He reaches the door in three long strides.
“That was…” Daphne doesn’t finish her sentence, just lets it hover in the tense air.
I cross to the table under the guise of checking my notes, trying to steady my shaking hands.
“Rhett Wells is our last interview. I’ll see if a staff member can bring him to us.”
Daphne nods, setting her camera down. “I’m just going to run to the restroom first.”
Once alone, my face falls into my palms with a groan. I might not personally agree with Tenny’s laissez-faire dating style, but it has no place being in an interview about baseball. If this is the kind of segment my producer wants on a regular basis, I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep this job. Uncertainty and unease braid down my spine as I let out an exhausted exhale.
Only one thing is as clear as Tenny’s blue eyes…
I’ve just made myself an enemy.
Chapter 4
Tenny
Iroll my aching shoulders as I stride toward my rental. Everyone else left an hour ago, but I had energy to burn after that terrible interview. I’ve never had a reporter come after my personal life like that before. Rhett said his interview was pretty typical, so apparently, Alex only has it out for me.
“Just my luck,” I mumble.
In the corner of the vacant parking lot, a woman in a black ballcap kicks at her flat rear tire. I change course to help before realizing that the woman in shorts and a fitted tank is also wearing Alex’s sparkly shoes.
A groan escapes me as I stomp over. My goal after that horrible interview was to avoid Alex as much as possible, but I’m not going to abandon her in an empty parking lot. I’mmentally preparing myself to complete this task while keeping our interactions to a minimum when I hear something strange.
There’s a high-pitched buzzing sound over Alex’s muttering. No. Buzzing isn’t the right word. It’s more like a frantic rattling. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end as I survey the natural area beside her car. It’s an artful desertscape with agave, prickly pear, and brittlebush interspaced between large boulders.
The perfect place for a rattlesnake to hide.
“All I want is to go”—her shoe slams into the deflated tire—“home.”
When Alex winds up for another kick, I lunge, picking her up and spinning us away from the curled rattlesnake.
“What—” She wriggles against my firm grip. “What are you doing?”
“Saving your life,” I bark.
Alex rolls her eyes as she pulls out the earbuds that were hidden beneath her hair. “Please. Having a flat tire is not a life-or-death situation.”
“Maybe not,” I say through gritted teeth. “But I saved you from a hospital visit for antivenom.”
Alex continues to struggle against my hold. Even though she’s tall and toned, I’m much stronger. “What are you talking—”
I take a lurching step toward the snake, not close enough that he could strike us, but enough to put him back on guard. His eerie, ticking rattle makes Alex’s eyes widen.
“Is that…”
“Yup.”
Her head snaps to see the rattlesnake coiled at the base of a boulder. “And he was going to…”
“Most likely, especially with you acting like a threat by kicking the tire right next to him.”
I should probably relish in the high-pitched squeak that comes out of Alex, or at least laugh, but every fiber in my body is too tight. Even with pushing my muscles to the limit, I’m still frustrated from earlier. Her eucalyptus scent suddenly feels like it’s clogging my nostrils, the soft skin of her legs burning my fingers.
“You’re welcome,” I say, quickly setting her down but keeping my body between her and the snake. “I’m going to help with your tire, but I’ll need to back the car up a few slots to work on it. Fortunately”—I gesture with wide arms to all the open spaces—“there’s lots of room. Give me your keys.”
