Page 73 of Out of Control

“Just don’t be making any movies because those somehow always get stolen. That’s the last kind of attention your gallery needs,” she jokes.

“There will be no sex tape. I assure you.” I laugh.

“Good. Now that we have that covered, tell me everything and I’ll do the same.”

We go on to talk for a bit about her life, about my life, and about things with Rossi as I let the warm sun and the cool breeze relax me.

“This all sounds so normal, Sof. You never do normal when it comes to men.” She laughs. “And here I was, certain you were going to go into a rant over how Cruz has put his foot down on this whole fucking his teammate thing.”

“Well . . .” I laugh nervously.

Her pause says it all. “I was wondering why you two weren’t splashed all over the place yet, but I was reserving judgment until I talked to you. And now I get it. Cruz doesn’t know, does he?”

“Well, not exactly.”

“And that means what?”

“That means nothing.” I scrunch my nose up.

“You are so full of shit. You’ve just sat and gushed about the man and then you admit no one knows about him but me.”

“I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t have to. So what gives, Navarro?”

“It’s my life. I can do as I please,” I joke.

“So long as it’s in secret.” Well, now that she puts it that way. “Have you ever stopped to think how Rossi feels about this?”

“He’s fine with it.”

“You sure about that?”

And for others, getting to show their woman off to the world and claim her as theirs is the turn-on.

Rossi’s words ghost through my mind, but I shake them off. It’s just way easier to do that than to hold tight to what they really mean. He wants more than a secret rendezvous with me.

I clear my throat. “Yeah. I’m sure. Us going public—or letting anyone know—would complicate matters for him too.”

“Uh-huh. I see,” she says with zero sense of enthusiasm.

“Don’t do that.”

“Don’t do what?”

“That judgy thing you do. That sound you’ve made since you were twelve. The whole you’re saying something but not really saying something thing you do when you make that sound.”

“I haven’t said shit,” she says but I can hear the amusement in her voice.

“It’s just fun. We’re just having fun. Isn’t that allowed?”

“Yes. Of course it is. But Sof? Normally you don’t have to hide just fun.”

“Lilith,” I groan. I hate when she makes sense.

“How often do you see him?” she asks. “And don’t give me this, oh, every once in a while shit because you haven’t been calling me back so that means you’ve been busy with him.”

“A lot.” That’s not exactly quantifiable.