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“It’s not that big a deal, Kiri. People hook up all the time. We were teenagers.” She shrugged one shoulder as if it was no big deal. “Unless your problem is that my team beat yours, in which case, there’s not a whole lot I can do about that.”
I waited to answer until my hands were bone dry. “I don’t care about any of it. I’m just annoyed that you’re in my space and as soon as this competition season is over, I’m not going to think of you.”
This was the biggest lie I’d ever told and we both knew that.
“Okay, Kiri. Okay. I’m not going to lie, it’s fun winding you up. You just get so cute and flustered. I like your hair like this.” She reached out and brushed her finger along the line of my undercut. I wanted to flinch away, but my body did the opposite. I leaned into her and she took another step closer.
“I think about those nights we had, Kiri. I think you do too.”
The room became as hot as a sauna, and I swear my body temperature rose at least ten degrees.
“I know we’re on opposite sides, but that doesn’t mean we couldn’t . . . revisit those nights. Just for fun. We’re both adults.” Was she suggesting what I thought she was suggesting?
“No,” I said, but that was the only thing I could say. “That is never going to happen.”
“If you say so,” she said, one side of her mouth turning up in a smirk.
“Come on, we should go back out there, or else rumors might start.”
I needed to regain my composure that she had disturbed, again.
Echo left the bathroom and I had to take at least ten cleansing breaths before I could push myself through the door and go back into the gym with a fake smile plastered on my face.
I made it through the rest of practice and got my kids out. The Bulldogs got on the bus, but Echo hung around.
“I don’t think I should leave you alone with her,” Dom said in my ear. “You might rip each other apart, or, you know . . .” He raised his eyebrows and I knew exactly what he was insinuating.
“That is never going to happen. Don’t be gross.”
I wished the idea of getting into bed with Echo was gross. I was trying to make it gross by picturing her naked and covered in garbage or snakes or something. Nope, still hot.
Dom’s phone made a sound and he looked at the message.
“Crap, I have to go. Heath needs me at home. We have a call with our adoption agent tonight for an update and we don’t know if it’s good news or bad news.” I gave him a huge hug and promised I wouldn’t strangle Echo, and then it was just the two of us and her blender.
“Why are you still here?” I asked with a sigh. The place was cleaned up, but she was taking her sweet time packing up the blender into an enormous duffle bag.
“Because I wanted to talk to you with everyone gone.”
“That is shocking information,” I said in a deadpan voice.
“You can’t say you’re not enjoying this. I see how you get when you think you’re getting to me.”
I knew I had gotten to her, too. If she said I hadn’t, she was a liar. I kept silent as she slung her bag over her muscled shoulder and walked toward me.
“I’m here when you’re ready to talk, or not talk.” She pulled something out of her pocket and held it between two fingers.
“Call me,” she said, and my mouth dropped open. She was literally handing me a business card with her number on it. Who the hell did she think she was?
Unable to form a response, she just laughed and headed out of the gym.
“Remember, call me anytime, Kiri. I’ll see you tomorrow in a more professional capacity.”
I waited to scream until she had definitely left. Then I looked at the ceiling and let the sound rip from my throat.
I told the cats all about it when I got home. They listened and blinked slowly and then begged for treats, which was typical.
“Thanks for listening,” I said as I pulled the bag with their treats in it out of the cabinet. I liked to make them work for it, so I put the treats in a few different puzzle toys and set them on the floor. As soon as I did that, the kitties had forgotten about me.
