Page 45 of Crew

I choked on my coffee and turned away so they wouldn’t see me laugh. I was five years younger than my husband, and back when we started out as enemies, I probably would have said something similar. Hell, I might have called him an old man once. Drew just shook his head like he regretted every decision that led to this moment.

“Go change for practice while we finish making breakfast,” I ordered.

“This is child labor,” Reese muttered as she slid off the stool.

“Tell it to the NCAA scouts,” Drew called after her.

The girls shuffled down the hall like they were off to their doom, and I leaned against the counter again, smirking into my coffee.

“I don’t care if they whine,” Drew said. “They’re getting good.”

I nodded. “Yeah. Theyare.”

My phone lit up on the counter in front of me. The number wasn’t saved, but the call indicated it was coming from the Portland area.

“Portland?” I muttered, swiping it up.

Drew glanced over. “Telemarketer?”

“Probably.” I hesitated, thumb hovering over the screen. I didn’t know anyone who lived there. Curiosity got the better of me and I answered. “Hello?”

“Hi, is this Aron Parker?”

“Yeah, speaking.”

“This is Anthony Lanning, general manager of the Portland Seawolves.”

I blinked. “Yes, Mr. Lanning. What can I do for you?”

“I know this is unexpected, but I wanted to talk to you about something if you have time.”

Drew must’ve noticed my face shift, because he gave me a questioning look. I held up a finger and turned slightly away.

“Sure, what’s up?” I replied to Lanning.

“Well, as you probably know, we’re officially launching the expansion roster next season. Right now, we’re looking at managerial candidates. Your playing history speaks for itself and we’d love to make it happen.”

I stood there for a second, heart thudding. He wanted me to coach a major league team? “I didn’t know I was even on your radar.”

“We keep a long list.” He chuckled lightly. “But your name’s at the top. We’re interested in meeting. Nothing formal yet. Just a conversation to talk things over in person.”

I looked across the kitchen, past the half-cleaned-up mess, at my husband, who was slicing strawberries like it was just another morning.

“Wow. Okay. Yeah, I’d need to discuss it with my husband first, but I’m open to hearing more.”

“Of course. I’ll follow up with an email, and if you’re willing, we’ll get something on the calendar.”

“Sounds good.”

We hung up, and I just stood there for a second trying to process what had just happened.

“Who was that?” Drew asked, taking a waffle off the iron.

I looked at him. “That was the GM of the Portland Seawolves.”

His head tilted. “Why’s he calling you?”

“They want me to interview. For the manager position.”