“Right.” I nodded. “Because that’s the best reaction you can have when you find out your best friend since elementary school is in love with you. Say you’re not a lesbian.” I was struggling not to say too much, but I did add, “The loathing is mutual, you know. And mine just went up a whole other level. I love having you on my team.”
“It’s my team!” she snarled. “It’s not yours. It’ll never be yours.”
I saw Mason and Matteo approaching from the parking lot, but I couldn’t stop. I didn’t just loathe Faith. I was beginning to truly hate her.
“If you don’t start beating me, I can only assume you mean to keep the team a different way. Tell me, Faith,” I chided, softly. I wanted to know. I wanted to see a crack in her mask. “If you were to take me down, how would you do it? A shove? Would you hope my ankle broke? Or a different way? How would you do it?”
Her ice-cold exterior remained intact. “I want to beat you in the truest way there is: I’m going to be faster than you. It’s just a matter of time before you feel me right behind you. Like I said before, I’ve never really had competition.”
This was the second time Faith referenced not having any competition. I’d sensed a reaction from Nettie the first time, but I ignored it. I looked this time, and she wasn’t glaring at me like a good sidekick. She was frowning at Faith, her arms hanging loose by her side. The shawl was slipping. She didn’t notice.
I jerked my head toward Nettie. “Look at that. Seems like at least one of your friends might not agree with you.”
“Sam,” Mason called.
He and Matteo stood at the door in jeans and Cain University shirts. They weren’t dressed up, but they didn’t need to be. Mason held his own, no matter what he wore. A commanding presence, and a slight shiver of danger clung to him. Nettie and Faith both reacted to his presence, and I wasn’t the only female to take all of him in. Nettie touched her stomach and flipped one of her curls over her shoulder.
“You okay?” he asked me.
I nodded. “Yeah.” I moved around the two girls.
Mason touched the small of my back, letting me precede him and Matteo back inside. I walked past the front desk, then stopped abruptly.
Valerie, Nate’s one-night stand, was waiting with a group to be seated. She was dressed the way Faith and Nettie were, in a shimmering dress. A bunch of others were with her, but Valerie was one of the only girls not standing next to a guy.
She turned and saw me. “Oh. Whoa—” She started to fall backward.
“Val!” A guy twisted around and caught her. He helped to right her. “Come on.”
She waved a hand, mumbling a thank you to him, but her eyes were stuck on me. She started to smooth out her dress, not noticing she’d caught the jacket of the guy who helped her. His suit jacket had opened, and she was raking it down her dress repeatedly.
“Val!”
“What?” She snapped to attention, looking down and realizing what she’d done. “Oh. Sorry.” She handed the jacket back to him and looked away, trying to appear casual. She fluffed her hair, and I walked past her.
“Do I want to know?” Mason asked.
“Ask Nate.” I patted him on the arm.
We wove through the last of the tables before coming to the private room, but Mason took my hand and pulled me to the side. “You okay? Things seemed heated back there.”
“Yeah.” But I felt a headache forming, and I pressed a hand above one of my eyebrows. It hurt the most there. “She’s just . . . She’s not a good person. I’ll leave it at that.”
“Let me ask my dad about her family.”
“Mason,” I started.
“Let me help you. I’ll talk to my dad.”
Suddenly, and so completely, I was just thankful Mason was with me. I slid my arms around his waist and tipped my head back. I didn’t have to say anything. He knew, and his lips were right there, meeting mine.
MASON
“Mason.”
Garrett, Sam’s biological father, held his hand out as Sam and I stepped into the private room. Sam paused, looking up at me. She was silently asking if I wanted her to stay and be a buffer between us, but I shook my head. It meant a lot that she was even offering.
I shook his hand. “Mr. Brickshire. How are you? Thank you again for helping with that incident earlier this summer.”
“Garrett. We’ve been through too much for you to call me by my last name, but I admit, it’s a lot nicer reception than I used to get from you guys.”
And since he went there, I replied, “Yeah, but that was when you were a dick to your daughter. You haven’t been for a while, and you helped me out.”
Logan was sitting close by, and he snorted, looking back to watch us.
Garrett let out a soft sigh. “I guess I asked for that. I did disappear for a while.”
It was for two years, but who was counting?
I just smiled back. “Thanks for coming to the game.”
“Of course.” He seemed relieved to move on. “And it was a great one, especially for your first of the season. Two touchdowns. They were raving about you on ESPN earlier.”
I nodded. “Yeah, well, everyone at the university is raving about Sam’s race time yesterday.” I turned toward her. She had taken a seat at the end of the table and was conversing with some of her running friends, but she looked back to me. A warm glow emanated from her.
The buzz about her was small, so far. That wouldn’t last. I knew the other runners were talking about her race, and that would only spread. People would watch to see if she could continue that time. I was sure some thought it was a fluke, but I knew better. Sam had been running like that since I’d known her.
Thinking about it now, I hadn’t pushed her to join cross-country. I’d asked her once if she wanted to, but she’d said she was fine with just doing track. I was ashamed now that I hadn’t pushed her harder. I knew I was part of the reason she’d chosen only the spring sport. I should’ve done everything I could to make sure she wouldn’t regret not joining cross-country.
At least she was there now.
Sam didn’t like attention, and I knew a part of her was happy, but a part of her was freaked out. My job was to be there for her, and I would be, but as I gave her bio dad a look, I hoped he read between the lines. I wanted everyone to be there, including him.
It was her time to shine.
He coughed, narrowing his eyes. “Yes, that’s what I’ve heard. I was ecstatic when I found out.”
“She’s running pre-Olympic times. Did you hear that?”
He stilled, and his eyebrows stretched apart.
He hadn’t.
“It’s going to get crazy for her.”
“Yeah,” he murmured, his eyes falling thoughtfully to his daughter. “Yeah, I’m sure it will be.” He paused, then looked back to me. “Pre-Olympics?”
“Yeah.”
Was he getting it now? Did he understand?
“You know, I couldn’t have done what I’ve done without support,” I said. “Support. That’s really important. Support. From family and friends.” Did I have to say it again?
He shot me a look.
He got the message.
“Mason.” Malinda stood at the other end of the table, a glass of wine in hand. “Stop interrogating Garrett and sit down. Both of you sit down.”
She waved to the table, and I slipped into my seat next to Sam. Garrett returned to his at the other end next to his wife and David.
Malinda raised her glass. “A toast to Mason for his exceptional game today.” She beamed with pride. “And to Samantha, for making Cain U history yesterday and continuing to do so. And to everyone here.” She indicated the whole table. “If you’re here, that means you love and care for one of our kids, and that means the world to me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. To everyone!”
We saluted, then sipped.
Malinda had already ordered appetizers, which were now placed down the middle of the table. Once they were done, the servers came around for our individual orders.
Matteo leaned across the table from his seat next to Grace, with Courtney by her. “Hey, what was up with you and Bio Dad?”