Page 98 of Half-Court Heat

We’d pushed a few tables together, leaving enough elbow room for the menus but not for comfort. Jazz sat across from me.Beside her was the Belgian guard—Freya—wearing a crisp white tank, sunglasses hooked on the neckline.

Rayah slid into the seat next to mine, bumping my hip with hers. “They do a mango ceviche here that’ll ruin you for anywhere else,” she said, flipping her menu open.

Dez leaned forward, already grinning. “Ruin you like you ruined our victory today?”

Rayah curled her lip. “We’re not talking about that.”

“Yes, we are,” Arika said. “Because Lex dropped the prettiest dime, and you still bricked it.”

Rayah shot me a mock glare. “Guess I’ll have to redeem myself somehow.”

The server came by, took our orders, and left us with another round of sweating glasses. For a few minutes, the table was all laughs—Dez telling a story about her rookie year, Freya adding a perfectly timed dry comment that made Jazz smirk.

Eventually, Dez tilted her head toward me. “Can we talk about the CBA without you getting your panties in a twist?”

I didn’t want to, but I nodded.

“They’re saying Eva pushed hard to codify the charter flight deal—which is great,” Dez allowed. “But she’s not as loud on injury protection. Some people think she’s more worried about luxury perks than the bread-and-butter stuff.”

“Some peopleneed to realize she’s balancing a hundred things while also rehabbing an ACL,” I said before I could stop myself. “And, also, Eva of all people knows the importance of having a guaranteed contract while working back from an injury—it’s literally what she’s doing right now.”

Rayah hummed under her breath, not quite agreeing or disagreeing.

Freya spoke next, her accent smoothing the edges. “In my league, the stars have a duty to look after the rest. But sometimes the stars forget what the rest need.”

Jazz shot me a quick look—not accusing, just measuring my reaction.

“She hasn’t forgotten,” I said, a little sharper than I meant.

Dez grinned over her drink. “I love when Lex gets protective. Makes me feel all warm inside.”

Rayah nudged my arm lightly. “Warm’s not bad.”

The table laughed, and I laughed with them, but the heat in my chest had nothing to do with Miami.

Chapter

Twenty-Nine

“Sunflowers are your favorite flower?” I tried to keep my tone casual, but my emotions were swirling.

Eva’s confusion was palpable, even on the phone. “Huh?”

“I saw Kate’s social media post.”

In lieu of something to do that evening, I’d been scrolling through social media again. My algorithm had decided to find something Kate Gillespie had posted earlier in the day—a picture of flowers she’d bought for Eva as a thank you for inviting her to be her Plus-One at the Boston charity gala.

According to the caption, sunflowers were Eva’s favorite flower. Sunflowers. And I’d brought her roses after her surgery.

“Oh. I don’t have a favorite anymore,” she dismissed. “Sunflowers were my thing back in high school.”

She paused. “Are you following Kate on social media?”

“No. It just showed up in my feed. Mutual friends or something.”

“Exactly. Kate’s just a friend.”

“Weren’t you the one who said you didn’t know how I could be friends with an ex?” I challenged.