Page 6 of Pick Me

“I hate being still.” Meredith smacked the futon in frustration. “This is torture.”

I glanced up at her from my workspace at the tiny kitchen table, where I was camped out just in case she needed help during

day one post-injury. “You’re being forced to rest today for a very good reason. Lean into it. Maybe this is the time to try

a new hobby, like crochet?”

“The day I start a sit-down hobby is the day when—”

“I take up a sport,” I finished for her, wearing a prim smile. “Stranger things have happened.”

She made a noncommittal noise and tossed her phone on the coffee table. “I hear you tapping away. Writing going okay today?”

“Sort of, yeah,” I said. “I’m not in the zone, but I’m managing some decent output.”

Meredith adjusted the pillow behind her head and kicked her newly acquired orthopedic boot up on the back of the futon.

“How’s your pain level?” I asked her.

“It’s aching.”

Meredith’s “sprain” was actually a hairline talus fracture, a bone in the ankle that I didn’t know existed.

Even the doctor couldn’t quite figure out how she’d managed it, but the good news was that it wasn’t severe enough for surgery.

Still, she was going to be in a boot for at least six weeks, and I could only imagine the lengths she was going to go to in order to exercise.

If it were me, I’d happily take up residence on the couch and shoot for eight weeks of inactivity.

For the healing, of course.

“I can probably still teach class,” she said, half to herself. “I can sit in a rolling chair and harass everyone that way.”

“Mere, stop.” I sighed. “Just try to be still. It hasn’t even been twenty-four hours.”

“There’s just so much I’m supposed to be doing right now.” Her voice pitched up. “Work is scrambling to cover my shifts, and

the studio is calling in subs who are super dicey. Colton and I were supposed to play doubles with a couple of people from

his building so he can get invited to this huge Hamptons Fourth of July party. And now I can’t help with your Kai quest...”

I frowned at my laptop screen, because even though it felt small to admit it, I was bummed about it too.

“I still think you should try that instructor,” she added.

“Oh crap.” I grabbed my phone. “He wanted to know about your diagnosis. Maybe for insurance reasons?”

Meredith laughed at me. “Did you read the waiver we signed before we could even walk past the front desk? I could get electrocuted

in the locker room and they’d be blameless. I guess that’s one of the benefits of them having founders in legal and finance.”

I typed a quick update message to Owen, and he responded almost immediately.

Can you talk?

“What did he say?” Meredith asked.

“Okay, that’s weird,” I said. “He wants to talk .”

“Live?”

My phone rang and I held it up to show her it was him. I stood up and dashed the two steps over to the window, as if it afforded

me any privacy.

“Hi, what’s up?”

I wondered if it was protocol to get a full witness statement after an on-site injury, because why else would we need to chat

on the phone?

“Hey, just wanted to say that I’m sorry to hear about Meredith’s fracture and see how she’s feeling.”

The sincerity in his voice suggested no ulterior motive except genuine care.

“Oh, that’s nice of you. Yeah, she’s definitely feeling it today.”

“That sucks. Is she on pain medication?”

“Yup, she is.” I traced patterns in the air-conditioning condensation on the window. “Thanks again for your help when it happened.”

“Oh, no problem. Listen, I was thinking,” he said. “You mentioned that she was helping teach you, and since that’s off the

table, I wanted to offer my services. I’m usually booked up, but I have a couple of open slots on my calendar, if you could

handle mornings.”

Did Kai ever show up in the morning?

“Oh, that’s really nice of you, but I don’t think lessons are, uh, feasible for me right now. And I’m not a member or anything.”

Meredith slapped the futon to get my attention and mouthed, “Say yes,” at me, over and over. I frowned at her and turned away.

“You don’t have to be a member,” he replied. “Lessons give you access for the session and thirty minutes on the courts afterward.”

“Huh,” I said as I ran depressing calculations in my head. “How much is a lesson?”

“Private lessons come in four-packs, for six hundred.”

“ Dollars ?” I squeaked out before I could stop myself.

Owen chuckled, and it sounded almost like he was embarrassed. “Yeah, sorry. I don’t set the price.”

“That’s a little out of reach for me,” I admitted. “But thanks anyway. I really appreciate the offer.”

“What if I give you the injured-friend discount? Ten percent off.”

He sounded so hopeful that I wanted to say yes, and not just because of his Kai proximity.

“That’s kind of you, but I just can’t swing it right now,” I said. “I wish I could.”

“Got it, no problem,” he replied affably. “But my offer stands if anything changes on your end.”

“I appreciate it. Thanks again for everything.”

“Yeah, thanks from me as well,” Meredith shouted from the couch.

Owen chuckled. “I heard that. No problem, tell her I said heal fast. And you take care, Brooke.”

He hung up before I could say anything else.

“Well, that was super nice of him to check in personally, but I don’t think it was all for me,” Meredith said with a teasing

lilt in her voice.

“It was nice.” I ignored her subtext as I settled back in front of my laptop.

“So how much are lessons?” she asked.

“Way too much.”

“Private lessons with me at Harmony are one twenty-five per hour,” she offered.

“It’s more,” I said as I tried to refocus on the last paragraph I’d written about a visit from Austin’s veterinarian ex-girlfriend.

“Hmm,” Meredith said as she reached for her phone. “I mean, private instruction of any kind in Manhattan is pricey. Wanna learn how to roll sushi? Teach your kid violin? Arrange flowers? Pay up.”

“Remind me again why I live here?” I grumbled as I cupped my chin in my hand and stared at my blinking cursor.

“Because you love everything about this city.”

It was true; I did. Even the relentlessness of summer, which perfumed the air with hot garbage.

A few seconds later, a text pinged through, which reminded me that I needed to silence my phone. I reached over and tipped

it with one finger so I could see who it was from, because picking it up fully would lure me into scrolling.

I turned around and asked Meredith, “Why are you texting me when I’m right here?”

“Read it.”

I clicked on the link in the message. “ What? You bought me the lessons? I can’t accept this!”

She Cheshire cat grinned at me. “I said yes for you.”

“Meredith...”

“I knew you were going to be mad, so here’s the deal: I did it partly because I’m going to need to lean on you over the next

few weeks, literally in some scenarios. Colton is in the middle of his busiest quarter at work, which means that he’s not

going to be around as much, so consider the lessons a little thank-you in advance for helping me.”

“For fuck’s sake, that’s not an equal exchange for me run ning to get you glasses of water now and then. And it’s not like you’re incapacitated; it’s a boot . You’ll be thumping around in no time.”

She held up her hand to silence me. “You didn’t let me finish—there’s more. Now, I know you have another Brooke Murphy book inside of you, so once you finally shift your focus back to writing for yourself and

sell a book under your own name, then you can pay me back. But only then. Deal?”

Meredith had always been sneaky generous, from sharing pizzas with toppings that I preferred to staying up after a long shift

at the Hickory Bar to read through my latest manuscript before I submitted it. I did my part by always washing the pots she

left piled in the sink without complaining and letting Colton crash at our place.

“Mere, there’s no way I can—”

“The lessons are nonrefundable,” she cut me off. “So you better use them.”

I bottled up my mixed emotions and jumped out of my chair to run over and hug her.

“Watch the leg, watch the leg.” She laughed as I knelt down next to the futon and wrapped my arms around her.

“You’re the best. I owe you.” I moved back on my heels and smiled at her.

“All you owe me is a book and some good horny stories from when you and Kai hook up.”

“Yes! Speak it into existence.” I traced an arc in the air above my head.

I wasn’t exactly thrilled that I was going to be exposing my lack of skills to Mr. Hat, but after feeling hollowed out after

the breakup, he was my express ticket to word count.