His eyes are on me like the others, but there’s a fire in them this time. A blazing inferno that might consume me through the screen of my phone.
But I can’t let them know I see that, becausewhatam I even seeing?
We’refriends.
“They’re just pictures,” I try to say nonchalantly.
“His hand is practically on your ass, Z,” Isla deadpans.
“That’s the pose they wanted. He didn’t do that because he wanted to.”
“Okay.” Bet throws her hands up in surrender. “It’s nice to see you two as friends.”
“It’s much easier being friends than it was spending time hating him,” I shrug. “He’s pretty fun.”
“Sid and I both like getting to hang out with our whole group of friends finally.”
“Speaking of Sidney,” I say, sitting myself upright. “He was being weird earlier, right?”
“Yes,” Isla says at the same time Bet says, “No.”
“What happened earlier?” Nia questions.
“Cam and I did team superlatives, and we jokingly gave Sidney the one forMost likely to have a secret affair.He got really weird about it after.”
Elisabet shrugs. “He didn’t seem weird to me. It probably just caught him off guard.”
“Maybe,” Isla replies. “Surprised he’s still single, though. He’s very cute, and he doesn’t seem like the type for just a hookup.”
“People are full of surprises,” Bet says softly.
I look at her curiously. “Okay, nowyou’rebeing weird.”
She rolls her eyes. “I’m not being weird. Just pointing out that people can surprise you. Icy said she’s surprised Sid is still single.”
“What about you then, Bet?” Isla asks. “We haven’t heard anything about your love life in a long ass time.”
“Nothing has changed.”
“Which means you’ll admit that you’ve slept with someone somewhat recently but won’t tell us anything about them or what your relationship status is.”
“Precisely,” she smirks before now directing the conversation at me. “What about you, Z?”
I cringe. “Can we not talk about that while my sister is here?”
“Nope,” Nia smiles. “Spill, sis. Tell us everything.”
“You’re so fucking weird, Ni.” I shake my head. “Still perpetually single over here. There aren’t a lot of men interested in six-foot-tall female athletes.”
Isla looks at me curiously. “Not even for a hookup?”
“I don’t do hookups, Icy. You know I have to be careful about how I’m seen by the media and the fans.”
She rolls her eyes. “You would be totally fine to indulge in some fun, Z. Theo does it all the time.”
“Theo is a man,” I reply curtly. “He might be black, but he’s a man. He gets more grace than I do. If I want to be taken seriously, I have to keep a squeaky-clean image. We already have fans pissed about the fact that we have a black woman on the Comets.”
“Fuck them,” Elisabet bites. “Fuck everyone for making you feel like you can’t have any fun and enjoy your life.”
