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Kim turned to look at the approaching footsteps, rolling her eyes under her thick sunglasses. “The princess finally decided to grace us with her presence. You know, if I ever showed up this late to practice, my father…”

Taylor raised her hand. “I know. Sorry.”

Kim stared back at her. “You’re not even going to try to come up with an excuse?”

Looking up at the clear blue sky, Mac thought for a second before shaking her head. “I’m not sure I need one.”

Kim clenched her jaw before whipping around and hollering. “Practice partner, on the court. Now.”

“Mom, I haven’t even warmed up.” Taylor tried to suppress her laugh as she watched her mother unravel into a mess of anxiety.

She simply shrugged. “If you wanted to be ready, you should have been on time.”

Closing her eyes, Taylor could feel her heart rate elevating. All she really wanted to do was storm across the court, grab her mom by the shirt, and shake her out of this. Even when Taylor was young, Kim had never been this nuts. Something about this point in Taylor’s career had set her off.

Gritting her teeth, Taylor walked across the court. “Kim. I want a new practice partner.”

“What?” Kim whipped around, her forehead wrinkling as much as the botox would allow.

Taylor nodded. “You heard me.”

Shaking her head, Kim laughed. “Nikki is the best partner we’ve had for you. She’s a great match.”

“She lets me win.” Taylor started. Kim crossed her arms as she listened. “And the U.S. Open is full of women like Mackenzie Bennett. They’re all strong, fierce players with a lot to lose. And this is their home game. The ones who were barred by finances aren’t now. I need someone to challenge me.”

Kim scoffed. “Might as well just invite your littlefriendover here and let her kick your ass for free.”

Blood boiled in Taylor’s body, a seething rage building from her gut to her throat.

Taylor leaned in closer. “I’ve told you before to keep her fucking name out of your mouth. You don’t know a goddamn thing about me.”

“I won’t do it.” Kim crossed her arms.

Laughing, Taylor licked her lips. “Yes, you will. Because your legacy is tied to me and you’remycoach. You work forme.” She stared Kim down, long enough to see her mom start to shrivel.When she was satisfied, Taylor cleared her throat and headed to the net, waving Nikki in.

“Nik, do me a favor: make me work for every point.” Taylor put her hand on Nikki’s bare shoulder.

Nikki’s eyes flicked behind Taylor to Kim who stood by the fence. After a second, she nodded. “Okay, Taylor.”

She headed back to her baseline and prepared for a serve. Before the play was put into play, Taylor smirked. “Oh, and Kim, I’m going to the John McEnroe center to train twice a week.”

Before Kim could try to fight her, Nikki served the ball. Taylor’s body was lighter, flying across the court. It was just a benefit of finally getting the training she needed.

25

Mac

“Push it. Let’s go.”Babs leaned into Mac’s face as she increased the speed on the treadmill. “You want another Slam, you have to earn it.”

Mac bobbed her head as she pushed her legs off of the mill. Too out of breath to speak, Mac just ran. She kept her body tight, her stomach squeezed in and her shoulders back. Looking down at the LED screen, Mac sighed. It was already a five mile run.

“The second title is even harder than the first. Now all of these women have clocked you. They’ve watched your games. They’re studying you.” Babs kept going, pushing her further.

Once the ticker flipped to six miles, Babs smacked the emergency stop button and Mac slowed to stop. Winded, Mac smacked Babs. “You’re such a bitch.”

Babs shrugged. “A bitch that gets you trophies.” She handed Mac a plain white towel from a stack of clean ones. Mac ran the fabric over her face, enveloping herself in darkness for a moment as she tried to catch her breath.

But Babs smacked the black rubbed of the machine. “Alright, next. Get on the bench.”