Page 62 of Caught Up In You (Indigo Royal Resort)
“But you think I should take it.”
He started to pace a little around the small room. There wasn’t very far for him to go, but if Leona wasn’t going to even acknowledge he was there, he needed to channel the newfound anxiety this call was giving him somehow. At least he hoped the anxiety was from the call.
“I do. I think it’s a good opportunity to leverage yourself into something new. You’re staying within football, just a different league. So the American league isn’t the Premiership, it’s also not the joke league it used to be either. And listening to this bloke who owns the team, he wants to use this opportunity to continue to try and push the league further.”
“How exactly?”
“Fresh young talent, big name coach—that’d be you, mate—and modeling his team after how the bigger leagues do it. Get rid of the idea that America is somewhere Europe goes to retire. If you’re the coach that can help him do this, then that’s your ticket to anywhere, Cullen. Are you hearing me? Anywhere…”
“I’ll think about it.”
“That’s what you said two weeks ago. Now it’s answer time.”
“Can I have until tomorrow?”
He heard Oliver exhale loudly. “Fine, until tomorrow. But I doubt I can hold Atlanta off much longer than that.”
“Understood. You'll have an answer tomorrow.”
“Good. Now go back to whomever you were doing.”
“You mean what I was doing,” Cullen corrected his agent.
“Pretty sure I had it correct the first time,” Oliver said just before hanging up.
Cullen stopped his pacing and turned to face Leona. The sheets were bundled in a pile sitting on the massage table, with her leaning against the wall. She smiled at him as he pulled his shirt over his head and walked toward the table, stopping when he was standing right up next to it.
“That was about the coaching job?” she asked, finally breaking the silence.
“Yeah, they want an answer by tomorrow.”
“Sounds like they wanted an answer now,” she said, stepping away from the wall. It didn’t take but three of her little steps until she was standing right up against the table. The three-foot width of the table was the only thing that stood between them, but it might as well have been miles for the way it felt now.
“Yeah, but I need until tomorrow.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m still not sure about it,” he said, shaking his head.
“Even though Oliver thinks you should take it?”
“Yeah,” he nodded.
“Has he ever steered you wrong?”
“Not in all the years we’ve been together,” he said, drinking her in. The concerned expression on her face made him wonder what she was thinking about. Despite the interruption of a work call, the only thing running through his mind was the look in her eyes while she came. How he’d been so close to uttering words that he hadn’t even realized he felt until that moment. How he couldn't help but wonder if those were the same emotions running through her right now.
“Then why doubt him?”
“Because every other time, I at least had a feeling of what I wanted to do in a situation. Now, I have no idea,” he admitted.
“I think you should take it.”
“Why?” he asked, surprised.
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“Because I’ve seen how good you are with the kids. I saw what you were able to accomplish with my brother in just two weeks. Imagine what you could do with a whole team, full time.”
