Текст книги "Playing the Player"

Автор книги: Lisa Brown Roberts

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Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 16 страниц)

Chapter Sixteen

Slade

Tuesday, June 11

The clock on the rec center wall said 10:03 when I ran through the door. I nodded to Mark, the manager. “Sorry I’m late.”

He shook his head, grinning. He’d known me a long time.

“What age group?” I asked. “Three– and four-year-olds? The guppies?” The little ones were my specialty. Plus their parents were great tippers.

Mark raised his eyebrows. “Not today. Adult beginners. “

I gaped at him. I’d never taught an adult swim class before. Plus they were beginners, so they were probably terrified. As I hurried to the locker room, I considered strategies. Turn on the charm. Make them laugh. Settle their nerves. It couldn’t be that much different than teaching toddlers.

A group of older women about my mom’s age stood clustered together in the shallow end, laughing nervously. A pale, skinny guy stood off to the side, glaring at everyone. The older women would be easy. Skinny Guy might be tough.

I jumped into the pool next to the ladies, splashing them a little. They gasped in surprise, but I flashed them my biggest grin. “Greetings, ladies”—I turned to the skinny guy—“and gentleman. Sorry I’m late. I’m subbing for Lindsay. She sprained her ankle.” When she’d called me in a panic last night, because all the other subs were busy, I’d agreed to help out.

My dad had made some sarcastic remark about me juggling “so many jobs,” but he’d looked almost happy when I raced out the door this morning. Not that I knew what happy looked like on him.

“So are we ready?”

The ladies nodded. Skinny guy shrugged.

“We’re missing someone,” one of the ladies said.

“That cute girl,” another lady said. “She’s never late.”

Cute girl? By their standards, it was probably someone in her thirties.

“That’s okay, she can join us when she gets here. Who wants to show me what they can do? Is anyone able to swim a few strokes yet?”

Skinny piped up. “Yeah.” He dog-paddled across the shallow end of the spool, splashing like a three hundred pound whale, but he made it to the other side.

“Cool.” I gave him a thumbs-up. He narrowed his eyes at me while the ladies applauded. I couldn’t blame him. It must suck to have someone my age teach him.

“There she is.” One of the ladies pointed.

I turned around. And my heart stopped.

Trina walked to the edge of the pool in a blue one-piece swimsuit, goggles dangling from her hand. She smiled shyly at the lady who’d recognized her, and for a brief moment I was able to drink her in with my eyes. She wasn’t tall and leggy like Beth or Lindsay. But she was undeniably, unbelievably hot.

How had I been so blind all this time?

When her gaze landed on me, the horrified look in her eyes cut me worse than any knife could.

“Where’s Lindsay?” she asked crossing her arms protectively over her chest.

“She sprained her ankle. I’m the sub.” I gave her my best smile. At least I hoped it was. “Hop in,” I said casually, like it was no big deal that we were half naked. In front of a bunch of desperate housewives. And an angry skinny guy.

Like anything could ever happen here.

She bit her lip, then glanced at the clock on the wall. “I’ve already missed part of the lesson.” She took a step backward. “I should probably just go home.”

Was I so awful that she wanted to run away from me? After the Putt-Putt disaster, we’d hardly spoken during the movie, each of us focusing intently on the kids and not each other. I’d wanted to apologize, because I knew I’d hurt her feelings at the golf course. But I hadn’t.

“Come on in, honey,” one of the housewives called out. “We’re all in this together.”

Suddenly I remembered our argument last week about taking the kids swimming. No wonder she hadn’t wanted to go. But why hadn’t she just told me she couldn’t swim? Then I swallowed, remembering how she’d accused me of making fun of her at school. Of course she hadn’t told me.

I turned my attention back to the ladies. If Trina wanted to leave, I’d let her fade away without calling attention to it.

“You’re next, beautiful,” I said, pointing to a lady wearing a flowered swim cap. “Show me what ya got.”

Swim Cap giggled then splashed across the pool. She didn’t kick up nearly as much water as Skinny Guy. “Not bad,” I told her. “I don’t know why I’m even here. You guys are swimmers already!” The ladies laughed. Skinny Guy rolled his eyes.

“Oh please,” Trina said, suddenly appearing next to me. “Don’t be so condescending, Slade.”

I whipped my head around. How had she snuck up on me like that? I tried not to notice as the water undulated up and down over her breasts. I turned back to the ladies, pointing to one in a yellow suit. “Your turn,” I said, keeping my eyes on the woman as she paddled in circles, her head completely out of the water.

“I mean it, Slade,” Trina said, her voice sounding shaky. “You don’t know how hard it is…to do this. So please don’t…don’t…” Her voice faltered.

I turned to look at her. Her eyes glistened. She wasn’t going to cry, was she? I couldn’t look away from those enormous eyes. Every nerve in me tuned into her body, just inches from mine. I wondered if she’d have to stand on her tiptoes if I kissed her.

“Don’t what?” My voice sounded like someone was choking me.

“Don’t make fun of us,” she whispered.

“But I’m not! I would never—”

She floated away from me, drifting over to the housewives, who welcomed her with friendly chatter. Trina wiped her eyes as the lady in the orange swimsuit patted her shoulder.

Son of a bitch.

I wasn’t condescending; I was just trying to keep it light. I’d been swimming practically since I could walk. I couldn’t imagine what it was like to learn as an adult. I felt bad for them, even Skinny Guy.

Trina wouldn’t look at me when it was her turn to paddle across the shallow end. She tugged on her goggles then paddled slowly. She wasn’t bad. She didn’t splash as much as some of the others. But she stopped halfway across, standing up and gasping for air.

Skinny Guy, who’d somehow maneuvered himself close to her, leaned over to say something. She tugged her goggles off, and I noticed him checking her out. My fists clenched underwater.

Trina turned to me, defiant and mortified. I wanted to tell her she’d done great, but I remembered her warning. “Don’t be so condescending, Slade.”

I nodded, determined to be honest but kind. “Pretty good,” I said, “but you need to work on your breathing.” I looked at the group. “That’s the toughest part of swimming. Once you figure that out, the rest comes easy.”

I tipped over a basket of kick boards and tossed them in the pool. “Everyone take one. We’re going to work on breathing.”

I waited in the rec center lobby for over half an hour, playing stupid games on my cell. Everyone from the lesson had left already, except Trina. I knew she was avoiding me, but I had to talk to her. I pulled out my phone and texted her. Again.

R u alive? Or did one of the locker room cockroaches get u?

Her reply came a few minutes later. Don’t wait for me. I’ll c u tomorrow.

I sighed. She wasn’t making this easy. And it wasn’t like I could just barge into the women’s locker room.

Maybe I could ask Alex for advice. Then I thought of how he’d gloat about me being so rattled by his favorite pixie. Maybe I’d call some other girl instead, to take my mind off of Trina.

But as I scrolled through the contacts in my cell, I realized I didn’t want to spend time with anyone else.

Chapter Seventeen

Trina

Tuesday, June 11

I inched down the rec center hallway like a spy, craning my neck around the corner to check out the lobby.

He was gone. Relief surged through me.

I’d never been so mortified in my life. I felt exposed and vulnerable, not only because he’d seen me in a swimsuit, but because now he knew the real reason I didn’t want to take the kids swimming. Well, one of the reasons.

I decided to head to the mall and see Desi, then maybe go to a movie. Anything to stop replaying the horrific swim lesson over and over in my mind.

Desi wasn’t at Pretzel Logic yet, since her shift started later, so I took the escalator to the theater and scanned the show times. My choices were a zombie flick or a romantic comedy. Gore or kissing? No contest. A girl had to get her romance where she could.

After the movie I headed to the pretzel shop. A group of guys congregated, their loud shouts of laughter making me hesitate. Guys always flocked to Desi. As I got closer, I recognized Trey and a couple of his friends.

Desi glanced up, a smile lighting her face. The guys turned to see who she was waving at and my eyes locked with the one person I hadn’t noticed before.

Slade.

Oh my God. Was he stalking me or what? A guy who I never used to see anywhere was now showing up everywhere I went. Everywhere he shouldn’t be.

Slade sucked on his lemonade and pretended to read the menu on the wall.

So was he as embarrassed to see me as I was to see him? Or was he thinking what a pathetic Bird Brain I was? The loser who couldn’t swim. Who couldn’t control a five-year-old girl. Who acted like she’d won a gold medal at a Putt-Putt course.

The guys draped themselves over the tables lining the wall. Their laughter was loud, then their voices dropped low. God, I hoped Slade wasn’t telling them about my swim lesson.

He wouldn’t do that. Would he?

I stepped up to the counter, my face burning. “Next time text me a warning,” I said through gritted teeth.

She tilted her head. “Warn you about what?”

I darted my eyes at Slade.

She followed my gaze. “He doesn’t bite.” She gave me a devilish grin. “Or maybe he does. And maybe you’d like to be his next victim.”

My mouth dropped open. “What?” I glanced nervously over my shoulder, but the guys ignored us, shooting spit wads at each other through their straws.

She shrugged. “I’m just saying…”

I glared at her. “Well, stop saying it.”

She laughed. “You want a pretzel? Lemonade?”

I’d been starving when I left the theater but now my appetite had fled. I shook my head.

She examined me from head to toe. “You look different today.”

I panicked. Was my shirt on inside out? Was my hair sticking up?

“Maybe it’s new makeup?”

I shook my head.

“You just look…more alive, I guess.” She frowned at me. “You sure about the makeup?”

I rolled my eyes. The guys roared with laughter over something, and I was grateful they couldn’t hear our ridiculous conversation.

“You should wear red more often. It makes your hair and eyes really pop.”

I glanced down at my red shirt and denim miniskirt. I was totally regretting the skirt, but all my shorts were in the wash, and it was too hot for jeans.

Why did I care, anyway? Slade had already seen me in swimsuit. I glanced at him, just in time to see him look away from me.

I had to get out of there. “Look, I’ll call you later, okay?”

Desi’s face crumpled. “Come on, don’t leave.” She glanced at the guys. “They’ll be gone in a few minutes. They’re going to some zombie movie.”

As if on cue, Trey walked over. “See ya later, baby,” he said, leaning over the counter to kiss Desi.

I stared at the floor while the guys made catcalls.

They all said various obnoxious versions of good-bye as they moved away from us like a giant amoeba of testosterone.

Except for Slade, who separated himself from the amoeba and walked right up to me. I swore I could hear my pulse thumping in my ears.

“What’s the plan for tomorrow?” His topaz eyes held my gaze.

“Uh,” I stammered, then took a breath. “Butterflies.” As I said the word, they came to life in my stomach.

He frowned. “Butterflies?”

I cleared my throat. “Yeah. The Butterfly Pavilion. Gillian loves it there.” Or at least I assumed she would. Who wouldn’t love butterflies?

A tiny smile quirked his lips. “And you said you weren’t a risk taker.”

“Are you mocking me?”

His smile vanished as he shook his head, looking worried. “No. I’d never do that.” He tugged at his stupid hair tie. “So do you want to drive up there together? It’s a long way. We should take one car.”

I bit my lip. He was right. The Pavilion was practically in Boulder.

“How about if Max-man and I pick you and Gilly up around ten thirty tomorrow?”

I nodded, still searching for words. I pictured us in the pool again. Me flailing around the shallow end, Slade looming over me like the buff lifeguard he was.

“Come on, Edmunds!” a loud voice boomed from the mall. “Stop scamming chicks and let’s go.”

Was he blushing? Probably. He wouldn’t want his friends thinking he was hitting on Bird Brain.

“See you tomorrow,” he called over his shoulder, practically running out the door.

“See you.” But by the time I got the words out, he was gone.

This stupid infatuation had to stop. I was Trina Clemons, future valedictorian of Sky Ridge High. I had plans.

Plans that didn’t involve any detours with slacker party boys who wore shoelaces in their hair.

Chapter Eighteen

Trina

Wednesday, June 12

Gillian’s scream almost shattered my eardrums, along with everyone else’s inside the Butterfly Pavilion. Hands flailing in her hair, she barreled down the winding path, crashing into people as she ran.

Unlike me, Slade jumped into action, shoving Max toward me then chasing after Gillian. Max tugged on my hand. Tears welled in his soft brown eyes, moistening his lashes.

“Why is Gilly screaming? Did the butterflies bite her?” His lip trembled.

I knelt down and wrapped my arms around him. “Of course not, sweetie. Butterflies don’t bite.”

He blinked away the tears. “But why did she run away?”

I sighed. I had no idea. Who was scared of butterflies, anyway?

“Let’s go find her.” A few people gave us weird looks as we hurried up the path. Guilt by association with the rampaging redhead.

Outside of the gift shop, Slade and Gillian sat on a bench together. Gillian leaned against Slade, crying her heart out. His arm wrapped around her tiny body and he bent toward her, whispering.

And here I’d been so certain that he’d be the slacker nanny and I’d be the superstar.

As Max ran toward Gilly the realization hit me that Slade was better at this than I was. He never flinched when things didn’t go according to plan, whereas I froze, or worse, flipped out.

If parents needed a sitter for a dinner date, I was perfect. But for an entire day full of unexpected detours and random freak-outs? Apparently, Slade was the go-to guy for that.

He glanced up and smiled at me. I saw a kaleidoscope of emotions when I looked in his eyes—reassurance, amusement….and something else.

My heart skipped a beat, causing me to literally stop in my tracks.

No. This could not be happening. I would not get sucked in by those unbelievable tiger eyes and that sexy mouth and that messy hair and the way he floated through life, charming everyone and—

“Trina?”

I stared at them, feeling like I’d wandered onto a movie set where I didn’t belong, waiting for a director to jump out and yell “Cut!” then usher me off the set.

“Trina, are you okay?” Slade looked concerned now, his dimple tucked safely away and a slight frown wrinkling his brow.

Gillian sniffed loudly. “Are you scared of butterflies, too?” She wiped her nose with the back of her hand. “I hate the way they fly in my face and hair.”

“I—um, no. I’m not scared. Just…maybe need some fresh air.”

Gillian slid off of Slade’s lap. “Me, too! Let’s go outside.” Suddenly she looked worried. “But not to the garden. No more butterflies. Let’s go to the parking lot.”

Max’s face crumpled. “I like the butterflies.”

Slade stood up. “Tell you what. Max and I will stay here and check out more butterflies. You girls go outside and inhale exhaust fumes until you feel better.” He winked at me, which did nothing to calm my nerves.

Outside, I tried to convince Gillian to check out the towering praying mantis sculpture, but she freaked out when a butterfly floated by. So we sat on the bench close to the pavement, inhaling exhaust fumes just like Slade had joked.

The drive back to Denver seemed interminable, especially once the kids fell asleep in the backseat and we didn’t have their nonstop chatter as a distraction.

Slade glanced in the rearview mirror and smiled. “Those two are a trip.”

“Yeah,” I agreed, careful not to meet his gaze when he looked at me. Maybe I could manage to survive the rest of the summer if I never made eye contact with him again.

“I never would’ve guessed Gilly would be the one to lose it today.” He laughed softly.

I shifted in my seat, trying to ignore how my stomach flipped over when he laughed. “You thought Max would lose it?”

He shrugged. “Max is a mystery man. I thought he might not like the up close and personal view, but he did.”

It was true; Max had loved the butterflies until he’d seen the exhibits of the dead ones pinned under glass. Then we’d had to deal with his tears, while Gillian declared that dead butterflies were sort of pretty, since they weren’t flying in her face.

“I bet they won’t let us back in there again.”

“Nah. I’m sure she’s not the first kid to freak out.”

I glanced over my shoulder to make sure the kids were still asleep. They looked so angelic when they weren’t spazzing out. Too bad I couldn’t be the night shift nanny, watching them while they slept.

“So, I guess it’s my turn to plan for Friday,” Slade said, downshifting as we caught up to a slow-moving line of traffic on the highway.

I bit my fingernail, wishing I was home, safe in my bedroom, where I could process the betrayal of my body and emotions, which had obviously lost all immunity to the Slade spell. Maybe the butterflies had impacted me, because I felt drawn to him just like a moth to a flame.

“So, the thing is…” He hesitated, staring straight ahead, his jaw tight. “Max’s mom really wants me to work with him on overcoming some of his fears.”

Anxiety ballooned in my stomach. Why hadn’t she mentioned this to me? Wasn’t I in charge?

“What do you mean?”

His hands tightened on the steering wheel. Why was he nervous? He was the super nanny, after all.

“She’s worried Max is too cautious.” He spoke softly, then glanced at me and shrugged. “You’ve seen how he is.”

I forced a smile. “Well, at least he’s not afraid of butterflies.”

Slade grinned. “True. We can check that one off the list.”

I swallowed nervously then plunged ahead. “So you weren’t kidding about the skydiving?”

“I think we’ll need to build up to that.”

Was he mocking me? I couldn’t tell. I stared at my phone, willing Desi to text or call me with a pretzel emergency.

“Seriously,” he continued. “I was thinking maybe we’d take them to Jungle Fever. They have lots of stuff to climb, and rope bridges that swing in the air.”

My head jerked up. “I’m afraid of heights,” I said, cursing myself for letting the words escape.

“Okay,” he said. “You don’t have to climb the stuff that’s really high. I can manage the kids.”

I leaned back against the seat and closed my eyes. God, I was pathetic. Why had the moms thought I could handle both kids? I pictured Dr. Edmunds’s latest check in my wallet and squeezed my eyes tight.

“Trina?” Slade’s voice was almost a whisper.

I kept my eyes closed. “Yeah?” I whispered back.

“You’ll be fine.”

“Easy for you to say,” I muttered, sneaking a glance at his profile.

His eyes darted to the rearview mirror, to the road, and back to me. He cleared his throat. “About the swim lesson. Why didn’t you tell me you couldn’t swim? Last week when we had that big fight?” He tugged at his hair. “I wouldn’t have made fun of you. I know you probably thought I would, but even I’m not that much of a jackass.” He spoke quickly, his words tumbling over one another.

My heart thudded wildly in my chest, looking for an exit. Apparently my tongue also wanted to flee its natural habitat, since I was unable to move it to form words.

His frustrated sigh filled the car, then he slanted me a quick grin. “Not to say I’m completely jackass-free, but I do have some redeeming qualities.”

I took a deep breath. It felt like I owed him some type of response, since he was trying so hard.

“It’s embarrassing, not knowing how,” I said. “I can’t hang out with my friends at the pool, because I never know when someone’s going to mess around and try to throw me in.” That had happened last summer. I shuddered as I remembered my terrified screams, my humiliation, the way I’d left the pool vowing never to return.

“I could teach you,” Slade said softly. “Private lessons. You’ll learn a lot faster that way.”

I imagined the two of us alone together in our swimsuits. Imagined another freak-out like last summer, with me ending up in tears. I shook my head vigorously.

“Wow. You really do hate me.” His voice was light, but I heard the tinge of bitterness underneath.

“I don’t hate you.” I swallowed the sand clogging my throat. “It’s just…it’s hard enough, learning. But it’s a million times harder learning from someone I know.” It wasn’t the whole truth, but it was part of it.

“But you know Lindsay.”

I shook my head. “No, I don’t.”

He raised an eyebrow. “She graduated from Sky Ridge last year.”

“Unlike you, I don’t know everyone.” My voice was shaky, but I felt a bit of my courage returning. “Besides, you teaching me might be a conflict of interest.”

He moved into the middle lane, getting ready to exit the highway. “How do you figure that?”

“It might give you an unfair professional advantage. Make you feel superior.” I laughed softly. “More than you already do, I mean.”

He grinned as he moved into the right lane. I noticed a few stray strands had escaped his shoelace, and the urge to retie his hair, after I ran my fingers through it, hit me with such force I caught my breath.

He glanced at me, raising an eyebrow. “You all right? You see a ghost or something?”

I shook my head. The sooner I got out of the car and away from him, the better.

He shrugged. “Well, if you ever change your mind, just let me know. I’d even teach you for free. Anything to get you into the sun and do something about that pallor.”

“Did you just use ‘pallor’ in a sentence?”

He burst out laughing and my stomach roller-coastered as I watched the laughter crinkle the skin around his eyes.

“Ever since all you girls became obsessed with vampire dudes, it’s like I had to learn a new vocabulary just to keep up.”

Laughter bubbled out of me, surprising us both.

The car exited the highway and rolled to a stop at a red light. He turned toward me. “That’s more like it,” he said softly, his eyes roaming over my face.

I turned to look out my passenger window. Not even two weeks into this gig and it had all turned upside down and backward.

“You really should get ‘just kidding’ stamped on your forehead,” I said, determined to ignore his spell. “As warnings go, that one seems to be made for you.”

He chuckled next to me. “Watch it, BB. Don’t forget we’re going to Jungle Fever next time. You’d better be nice to me so I’ll catch you if you fall.”

Too late, I wanted to say. I’ve already fallen.

Nanny Notes: Butterfly Pavilion

PROS: Slade is a better nanny than me.

CONS: Slade is a better nanny than me. Also, Gillian hates things with wings.

MAJOR CON 1: I’m no longer immune to the Slade Spell. How am I going to survive the rest of the summer with a stupid crush on my nanny partner?

MAJOR CON 2: How long can I keep up this fake mentoring? I’m not even earning this extra money.

MAJOR CON 3: I hate not being able to tell him why I can’t swim. But I can’t.

Not yet.