria.”
He nods. “Will do. See you tomorrow, Kendra.” He holds his hand out to me, and we do our secret handshake. He looks back to the giant sitting next to me. “Have a good night, man. Congratulations.”
He nods and gives his thanks. Lance heads toward the dessert table, and Sully chuckles. “Hmm. That’ll be a different dynamic for us.”
“What will?” I take the first sip of my drink and gently place it on the cocktail napkin.
“You bossing me around on set.”
My cheeks heat as I recall all the ways he bossed me around. Every dirty thing whispered in my ear. He was in control, which allowed me to release all of mine. It was so freeing and grounding. A break from the directing and decision fatigue.
I elbow his side, and he laughs. We stay in our little corner, laughing and chatting with each other while the rest of the party continues on without us. Eventually, people filter out, and Sully’s PR manager, Kailey, finds us to say goodbye. I’ve been in contact with her on and off this last week now that we’ve got the ball rolling.