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“Because I thought it would be fun. I haven’t had time with my best friend in a while, and she hasn’t even called me to tell me that she’s finally with the woman she’s been fawning over for two years.”

“Fawning?” Selena asked with a smirk.

“I liked you. You know that now. You’re also gorgeous, and I’m in love with you, so not much of a surprise that I’d be fawning.”

“So cute,” Selena teased.

“Can you two just go to this dinner with Aspen and me and help me act like a normal human who shouldn’t have a crush on someone at thirty-five years old?”

“No,” Monica stated and shook her head. “I like her for you. So, I’m on Team Kaspen.”

“Oh, that’s good,” Selena added. “Or, Team Bashley.”

“I like them both. Which one should we choose?” Monica asked.

“Neither,” Kendra told them with a little laugh but had to admit that she kind of liked the sound of both.

CHAPTER 9

“Hey,” Aspen said when she walked into her hotel room.

“Hey,” DJ replied.

“How’s the foot?” she asked and sat down at the end of DJ’s bed.

“Fine. Like I told you four times already, there was no blood; just some skin gone, but no infection worries. They cleaned it and everything.”

“I’m more concerned about your ability to, you know, run, jump on it, and land on the sand without being in any pain. You know how it feels to get a paper cut or have a toothache – it’s the smallest thing, but it hurts so much.”

“I put ice on the bottom of my foot earlier, and I’ll do it again before bed to help with any potential swelling, which isn’t likely. I’m being careful, and I’ve also ordered room service for dinner, so I’ll stay off it until I need to be ready tomorrow. Satisfied?”

“DJ, you know there are no substitutes in this sport. It’s just you and me out there.”

“I know. But I’m good, Aspen. Really. I’m fine, okay?”

“Yeah, okay. I sort of ended up with a dinner hangout thing tonight. I thought I’d bring you something back.”

“You can bring me dessert, if they have something with chocolate in it, but I’m too hungry to wait. My food is on the way. I would’ve ordered you something, but I wasn’t sure when you’d be back.”

“I got caught up at that autograph booth thing they asked me to do. A lot of people wanted pictures.”

“You can’t ever say no to that, can you?” DJ teased.

Aspen stood and said, “They’re little girls who want to play one day, so no. And there was one at the end, who was just so nervous to be around the players. I had to sit and talk to her for a few minutes. She wants to play beach and indoor professionally and make the Olympics in both in the same Olympic Games.”

DJ chuckled and said, “Did you tell her that that’s not likely?”

“God, no. Why would I stomp on her big dreams like that? Maybe she’ll be the one to do it. Never say never.”

“Maybe,” DJ agreed.

“I’m going to shower and change for dinner.”

“Okay.”

Aspen headed into the bathroom with the clothes she planned to wear that night and turned on the water. She waited until it got hot and climbed in under the spray. While washing the sand, sunscreen, and sweat off her body, she thought about how she had taken a chance today, and that chance had backfired. She’d had a great time painting the room with Kendra the other night, thinking they’d had a chance at becoming friends, and Aspen didn’t have that many friends. Other players on the tour? Yes. But at home, the only people she spent time with were DJ, her parents, and their coach when he’d been around. Outside of that, she’d lost many of her friends to life. Traveling so much meant that whenever people got together without her, they’d come up with new inside jokes, so by the time Aspen got home and was able to join them, she felt behind and left out. Eventually, she’d gotten discouraged and stopped going altogether. So, the idea of having a new friend who also traveled but wasn’t a player on the tour sounded good.

Hearing that Kendra had dated Monica in college, though, had Aspen taking another step she hadn’t planned on: asking Kendra out. Well, not out on a date, specifically, but out for dinner, thinking that if she got a good vibe from Kendra, maybe she could ask her out for real. And if not, that would be okay; they’d still have this new friendship that could be nice, too. Instead, Kendra had invited her ex-girlfriend and that ex-girlfriend’s new girlfriend to join the two of them. Aspen knew them both, but not all that well, so while she liked what she knew, she’d only hung out with them a few times in large groups, not solo. Tonight would be interesting.