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‘TAXI,’ shouted Jess from the side of the road. Gaynor was already climbing into the back, so Trish grabbed Hannah’s hand and started to yank her over. Hannah winced as her bare feet caught on some loose stones on the pavement.
‘Where are you staying?’ shouted Rob, but Hannah was already being bundled into the cab, Trish following close behind.
‘Who was that?’ asked Jess, turning around in the front seat as the taxi pulled away. Hannah leaned forward to look out of the window, where Rob was watching them drive away, his hand raised in a half-wave. ‘And why do you stink of beer?’
‘Yeah, what happened to you?’ asked Gaynor. ‘You went to get drinks, then disappeared.’
‘Is that a different T-shirt?’ asked Trish.
Hannah felt suddenly hot and dizzy, trying to process her encounter with Rob and field this barrage of questions. Half an hour ago she’d have given anything to be in this taxi on her way to her bed, but now she only wanted to be back on the bench, telling Rob her skirt had pockets and seeing him smile at her like that.
Stop it, she told herself.He’s just a hot guy trying to get you into bed, you’ll never see him again.
‘Oh God, tennis tomorrow,’ slurred Trish. ‘I’m going to be hanging.’
I’m in Spain, thought Hannah happily, reluctantly pushing Rob from her mind.I’ve got five hours of tennis tomorrow, I’ve got a month off work, and Graham and Lucy are hundreds of miles away.She pulled out her phone and held it up for a group selfie, then quickly WhatsApped it to Sam with the messageDrunk and happy. Heels going back in my suitcase, I’m all about the sparkly trainers from now on. Love you x
‘That was such a fun night,’ said Gaynor, yawning lavishly. ‘But I need my bed.’
Hannah’s phone buzzed – a reply from Sam.You look entirely fabulous. Knock them all out tomorrow xxx
Or sideways, thought Hannah, already thinking about how great a shower and clean sheets were going to feel.
CHAPTER TEN
Hannah half-jogged towards the tennis centre, her racquet bag slung over her shoulder and her hair squashed under a white visor. She’d gone to bed with it wet last night, and this morning she’d woken up looking like Marge Simpson. If she’d known the rest of the group would be so unbothered about being late, she’d have taken the time to style it properly instead of just flattening it down and hoping for the best.
Jess had told her to go ahead in the end, sensing Hannah’s frustration at the prospect of being late for their first coaching session, and promising to herd the others out the door within five minutes. So now it was just Hannah hurrying down the steps to court number eight, where their coach was busy laying out a basket of balls at each corner of the court. He turned towards her, and they both froze in silent shock.
‘Oh, wow,’ said Rob. He laughed nervously, then covered his mouth with his hand and looked up at her.
‘OH,’ exclaimed Hannah, as her brain connected the dots. She’d fallen asleep thinking about Rob last night, and now here he was, in Club Colina. ‘Are you our coach?’ She noted that her palms felt suddenly sweaty, even though it was only 9 a.m.
Rob nodded, looking flustered. ‘Yeah, I guess I am. I hope that’s OK?’
‘Of course,’ said Hannah, not entirely sure if it was OK or not. Her memory of last night was admittedly hazy and this was hardly her field of expertise, but it had definitely felt like there had been some kind of . . .somethingin the air between her and Rob, however brief. Her delight at seeing him again was tempered by the discovery that he was a tennis coach, and therefore almost certainly a total player when it came to women.
‘Wow, this is so weird,’ said Rob, rubbing his stubbly jaw. ‘Did you get back OK?’ The question was weak, all his confidence from last night suddenly gone.
‘Yeah,’ said Hannah, wondering if he’d realised she wasn’t all that special without the beer goggles. The thought made her squirm with embarrassment. ‘It was fine.’
‘That’s good,’ said Rob. Neither of them said anything more, until the noise of Jess, Gaynor and Trish jogging onto the court gave them a welcome reprieve.
‘Sorry we’re late,’ said Jess. ‘I’m Jess.’
Rob regained his enthusiasm and shook her hand, then introduced himself to the other women. Hannah watched Trish carefully to see if she’d make the connection with the man she’d briefly met last night, but there wasn’t even a flicker of recognition. No great surprise, considering Trish’s eyes had been looking in different directions at the time.
‘Nice play, Jess,’ said Rob, giving her a clap as she finished off the point with a blistering forehand that had practically landed on Trish’s feet. They’d already done a warm-up and a drills session, and now Rob was watching their match play to identify their individual weaknesses. Hannah crouched over, ready to receive Jess’s next serve, trying not to feel self-conscious under his appraising gaze. He might not be interested in her as a woman, but surely he’d appreciate her as a tennis player? As long as she held her focus and didn’t get distracted, anyway, which was already lining up to be a huge potential weakness. Why did he have to be so good-looking? And why was she sweating so much? It wasn’t even that hot.
‘Sorry, everyone,’ shouted Jess, snapping Hannah back into the real world. ‘I’ve broken a string.’
Rob glanced at his watch. ‘We’ll take a break. You can drop that one off at the clubhouse and get it re-strung.’
‘Thanks,’ said Jess. ‘There’s no hurry, I’ve got a spare.’
‘Let’s have lunch,’ he called to the others. They all wandered over, breathing heavily from the exertion. Hannah bent down to grab a water bottle from her bag, turning to face him so she didn’t give him a prime view of her backside in a pink and white tennis skirt.
‘Where are we going tonight?’ asked Gaynor, idly checking her phone for messages.
