Chapter 100

Which means he won’t start in Saturday’s competition as he expected. And the more he dwells on it, the worse his performance gets. He just can’t seem to catch a break.

When he realizes he isn’t going to win back his spot on the team, he hangs around the coach’s office, waiting for practice to finish. Finally Sweeney calls it a day, and as everyone files back towards the locker room, Rory waits by her door. She glances up from her clipboard to see him standing there and gives him a wry grin. “You’re dripping on my floor.”

He steps out of the doorway and back onto the concrete that edges the pool tiles. “Sorry. Look, about my time—”

“You disappointed me today,” she admits, ducking into her office to deposit the clipboard on her desk. Then she leans against the door jamb, arms crossed in front of her chest, and looks past him at the scoreboard. “I was only half-kidding when I said the new kid was better than you. I didn’t think you’d let it ruin your game.”