Page 46 of Racing Heat (The Forbidden Heat #2)
Chapter Forty-Three
~JASE~
I’m waiting in my office for August to give me the go-ahead to come to the conference room and meet with him, Nate, Andie, and Cassie.
There’s no doubt in my mind that she’ll take his offer of getting her job back.
I have no idea what the ground rules look like, but I’ll comply with all of them and then some if it means that I get to be with her, and she gets her job back.
Even if it means I can’t even look in her direction during games or practices.
August: She’s on her way and it went great. You can come into the conference room.
I immediately get up and head into the conference room. As soon as August sees me coming, he laughs.
“Were you even pretending to do any work?” he asks me with a laugh.
“I was. I’m just excited that she’s been invited to come back to the team and that it’s working out,” I admit with a shrug.
“Thank you for doing this, August. Thank you for making her a part of the team again. You won’t regret it, and I’ll do whatever it is you need me to do.
Whatever the rules are, consider them done. ”
“You don’t need to be that accommodating, you know. Hear the rules before you agree to them.”
Coach Watts comes into the room. “So, my star right midfielder is coming back to the team? That’s amazing news.”
I nod. “It is indeed.”
“Was Kelly that bad?” August asks with a shake of his head. “Should I be looking at replacing her or something?”
Watts shakes his head. “No, she’s not that bad. She’s just not as good on the right-hand side of the field. I think she has promise, though, so don’t cut her. Just give us some time to work with her.”
August nods. “Relax. I’m not firing anyone else.”
“Thanks for that,” Nate says.
“Hi, everyone,” Cassie says, coming into the room.
She’s wearing a pair of athletic shorts and a Blaze top.
I smile at the sight of her. It hasn’t been that long since I’ve seen her; we were together last night.
But the smile on her face is genuine for the first time since August found us.
And she’s walking into the room like a huge weight has been lifted off her shoulders.
“Coach Watts, Coach Andie,” she says. “It’s good to see you again.”
“You too.” Andie immediately goes over to her and wraps her in a hug. “It’s great to have you back. You were certainly missed.”
“Thank you,” Cassie replies.
Nate is the next one to go over to her. “Good to see you, kiddo. Great to have you back with us.”
I walk over to her and pull her into a side hug after Watts releases her. “Hey, you.”
“Hi,” she says, grinning up at me. She quickly steps back and looks at the rest of the coaching staff and August. “Am I allowed to do that?”
August laughs. “I think we can let that one go.”
She nods. “So, what are my rules?”
“Everyone have a seat.” August gestures toward the chairs.
I make sure not to sit right beside her, giving her space and not pushing my luck at the same time.
“It’s safe to say that we’re all happy Cassie is rejoining the team,” August continues.
“We’ll make the announcement at practice today.
I think it’s best if we tell them that management made a mistake.
That way there’s no questions about what’s happening.
Or at least I hope not.” We all laugh along with August. “But I’m not asking you to hide your relationship, because that will only spell disaster for us all.
I think it’s best if we make sure that Jase doesn’t have any time supervising her drills, runs, or game time.
I know she’s a midfielder and he coaches the goalies, but even still, let’s keep them separate.
That way no one can say he’s playing favorites. ”
We all nod.
I raise my hand slightly. “What about the times that I spend working with Hendrix for extra training and saves? I use Cassie sometimes to get some of the high or the long balls into the net. Can I still do that? She’s great at it.”
August considers this for a moment. “Yes, I think that’s fine. However, I’m going to ask that you have either Coach Watts or Coach Chapman working with you guys. That way there are no issues or confusion.”
“Can I still talk with her before the games and at practice?” I ask.
He nods. “You can but keep it professional. I know sometimes you might want to pull her in for a hug or a kiss when she does well during the game. I’m not going to say you can’t, because I realize it might just happen, but please keep it professional.
Just keep it PG and do your best not to make this a distraction.
If we have to, we’ll revisit this issue and see how we can best handle this as a team, not just me making a harsh decision. ”
I smile at August. “Thank you.”
“This is great, August,” Nate tells him. “I appreciate you reconsidering your decision on this. She’s a great asset for our offense and defense. This is huge for the team and the Blaze organization.”
He nods. “I’m just glad I could fix the mistake that I made.”
“You shouldn’t take all the blame for this.
We should have trusted you enough to come to you or at least Coach Watts,” Cassie begins.
“Sneaking around wasn’t the best plan, but we just weren’t sure if this was anything, so there was no need to sound the alarm.
But that wasn’t smart. We should have come to you first. I apologize for the stress and inconvenience I caused the team. ”
I nod. “Me too. It wasn’t right, and it won’t happen again.”
“Good,” Andie says. “Now that that’s all out of the way, let’s get to the rules they have to follow.”
“Is there more we need to follow?” I ask.
August sighs. “Unfortunately, legal has come up with a few more that I want to go over.”
“It’s okay, boss,” I tease him.
“Being the boss isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”
“I’m sure it’s not.” I wouldn’t want his job and dealing with things like this. I’m sure it’s the last thing he wants to do. That’s probably why it was easier for him to fire her than to have this type of a conversation.
“You cannot be acting all couple-like when we’re traveling for away games.
That means no large public displays of affection.
You don’t have to hide that you’re seeing each other, but also, don’t be all over each other.
Stay in the separate rooms you’re given, please.
And for the love of God, no public sex.”
We all laugh at his last remark.
“So, use common sense?” I ask him.
“Yes, please use your common sense and make sure you don’t end up being too obvious about it.”
“So, be together but don’t really be together so that everyone on the team knows?” Cassie asks him, confused.
“I just don’t want you guys to flaunt it, okay?” August shifts uncomfortably in his chair.
“I think we can figure out how to behave and how not to behave,” I tell him, hoping to end the conversation.
“So that’s it?” Cassie asks, looking around. “I’m back?”
“Yeah,” August tells her. “I just have some official paperwork for you to sign and then you can go join the rest of the girls at practice.”
“Great! I’m so excited to be back out on the field with the team,” Cassie replies.
August claps his hands together. “I need you both to sign this letter disclosing your relationship and promising that there will be no special treatment or interruptions of the team dynamics.”
I get up and walk over to August, and Cassie does the same. We sign the papers, and August shakes my hand and then hers.
“Great to have you officially back. Now go and get ready for practice, all of you. I need to get back to looking at some advertising stats that were sent over.”
We all quickly get up to leave. The coaches come over and pull Cassie into a hug.
“Welcome back, kiddo,” Nate says.
“It’s good to have you back with us,” Andie says.
Cassie hugs them both and leaves the room, shooting me a wink before she’s gone.
“Thank you, guys, really. I appreciate all you went through to make this happen.”
“You’re welcome,” Nate says. “But I think you and Hendrix did more than we did.”
“We might have. But I feel like I let you down and caused a lot more drama than I should have.”
“What’s life without a little drama?” Nate says, slapping me on the back. “But next time, just come to me.”
“Agreed. I will communicate better with you.”
Thankfully, the conversation is closed, and we all head out to the practice field to move forward with our right midfielder back where she belongs.