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“You don’t even know if it’s Coach K,” Wyatt told him.

“But I have a damn good feeling that it is,” Jude retorted with a wide grin. He threw his arms around our shoulders and steered us right toward the teacups.

Sure enough, Rhodes sat on the dunk seat, and damn. It was actually unfair how attractive that man was. A white t-shirt stretched across his broad shoulders and showed off the intricate ink of both his tattoos, while faded jeans hugged his strong thighs. He’d kicked off his shoes, leaving him barefoot atop the platform, and one ankle was hooked casually over the other. His long, dark hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail, and the light breeze lifted the wild strands framing his face.

But it wasn’t just the way he looked that caught my attention. It was his smile—the real one that lit up his face as he joked with a group of students gathered around the tank. That smile did things to me, but most of all, it was a relief to see it. I wanted him to be happy, even if it was just because of a dunk tank and taunting students.

Correction: taunting his mother.

Mrs. Kennedy stood at the front of the group with a football in her hands, laughing with her son. As she always did when she went out, she wore a dark wig, her long hair falling around her shoulders. Despite how worn and thin she looked, her smile was as big and bright as Rhodes’.

“C’mon.” Jude tapped me in the chest, and we wove through the crowd behind him. The minute we were within earshot, Jude exclaimed, “Mom!”

“It’s my other baby!” She matched his enthusiasm. His hug was gentle compared to their mood, and as soon as she let him go, she turned to us. “And look! My two favorite extra sons. How are my boys?”

Wyatt and I took turns hugging her, taking care as we did—as we always did. It was impossible to miss how frail she was. It was also impossible to ignore that she wasn’t getting better, despite how her smile never faded. Jude got his sunshine personality from her. Where the antagonizing, chaotic part came from was beyond me.

“I’m surprised it took you three so long to show up,” she said.

“We didn’t know.” Wyatt shrugged. “I guess Coach K. forgot to tell us.”

“Oh, I don’t think he did. I’m just going to take that,” Jude told her and plucked the football right out of her hands. Speaking louder, he turned to his brother, “In fact, I think you didn’t want me to find out at all.”

“Be nice to your brother,” Mrs. Kennedy cut in. “He’s doing a good thing for the team.”

“I know! And I think, as the team’s star quarterback, it’s my duty to be the first one to dunk our coach.”

“No!” Rhodes exclaimed, pointing to Jude. The panic on his face made me press my lips together to keep from laughing. There was no way in hell Jude would miss. Rhodes was going in that water whether he wanted to or not. “Don’t you fucking dare!”

“It’s fundraising, Brother Coach!” Jude’s grin couldn’t get any wider.

“Jude!”

“I’m helping the school out.”

“Jude!”

“It’s a good thing!”

“Jude! I swear to fucking God if you throw that ball—”

“I’m going to do it.”

“Jude! Don’t you dare—” His words vanished in a yelp as Jude threw the ball and hit the target dead center, sending Rhodes dropping into the tank with a loud splash. I felt the water hit my face, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

A second later, Rhodes burst back to the surface, shoving his soaked hair out of his eyes with both hands. Water streamed down his face and disappeared beneath the collar of his now-transparent white t-shirt. The fabric clung to every inch of his hard-earned muscles, and the chill in the water made his nipples harden.

My laughter faltered, and my mouth felt suddenly dry as I stared at him. It should’ve been illegal for one man to look that good after getting dunked into a tank of water. Rhodes blinked the water from his eyes while I tried to keep my jaw from hitting the ground. The crowd cheered around us as Jude made a whole thing of his victory.

“You’re a little shit, you know that?” Rhodes said loudly, but the big grin on his face made it hard to believe him. He waded through the water and right back to the reset board, pulling himself up effortlessly. “Now, give Mom a chance to throw it and give me some time to dry off.”

The booth coordinator handed Mrs. Kennedy another football, but she quickly passed it to me. All of Rhodes’ cockiness vanished as I gave him a sheepish smile.

“C’mon, Mom!” Rhodes exclaimed. “It’s your turn! Make Theo pay for his own chance.”

He said the words, pinning me with a stare only I would understand. One that told me no way in hell was I allowed to do exactly that. To be fair, I wasn’t great at throwing the ball—at least not like Jude was. I had a good chance of missing.

“I think it’s only fair that all of your players get a chance to dunk the coach, baby boy,” she called back. “Think of it as a team building exercise.”