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“Hell yeah.” Nolan smiles, jogging over to me, and Ronan follows.

“Your pick,” I say to Liam, and his jaw falls open. I can tell he didn’t anticipate being on opposite teams when I asked him tocome help.

“I get Dax.”

My mouth splits into a shit-eating grin as we pick the rest of our teams.

“Let’s have a game of rugger, boys!” Liam and his team skip off to their side, and I let Ronan take the lead of mine.

My team won 19-12,even after an incredible try by Liam on the other team. He threw himself over the try line and popped up, flexing his chest with both fists in front of him. His team went wild, and in an odd turn of events, I found myself barking out a laugh with my hands on my hips.

Something I don’t think I’ve ever done before while playing rugby.

I drag a towel down my face, addressing the team. “Nice job today, boys. Do a cool-down stretch, and then you’re free to go.”

“Thanks, Coach.”

Dax, Liam, and I make our way over to the sidelines, where Coach Campbell stands with his clipboard.

“Did you see that, Coach? I still got it, huh?” Liam shouts while leapfrogging over Dax.

“You sure got… something,” he says, causing us to laugh.

“Thanks for coming out, boys.” I extend a hand to my mates, and they both clap me before grabbing their bags and heading towards the parking lot.

“We’ll see you tonight!” Liam calls, throwing a hand above his head.

I pull my arm across my chest, stretching out my shoulder.

“How’s the arm?” Coach asks.

I don’t know if it’s the endorphins from playing the game I love or what, but I—along with my shoulder—feel great.

“No complaints.” I smile, rolling my arm in a circle.

“It was nice to see you out there again.”

“It felt even better.”

“I bet.” A smile tugs at his lips. “I heard there’s been a lot of PRs in the weight room this week?” he says as I sit down, taking off my boots.

“The rumors are true.” I look up at him, and the pride in his eyes matches how my chest feels.

“Later, Coach.” Ronan high-fives me on his way by with an uncommon smile spread across his face that Coach Campbell takes notice of. He turns to face me with a raised brow.

“I helped him out with a little problem he was having,” I say, shrugging my shoulder like it was no big deal. Like I didn’t just get a smile from the team’s perpetual grump. Not only that, but I can’t deny how good it feels to have helped him. I’m sure helping Ronan with his relationship troubles wasn’t what Coach had in mind when he asked for my help, but in the eyes of a seventeen-year-old boy, that relationship is his whole world right now.

“Seems like it’s safe to say maybe you’re a better coach than you thought you’d be.”Sometimes, it’s not all about the drills.My brows furrow as I think back on that first conversation with him.

“Maybe,” I quip.

“Who knows, maybe you’ll do it professionally one day.” I study his face, and something about his words combined with the suspicious look he’s giving me tells me, he knows. “So when will you be leaving?”

“You know about my offer.” It’s not a question. But he answers with a slight dip of his chin. “How?”

“It was a guess. You just confirmed it.”Damnit.

“What do you think about it?”