The Golden Season by Madeline Kay Sneed

Author:Madeline Kay Sneed
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Graydon House Books
Published: 2022-03-06T22:13:24+00:00

17

On the Friday morning of their first game of the season, Miguel invited the Leadership Council and the coaching staff over to his grandma’s place for breakfast tacos and coffee. Steve was still slightly shaken by his conversation with Lucy, but there was no time to lose focus now. The season was about to begin. He had to give the team everything he had.

Pastor Ben was at the breakfast. The quarterbacks coach had invited him to come so that he could bless the food and the season. They needed him to sanctify their road to State.

“And above all...” Pastor Ben said in the middle of his prayer, right as Steve opened his eyes to look around the room. The men made eye contact, and Ben gave him a little smile. “Bless and keep Coach Quinn on this road. May he never waver in his sense of righteousness. May he keep his eyes fixed on glory and not let the world dissuade him from it. Amen.”

“Amen!” the men shouted, digging into their plates, a dull roar of conversation rising up after everyone had taken their first few bites.

“You keeping tabs on me, Pastor?” Steve asked when Ben walked over to him after the prayer.

“Just doin’ my job,” Ben said, sipping his coffee. “Dan said y’all had a talk last week.”

“Right.”

“So,” Ben said, “just wanted to make sure we were still on the same page. From our conversation last month.”

“I understand what needs to be done.” Steve had no desire to talk about it any further. Especially not here, with the boys and coaches everywhere. He had made his decision. There wasn’t any reason to talk about anything other than football.

“Well, if at any point you feel yourself...faltering,” Ben said, his voice drowned out by the booming laugh of Big Williams, “find me, won’t you? There’s no shame in asking for help.”

“All righty,” Steve said, giving him a curt nod, walking toward the rest of the team so that he wouldn’t get cornered again. Pushy people, those pastors, Steve thought, as he bit into his taco.

All twelve guys on the Leadership Council had showed up, even Little Williams, though he stood in the corner of the packed living room, sipping black coffee and sulking, shooting looks at Miguel every time he made one of the guys laugh, especially when it was his brother, who had stuffed himself on the couch in between Trey and Miguel, cracking jokes, his mouth filled with food.

Big Williams had seven tacos piled on his plate, each one stuffed with scrambled eggs, skillet potatoes, pico de gallo, beans, and a side of carnitas that Miguel’s grandmother insisted on plopping on his plate, delighted that there was no empty space, even more thrilled when Big Williams cleared his plate and came back for more.

“These are the best tacos I’ve ever had,” Big Williams said to Miguel, making his way through his ninth taco. “I wanna marry your grandma, Martinez.”

“Way she’s looking at you, you might have to,” Miguel said, pointing to her in the kitchen, already putting together a third plate for Big Williams.

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