“Coulda fooled me.” Diane shrugged, making Kat wonder what the hell that meant.
“So this is where you go when tennis isn’t on your mind.”
She turned, mentally guarding herself for another unwanted suitor, and found Gary sitting on a barstool. His Hawaiian shirt stood out in the crowd of sequins and dark clothing, and his age alone put him nearly double the average customer.
“Gary, hey.” She held up a finger, then finished the order and trayed it for when Sissy came back for it. Wiping her hands on her bar towel, she approached. “Do you want something to drink?”
“No, I’m just here to see what my player is up to when she’s not at practice.” Gary glanced around the bar, his expression completely neutral. “Interesting.”
Somehow she had a feeling interesting was code for what the hell? “It’s a good place to work,” she defended. “Easy money, which I need right now.”
“Afraid of being forgotten,” Gary said again, and she felt her fists ball in response.
“Nobody’s forgotten me, so I’m not sure how I could be scared of it anyway. But regardless, I don’t have the sponsorships to keep me going without a job. I need to eat. It’s just the way it goes.”
“You could have asked me. We’ve got spaces open for another instructor.”
She opened her mouth, then shut it again for a moment. “Gary, I’ve got to finish my shift.”
He patted the bar top gently. “I guess if you’re exhausted for tomorrow’s practice, I’ll know why. Good luck.” Then he was gone, leaving Kat feeling like she’d had an argument with a ghost.
And lost.
Just then, someone sat in the seat Gary vacated, and when she looked up, she saw Michael watching her intently.
Watching out for her.
And she didn’t feel like she’d lost anymore.
Later that night, after she’d come home and washed the smell of beer and pretzels off her skin, Kat found herself over in Michael’s apartment. In his bed. Naked.
But not having sex.
She ran the toe of one foot up and down his shin, liking the way the rough hair tickled her skin.
“You’ve got me over here, naked, and you just want to cuddle?”
“Mmm.” He wrapped his arms around her tighter and pulled her in. Her nose bumped his chest, and she breathed in deeply. Clean, warm male, fresh sheets… perfect.
She could exist in this warm cocoon for a long time, happily unaffected by the outside world.
“You need to call Sawyer tomorrow.”
Pop! goes the cocoon.
“Why?”
“I called and told him I couldn’t mentor you anymore.”
“You did what?” She sat up, bringing the sheet with her automatically, a shield of some sorts. “Why would you do that? You’re kicking me to the curb? What the hell?”
Michael watched her cautiously, like one might watch a feral cat that got into your garage. “I can’t mentor you,” he said slowly, “because we’re involved. That’s not right.”
“I wasn’t paying you or anything. What does that matter?”
“It matters… because. It just does. It matters to me. It feels wrong. Come here.”
She resisted when his hands reached for her. “I need to know why. Do you want me to leave? Are you tired of me being here?”
“Baby, who did a number on your head?” he whispered, then pulled her to him before she could stop him. His lips trailed over her temple, into her hair, ignoring that she stiffened against him. “No, I don’t want you to leave. I’m not tired of you. I want you to stay if you can. You’ve got a good setup with De’Shawn and Gary.”
“And Thomas,” she added.
“And Thomas,” he repeated through his teeth. “I’m not asking you to leave that. I’m just saying… I’m not responsible for you. No more manny.”
“But all the jokes,” she protested on a sigh. “So many wasted opportunities.”
“Deal with it.” His suggestion hung in the air, but she could tell there was more.
“What?”
“Have you considered… trying a new agent?”
Kat rolled her eyes. “Nobody would want me. I’m damaged goods, literally and figuratively. I’m an injury waiting to happen, and I’m ‘unpredictable.’ Plus that whole tape thing…”
“One of those things you can fix, you know. The unpredictable bit can taper off.” He resettled her against him, skin to skin, his arm cushioning her head, lips brushing against her forehead as he spoke. “Why do you really go out of your way to shock people?”
“I don’t ever think I do.” She heard him huff in disbelief. “I don’t. The first one… the sex tape…” God, it made her stomach clench to think about it. “That wasn’t my fault. Yes, it was recorded on my phone, and yes, my phone sent it out. But that was Igor’s doing. Or someone working for him, or with him, I don’t know. He set up my phone, recorded us without me knowing, then used my phone days later when I was in the shower to put the video on my YouTube account. Once it was out…”