Changing the Rules (Richter Book 1)(10)

Dale nodded a few times, his eyes tracking several kids as they jogged the inside lanes. “I think Neil told me that. Not that the man elaborated.”

“Talking isn’t his strong point.”

Just then two students walked up, both upperclassmen from the looks of them.

“Hey, Coach.”

Dale patted the kid on his shoulder. “Get everyone stretched out and warmed up.”

“You got it.”

The student turned away and started to yell, gaining the attention of those on the track to circle up.

Dale started walking with Cooper in tow.

“Seniors love taking control of the field during practice, and since we have a small athletic department, I use them to mentor the younger kids.”

“Makes sense.”

Dale motioned toward the pole vault pit. “Do you have the basics of any of the field events?”

“Only what I learned in boot camp.”

“Then we’ll stick with relays and sprints.”

Cooper could work with that.

They walked over to a stack of hurdles. “So, what’s this all about with you coaching the Auburn kids, anyway?”

He wasn’t about to give details. “What did Neil tell you?”

Dale placed a hand on one of the hurdles. “Let me see if I remember the conversation. ‘Coach Levine. I have something I need ya to do for me.’” Dale lowered his voice to mimic Neil. “‘Sure,’ I said. Then he said, ‘I have one of my men filling in on the Auburn track team, keeping an eye on one of the students.’” Dale nodded a couple of times. “Yup, that’s all he told me.”

“And that’s all there is to it. Simple job,” Cooper told the man.

“Huh. I didn’t think any of the parents at Auburn had the money to hire anyone from Neil’s line of work.”

Cooper kept his expression steady. “You’d be surprised.”

Dale shrugged his shoulders. “Hopefully it’s nothing serious.” He lifted a stack of hurdles and nodded to another stack for Cooper to grab.

“I doubt it.”

Dale pointed to where the hurdles needed to be placed and then proceeded to lower the height of the contraptions. For the next hour and a half, Dale did his job with Cooper as a shadow. The kids knew what they had to do, for the most part. The coach’s relationship with the students was more friend than mentor. Though when he had constructive criticism, the kids listened and worked harder to hear his praise.

As the practice neared its end, Cooper felt like he had some of the lingo down, and by the end of the week, he should be good to go.

The same students that led the warm-up finished the cooldown.

Slowly the kids peeled off the field when practice ended.

Dale handed Cooper a stack of papers. “This is how track meets are scored. Probably best you know this before you start your job at Auburn.”

He scanned the papers. It seemed pretty straightforward. “Does your team rival Auburn?”

“Not really. We see each other at invitationals, mainly. The coaches there are straight up. Good guys who like kids and fell in love with the sport. I’m guessing you and I will see each other a few times this season.”

One of the students called Dale from the opposite side of the field. “Yeah?”

“I can’t find the keys to lock up the shed.”

Dale lifted a hand, indicating he’d be there in a minute.

The phone in Cooper’s jacket pocket started to vibrate.

“When we do see each other, I’d appreciate it if you keep my real vocation out of the conversation.”

“Of course.” Dale peered across the field. “I’ll see ya tomorrow. And if you talk to Neil, thank him again.”

Cooper tilted his head and questioned Dale with his eyes.

“For the new pole vault pit. Should be here in about a week. The kids are excited.”

Cooper smiled. “I’ll do that.” As he walked away, the phone in his pocket buzzed again. He pulled it out to see who was texting him.

He smiled before he clicked on Claire’s name.

Claire and Jax smiled at him with the Golden Gate Bridge framing the background.

Look who has the cushy job this week!

Cooper’s fingers danced over the phone’s keyboard. We’ll see who’s bragging next week when you have homework.

Claire followed up with a frowning face emoji.

For a moment, he stared at her image. She’d grown up since he moved away. Oh, she still had the snark that underlined nearly everything she said and did, but there was a calmness that hadn’t been there before. He remembered the first time he saw her, fresh from the boarding school in Germany and only a hair past eighteen years of life. Much too young for him; or so he convinced himself at the time. Granted, he’d been younger, too. He’d casually flirted with her back then. In turn, she rolled her eyes and blew him off. “Put it away, buddy . . . you’re much too old for me,” she’d said to him on more than one occasion.

But when the initial drama of their first assignment waned, he had a hard time working with her side by side. She treated him like her best friend’s off-limits brother. He told himself he was fine, that his infatuation would fade, until she walked into their headquarters one evening wearing what he referred to as a Sasha Special.