Never Say Never (Haven Harbor #3)

Chapter 11

ELEVEN

YOU’RE AN EIGHT AT BEST

T ucker

Our three-week road trip wrapped up with a game last night against the Cougars. We ended up winning two out of our three games— not bad for a road trip —although I still can’t seem to wrap my head around the one loss. We didn’t play our best. We looked tired and made rookie mistakes. But right now, I need to focus on the last game of the season.

There is no way we are going to lose the next one. I’ll make sure of it. And I don’t want to just win, I want to annihilate the other team. I want stats that will break every Reed Point record. I want this team to earn its way into the state’s hall of fame.

I reach for my coffee, tipping it back to get every drop, then I pull up today’s itinerary on my phone, double checking what time I need to be out front of the hotel to get on the bus.

I haven’t slept much since we left Reed Point. My mind has been constantly racing. It’s been 21 days of strategizing and reviewing plays and making sure the team is ready to hit the field. And when I haven’t been doing that, I’ve been thinking about Daisy. She has had my mind spinning. What is she doing? Is she thinking about me? Is she having second thoughts about our pact?

I look out the hotel room window to the pool below, where some kids are taking turns jumping off the low diving board. I suddenly flashback to a day when I was about 10 years old. Daisy and I had walked through the forest behind our houses to the stream where we often ended up on hot summer days. She had on a polka dot tank top with striped shorts, her long hair was tied off her face with a big, yellow bow.

Daisy clambered down the large rocks to the streambed and I followed closely behind her, both of us slipping off our shoes to wade through the water in our bare feet. She glanced back at me to make sure I was there and just then she slipped, twisting her ankle as she fell into the cool, clear water. I remember the sound of her shriek, and the way it made my heart stop.

I was next to her in a flash, lifting her into my arms and helping her to the edge of the water. Her shorts were soaked, and her ankle was already swelling but she tried to tell me that she was fine. I knew from the way her lower lip was quivering that she wasn’t.

I hated to see Daisy sad. I hated even more to see her hurt. I was barely bigger than her at that point, but I managed to get her back up the rocks and to her house. I would always take care of her. There is nothing that could ever change that.

I snap back to the present when my phone vibrates with a call from Jesse.

“Hello?” I answer, grabbing a sweatshirt from the pile of clothes on the bed and adding it to my half-packed suitcase.

“Hey, Tuck.” Only two words and I know something is off with Jesse. There’s an edge to his voice—fear— and right away my shoulders tense. “I’m renting a car and heading home as soon as possible. Caitlyn is in labor, and the doctors think she’s going to have the baby today,” he says, his voice sounding shaky.

It’s not often I see Jesse’s feathers ruffled. The guy thrives under pressure. We all do to some extent, it’s part of the job, but Jesse is always cool as a cucumber, taking everything the game throws our way in stride.

But not today.

“I’m going with you,” I say, quickly starting to stuff the rest of my things into the bag. “I’m not letting you drive. I’ll meet you in the lobby in five.”

“Okay, I’m not going to argue. But hurry, okay, Tuck? I need to get to Caitlyn.”

I hang up and am downstairs within four minutes. I find Jesse already outside, lifting his suitcase into an Uber. He looks like hell. After I shove my stuff in the trunk, I get in the backseat with Jesse for the 15-minute ride to the nearest car rental company.

“I’m going to make some phone calls, so the team knows we’re not on the bus with them going home.”

“Thanks,” he mutters as his fingers fly across the screen of his phone, no doubt texting Caitlyn.

“How’s she doing?” I ask as I wait for our assistant athletic director to answer my call.

“She’s at the hospital. She’s already been admitted.” He takes off his ball cap before dragging his hands through his hair.

“You’ll make it in time. It’s going to be fine.”

“She wasn’t supposed to have the baby for three more weeks. What if—”

“No what-if’s, man. Everything is going to be okay.”

We pull up in front of the hospital two hours later. I told Jesse we should stop at his house and pick up some clothes and toiletries, but he was in a rush to get to Caitlyn. His mother-in-law kept him updated the entire drive, and as of 10 minutes ago Caitlyn was still in labor.

“You’re gonna be a dad the next time I see you,” I tell him as we make the turn into the hospital parking lot. “That’s some cool shit, man. Send me a pic, okay?”

I’ve barely stopped the truck when Jesse throws the passenger door open and hops out, calling out his thanks as he takes off running through the hospital doors.

I’m itching to get home, but first I drive to the car rental place and drop off the vehicle, and then call for an Uber back to the stadium. By the time I am pulling my suitcase up to the front door of my house, I’m wiped. I pause for a moment to take in the view of the beach across the road. I’ve lived here for years now, but it never gets old. I check my phone quickly, but there is still no news from Jesse.

My mind again wanders to Daisy. I wonder if she wants a family. She is so carefree, still intent on travelling the world and going on new adventures. Thinking back, she’s never been one of those girls who talked about how many kids they wanted or the baby names they liked. Maybe she doesn’t really see herself settling down and having children.

“Are you going to stand out here by yourself all night?”

I look up, startled by the sound of Holden’s voice. “I’m coming in. I’m exhausted. Just needed a minute.”

“Too tired for a beer on the porch with me and Jake?”

It’s been a long day, but a beer with the guys sounds good, so I deposit my suitcase inside and then head out to join Holden on the porch. As I’m easing into the Adirondack chair, Jake walks across the lawn from his house next door with a beer in his hand.

“Hey. Where’s Grayson?” I ask.

Grayson lives next door to us with Sierra, Jake’s sister. They got married last year and are expecting their first baby. It’s wild when I think about how my best friends are mostly all husbands and fathers now. Jake’s wife Everly is also pregnant, and they have an 8-year-old daughter, Birdie. Everly had Birdie with her ex, who is a real piece of work, but Jake loves that little girl like she’s his own. The three of them moved onto Haven Harbor last year, moving into Sierra’s house after she decided to move in with Grayson.

Now it’s just Holden and I who have stayed strong. Holden has been with his girlfriend, Aubrey, for a while now, but I’m not sure how much longer that will last. They’ve been fighting like cats and dogs lately.

“Gray is probably banging Sierra’s brains out,” Holden jokes, unable to pass up the opportunity to rile Jake up.

“I will fuck you up if you say shit like that again,” Jake says, glaring at him.

“Like I’m wrong? The walls in these old houses are pretty thin, man,” Holden says, laughing.

Jake makes a move in Holden’s direction, and he throws both hands up in self defense. “Okay, okay,” he pleads. “I’ll stop.”

I shake my head then take a swig of my beer, looking out at the ocean. I wouldn’t trade this view for anything.

“So, what happened on the road?”

“We won two out of three.”

“Atta boy. Must feel good to be Coach Collins right now. Man, you win the Division 2 national championships, and this town just might erect a motherfucking statue of your ugly mug in the center of the town.”

“Just what we need,” Jake mumbles under his breath.

“Damn right, I deserve a monument. I’m a 10.”

“You’re an eight at best,” Jake says. “A waste of stone, if you ask me.”

“Good thing no one is asking.”

“Hell, your dad would love that.” Holden says, sitting back in his chair. “Man, I’ll pay for the damn thing myself just to see the look on his face.”

“Yeah, my dad would shit.”

“He can fuck a coffee table,” Jake says. “Everyone knows what an incredible coach you are. If he can’t see it, you’re better off without him.”

Holden and Jake have always had my back. Holden and I have been friends since we were kids. We went to high school together and played on the same baseball team, then ended up going to the same college as well. After graduation, I needed a roommate, and Holden was the first guy I thought of. We moved into our little place on Haven Harbor and that’s when we met Grayson, who lived next door. Not long after that we met Jake and the four of us have been like brothers ever since. These guys show up for me like family, without me ever having to ask.

“I gotta run,” Jake says, pushing up from his chair. “Ev just texted. She has a craving for a McDonald’s sundae.”

“A craving?” Holden asks.

“Did you forget she’s pregnant, dummy?” I mutter, checking my phone again for a message from Jesse. Still nothing.

“How can I? Every one is pregnant,” Holden says, stretching out the word. “There’s something in the water, Tuck. I wouldn’t drink it.”

I shake my head. I’m happy as hell for my friends, but I’m in no rush to start a family. Grayson, Jake, and Jesse are going to make phenomenal fathers.

I’d probably just fuck it up. That is if I’m anything like my own dad.