Scoring The Coach ✔️

chapter twenty-five

Chapter Twenty-Five

We were waiting at the park for Mason the following afternoon. I'd offered to let Jared go alone, but he insisted I come with him. We made sandwiches that morning, and Jared was so nervous he kept redoing them to make sure they were perfect. That was how I ended up eating PB&J for breakfast, but I didn't mind.

I sat beside him on the bench next to the playground, holding his hand. His knee was bouncing up and down with anxiety.

"Hey," I whispered. "You're gonna be okay. Today is gonna be a great day."

"I hope so," he groaned. "God, what if Alison flakes? I need to see my son. I want to get to know him."

"You will," I said, hoping she would show up so I wouldn't be proven wrong.

Thankfully, she approached us right as the words left my mouth. Mason made a beeline for the bench we were sitting at, throwing his arms around Jared like he did yesterday.

"Dad!" he hollered. "Hi, Dad!"

Alison laughed, her smile transforming her face. It was the first time I'd seen it, and she was beautiful. Everything about her was radiant, especially when she was being kinder. "He's very excited to see you. It was all he could talk about the whole way here. The whole morning actually. He's very excited about having a dad."

"Yeah, I am!" Mason exclaimed.

"I'm glad to hear it," Jared said, and with that, he followed Mason right out to the playground. I watched them as they climbed up onto the play structure. Mason dragged Jared to the slide, and he seemed content to follow his son.

I don't think I've ever seen him as happy as he was in the moment. It was amazing and heartwarming to watch. There was so much trust, even if Mason barely knew Jared yet. I knew he would be an amazing father.

I felt awkward being alone with Alison on the bench like that, but I decided to make the most of it.

"He's a great kid," I told her.

"He really is," she said. "God, he's so much like Jared it drives me crazy sometimes. He has no idea because he hasn't been around him enough. Even at five, he reminds me so much of his dad."

I tried to imagine Jared at that age, and my heart warmed knowing how adorable he must've been.

She looked at me, her gaze softening. "I was a bitch to you yesterday. I'm sorry about that. I've been a bitch to Jay too. I felt so guilty about what happened that I was taking it out on him, which isn't right. I have to move for my career, and the pay is what will help me give Mason the life he deserves. I know that I've got to play nice because I have a feeling you're going to be around for a while. You seem like a good girl. Jared never looked at me the way he looks at you. You should be proud of that."

I smiled, taking her apology as a small victory. "Just remember that Mason will never look at me the way he looks at you because you're his mom."

She nodded. "You're really great. Any other girl would be ignoring me by now, but you aren't. You're really nice. Genuinely nice. And you're pretty too. You could be a model."

"Now you're just kissing up," I said bashfully.

"I'm not. I mean it," she pressed. "Then again, you should enjoy playing soccer and eating. I'm doing a bikini shoot next week and I have to drink a ton of smoothies instead of solid food."

"That sounds awful," I said.

"Oh, it is," she replied. "But that's my job. I love it, at the end of the day. Nothing beats being with my son, though."