“Phoebe . . .”

She cupped his cheek. “I love you, Coach. Now get to work. That’s an order.”

Leaving his arms took all her willpower, but she pulled away while he still looked dazed from her declaration. She’d barely taken two steps before Bobby Tom and Jim were at her side.

“Are you all right?” Bobby Tom’s face was pale with concern. “Damn, Phoebe, you had us so scared.”

“I’m fine.” She grabbed their arms. “I want to win this game. I want Dan to be able to win it.”

“If we had more time—”

Phoebe cut Jim off. “I don’t care about that. I can’t let this happen to him. Not to any of you.”

She turned away and raced toward Darnell. Somehow she had to restore the players’ faith in their coach, but she had so little time. He looked alarmed as he saw the state she was in, and he took a quick step forward.

“Phoebe, what happened to you?”

As quickly as possible, she explained. Attempting to catch her breath at the end, she said, “Dan was only trying to protect me. Tell the other linemen that. We’re going to win this game.”

Before he could question her, the players who were not on the field began to surround her, and she repeated her story. As they pelted her with questions, the Sabers punted.

Dan had his headset back on and was shouting instructions. Jim slapped his shoulder and dashed onto the field with the offense.

The two-minute warning sounded.

Dan hunched forward, his hands splayed on his thighs. The Stars were playing without a huddle. Phoebe dug her fingernails into her palms as the action on the field began to unfold.

Jim drilled a pass to his tight end for a completion. On the next play he just missed the tailback on a screen pass. And then on third down, he threw incomplete.

The Stars’ trainer appeared at her side and began to wrap her wrists in gauze. Word of what had happened had spread through the team, and Webster Greer came up next to her like a bodyguard.

Jim connected for a first down at the thirty-eight yard line, and the dome reverberated with cheers.

The Sabers’ defense was slow to adjust to the no-huddle passing attack. Dry-mouthed, Phoebe watched her team move to the seventeen.

1:10

Biederot connected with Collier Davis. Phoebe screamed as Davis took it in for the touchdown.

The fans went wild.

On the sideline Dan was huddled with the kickoff team and special teams’ coordinator.

The Stars made the extra point. Sabers 27, Stars 24.

0:58

As the Stars’ kickoff team lined up, the crowd anticipated the onside kick, knowing the Stars had to regain possession of the ball. The onside kick was a maneuver Dan had forced the players to practice hundreds of times during the season, until they could perform it flawlessly. But this wasn’t a practice, and the other team knew that short, potentially lethal kick was coming.