Page 58 of Half-Court Heat

I stroked my chin thoughtfully like a scholar considering an equation. “Huh. So you’re saying I’ve got options.”

Eva made a choking sound. “Oh my God!”

I threw my arms around her waist and pulled her tight against me. I couldn’t hold back my laughter.

“I’m kidding, you know I’m totally kidding,” I said, laughter bubbling up, bright and unstoppable.

Eva swatted my hip. “You play too much.”

Her words were censuring, but she didn’t sound cross.

“Time for sleep, Lex Bennet,” she sing-songed.

I pulled the blanket up higher around us and closed my eyes. My body was still buzzing, but my brain was finally quiet.

Let the group roast me tomorrow.

It was more than worth it.

Chapter

Seventeen

Eva and I took turns on the leg press machine. She leaned on the apparatus with the stacked weight plates, counting down for me. “Ten … nine … eight … you got this,” she encouraged. I pushed harder, determined not to let her—or myself—down.

“I think Jazz has a crush on that little ice queen from the Belgium national team,” she said offhandedly.

I exhaled sharply as I pressed the weight away from me. “How can you tell?”

“I don’t know—ever notice how Jazz finds a way to be in her orbit?” She nodded in the direction of my best friend.

I observed Jazz from across the weight room. Both she and Freya Lindholm were using the free weights, doing bicep curls and facing the wall-length mirror. They didn’t interact with each other, but out of all of the available space and equipment, maybe it was notable that Jazz was lingering in that area. Or maybe it was only a coincidence. They were on the same team, after all.

“Plus,” Eva added with a smirk, “she obviously has a type.”

“What do you mean,obviously?”

Eva arched an eyebrow. “She fucked with you, right?”

“Onetime!” I blustered.

Eva made a low, unimpressed sound. “I bet if it was up to her, it would have been more than once.”

“We’re just friends,” I dismissed. “There’s never been any romance.”

“I didn’t say anything aboutromance,” Eva countered. “Just saying if ol’ girl had the opportunity, I bet she’d want another go.” She paused, thoughtful. “Although … who topped whom?”

My cheeks warmed from the prolonged attention on the ancient topic. Hopefully the effort I was putting into the leg press would mask my embarrassment.

“Is Jasmine Rivers secretly a pillow princess?” Eva playfully pondered. “Or did you let her have her way with you?”

I cleared my throat. “It wasn’t like that. It was so long ago. Neither of us knew what we were doing.”

Eva stood a little straighter. Her voice dropped to a somber hush. “Wait. Was Jazzyour first?”

I averted my eyes rather than meet her suddenly inquisitive stare. “I didn’t have time for a girlfriend in high school,” I grumbled. “Ball always came first.”

Eva’s features crumpled. “Oh, baby. I’m sorry. I wouldn’t have teased you if I’d known.”