Page 23 of Breakpoint
F ace down with a towel covering her body, Jaz leaned into the massage and Scott’s firm pressure on her calves, a sigh escaping her lips.
Her muscles screamed for relief, finally beginning to unclench as Scott worked methodically, kneading out the knots and fatigue.
The scent of lavender and eucalyptus filling the small room.
Every part of her body was sore, and she wondered why she still put herself through it.
The roar of the crowd, the flash of cameras—it all seemed miles away now, muted by the rhythmic kneading of practiced hands.
She closed her eyes, trying to fully relax, but the adrenaline and pain still buzzed beneath her skin.
A gentle knock on the door jam preceded its opening as Kira walked inside. “Hey, hey, how you doing?” She was always a whirlwind of energy, even in the tranquility of this moment.
“Living my best life right now,” Jaz murmured, not opening her eyes. “What’s up?”
She couldn’t see Kira, but she could feel her presence in the room.
Her long, lean body always stood with the quiet confidence of someone who knew her worth.
Her skin, a rich, dark chocolate, often contrasted with the bright athleisure she wore, which was likely more expensive than most thought.
She was in her early forties, though her vibrant energy made her seem younger.
She came into Jaz’s life as soon as her career took off and guided her every step of the way, even though Jaz often made her job harder with the press and her sponsors.
Kira never turned her back on her, and Jaz appreciated having another successful black woman in her corner.
“Don’t let me interrupt,” Kira said, though she clearly intended to do just that. “But I wanted to talk to you. First to say congratulations on your first gold medal.”
Jaz finally opened her eyes, a small smile gracing her lips. “Thanks, Kira. It still feels a little surreal.”
“Surreal? You and Dani dominated out there! The entire world was watching. And,” she added, pulling out her phone, “my phone hasn’t stopped buzzing.
We’ve got more sponsorship offers than we’ve had in the last five years coming in from everywhere.
Everything from luxury car brands to sports drink companies.
They’re all throwing bigger numbers at us.
The gold medal has definitely upped your market value, more than I actually thought possible at this phase of your career. ”
Kira was right about one thing. She and Dani had really dominated. They breezed through the doubles draw and didn’t even drop a set.
The quarterfinals saw them face a seasoned European pair known for their defensive prowess.
But Dani and Jaz met every lob with a ferocious overhead and every angled shot with a perfectly placed drop volley.
Jaz’s anticipation was uncanny; she seemed to know where the ball would land before it even left her opponent’s racket, while Dani’s backhand consistently pushed their rivals deep, creating opening after opening.
Everyone thought the semifinals would present their toughest challenge, but Jaz was on that day, and her forehand became a cannon.
By the time the gold medal match arrived, Dani and Jaz were a juggernaut.
They seemed to play with a synchronicity that was breathtaking.
Their high fives, hand signals and even secret code words for certain actions were in perfect sync.
Their final opponents, a formidable team in their own right, seemed overwhelmed from the first serve.
“We got this. We got this,” Jaz kept saying between points, psyching herself and Dani up.
Dani hit a crushing forehand down the line that seemed to deflate the other team's spirits. “Let’s fucking go!” Dani screamed out when the ball was called in.
“Yeah! Keep doing that shit!” Jaz screamed at her, raising her hand for a high five which Dani promptly smacked.
Every attempted passing shot was met with a decisive volley, every angled return with a powerful cross-court drive. When the final point was won, a powerful backhand by Dani that landed just inside the baseline, the roar of the crowd in Atlanta was deafening.
Dani jumped in her arms, embracing Jaz as tears streamed down both their faces. A mixture of joy, relief, and triumph. They had done it. Gold at the Olympics. The thing that had brought them together.
Through her smile, Jaz asked her over the crowd, “What’s better? Winning Wimbledon doubles or Olympic gold doubles? ”
Dani just laughed. “How can a girl pick? It’s like choosing between two children.”
Winning Olympic gold had been a dream, and who would have thought her first gold would come in doubles alongside Dani Kappas. But Jaz still had another goal in sight, winning the elusive singles gold to add to her trophy room.
“I just rather focus on my singles match Kira, and we can deal with these afterwards.” Jaz moaned to Kira as Scott hit another hard knot.
Kira nodded, but Jaz doubted she really heard her. “Okay, but there were a few talk shows that reached out that wanted to hear from us as soon as possible.”
Jaz rubbed her temples and finally sat up.
“A talk show? Ugh. I hate those things, even the mandatory ones after winning a tournament.” Scott slunk out of the room, sensing he didn’t want to be around if Kira and Jaz got into it.
He’d been stuck in the middle of some of their battles before, two strong-willed women who refused to back down.
“I know, I know.” Kira put her hands up, stopping Jaz’s tantrum.
“But you know it’s my job to present you everything that comes my way, even when I know you’re going to shut it down.
There’s even a potential sports documentary.
They want to tell your story with Dani. The story of the odd pairing that won gold out of nowhere. ”
“Can you send these offers to Dani? She deserves this just as much as I do, and she should have her moment,” Jaz threw out there .
Kira stared at her, speechless. She opened her mouth to protest, then closed it again. There was resolve in Jaz’s eyes that let Kira know that arguing was futile. Jaz continued, “I’m sure Chris will be more than thrilled to capitalize on them.”
Kira picked up on her tone. “I take it you don’t like that guy either.”
She rolled her eyes at the mention of Chris.
“Not really. He doesn’t really understand Dani and just thinks about exploiting her looks and family name for social media and sponsors.
She’s such a good person beyond that. You know, she’s got that incredible positive energy, even when I’m being grumpy.
And she’s so funny, and not afraid to give me shit when I’m out of pocket. ”
Kira crossed her arms across her chest and sucked her teeth. “So how long have things been going on between you and Dani?”
“Things?”
Kira arched her left eyebrow playfully. “Dating? Or sleeping together? How long has this been going on?”
Jaz nearly choked on her own spit at the question.
The towel she had been holding onto fell down a bit, almost exposing her breast, in her shock.
Jaz caught it in the nick of time, lest she give Kira a full-frontal show.
“I don’t know where you’ve been getting your intel from, but Dani and I are just friends. ”
Kira lifted both eyebrows as if to call bullshit.
“I know you, Jaz. This has you and Lena 2.0 written all over it. You two have been practically inseparable lately. Though you were never as tactile with Lena as you are with Dani. You’re always touching and hugging.
Plus, you just talked about her for a solid thirty seconds straight with stars in your eyes. ”
“There’s nothing going on,” Jaz quickly replied. Jaz was annoyed that Kira was asking her about this now because she knew that Jaz had only one thing on her mind. Winning singles gold.
Kira held her gaze, a silent question hanging in the air.
“You know I don’t care about your sexuality Jaz.
You don’t have to hide this from me like you tried to do with your relationship with Lena.
Besides, I knew anyway about Lena probably before you did that there was something between you two.
I get paid to pay attention and care about the details.
I’ve known you most of your adult life. So don’t bullshit me, Jaz.
You can tell me if something’s going on, you know. ”
Jaz leaned forward, her gaze unwavering.
“I’m not bullshiting you, Kira. Honestly, nothing is going on.
I don’t know how, but we just click, you know?
She’s kinda turned into my friend. But there’s nothing like that going on.
Shockingly, we have incredible chemistry on the court, and that translates into a strong bond off the court, too.
Besides, she’s so much younger than I and would never approach me like that. ”
“Age is whatever, Jaz. If there is a legitimate connection and no power imbalance, then it’s no big deal. The question is, do you want something to be going on? You can tell me. Just between you and me. Agent-client confidentiality and all that.” Kira winked.
Jaz looked down again, her fingers tightening around her towel.
“I’ve never thought about her in that way.
Yes, she’s beautiful and Dani could easily hop off the tennis court and be on a runway.
But she’s also the first friend I’ve had in a long time.
It's important to me.” The connection they had on and off the court was something that Jaz cherished.
And she didn’t want to be seen as someone lusting after her doubles partner.
“Okay, if you say so,” Kira relented.
But now that Kira had put it in her head, her mind raced, wondering if she or they had given off a couple vibe.
Jaz shook her head and put those thoughts to the back of her mind. She didn’t need to be thinking about Dani in that way. She had a gold medal to go get. “My only focus right now Kira is winning singles gold tomorrow.”