“Let me guess. Because all of the contestants are hot?”
“Yes, sir.”
“God help us. Okay. What else?”
“It’s one of those big fall lineup shows that start in October. A new episode every week.” Which is almost worse than a series you can binge. Because I’d prefer to rip off the Band-Aid and watch it all at once.
Coach must see something on my face because he pats me on the back. “Breakups are tough, but maybe this was a blessing in disguise. You don’t need a girlfriend who airs out your dirty laundry in public. You’ll need to work hard to block out the noise.”
I swallow past the thick knot in my throat. If my relationship with Dakota has taught me anything, it’s that I’ll never be the idiot who trusts a woman like that again.
For the next year, I have two goals: Take care of my son and kick ass at football. There’s zero room in that equation for girlfriends.
I was a fool to go there with Dakota.
“Coach, thanks for taking a chance on me. Especially with all this other stuff going on.”
He nods. “You know what sealed the deal for me? Your honesty. The fact that you leveled with me from the beginning. Because I can’t help my players if they don’t trust me to do right by them.”
Aside from my parents and brothers, this man is about the only other person I trust in the world.
“Hang in there, Ramirez,” he says as he gathers his stuff. “When you have your priorities straight, life has a funny way of working out when you least expect it to.”
It reminds me of something my mom always says. Cuando Dios cierra una puerta, abre una ventana. When God closes a door, he opens a window.
I hope Mom and Coach are right. I need to stay focused on football this fall, but with Dakota doing who knows what on The Hot House, I’m not sure what to expect.
If I know my ex, it has the potential to be bad.
Really bad.
2
CHARLOTTE
Down on my hands and knees, I coo at the despondent fur ball huddled in the corner of his cage. “Come on, Duke. You have to eat.”
The speckled Australian shepherd with haunting pale eyes ignores me and lets out a whine.
A lot of animals have trouble when they land at the shelter. They keep looking to the door, waiting for their owners to return. They don’t eat. They don’t want toys. They don’t understand why they were abandoned.
It’s a feeling I’m well acquainted with. Now that I’ve gotten some space from my sister, I realize my family deserted me a long time ago. I was just too blind to see it.
“The vet says he’s fine,” Sheryl calls out from her desk. “Physically, there’s nothing wrong with him. He got an IV ’cause he was dehydrated, but he won’t go near the kibble.” She pauses. “My hands are tied if he won’t eat, darlin’.”
Meaning Duke will be put down because the shelter can’t afford the feeding tube. She’s already explained the vet will do the first treatment pro bono, but anything beyond that, Second Chances Animal Rescue will have to foot the bill. And since they can’t afford that, they’ll hand the dog over to Animal Control, which will euthanize him.
My eyes sting at the thought this beautiful animal might lose his life because some asshole mistreated him.
I reach out my hand, with my fingers curled in so he doesn’t nip one off. Duke jerks back, like I’m going to strike him, and my heart clenches.
Witnessing the aftermath of abuse is the worst part about volunteering at a rescue shelter.
“It’s okay, buddy,” I say softly. “I’m not going to hurt you. I know what it’s like to not have anyone you can trust. I just want to be your friend.”
I shrug off my camera and tuck it carefully into the secondhand padded case. Duke’s headshot will have to wait. I don’t let myself consider how he might not be here later this week when I return with the new adoption flyers.
For the next few minutes, I try my best to forget what might be on this floor and slowly sprawl out on the ground and wait for Duke to get used to me.
Sheryl’s footsteps echo on the concrete floor. She pauses when she sees me lying down in Duke’s cage. Lifts a brow.
“We’re bonding,” I whisper as I creep my hand closer to Duke. I keep my eyes down because I don’t want him to think I’m challenging him. I’m a huge pushover, something I’m working on, but the terrified dog doesn’t know this.
“You’re crazy, Charlie, but I dig that about you.” Sheryl’s husky laugh wanes as she continues to the break room, where Merle’s low baritone voice joins hers.
Sheryl’s in her forties. Divorced. Has a smoker’s cough and is secretly in love with Merle, who runs this place. She’s never come out and said she has a thing for her boss, but I can tell.
After all, I’m an expert when it comes to unrequited love.
For a second, I let myself think about Jake and his captivating eyes fringed with long lashes and the way they crinkle at the corners when he smiles.
I hope he’s doing well. That he’s kicking ass at football and that he and my sister have worked through their challenges. I say a prayer for him and Kota and baby Asher every night. I might not be in their lives anymore, but they’re always in my heart.
Despite moving four hours away, I’m still obsessed with Jake. Not in the way you think. Just… he’s who I compare every man to, especially the datable men around here. And, well, they always fall short.
At least Jake didn’t know I was in love with him. That’s a level of humiliation I wouldn’t have been able to stand—him knowing how I felt and still choosing my sister.
A scratchy, wet tongue licks my wrist, and it’s my turn to jerk in surprise. Duke stares back at me and whines. He bows his head, and I reach up to pet him.
“Look at you. Aren’t you a sweet boy?”
I relish the distraction. Transferring colleges two years ago to get away from the Jake and Dakota sex-fest helped, but once in a while, those old ghosts haunt me.
Mostly I worry about my nephew. My sister isn’t a great mom, something she admits. Kota’s just not that present when she’s with Asher. I’m sure Jake will hold down the fort, but he plays football, so he can’t fill in all the gaps.
I miss Asher so much some days it’s hard to breathe. He’s three now and probably doesn’t remember his aunt Charlie anymore. The heartache of not seeing him is what brought me to Second Chances originally. I needed something to fill that crater in my heart.
The worst part is I can’t even ask how he and his parents are doing because I changed my phone number when I took off. I left Kota and Jake notes to explain, sorta, so they wouldn’t think anything horrible had happened.
And I called my mother so she’d understand why I couldn’t go to NTU anymore. All she did was scream I was ruining everything before she told me not to bother coming home for the summer and hung up on me. Since my father goes along with whatever my mom wants, I didn’t bother calling him because I know he doesn’t care.
My mother was just pissed she’d have to start babysitting instead of dumping that responsibility on me.
I’ve been on my own ever since.