Off Season (The Blake Boys Book 15) by Rhonda Laurel

player. You know this school has the highest enrollment rate every year? They tout this as the epicenter for superstars. The kids are going to flip when they see you today.”
    “You’re no slouch yourself and you’re still in the game.” Seth gave him a good-natured slap on the back. “According to Riley Sloane I belong in a museum.”
    “Riley’s got a big mouth and an even bigger ego. I want to punch that snot-nosed runt in the face every time I see him. I hear T.K. conned you into mentoring the kid.”
    “Yeah, I had him out to the ranch the other weekend to feel him out. He’s a full-blown diva.”
    Ross’s eyes widened. “You had him out to the ranch? You don’t let many people come on your home turf.”
    “Don’t read anything into it. I didn’t want to be seen in public with him. I have a feeling that a hundred photographers would have shown up if we’d met somewhere for dinner.”
    “Right. Good thinking.” Ross tapped his fingers on the dash. “Did he get there on time? He loves to be fashionably late.”
    “No, he was on time and things were going OK until the little idiot tried to hit on my niece, Avery.”
    “Did you tie him to Iris and have her drag him around the ranch?”
    “Believe me I thought about it. I think he just likes to push boundaries and thumb his nose at authority. I threatened to clean his clock, but Avery’s rejection of his charms was the death knell.”
    “So that’s why he looked like a sad puppy at practice.” Ross howled. “Women aren’t in the habit of turning him down.”
    “Well my niece is immune to Casanovas. Well, most.” His thoughts jumped back to Avery and Wyatt. They hadn’t been together very often lately, and that should have been a comfort to the men in the family. Now the guys spent their poker nights postulating about what had happened between the college students. They liked Wyatt. He was Bo’s brother and a good kid, but the family was still in full-on protection mode of the only niece in their immediate family. Bo said Wyatt didn’t want to talk about what had gone down, and the few times Corbett came by to play he said he knew as much as the rest of the family did. Avery and Wyatt seemed to be going through a rough patch, but he doubted it was the end of the interesting relationship.
    “I felt like I owed T.K. since I’ve turned down his offers to work for the Tomcats. Besides, T.K. could use a win.”
    “Yeah, I know. That young wife of his is taking him through the wringer. I hear she’s shacking up with some ranch hand in her spare time.”
    “Yikes.” Seth winced. “How are things between him and Logan? Things seemed a little rocky from the little I saw.”
    “Logan’s damn good at his job, but he has no love for his old man. It gets really chilly when they’re in a room together. If I didn’t know the two of them, I wouldn’t believe they were related. Logan once told me he’d only extend an olive branch to T.K. if it were on fire.”
    “Well he’s mule-headed and difficult, just like his dad. It’s funny how neither of them realize how much they have in common.”
    “It usually goes that way.” Ross chuckled and shook his head.
    “So do you make these appearances often in your free time?”
    “Technically it’s not an appearance. I just happen to have a day off and felt sentimental about where it all began. At least that’s what I tell my publicist when he finds out I talked to the coach and the kids and didn’t clear it with him. I don’t feel right about charging my high school to say a few encouraging words to their football team before a big game.”
    “Ah.” He nodded. “It’s always nice to give back without it turning into some kind of PR opportunity.”
    The life of a professional player was tricky when everyone associated with him was poised to make money. He agreed with Ross, it never felt OK to accept speaking fees. He’d turned down speaking at colleges and corporations for that reason. What