The Back-Up Plan by Debra Webb Read Free Book Online Page A

would just have to figure out some other way to deal with Masters.
    The message he’d found on his answering machine last night flitted through the back of his mind. Jim Fedderman, his former agent, had rambled on and on about some hot deal he had in the works for Hank. “Yeah, right, you’ve been working on a hot deal for two years, Fedderman.”
    Hank had lost it completely after his injury, and when the offers had poured in for anchor and commentator slots, he had scoffed at the idea. Hank Bradley was going to play again. Somehow, some way.
    It had taken him a long time to get past the anger and bitterness; past the denial and then on to acceptance. A full year to be precise. Twelve long months of surgery and physical therapy, and the big deal celebrity NFL player Hank Bradley’d had to admit defeat. Teaching and coaching was what he did now. He had accepted that fate.
    He swung around and sagged against the wall. Dr. Jacobs’s defiant yet vulnerable image flashed before his eyes. The intensity of his attraction to her surprised him. Made even less sense considering she didn’t like him. He knew what she thought of him—a dumb jock with no aptitude for teaching her dog, if she had one, much less her child.
    Hank pushed away from the wall and took a deep, calming breath. He could try to change her mind but the fact that she had gone to Masters with her complaint warned she wasn’t interested. She had a hell of a way of telling him to back off.
    Back at his classroom he thanked Teresa, the teacher’s aide for K-2, for watching his students. The children were engrossed in trying to write their first and last names. Shaking off the lingering irritation with Cynthia, Hank knelt next to Shane who was having a particularly hard time with his handwriting.
    No matter how hard he tried, thoughts of the new doc threatened his concentration. Why had she gone behind his back and seen Masters anyway? There’d been no other incidents with Melissa. She hadn’t given him a chance to speak with her again, but he had sent a note home praising her daughter’s conduct. Why did the woman dislike him so? Whatever the reason, Cynthia Masters now had one more incident to put in her little expose on Hank.
    What he needed was a distraction. Something to take his mind off the women in his life. The weekend was coming up and the only thing he had going was tomorrow night’s game. He glanced around the room and his dire expression brightened. He would paint this classroom. Hank hated the canary yellow color it had been for far too long. Come Monday morning it would be Hornet blue. Masters would love that. The thought of her displeasure made the idea even more appealing. When practice was over this afternoon he would stop by the hardware store and have Starr mix the color. And after that, maybe he’d buy himself a six-pack and just chill on the couch.
    ~*~
    “The doctor’s on the way, Coach.” Gasping for breath, Dodd dropped to the ground beside Hank. “His dad’s on the way, too, but it’ll take him half an hour to get here from work.”
    “Good job, Baker.” Hank watched Stevens’ convulsing body with growing anxiety. He had only witnessed one other epileptic seizure in his life and he felt certain that it hadn’t lasted anywhere near this long. “Come on, Stevens. Hang in there, man.”
    Hank figured Stevens had recognized the aura just prior to losing consciousness. The kid had stopped in the middle of the field, pulled off his helmet and spit out his mouthpiece before falling to the ground. Hank had cleared the huddle of players around Stevens and turned him on his side. All he could do now was watch. He had read up on the disorder and knew he shouldn’t interfere unless—
    “Damn.” The kid was chewing his tongue. He grabbed the boy’s discarded mouthpiece. If he could insert it back into his mouth maybe he wouldn’t hurt himself with all that chewing. Hank cursed when his fingers slipped and got caught in the