Out of Bounds (The Summer Games #2)(9)

I’d proven my skills on the second biggest stage with back-to-back golds, but the Olympics were a level apart. Winning gold at Worlds put me in the spotlight within the gymnastics community, but winning gold at the Olympics would make me a household name. I wanted to be a household name. I needed the perks that came with being a household name: sponsorships, endorsements, commercials, photo shoots. My mom and I would never have to worry about money again.

“Do you think Erik is still coming?” Lexi asked, leaning forward on the couch to get a better angle on her toes. She’d just finished painting mine bright red and now she was working on her own.

“Of course he’s coming,” June said from her perch across the room. She’d put as much distance between herself and the rest of the group as she could without actually leaving the house. “He said we had a team meeting today at 2:30 PM, so he will be here.”

“Maybe he’s just running late,” Rosie said, giving him the benefit of the doubt.

“June, you can scoot closer, we don’t bite,” Lexi said, patting the couch cushion beside her. The four of us were all sitting hip to hip, squeezed on the couch like Tetris blocks.

June turned her nose up at us. “I’m fine.”

There was a clear line in the sand—the four of us vs. June—even though it made no sense. Besides Rosie and Lexi, none of us had trained at the same gym. We had all seen each other at competitions and had made an effort to get to know each other during the Olympic trials. June was wholeheartedly uninterested and mildly annoyed with our presence, as if we were warts she couldn’t quite rid herself of. She probably viewed us as her competition and was scared to get too close. Does she think we’ll poison her cereal or something?

“So what does the room sitch look like upstairs?” Lexi asked.

“I’ve got my own room,” June said, butting in just as Molly opened her mouth to speak. “It’s just easier that way. I like order and routine.”

“Right-o,” Lexi said, tilting her head toward me. “I’m assuming you and Molly are bunking together?”

I nodded. “Which leaves the last room for you and Rosie.”

Rosie smiled. “That’ll be fun, Lex. I’m a really quiet sleeper and I’m very clean.”

“Fine. I dumped my boyfriend before I left anyway, so it’s not like I’ll need much privacy.”

“Privacy for what?” Rosie said, genuinely curious.

“Phone sex.”

June nearly gagged on her tongue and Rosie’s cheeks turned dark scarlet.

I couldn’t help but laugh as Lexi assessed us. “What? Am I supposed to dance around the subject with you guys? Do I need to give anyone the talk?”

I laughed and held up my hands to show I was in no need of “the talk”, but I couldn’t speak for the rest of my teammates.

“So you’re single now?” I asked, trying to change the subject for Rosie and June’s sake.

“Yup, and just in time for the games. What about you guys? Boyfriends, girlfriends?”

June and Rosie shook their heads, but Molly did a teeter-totter thing with her hands. “It’s not serious or anything, but the host family I’ve been staying with has a son.”

A son?!

Too many questions flooded her at once.

“Is he hot?” I asked.

“How’s the sex?” Lexi chimed in.

“Does he like to read?” Rosie asked.

June sat quiet in the corner like a sack of potatoes.

Molly sighed dreamily. “I don’t know about the sex part. We haven’t gotten that far.”

Lexi groaned, but I laughed and nudged Molly, offering up a gentle smile.

“Who cares?” I said, trying to deflect. I wasn’t trying to virgin shame anyone, just like I wasn’t judging Lexi for having phone sex. We’d all come from different backgrounds.

Lexi glanced at me. “You’re not still a virgin are you?”

I shrugged. “No, but it’s been a while since I’ve dated anyone.”

I stared up at the ceiling and avoided eye contact with Lexi. My sex life was dotted with awkward encounters and short-lived romances. I hadn’t had much time for dating in the last few years; I found it easier to keep most guys at arm’s length. It was more comfortable that way; I could focus on training and didn’t have to worry about messy breakups.

“But you’re so pretty,” Rosie said with a smile.

Lexi nodded. “Yeah, you look like Natalie Portman or something. You’ve gotta be some guy’s type.”

“Well actually—” Molly began to speak, but I reached over and pinched her thigh hard enough to make her stop. “Hey! I was just going to agree that you were pretty.”

I blushed. “Oh.”

“What’d you think she was going to say?” Lexi asked.

“Nothing.”

Molly chuckled. “She thought I was going to mention Erikwejroweriyertheoirhtioehrt.”

My hand covered her mouth, turning the second half of her sentence into gibberish. “It’s nothing. Molly thinks I look like this girl Erik—”

“Coach Winter!” June interjected.

“—slept with last night.”

Lexi’s brow arched. “Innnnnteresting.”