Page 50 of Crew Girl

She was about to make a break for it, say something about her period—that usually worked—when Britney cupped her hand to her ear. “Don’t you just love a Tibetan sound bath?”

Maybe? If she’d ever heard one before.

“Excuse Bronson’s mess,” Britney said, waving at Baloo’s unisuit and luggage that were sprawled in a corner. “I’m sure you already know he’s a slob. He’s out doing his private ‘pre-game ritual.’” She directed Teagan toward a pair of sofas flanking a huge coffee table covered in manicure supplies, face masks, and a charcuterie board that would probably get polished off by Baloo when he got back from whatever it was he was doing. “Foot bath?”

“Sure.” She sat down in front of one of the two foot baths bubbling away, sending wafts of lavender into the room. She took off her shoes and slipped her feet in. It felt really good. She and her mom used to get pedicures together back in the day, when they were a perfect family of three.

“Soooo…” Britney said once she was settled on the sofa across from Teagan. “Girl talk. I see that you’ve been cozying up with the team.”

“Umm…”

“Are there any sparks flying?” She held up her hand. “Don’t even try to tell me you spend all that time with eight hotties and haven’t wanted to slip into the shower with one of them.”

Been there, done that. Probably best not to mention it. “We mostly talk about rowing.”

“What do you think about Quaid?”

“Quaid? He’s like a little brother. A big little brother,” she amended.

“Noah?”

“He’s like an older brother.”

Britney made a throat-clearing noise, like she was trying really, really hard not to get irritated. “How about Cam? He’s cute. Don’t tell me you wouldn’t drink that eight-pack?”

“Cam is very… drinkable?”

Britney still didn’t look satisfied. “Have you ever thought about Josh?”

Yeah. She should’ve made a run for it. Another one of her dad’s sayings came to her: Questions aren’t stupid. Not asking them is.

Teagan swallowed the lump in her throat. “Britney, why am I really here?”

CAM

“So…” Madison asked. “Who is she?”

“Who is who?” Cam played dumb even though he knew exactly what Madison, Coach’s daughter, was talking about. And that she would find a way to squeeze an answer out of him. He and Madison had pretty much grown up together. She went to the local high school even though she was smarter than half the kids at Easton. Madison was one of the few townies who’d never treated him any differently after he’d bagged the rowing scholarship. Even without an Easton education, Madison would get into whatever college she wanted. With a scholarship. She was that smart.

He closed the back of his truck and shouldered his duffel bag. He’d had to work at the shop so had arrived just in time for the team dinner.

“The girl you’re crushing on?”

“I’m not—”

She started laughing. “So the pretty blonde cox you keep staring at isn’t someone you want to go out with?”

Sometimes hanging out with Madison was like talking to a living, breathing lie detector. “Just because she’s female doesn’t mean I’m crushing on her.” There were all sorts of other reasons he was. She was driven. An awesome rower. Took advice when she needed to. Eventually. Made him a little bit crazy sometimes. He wondered if she liked tacos.

“Okay,” Madison said, like she was going to let it go. She wouldn’t.

They headed toward the hotel lobby, steering clear of a bunch of Westvale guys coming out of the hotel’s courtyard.

“You know,” Madison said far too casually. “I may not go to your prep school, but I have known you forever. And that face means you’re crushing. You should ask her out.”

“I did.”

“Really? Did she say yes?”