She turned to face him. “Jack,” she said.
“Wow, Indy, you look great,” Penny said, emerging from the bathroom dressed for the party, looking more ready to walk the Paris runways than grace its tennis courts.
Jack looked stricken, but Indy stepped around him and smiled at his sister. “Right? Thanks for the loan.”
“No problem,” Penny said, and then turned to her brother. “You ready to go?”
“Absolutely,” Jack said, storming out of the room.
Jack Harrison was the most confusing guy Indy had ever met. Scorching hot and then ice cold. She should just leave it alone, concentrate on her game and nothing else, but she couldn’t help the way her body reacted when he was around, and she couldn’t forget the way he looked at her before he shut himself down.
It was equal parts frustrating and exciting.
And she wanted more of it.
“Come on,” Penny said, drawing her mind back to the present. “Let’s finish up and go before Dom has us running Einsteins in stilettos.”
Deuce was already packed with people when they arrived. The tables were gone and a small band played in the corner, leaving the large room open for mingling and dancing. Jack immediately stalked off to the bar, but Indy scanned the crowd, recognizing some of the best young athletes from around the world, their coaches at their sides. She’d been there for five seconds and this was easily the best party she’d ever been to.
Jasmine Randazzo was at the opposite end of the dance floor with her parents. She wore a bright pink strapless dress cinched in at the waist and flowing down to just above her knees. Harold Hodges chatted with Mr. Randazzo while his daughter, looking incredibly bored, crossed her arms over her chest. A few feet away, Alex Russell was surrounded by a crowd of girls. Looking closer, Indy saw Caroline beside him, hand resting on his arm, dominating the conversation. The other girls looked happy enough to simply stand near him, ignoring Dom’s edict to stay away while he was at OBX. Then her coach made a beeline for the group and several of the girls scattered, including Caroline, who sidestepped him lightly and disappeared into the crowd.
Indy laughed and looked to Penny, hoping she’d seen it as well. Her eyes were still trained in that direction, but they were wide and her hand shot out and gripped Indy’s wrist tightly. “Do not leave me.”
Indy looked back and saw Alex stalking across the dance floor straight for them, a tumbler of amber liquid in his hand.
“Ladies,” he said, but he never even looked at Indiana. He wore a black suit that hung perfectly on his tall frame, probably made for him, but no tie, and the top button of his sky-blue dress shirt was undone. His ever-present five-o’clock shadow was gone in favor of a close shave.
After Penny stared at him in silence, he finally glanced at Indy. “That’s a beautiful dress, darling,” he said, smiling at her, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I think I’ve seen it before. It has a tricky little clasp at the back, if I recall.”
Finally, Penny let go of Indy’s arm, though her nails hadleft half-moon-shaped marks in her skin. “Alex, don’t do this, okay?”
His eyes softened at her voice and he swayed in place, the glass in his hand clearly not his first. “You sure about that?” he said, taking a large sip and swallowing it cleanly.
Penny narrowed her eyes, taking a step closer and inhaling softly. She wrinkled her nose. “Positive.”
“Shame,” he said with a casual shrug of his shoulders, but one look into his eyes and Indy knew that the rejection stung.
Penny shook her head and turned to Indy. “Let’s go.”
“So when you said you wore this dress in Australia, you meant the night you two…” Indy whispered as they walked away. She glanced back over her shoulder, but Alex was gone. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that the only way he’d know about the hidden clasp at the top of the dress’s zipper was if he’d undone it himself, but Indy wasn’t going to push, not with the way the color had drained out of Penny’s face.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have let you wear it. Just trust me. It wasn’t about you, okay? You look great.”
“Okay,” Indy said, wanting to say more but having no idea where to even start.
“Indiana!” a voice said over the crowd. Across the room she spotted Caroline, who, now that she was no longer talking to Alex, was with an older man in a finely tailored suit. The agent, wearing a pale pink sheath dress fixed at the waist with a large black patent-leather belt, waved her over with a flick of her fingers.
“I’m being summoned,” Indy said, rolling her eyes atPenny, who smiled. “Even though she’s not actually my agent.” In fact, Indy thought she’d made it pretty clear to Caroline that she wasn’t interested after ignoring every call and text she’d sent over the last few days.
Penny snorted. “Looks like she thinks she is.”
Indy turned and saw Caroline stalking toward them, the man matching her stride. She groaned.
“Indiana.” Caroline air-kissed her cheeks when they arrived, totally ignoring Penny, then gestured to the man. “I’d like you to meet Mr. Edward Franklin. He’s from Solaris Beachwear.”
“I’ll leave you guys to it, then,” Penny said, nodding to Mr. Franklin. She looked straight past Caroline and then grinned a farewell to Indy.
“It’s very nice to meet you,” Indy said. “Call me Indy.”
