by Kay Gordon
My phone was on the seat next to me and I grabbed it, immediately pressing Vincent’s name once it was unlocked. I held it up to my ear and he answered on the second ring.
“I don’t understand how every sock I own has a hole in it, Vic. I really don’t.”
I chuckled and climbed out of my car. “Maybe if you filed down those hooves sometimes, they’d stop ripping the fabric apart.”
“Maybe if my sister would give me monthly pedicures, my hooves would be silky smooth.” I could hear the smile in Vincent’s voice and I already felt a million times better. “How was your first coaching gig?”
“One girl refused to kick the ball and only wanted to pick it up. Another insisted on laying in the middle of the pitch so she could cloud watch. A third spent her time playing in the netting.”
Vincent laughed again. “That’s awesome. I’m sure you loved every second, too.”
“Shut up.” I dropped onto my couch and looked up at my ceiling. “Evan Coleman is my assistant coach.”
“What?” My brother’s voice was loud, like an explosion in my ear. “What the fuck, Victoria? Is he stalking you? Do we need to call the police?”
I chuckled softly at my brother’s immediate reaction. “No, Vin. He was just as surprised to see me, I promise. He actually came to my defense when one of the girls’ dads was being slimy.”
I replayed what had happened at the field, including the small conversation I’d had with Evan Coleman. When I finished, Vincent was silent for a moment.
“Be careful with this guy. I’m not sure he can be trusted.”
“I know,” I replied in almost a whisper. “If anyone is weary of people, it’s me.”
What a sad truth.
Chapter Twelve
Evan
Apparently I was still the assistant coach after that Wednesday practice because I didn’t hear anything when Saturday rolled around. So, I put that purple shirt back on, a pair of sports shorts, my hat, and went to pick up my niece.
“Can we go get ice cream after practice?” Grace asked from the backseat and I met her eyes in the mirror.
“Duh.”
She giggled happily and a smile hit my lips without even the slightest bit of effort.
“How was school yesterday?”
She was in the second week of second grade and absolutely loved it. There was a new story about something she’d learned or a friend she made every time I saw her.
I listened as she jumped into a story about something that had happened at recess, properly reacting with nods and hums of agreements, and she finally stopped to take a breath when we pulled up at the soccer field.
“Is Tori Kendra’s mommy?” Grace asked as we walked hand-in-hand to our field. I looked down at her and shook my head.
“No. They’re just good friends. Why?”
“So she doesn’t have a husband?” The little girl batted her eyelashes and it caused me to narrow my eyes.
“What’s going through that brilliant little brain of yours, Gracie?”
She offered me an angelic smile that did nothing to make her seem innocent. “Nothing.”
A handful of parents were already there when we walked up and my eyes immediately found Victoria. She was crouched in front of Kendra, fixing her shin guards. When she tilted her chin to smile up at the little girl, I almost stumbled.
She was so fucking beautiful.
Like at the last practice, her hair was pulled up in a ponytail and she was wearing her purple shirt. That shirt wasn’t tight by any means but it also wasn’t baggy like everything else she wore. Unlike the practice before, however, she was wearing a pair of grey track pants and I was immediately missing the short black shorts that had showed off her long, sleek legs. After the way that dick had hit on her the other day, I couldn’t really blame her for leaving them behind.
Grace called her name and let go of my hand so she could run towards her. Victoria stayed in the crouch but opened her arms and hugged my niece to her chest. The two chatted for a moment and I watched until I felt someone touch my arm.
Turning my head, I locked eyes with one of the moms that had tried to get my attention last week. She was pretty enough but the look on her face was basically predatory.
“Evan, right?”
I nodded my head. “You’re Christina’s mother?”
“That’s right. I’m Monica.” She giggled and held out her hand for me to shake. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Yeah, you too.” I dropped her hand quickly and glanced over to Victoria.
She was no longer preoccupied by the little girls and was looking right at where I was with Monica. Our eyes met and we stood like that, just staring at each other, for several long moments. She finally looked away first when another little girl arrived and ran up to greet her.
Right at eleven, Victoria clapped her hands together and called for the girls to gather around. I joined the small group and listened as she explained that she wanted them to do passing drills. The two of us stood apart from each other and demonstrated how to do stationary passes and then set the girls up to practice with partners.
“You know,” I said quietly as I moved to stand next to her. “I’m good with football, baseball, basketball, and hockey, but I’m not entirely well versed on the rules and procedures of soccer.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her lips tip up marginally. “I had to study it all last week because I had no idea either. The extent of my knowledge was that you couldn’t touch the ball with your hands.”
I let out a small huff of laughter and she glanced over at me briefly before refocusing on the girls. I adjusted the hat on my head and watched my niece kick the ball to Kendra.
“Do you think you could ask Kendra’s parents if they would want to arrange a playdate sometime? Grace really took to her.”
“Yeah, of course,” Victoria replied softly. “Owens and his wife are taking her home today but I’ll ask them when I see them next. I have your phone number on the contact sheet. Can I just give Alex that?”
“That would be great. Thanks, Victoria.”
She looked over at me, settling those green eyes on my face. For a moment, I thought she was going to say something else.
She didn’t. Instead she called the girls up to huddle around us and described a run and pass drill she wanted the girls to do. She looked up at me and nodded once.
“Watch what Evan and I do, okay? Then you’ll try with your partners.”
We stood with about ten feet between us and started jogging forward at the same time. Victoria was dribbling the ball with her feet and she kicked it to me. I stopped it with one foot and then we turned so I could dribble it back. Right before we met the girls, I passed it back to her.
“Okay. You girls try it.”
Her athletic ability was impressive. She spent a good amount of time running next to the kids, never once appearing out of breath. Her movements were fluid, sure, and it was a fucking turn on to watch her.
I wasn’t the only one who thought that obviously. Melinda’s douchebag father was standing with two other dads and the three of them watched her like she was a piece of meat. He met my eyes at one point and gave me a look that said he was still irritated with me for butting in a few days before. I just returned his stare with one of my own until he looked away.
The kids did a fifteen minute scrimmage that went better than Wednesday’s had. Well, somewhat better. Christina didn’t watch the clouds this time and instead searched the grass for dandelions.
When practice was over, they sat around eating pretzels and grapes that one of the parents had brought for snack.
Victoria cleared her throat to get everyone’s attention. “I just wanted to let you all know that I’ll be unavailable for the weekday practice this week due to my work schedule so Mr. Coleman is leading it. I will be here for the game on Saturday. We have pictures that day so please arrive early.”
The parents were dispersing when Simon Owens appeared, holding the hand of a brunette woman that I assumed was his wife, and they had a blonde-haired boy with them. All three of them were wearing red shirts that had the Parks and Rec logo on them. Simon offered me a friendly smile and nodded his head once.
“Evan, good to see you again. This is my wife, Megan.”
The pretty brunette smiled and shook my hand. “Nice to meet you, Evan.”
“You too.” I gestured towards Grace, who had just run up with Kendra. “That’s my niece, Grace.”
Victoria came to a stop next to me and folded her arms across her chest. “Why can’t they do soccer in the wintertime? It’s way too hot to be out here today.”
“Oh, don’t get him started,” Megan replied with a roll of her eyes. “He almost didn’t let me come because of the heat.”
“You’re pregnant, Megs. You can’t be getting overheated.” Simon tugged on his wife until she was against his side and he brought his free hand up to rest it over her stomach protectively. She didn’t look pregnant so I assumed she wasn’t too far along. “Thank Tori so we can get you and Hudson back to your mom’s, Ken.”
Kendra turned and wrapped her arms around Victoria’s middle and the woman hugged her back almost instantly.
“Thanks, Tori. See you at the game!” She glanced over at me and grinned. “See you at practice, Evan!”
I held my hand up in a wave and we all said goodbye as the four of them left. Grace, Victoria, and I started cleaning up the equipment and Victoria was holding the bag open so I could put the balls away when Grace spoke.
“Can Tori go get ice cream with us, Uncle Evan?”
Victoria snapped her head up and looked at the little girl before glancing over at me. I smiled at her and shrugged my shoulders.
“You’re more than welcome to join us.”
“I appreciate the invite,” Victoria replied quietly offering me the smallest smile before giving Grace an even bigger one. “I actually have lunch plans this afternoon.”
As if on cue, a loud voice sounded from the edge of the field. “Vic!”
All three of us turned our heads and saw a guy standing at the end of the field with his arms folded over his chest. His shaggy, light-blond hair curled around his ears and although I couldn’t make out his features from across the field, I could tell his eyes were narrowed.
Her boyfriend.
I had no idea why the thought of her being in a relationship hadn’t crossed my mind. Of course a beautiful, obviously smart, and strong person like Victoria Jones had a boyfriend.
“Maybe next time.” I forced a smile to my face and took the bag of equipment from her since I would need it for the next practice. “We’ll see you at the game next weekend.”
She nodded slightly and reached out to ruffle Grace’s hair. “Okay. Bye, guys.”
We all walked in the direction of the man who was glaring at me. When we got close enough, I heard Victoria hiss something to him that sounded like “Stop it”.
The moment she was close enough, the guy had one of his arms draped across her shoulders and was pulling her to his side. He glared at me one more time and we headed in separate directions at the parking lot.
I got Grace buckled into the backseat and grinned at her. “Let’s go get some ice cream, noodle.”
–––
“Zero?” I blinked at Dominic and he leaned back in his chair with his hands behind his head.
“Yeah. That’s the only thing anyone knows him by. No one at that level has a clue what his real name is.”
I glanced down at the report in my hand. “So Zero’s identity might be the key to stopping this whole thing.”
“We’re so close to catching this bastard.” He leaned forward to look at his computer when it chimed with a new email. “Fuck. Our UA at New Hope High said a fresh wave of Sludge appeared today. She’s working on trying to figure out who’s dealing it.”
“Damn it.” We had one undercover agent who was posing as a high school student and keeping an eye on the drug situation for us. Some of our best information came from Detective Robertson.
I was combing through traffic cam footage, trying to see if I could find any clues as to who killed Brian, when the phone rang on my desk. I picked it up when I saw it was the reception desk calling and held it to my ear with a sigh.
“Coleman.”
“Detective Coleman, there’s a gentleman here who says he’d like to speak with you. He doesn’t have an appointment.”
“Lovely. I’ll be right there,” I grumbled, pushing away from my desk. People rarely stopped by asking for us and when they did, it wasn’t generally good news.
I walked down the hallway until I was in the reception area and froze when I saw who was standing near the water cooler.
It was the man from the soccer field the night before. Victoria’s boyfriend.
He was in a pair of khaki cargo shorts and a red t-shirt and his body language looked tense. When I cleared my throat, he turned to face me and I saw that the tension had bled to his face as well. He stared at me with bright green eyes and stuffed his hands into his pockets.
“Can I help you?”
“What are you doing with Victoria?” He shook his head slightly. “What’s your game, asshole?”
I stared at him with my interrogator face, the one that gave nothing away. “I generally go by Coleman, actually. And you are…?”
“Vincent Jones. Vic’s brother.”
Her brother. Of course he was. They looked a lot alike and I remembered hearing his name back when everything went down with Tristan.
The relief that hit me when I realized that Victoria potentially didn’t have a boyfriend was sharp. I didn’t let it show, though, and instead gestured back to where my desk was.
“Let’s talk.”
I caught the receptionist’s eye as I turned around and gave her a sharp nod to let her know everything was okay. Vincent followed me down the hall and when I sat down at my desk, he didn’t hesitate to take a seat in front of it. He leaned forward, those sharp green eyes that were exactly like his sister’s focused on my face.
“Straight up, are you stalking her?”
“Stalking her?” I repeated, unable to hold in the incredulous laugh. “I’m definitely not stalking her.”
The look on his face said he didn’t believe me. “I checked up on you, Coleman. You’ve been in New Hope for a while. You’re telling me that in two years, you two didn’t run into each other once and then in a span of just weeks, it’s happening all of the time?”
“I guess I am.” I shrugged slightly. “The fire was coincidence, obviously. The soccer stuff isn’t really a coincidence since her lieutenant made the arrangements.”
He stared at me for a long moment, like he was trying to figure out if I was being honest or not, and then finally nodded. “You guys turned her life upside down. She was never the same after what the fucker did to her. She doesn’t smile as much. She doesn’t have friends. Hell, she doesn’t even wear clothes that fucking fit.”
I’d figured out as much but hearing it all confirmed caused my chest to ache. I didn’t rub it like I wanted to and instead tried to figure out a way to get him to understand.
“I get your animosity, I do.” I held up my hand when he tried to interrupt. “What my brother did to her was disgusting and I know that I’m guilty by association.”
“Oh no. Not by association, you are guilty. When your father told you to make it go away, you jumped in to help!”
I shook my head quickly. “I didn’t, though.”
That got his attention. “What do you mean?”
“Even agreeing with my father made my stomach sick but I played a part,” I explained. “I spent my time behind the scenes making sure the case was handled fairly and keeping my father’s corruption out of it. The only way I could do that was to make my family think I was on their side.”
“Are you fucking with me right now?”
Shame burned low in my gut. Even though I did what was for the best, I still knew it was wrong. “No. I hung around, openly siding with Tristan, but I was really working with the prosecution. I threatened to go to the media if Tristan’s case wasn’t tried fairly. I think that’s the only reason he served even a year.”
He ran a hand down his face and suddenly looked exhausted. “You protected her and you didn’t even know her.”
“She didn’t deserve what he did to her.” I leaned back in my chair and sighed. “No one deserves that.”
We stared at each other after that. The moment was long, kind of tense, but not awkward. About five minutes went by before Vincent spoke again.
“They broke her. It wasn’t the video that did it, either. I mean, knowing other people saw her having sex with that asshole sucked but…” He sucked in a long breath and looked out the window.
“They treated her terrible after that. Like she was nothing more than a fuck toy for them all. A couple of the guys did their best to protect her but even her lieutenant made her life hell and harassed the shit out of her. These were guys she trusted to have her back and they broke her. Made her doubt herself, doubt her judgement, doubt that anyone had honorable intentions. She hasn’t been the same since. Your brother released that video knowing it would happen, too. He fueled that fire on purpose.”
“I know,” was all I replied and we sat in silence for another moment before he looked back to me.
“What’s your plan? Are you making amends? Trying to be her friend? Trying to get her into bed? What?”
I’d give it to him, he was to the point. The thing was, I didn’t really know the answer to that myself.
“I like your sister,” I admitted quietly. “I’m attracted to your sister. More than anything, I’d like to be her friend.” I leaned forward and made sure he knew how serious I was before I continued. “No matter what, I won’t hurt her, Vincent. I won’t let my family hurt her again. Even if we’re co-coaches and never make it to friends, I still won’t let her get hurt. You have my word.”