Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
When he abruptly ended things with me, my heart never fully recovered. I never knew something like love could lead to so many trust issues.
“Hey.” Nathan stood there with an annoyingly attractive smirk.
I wanted to smack the smile off his smug face. One of the worst things about running into an ex was seeing how attractive they’d become over the years. Nathan was always handsome, but now he looked like a diamond dipped in gold. His arms were muscular and massive as he crossed them over his chest. His brown skin looked ridiculously hydrated. His dark-brown hair was cut in a fade, and his ears were pierced with diamond studs. His brown eyes still reminded me of heaven, and his wicked smile reminded me of hell.
He wore a dark gray pullover that was probably one size too small based on how his biceps were showcased, black jogger pants, and some overpriced sneakers.
I hated how beautiful and big he was. Not many men in town could make me feel small, but standing near Nathan did exactly that.
Which was why I puffed out my chest and narrowed my eyes. “What do you want, Nathaniel?” I hissed, annoyed by his proximity and the fact that he was trying to ruin my life again after all these years.
“Nathaniel.” He chuckled. “Using the full name to show how much you missed me, huh?”
“I only use your full name as a sign of hatred.”
“You used to say it for very different reasons.”
I felt my skin heat from his words. “Yes, well, I was a dumb kid. Now it’s used for hatred.”
He stepped toward me. “So you hate me, Ave?”
“With a passion,” I said. “A deep, skull-crushing passion.”
He scratched his beard, which had grown quite a bit since last month. “And to think, I was hoping we’d let bygones be bygones.”
“Yeah, that would have happened if you would’ve stayed gone. It was an unwritten agreement. You break my heart, and you stay gone.” For a split second, a look of guilt flashed across his face. Before he could feel bad for breaking my heart, I rolled my eyes dramatically just to make sure he noticed. “Don’t get a big ego about it. I’m over you breaking my heart. I’m engaged now,” I remarked, holding up my ring finger. “To a rocket scientist,” I exclaimed. Why was I word-vomiting to him? Why was I telling him anything about my life?
Shut up, Avery.
“I heard,” he replied. “Congratulations.”
“I don’t want your congratulations. I want you to be gone.”
He slid his hands into the pockets of his joggers. “That’s going to be an issue, seeing how I’m now coaching the baseball team with you.”
“No,” I urged. “You’re not. This is my thing.”
“Yeah, but Raymond said—”
“I don’t care what he said, Nathan. I’d rather this program burn to the ground before I coach with you. What, do you think you’re some kind of genius because you played in the Major Leagues? I was ten times a better baseball player than you could’ve ever been.”
“I know,” he said quickly. “I never said I was better than you.”
“So you understand why I don’t need you? Good.”
“No.” He shook his head. “You do need me. I’ve been to a few of your preseason games. Your team is a bit…” He waved his hand in a disapproving fashion. “Lacking.”
“Lacking?”
“Yeah. That’s no offense to you. I’m sure you’re doing the best you can, but I think I can bring a lot to the table with what I’ve learned in the industry and my personal strengths. And with you being my assistant coach—”
“I’m sorry, come again? Assistant coach?” There was absolutely no way he said assistant. As if he was now the head coach of a team I’d been managing for years. The nerve of this guy!
“I figured Raymond told you—”
Before he could finish, I marched toward Principal Raymond’s office. I barged back into the office space without an invitation and began to holler. “Ray, what does this man mean he’s head coach now?”
Raymond looked up from his paperwork with fear in his eyes. Rightfully so. I was seconds away from ripping his eyeballs out of their sockets as rage built within me.
“Now, listen, Avery,” he started. His calmness felt belittling in a way. Or perhaps I was being overly emotional, but who could blame me? The one thing I had that was mine—my team—was being ripped from beneath me without any warning.
How could the school district think that demoting me was the right choice? Without even talking to me about it first? This was beyond humiliating. It was insulting to my character and position of authority.
What was with people not telling me things before I had to find out in such hurtful ways? It had been a month, and I still wasn’t over the reveal of Drew, and now this was happening.