Page 14 of Love Game

But she can tell that Iwantthere to be something between Dane and me. She narrows her eyes in a warning-type way that can be quite scary.

“You’re too good to be strung along by anyone,” she says. “You deserve someone who’s proud to be seen with you.”

“I know,” I say.

She comes over to give me a hug, the tough love portion of the conversation dispatched.

“Don’t drive too fast,” she says. “And watch out for black ice.”

It’s her constant refrain from November onwards, even if the temperature is miles above freezing. She squeezes me a little tighter than usual. She wants to say more about Dane. Possibly wants to warn me off him entirely, or scare him away from me, or both. But she’ll respect my right to make my own decisions.

“Thanks, Mum,” I say, “I’ll watch out for black ice.”

**

The tennis club that’s holding the exhibition match is much fancier than mine. For one thing it has a roof. Always useful in winter. As I walk over to the building, my ankle feels a little sore but not too bad. I’m off the crutches already, at least most of thetime. It was only a mild sprain and I was told to keep moving around after a couple of days’ rest. Still, it still aches at times and I’m glad my car is an automatic so I didn’t have to use the clutch driving down here.

I go inside the tennis center, feeling a bit self-conscious. Maybe this is too much. Is this aboyfriendthing to do, showing up to support him like this? Maybe Dane doesn’t even want me here. A few others from the club are here to watch, at least, so I won’t stand out too much. Though none of them cuddled Dane in their bedroom (I assume), so it’s not quite the same thing.

I skulk along the sides of the courts, dodging some angry-looking thirteen-year-olds who are getting ready for a match. I creep around to where Dane is sitting at the side of court four. He’s rummaging in his huge tennis bag and I can tell he’s nervous by the way he’s carrying himself. A small crowd has gathered: obviously, this is an exhibition match. Our coach Malachi sees me, looks a bit surprised, and gives me a wave. He probably thought I’d still be sulking about Dane’s cheating. Mia is engrossed in her phone, scowling about something as usual. Dane glances up and sees me, does a double take. I hold my breath. His face breaks into a smile. I go over, keeping my voice down for some reason like we’re in church.

“I came to support you,” I say. “I can leave if I’ll put you off.”

“No, not at all. Stay.” He smiles even wider, looking like he’s seeing a ghost. “But what about your plans?”

“What plans?”

“You told me you had big plans for today. I thought that was why you couldn’t make the match.”

Oh yeah. Mylie.

“Oh, er… it got canceled,” I say.

“Sorry,” he says.

“It’s okay. I’m happy to be here.”

He looks like he’s really happy I’m here, too. Already his shoulders look more relaxed and he can’t stop smiling. Then Mia comes over to ruin the moment. She looks me up and down. I’ve taken off the parka and my sequins are glinting under the artificial lights.

“Love the outfit,” she says sarcastically.

“Thanks,” I say, equally sarcastic.

“I think it looks good,” Dane says.

I almost collapse with surprise—he actually stood up for me publicly? Mia rolls her eyes but lets it go. I guess she doesn’t want to ruin her concentration for the big game. It’s time for them to start warming up. The other team is a girl of about fifteen and a man of about sixty, both of whom look a bit dopey. But if they’ve been selected by their club they’re probably a lot better than they look and shouldn’t be underestimated.

“Good luck,” I whisper to Dane, but not Mia.

I take a seat on a bench beside Malachi. The other team goes pretty hard with their warm-up, hitting vicious volleys right at Dane and Mia’s heads and not bothering with any polite small talk. Dane and Mia are very happy in that uber-competitive, asshole zone, as I know to my cost. Dane’s icy Daniel Craig eyes start taking over. It makes me realize how differently he was looking at me while he was over at my house. The way his gaze softened when he wrapped that icepack around my ankle. Especially how it heated up as he pinned me to the sofa to kiss me. I’m getting a little protective of him now, and kind of want to run into the middle of the court to stop the other team from hitting the ball so hard at him. Ridiculous. He can take care of himself. At the back of my mind, Mum’s warning is still there: I shouldn’t let my feelings get carried away just yet. He hasn’t given any indication that he wants more from me than friendship... except for the lunch. And the cuddling. And sticking up for me to Mia. It’s all starting to add upsomething, surely.

Malachi is saying something to me, but I’m miles away and have to ask him to repeat himself.

“I said, these guys are taking it a bit seriously.” He gestures to the opposing team.

“So are Dane and Mia,” I answer.

Malachi nods as Mia sends a final practice shot zipping millimeters past her female opponent’s head.