Novels by June M.

MatteoIf there was one thing I had learned over the years watching Rowan play on television, it was that the more I looked at him, the harder it became to think straight.Back then, he had never called me Coach. He always called me Matteo. Now, hearing that single word from him felt strange."What do you want?" I asked.He folded his arms across his chest. "You suspended me and I don't approve of it.""Yes."I walked around my desk and placed both hands on it. "You're the captain, Ro…" I caught myself. "…Rowan. Start acting like one instead of getting into fights with your teammates.""Well. You saw that he immaturely started it.""And you immaturely continued."He stared at me for some second, nodding before turning toward the door. Without another word, he stepped out and shut it behind him.The office fell silent. I rubbed my temple before dropping into the chair.Leith had warned me this wouldn't be easy. His son had really changed. He also told me about how the therapist had dia

RowanIf taunting had a human form, it would be Matteo. He stood at the side of the basketball court with his hands behind his back, waiting. I wondered why he had suddenly asked one of the players to call me over.“Coach,” I greeted as I stopped in front of him.If Matteo was going to act like a saint, then I was going to act like we had never known each other.“Captain.” His expression remained unreadable. “A friendly match has been scheduled with the Riverside Falcons.”I frowned.“Our team, the Westbridge, will be hosting them this Saturday.”I already knew whose idea that was. Of course it was going to be the old man.“Got it,” I replied flatly.“That’ll be all.”I nodded and turned away. I knew exactly why my dad had arranged the match. He wanted an excuse to watch me play. To make sure I was actually training instead of slacking off. He had always been like that.And the worst part of it was I couldn’t even disobey him even if I tried. Now I understood why he had brought Matteo

Rowan povAfter the stupid warm up or whatever Matteo wanted to call that torture, I was already fed up. It was like he was avoiding saying my name unless he absolutely had to.“Move left. Right. Left…”Those were the only instructions he gave me. Everyone else got corrections and feedback, while I got nothing. If it had been Coach Jefferson, I would’ve taken that as a sign I didn’t need to work on anything.Maybe this was Matteo’s way of proving I had become just another player to him. That was somehow good, because I was tired of trying to figure him out anyway.The rest of practice went by with endless drills. By the time Matteo finally blew the whistle for a break, my shirt was soaked with sweat.“Ten minutes,” he announced.I grabbed a bottle of water from the cooler and emptied half of it in one go.Buzz.My phone vibrated inside my gym bag. I didn’t even have to check the screen to know it was the old man. Who else would call in the middle of practice?I sighed and turned the p

Rowan povAfter hours of pacing outside the coach’s office, I finally gathered the courage to knock on the new office they had prepared for him.“Come in.”I pushed the door open.Matteo sat behind his desk, flipping through a stack of paperwork. He didn’t even look up from his desk.I stood there, watching him because somehow he looked even more attractive and a bit chubby than I remembered.“Are you going to keep staring, or did you need something?” His voice snapped me out of my thoughts.I cleared my throat.Only then did he raise his head. The moment our eyes met, a flicker of surprise crossed his face before it disappeared just as quickly. “…Captain Rowan?”I walked over and pulled out the chair across from his desk. “May I?”He gave a short nod.I sat down, suddenly forgetting everything I had rehearsed outside. I cleared my throat again. “Uh… Coach Mat—” I caught myself before the nickname slipped out. “…Coach Matteo.”Silence settled between us.“Do you need something, Captain

Rowan pov“Let’s break up.”The words hit me the second I slipped through the side door of the gym. Matteo was standing near the bleachers with his arms crossed to his chest like he had been waiting for me for so long.I let out a short laugh, shaking my head. He was always saying dramatic shit like that to mess with me whenever he comes earlier than me. “Yeah, okay, Dad,” I teased, dragging out the stupid nickname I had given him just to watch him roll his eyes. “Come on, let’s find somewhere to sit. I’ve got like twenty minutes before—”I reached for his arm, but he didn’t move an inch. I stared at him surprisedly. Usually Matteo let me tug him around like an oversized puppy, pretending to complain the whole time. Today his feet might as well have been bolted to the floor.I stopped. “Matt?”He let out a heavy breath, only then did I notice how glassy his eyes were.“Matt, what’s wrong?” I stepped closer, voice softer. “Hey. Talk to me. What’s wrong. You know we can figure out whate