“My favorite anything. My best sweet pea.”
“You’remybest sweet pea,” he told me. “Do you have any nice clothes?”
No. “I may have something. But do you really want to go to this dinner? I mean, it could be really boring.”
He considered. “No, I really want to go.”
I gulped. “Because, pal, the tickets are expensive.”
“Oh.” It was very quiet in the back seat.
“Why don’t we talk about it later? Now, explain to me again what you’re swimming on Saturday.”
Charlie perked up. “My first event is the 50 fly.”
“And what’s the most important thing about that race?”
We went through all his events as he wiggled into his speedo. I decided that I would get him to that dinner if I had to rob a bank.
∞
Annie and I ran together again during practice.
“What’s Macdara swimming at the meet?” I asked her. This time I was determined to hold up my end of the conversation, if I could do it without passing out.
“50 breast, 50 fly, 100 free on Saturday, 200 breast, 50 free, 100 back on Sunday. Her first 200 breast.”
Swimming breaststroke for two hundred yards seemed like death to me, but I made an appreciative sound.
“Mackie said you guys are driving down on Saturday.”
“Yep, Charlie will only swim one day.”
“And you’re bringing Luke?” she asked.
I could feel her looking over at me as we rounded a turn of the track. “Uh, yeah, I’m giving him a ride.”
I glanced over at her. Now she had turned straight ahead, face expressionless. Was my driving him a problem? “He asked me as a favor,” I explained. We made another loop around the track in silence until she spoke again.
“Luke is a good brother. He’s a good guy.”
“I don’t know him very well,” I explained, “except as my sister’s old boyfriend.”
“And she’s married now,” she pointed out.
“Yes…” Where was this headed? “Cassie isn’t going to the meet. She’s not interested in him, if that’s what you’re getting at.”
“It’s none of my business,” Annie said quickly. “But my dad was asking me about her so I thought I’d talk to you. We were just concerned that maybe they were starting things up again.”
“There’s nothing going on between them.” Was she crazy? In Cassie’s state? What the hell? “That was a long time ago, right? I mean, just high school stuff.”
Annie nodded, and we did another lap.
“At least if you’re driving down in the morning you won’t have to stay at the hotel with the team.” Annie shuddered.
I was glad she had changed the topic. “What’s wrong with it?” I puffed. Nope, I was not going to be able to keep up my end of the conversation.
“Well, it’s a motel, really. Pretty run down. But I checked the bedbug website, and it says this place is clear.”
