Derek

“Good practice today, D. You play like you haven’t missed a day,” Evan called out. He slapped me on the shoulder as we headed into the training facility. It felt good to be back. Being on the field with the guys was exactly what I needed.

“Thanks, man,” I said. “I missed being here, but I definitely didn’t miss the damn heat. It wasn’t like this in Wyoming.”

Evan chuckled. “I bet not. You’ll get used to it again.”

We were almost at the locker room when Coach Joel shouted out my name from his office. During practice, he hadn’t said a word to me, but I’d known it was only a matter of time. Evan nodded encouragingly and then left me there in the hall. Taking a deep breath, I turned on my heel, slowly making my way to Joel’s office.

Head down, he wrote a few more things in his notebook and then pointed at the seat across from his desk. “Have a seat, son.” I sat down and waited for him to acknowledge me. Coach Joel was a middle-aged man with salt-and-pepper hair and lines on his face from too much stress. I was pretty sure players had put a lot of them on there. When he lifted his gaze, he set his pen down and clasped his hands on the desk. “You played amazingly well today for someone who hasn’t practiced in months,” he said.

“Thanks, Coach. While I was in Wyoming, I did work out and train. I didn’t completely let myself go.”

He nodded. “I can tell. What I want to know is if this is truly you coming back. The team can’t afford to lose you again. If you’re not serious about joining us, we’ll have to seek other options for your replacement.”

“I’m ready, Coach,” I replied adamantly. “I’m not leaving ever again. Football is my life. It’s the only thing I have right now.”

His face grew sad. “I know you’ve been through a lot, but the team needs to know you’re here for them. If things get to be too much, I want you to come to me so we can talk it out. I can’t have you leaving again.”

“I won’t, I promise. I want to be back.”

“Then I guess you’ll need this,” he said, tossing me a new jersey. It had my name and the number 59 on it. “Now get out of here and go get some rest. We have a long day tomorrow.”

“Sounds good. I’ll be here.” With my jersey in hand, I walked out of his office with a smile on my face. I was officially back. There were no sounds coming from the locker room, but when I ventured inside, the guys began to clap. I shook my head and grinned. “What the hell is this?”

With just a towel around his waist, Chris started to dance. “You’re officially back. We’re celebrating. Now come over here and give me a hug, sexy man.” Everyone burst out laughing.

“Until you put some clothes on, I’m not touching your hairy ass.”

He rubbed his hands down his chest. “Most women think it’s sexy.”

Evan slapped him upside the head. “Keep telling yourself that.” He walked over to me and reached for my jersey. “How does it feel to have this back?”

“Pretty damn good,” I admitted honestly.

Chris rubbed the spot where Evan had hit him and joined us. “All I can say is that I’ve missed that smart-ass mouth of yours.”

“Got that right,” one of the guys yelled from the showers.

Evan chuckled. “Hey, some of the others are going to the tavern tonight. I have to go by there to check on everything for Summer. Do you want to join me?”

As much as I wanted things to go back to the way they were before, I wasn’t ready yet. Sighing, I shook my head. “Not tonight. I think I just want to go home.”

“All right,” he said. “But if you change your mind, you know where to find us. If I don’t see you tonight, I’ll see you in the morning.”

He held out his hand, and I shook it. “Will do, brother. I’ll see you later.”

As much as being around everyone would keep my mind from wandering, I wasn’t really up for it. Training had literally kicked my ass. After I took a shower and dressed, I headed on my way home. The only problem with going home was that I either had to drive down the same road as the accident or take another route that added twenty minutes to the trip. Ever since the accident, I’d avoided that dreaded road and dealt with the inconvenience. Taking a deep breath, I stopped at the red light, my heart pounding. I could either go straight and take the detour or go left, down memory lane.

“Fuck.” What am I going to do?

The light turned green, and a decision needed to be made. It was as if my body made up its own mind. My fingers pressed down on the turn signal, and I steered my truck left, palms sweating. Memories from that night came flashing back, the sounds, the smells, Brianna’s screams…everything. I was almost at the crash site, but I couldn’t do it. Closing my eyes, I swerved off the side of the road and stopped, leaning my head against the steering wheel. If I looked up, I knew I’d see Bri’s car, crumpled from the crash.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I growled, keeping my head down. “I have to do this. There’s no other way to move on.”

Blowing out a shaky breath, I lifted my head and prayed I wouldn’t envision Brianna’s car. Unfortunately, there was a car in the exact place where we ran off into the ravine. I couldn’t tear my gaze away. What the hell was it doing there?

I sat there frozen in place until I saw a woman come into view. She was in the grass, hunched over something on the ground. The second I saw the blood on her hands, I knew something was wrong. My first instinct was to help her. Pressing the gas, I sped up the road, squealing my tires as I slammed on the brakes in front of her car. I rushed out, not knowing what the fuck I was going to see on the ground. If it was a person, I had no doubt I was going to lose it. Instead, I saw a dog, covered in blood and howling in pain.

“What happened?” I called out.

The woman had her back to me, her hands diligently working on the dog as if she were an expert. “He got hit by a car, but they ran off. I was lucky enough to be here to rescue him.” Blood oozed out of the gash on the dog’s stomach.

“What do you need? I have a shirt you can use to wrap around his stomach.”

“That’d be great, thanks,” she said quickly.

Hurrying to my truck, I grabbed my bag and pulled out one of my T-shirts. I rushed back and knelt down on the other side of the dog, handing her the shirt. “This should work.”

When she grabbed it and lifted her head, her brown hair revealed the same beautiful face I’d seen the night before. Recognition sparked in her green eyes, and she gasped. “Oh my God, it’s you.” Shaking her head, she turned her attention back to the dog. “Thank you for stopping. You’d be surprised how many people have just driven by.”

“What can I do?” I asked.

She twisted the shirt and pressed it against the dog’s stomach. “I need to wrap this shirt around his midsection, but I need help lifting him.” She pointed to the dog’s shoulder. “Place your hands underneath and gently lift him when I tell you to. Can you do that?”

“I’m sure I can manage.”

Placing the shirt on the dog’s stomach, she grabbed the other end and moved it toward the dog’s head. “Okay, lift him.” I did as she said, and she carefully slid the shirt underneath him and tied it tight. “Now comes the tricky part…putting him in my car.”

I glanced at her small car, a silver Nissan 370Z. There was no way in hell she’d get that big a dog in it comfortably. “Why don’t I put him in the back of my truck? He’ll have more room. I can take you anywhere you need to go.”

She looked at my truck and then at her car. “Good point. I’ll ride in the back with him. Do you mind taking us to Stonebrooke Veterinary Hospital? It’s just up the road in downtown.”

I nodded. “I know where it is. But aren’t they closed for the night?”

She snorted. “Not anymore. Looks like I’ll be opening it back up. I work there.”

So that was how she knew what she was doing. “All right, let’s go. Just tell me how you want me to lift him.”

She shook her head. “I don’t think there’s any wrong or right way at this point. I won’t know anything until I take X-rays. Lift him gently is all I can say.”

Sighing, I looked at the dog. “Here we go, buddy.” As carefully as I could, I put my hands underneath him and lifted him into my arms. He whimpered, and I was thankful he didn’t try to bite my face. “He’s pretty heavy,” I said, carrying him to the truck. “I don’t think you could’ve lifted him.”

She snorted and lowered the tailgate on my truck. “You’d be surprised what I can do, Mr. McLaughlin. I’ve handled dogs a lot bigger than he is.”

“I didn’t think you knew me,” I said curiously. When she’d looked at me after I broke her phone, I could see in her eyes that she had no clue who I was. It had been a first for me. I had to admit, it was nice not being noticed.

She helped me set the dog in the back and then hopped in there with him. “I didn’t know who you were,” she confessed. “When I told my friend what happened, he showed me a picture of you. I guess you can say he’s a fan.”

“And you’re not?”

She shrugged. “Football isn’t my thing. But I promise after today, I’ll be more than happy to watch a game. You have no idea how much I appreciate this.”

“You’re welcome…” I trailed off and lifted my eyebrows. “I don’t know your name.”

“Hayden Hunter.” She glanced down at her hands. “And I would shake your hand, but mine are covered in blood.”

“It’s okay. I’ll get you to the clinic as fast as I can. Just hold on tight.”

I hopped in the truck and opened the back window in case Hayden needed my help. However, something caught the corner of my eye, and my gut clenched. Down in the ravine, a wreath of flowers hung on a tree; they must have been for Brianna.

“Derek, you okay?” Hayden asked.

I glanced at her in the rearview mirror and put the truck in gear. “Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s go.”