Team Hate Read online

  “Uh, okay. Get back to getting ready and we’ll get started. Second and third-string will run plays while the first-string trains, and then we’ll swap after lunch.” Jim one hand on Jane’s shoulder and used the other to shoo us off. “Go.”

  The rest of the day passed by just as strangely as the morning introduction. I tried to keep my anger in check, but every time I tried to approach Jim to discuss plays, he was distracted by ‘showing his sister the ropes’ and letting her jump into trying to coach without her having any experience with our team. At one point he actually insulted me by suggesting I discuss plays with her instead and I had to put active effort into not putting my fist through a wall. I probably should have opted for free agency when I had the chance; now I was saddled with this babysitter of a coach and his flunkie sister.

  “Wow, what’s going on around here?” I was standing outside Jim’s office, waiting for him to be done talking something over with Jane when I heard a voice that made me roll my eyes; I did not have time for this today. I turned around and my twin sisters Bailey and Bethany were standing in the middle of the training room. Bailey had a hand on her hip and was standing next to Jack. “It feels like you guys just found out someone died.”

  Bethany giggled as the guys surrounded her, scanning her form in her blue and green tie-dye sundress. “Hey, y’all.”

  My sisters were only a few months older than me, and typical football groupies. My parents thought they were unable to have children and paid a surrogate to carry for them. Around the same time that the surrogate found out she was pregnant, my mom discovered she was as well. My sisters were born just before Thanksgiving and I came along a few months later on Valentine’s Day. Because of how close we were born to one another, we’re also very tight-knit. We were always in the same grade and hung out in the same circles, and I thought of them as best friends as well as siblings. It was all fine and dandy until I became a pro-football player and they turned into honey-traps trying to bag a starting lineman. They had a bad habit of just showing up at the facility unannounced.

  I marched towards them prepped to lose my cool when I felt a gentle tap on my shoulder. I’d been approached by none other than the lovely Victoria, Vick for short. She’d been my sisters’ best friend since middle school and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t find her incredibly hot. She was taller than average with legs that went on for days and a nice, slender form. She had long black hair that made it nearly to her waist and sparkling blue eyes. She was the kind of chick I imagined when I jacked off at night. Unfortunately for me, she was a doctor and probably not at all interested in hopping in the sack with an arrogant football star with no interest in a commitment.

  “Hey, stranger.” She flashed me a glimmering, toothy smile.

  “Hey. They dragged you along for the shenanigans today, huh?”

  Vick chuckled. “I was promised my pick of tons of good-looking men.”

  “I’m so sorry you were lied to.”

  Vick shrugged. “You’re here, so it wasn’t a total blow.”

  I knew better than to think Vick was being anything other than nice. She was just a kind person, so I pushed it off. We approached my sisters and I dragged them away from the attention of the team. “It’s time for you to go.”

  “Hello to you too,” Bailey greeted.

  “How many times have I told you guys not to just show up here unannounced. I don’t want you hanging yourselves out to dry in front of these assholes.” I glared at the few guys with lingering gazes and they scuttled away.

  Bethany poked out her bottom lip. “We were going to have lunch with you.”

  “I don’t even think I’m staying here for lunch. I’m gonna go home and get ready for a date.”

  Both Bethany and Bailey side-eyed Vick and a few seconds later, Vick pulled her phone from her pocket and held it up. “Sorry, I’ve gotta take this. I’ll be back.”

  Once she was gone from sight, Bailey swatted me. “Why are you being a dick?”

  I rubbed my arm where Bailey had struck it. “What are you talking about?”

  “Will you just ask her out.” Bethany held out her arms as though it was just common knowledge that I should.

  “I’ve told you before, she can do better. Besides, I told you guys already to quit forcing it. If it’s supposed to happen, it’ll happen naturally, not because you guys force feed her to me.”

  Bailey rolled her eyes. She looked as if she was going to continue to argue, but then her hands flew to her mouth. “Oh my gosh. Who is this goddess?!”

  “Um, hi?” Jane’s voice sent jolts of irritation needling into my body.

  I rolled my eyes and turned around to see that Jane and Jim had finally emerged from his office. “About damn time.”

  I felt another whap on my arm and then Bailey stepped in front of me. She took Jane’s hand into hers. “Coach, who is this?”

  “Hey Bailey, Bethany.” Jim put his hand on Jane’s head like a doting brother. “This is our new Assistant Coach, Jane Panesse, and she is also my younger sister. Jane, these are John’s sisters Bailey and Bethany.”

  “Hi,” Jane greeted. “Nice to meet you.”

  Bethany screeched. “You are so cute.”

  There was a furrow to Jane’s brow. “I don’t know about that.”

  “Can’t you see?” I made sure there was as much dulled sarcasm in my voice as I could muster. “She’s as rough and tumble as they come. A man among men.” Jane glared at me and I offered her a fake smile in return.

  Bailey flicked her hand towards me. “Ignore him. You’re gonna be awesome. If you need any help keeping him or these behemoths in line, you let us know.”

  Jane’s nostrils flared and she pulled her hands away from Bailey. “I’ll be fine in that department. Thanks though.”

  Bethany snickered. “She’s a brute.”

  “Yeah, real scary.” I grabbed Bailey and Bethany and moved them towards the entrance to the training room. “Can you go now?”

  “Party pooper.” Bailey stuck out her tongue at me and I flicked it.

  “Oh, are you leaving?” Jack ran up to us, having just come from the workout room. Sweat was still dripping down his face, but he didn’t seem to mind. “I was, uh, hoping to spend a little more time.”

  “We’ll see you next time,” Bethany responded to him almost immediately.

  Jack gave her a small grin. “Okay.”

  Bethany returned the expression and her eyes were warm and inviting. Enough of that. I stepped in front of Jack and pushed Bailey and Bethany towards the exit. They muttered different swear words at me, but eventually turned on their heel and left. I looked over at Jack and he had a dopey look on his face, staring after the girls as they left.

  “You got a problem?”

  Jack snapped out of it instantly and backed away. “N-no.” He tucked his head like a dog’s tail between his legs and wandered off.

  “I’m ready to get started.” I jumped and turned and Jane was standing right behind me.

  I raised an eyebrow. “Get started with what?”

  “Your training.”

  I tilted my head to the side and then a chuckle escaped my lips. I looked at Jim and when I saw the dead-ass serious expression on his face, I knew he wasn’t kidding. I looked down at Jane. “Hell will freeze over first.” I looked up at Jim. “Call me when you’re ready to play some goddamn football.”

  I took one final look at them both and then without another word, I left.

  * * *

  “You’re so good, John.” I held on to the woman on top of me. “Is it good for you?”

  I barely heard her. I was so unsatisfied I was surprised I was still able to perform at all. “No.”

  She stopped moving. “What?”

  “I said no.” I shoved her off of me and climbed out of my bed. I grabbed a pair of nearby sweatpants and put them on. “I’ll call you an uber.”

  The woman, who I’d been seeing for about a month and for almost purely sexual reas
ons, sat up in the bed and wrapped the blankets tight around her bare form. “Is this some kind of joke?”

  “It’s not a joke.” I grabbed my phone and flicked through it to get ready to call her a ride when she clamored out of the bed and slapped the phone out of my hand. “What the fuck?”

  “You’re an asshole and I’m perfectly capable of getting myself home, thank you.”

  I ignored her as she got dressed, grabbed her things, and left my penthouse with a slam of my front door. Disappointed didn’t even begin to cover it. With everything. I could get any woman I wanted to sleep with me, but no one ever made me feel excited. I’d seen movies and read books where people had heart-pounding, sweat-inducing, throw yourself into it and get totally consumed by it kind of passion. I hadn’t slept with a single woman like that. I wasn’t even sure that type of person existed. I laid on my back in my bed and, to my extreme distaste, Jane slipped into my brain. Her ever-present popped out chest, her scaly demeanor, her piercing eyes; they got me going for bad reasons. If only someone could get me fired up like that romantically, that’s what I was looking for. Someone to get my blood pumping the way being out on the field did.

  My sleep that night was restless. I was unsatisfied and unruly. Football was the only passion I had, I didn’t need some brat of a girl with a useless dream messing it all up. I drove to work the next morning determined to do exactly to Jane what I had done to my useless date. Before the end of the day, I would make sure she was gone. I walked into the locker room and all of my teammates stopped and looked at me as if they’d seen a ghost.

  “What?”

  Jack stepped forward from the group; a sacrificial lamb to deliver news no one else wanted to provide. “Uh. Jim made some new decisions this morning. He assigned a new coach to work with the starting lineup specifically.”

  It was as if my body had turned to stone. “You don’t mean?”

  The door to the locker room opened and Jane stepped in with Jim right behind her. She didn’t seem at all bothered by the half-naked men around, in fact, she was beaming with pride.

  “Oh good, you’re here.” Jim held out an arm as if he was presenting some great prize, but Jane was no prize. “I’d like you to know that starting today, you and the rest of the first-string offensive line will be working exclusively with Jane.”

  Jane gave me an evil smile. “I look forward to working with you, John.”

  It cemented my emotions. This girl definitely had to go.

  3

  Jane

  “I’m not doing it.”

  John was going off the deep end. He’d asked to see Jim alone in his office, a request I did not oblige. He tried to slam the door in my face, but I muscled my way in, laughing at the way his eyes widened in response to my strength. I could bench press with the rest of them. Weight ropes, ball toss, tire flip; I’d done all that and more on my road to success. I wasn’t just some chick trying to do football; this was as much my career as it was his, and I was going to force him to see that.

  He pointed at me. “She’s going to be working with the starting offensive lineup? You’re supposed to be doing that!”

  Jim slammed his hands on his desk. “Our defense needs much more work. You’ve made certain to point that out to me on more than one occasion. Besides, it’s not up to you. I’m the head coach.”

  “Are you? I can’t remember the last time you and I worked directly together. I’m not reporting to some new assistant with breasts!”

  I stepped towards him. “That’s exactly what you’re going to do.”

  John’s leer turned to me. “What?”

  “I said.” I took a menacing step forward. “That’s exactly what you’re going to do. You report to me, and I know that your head coach can be kind of a pushover—”

  Jim held up a hand. “Thanks, Jane.”

  “—But I think you’ll find I’m an entirely different animal. Now go get changed and get out to the field and prepare to run plays.” John opened his mouth to say something else, but I held up my hand. “Now please.”

  John looked at Jim and he shrugged. “You heard her.”

  John turned and flung open the door to Jim’s office with such force that the knob left a dent in the wall.

  Jim let out a shallow whistle. “Not making any friends that way.”

  “I’m not here to make friends, I’m here to do a job.” I picked up the playbook that Jim had made for me and turned to go after John.

  “Just be careful,” Jim said, his voice grumbling with seriousness once more. “These guys take out their frustrations in a variety of ways.”

  I peeked back over my shoulder “It’s like I said, I’m a different animal. I’ll be fine.” I gave Jim a quick wink and then headed out to the field.

  I took a deep inhale of the fresh winter air as I walked out onto the field. North Carolina never got too cold during the winter, nothing compared to Chicago winters where my parents were from. I was glad to live in a state where we could be outside year-round. My father always called me a ‘sun child’ saying that I seemed happiest under a bright shining sun. Whenever I felt the warm rays on my skin, it made me think of my papa, and I felt energized enough to take on anything.

  And I was gonna need it.

  The starting lineup was standing on the field each looking at me as if I was the devil itself approaching. John was standing dead center in the group with his arms crossed like a militant army general. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was headed into battle and it was John’s whole army against me alone. A lesser person might be afraid, but I didn’t stand down from conflict easily. If John wanted a fight, a fight he was going to get.

  “Gentlemen.” I flipped open my playbook and took a deep breath. My tactics were to start nice and bear my teeth if I needed to. “I know that none of you consider this an ideal situation, but I have tons of experience in this field. I’ve been training for this since I was sixteen. I’ve been watching and studying you all for much longer than just since I got this job, and trust me when I say, I know what it will take to make you successful. Does anyone have any questions?”

  One of the players raised their hands slowly, Alvin Olycom, one of the tight-ends. “I have a question.”

  I perked up and if I had a tail to wag, it’d be swinging back and forth. “Of course.”

  “You said you’re willing to do anything to help?”

  “Anything. You can count on me.”

  A snake-like smile slithered across Alvin's face. “I really work best when my assistant coaches wear tight jeans and a low cut t-shirt.” He looked at me deadpan as if what he was saying was totally accurate. “The last assistant coach did.”

  The team started to snicker and mutter under their breath and then another guy, Wyatt Owen, the right tackle, raised his hand. “Miniskirts too. More miniskirts than jeans. A good skirt to jean ratio of like 3 to 2.”

  I could feel my blood start to boil. “Do I look like a joke to—”

  I didn’t even get to finish the statement before John stepped forward. “Yes. This is a joke. All of this is a joke. You’re a joke. How have you not figured that out yet?”

  I slapped the playbook closed and tossed it to the ground. “You may not like it, but I am your new assistant coach. We’ve all been given very specific orders on what to do and if you don’t do it, there will be consequences.”

  John raised an eyebrow. “Is that right? Well, go ahead sweetheart. Let’s see these consequences.”

  I crossed my arms. “I want 20 pushups from each of you.” None of them responded. I lifted the whistle hanging around my neck and set it to my lips. I blew out a loud shrill and clapped my hands. “Now!”

  To my shock, a few of the guys wavered, bending their knees as if they were going to do as I demanded, but when they noticed that John, Jack, and the rest of the team weren’t moving, they made themselves upright again.

  John clapped his hands a few times and each one felt like it was making me smaller and smaller
. “Good job. You’ve really got us on the ropes now.”

  “I could go for ropes.” The left guard, Shawn Perez-Quinones cracked his knuckles and his nostrils flared like a bull set to charge. “But I’ve got a different use in mind.”

  They all started to cajole me, tossing vapid compliments, and asking me to do all manner of filthy acts with them. Part of me wanted to turn and run. Suddenly it felt like they were all growing in size while I was shrinking. They were looming, black shadows and I was a helpless mouse just trying to find her hole. My feet stayed anchored to the ground even though my fight or flight was telling me to flee. I wasn’t a runner, I was a fighter, that’s what my papa taught me. If I ran from these guys they would forever see me as the woman they just have to make uncomfortable enough to get her to go. I stood my ground. If they wanted me gone, they were going to have to remove me.

  “Come on, mama,” Benton Myles, the other wide-receiver, said with his lips puckered out. “Don’t look so angry. I bet you’re much prettier when you smile.”

  I held up my middle finger. “Fuck you.”

  “Whoa!” The guys all started to laugh and jabber at each other.

  John stepped away from the group. Silence steeped around us as he walked up to me until his face was hovering mere centimeters above mine. Never had I had someone look at me with such loathing. I didn’t know what to do. “This is a fucking joke. Go home. You’re not wanted here.”

  My nose burned with frustration as John stepped around me and continued on off the field. With their cornerstone gone, the rest of the guys followed suit, all walking off the turf until I was left standing in the crisp air alone. I could feel a dampness pooling at the corners of my eyes, but I bit my lip and blinked them away. I would never let them see me cry. I turned into a statue on that field, not sure of what to do or where to go. John’s words echoed through my mind; a voice of my worst nightmares coming true.