Heaven Sent (Loki/Asgard Fanfiction - Aislinn's Story)

Chapter Fifteen

Over the next few days, Aislinn got to see just what Steve's routine was, got to see just what an impact he had and what a difference he made to the boys he coached. At first, she didn't want to go and sit up at the athletic complex on Baker Street, because it was so hot and so humid, she thought she might actually melt. Steve understood, or at least said he did, and when he left Monday morning, Aislinn thought she'd just enjoy a nice, quiet morning.

By noon she was ready to go mad.

So on Tuesday, she brought plenty of water and made herself comfortable in the bleachers, watching her very first football training camp.

The kids were all between eight and thirteen years old, and the skills varied. Some kids had been playing Pop Warner football for years, as he explained to her, while for others, this was their first exposure to the game. And this year, for the first time, three girls had come out as well. And Aislinn smiled as two of those girls stared at Steve almost as much as she did.

She couldn't help it. He just looked so... sexy, in shorts and a dark burgundy tee shirt that bore the township logo over the left breast, stretched tight over his sinfully broad shoulders. The sun glinted off his dark hair, his tan deepened, and he didn't just bark orders at these kids. He was hands-on, showing them proper tackling moves, how to throw, to catch, and so on.

He worked with several other coaches, one of whom was a woman, and Aislinn couldn't help but notice how friendly and comfortable that woman was with him. She hated being jealous, but at times, when the woman touched Steve's arm or nudged his shoulder with hers, Aislinn almost had to sit on her hands to keep from zapping the woman into a spider or something.

But then Steve looked over at her and winked, held up a hand to the kids, and said, "I'll be right back. Heather, you and Tom have them practice the bootlegs."

And with that, he jogged over to her. "How're you holding up, Ash?"

"I'm okay." And she was for now. She wore a tank top and shorts, and had her hair pulled up in a high ponytail. "You're really having a good time out there, aren't you?"

He smiled, easing his Ray-Ban Wayfarers up to sit on the top of his head. "Yeah. This is one of my favorite camps."

"And you've got girls, too."

He leaned against the fence separating the bleachers from the track surrounding the field. "Last year," he pointed to the tallest of the three girls, "she came out for the first time and the boys were merciless. Then she threw the ball. Kid's got a cannon for an arm and is dead-on accurate." He grinned. "From that moment on, they were in awe of her. Turns out, her dad played in the NFL for the Jets and the Colts."

"I have no idea what the NFL is, and what are the Jets and Colts?"

"The NFL is the National Football League--wait a minute--" He grinned. "You said you were a football fan."

She winked. "I almost had you."

"Funny." He leaned over the fence to brush her lips with a quick kiss. "Let me know if the heat gets to be too much for you."

"I will. Go. This is fun." She waved him back and rested her elbows on her thighs, chin on her hands as he jogged back to the kids.

It was a typical New Jersey summer day. The temperature was in the mid-eighties, and the humidity was high enough that the air wrapped about her face like a wet sheet. She brought three big bottles of water with her, and by noon, had only half a bottle left.

Thankfully at one, camp ended and parents came to retrieve their children. Aislinn stood and made her way down, around the fence, and onto the football field. Steve and Heather were stowing equipment in its proper bag or container and he looked up as her shadow fell over him. "Hey, how're you holding up, Ash?"