Settling the Score (The Summer Games #1)(76)

“What color is she wearing?” I asked.

“Pale pink.” She feigned a gag. “The woman has the whole ‘innocent virgin’ act down pat. I swear.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Looks like I’m wearing black then.” My PR team wanted me to dress conservatively and the white dress was a better option, but there was power in the color black. Caroline wanted me to cower and hide, but I wasn’t ready to run just yet.

Georgie clapped her hands together and then reached forward to yank the Chinese food carton out of my hand.

“Hey! I was eating that.”

She shook her head. “Nope. No more Chinese. If you’re going to that event with Caroline, you’re going to look bloody hot.”

I wanted to remind her that I worked out multiple times a day, that I could eat anything I wanted while I was training, but she was already pushing to stand up off the floor.

She eyed my appearance. “A little makeup and a bit of hairspray will be good for you…maybe a good scrub as well.”

She scrunched her nose.

“What? I was training,” I said, brushing stray hairs away from my face.

“Guess it doesn’t matter anyway.” She shrugged. “My brother fancies you, sweat and all.”

My chest tightened at the mention of Freddie. “Right,” I said, glancing away.

I didn’t want to talk about Freddie. I didn’t want to consider how handsome and sweet he was. Until he got things settled with Caroline, there was no point in daydreaming about him. Unfortunately, it seemed like there was no forgetting Freddie—especially not when I had his sister sitting across from me, shooting me a smug smile.

“He’s been a mess the last two days, trying to focus on swimming as much as possible. Caroline has tried to get in touch with him nonstop, but he’s been ignoring her calls. She moaned on and on about it during breakfast.”

“Does she realize you know she’s crazy?”

Georgie shook her head. “I’m keeping up appearances. Y’know, the whole ‘friends close, but enemies closer’ thing.”

“Good.” I dropped my bag on the table. “I’m getting in the shower.”

“Fine, I’ll go down and get us something less bloating to eat.”

I waved over my shoulder.

“Don’t forget to moisturize! I’ll help with that rat’s nest on your head when I get back! We don’t have any time to waste.”

“Georgie, it’s only 2:00 PM. The event isn’t until 6:00.”

She sighed, exasperated with me already. “Exactly! We’re already running behind.”

I was still in the shower when she got back, but she didn’t let that stop her. She sat on the other side of the curtain and talked to me about the event.

“Good news,” she said while typing on her phone’s keypad. “Fred just asked if I’d attend the party with him tonight. He said it’d be fun for me, but I think he’s just hoping to put a buffer between him and Caroline.”

I worked the conditioner through my hair. “Good, I’m glad I’ll have an ally.”

“I didn’t bring a dress, though.”

“You can wear the white one hanging on the door.”

She laughed. “Good, someone should look more angelic than Caroline. She’ll hate that.”





CHAPTER FORTY


Freddie




A BLACK TOWNCAR pulled up in front of the complex and I held the door open so Georgie could slide into the back seat. We were running behind for the Sports Illustrated party—the medal ceremony and interview after my last race had run over on time—and Georgie was anxious to get there.

“Come on, Fred,” she said as I bent down and slid into the car after her. “We’ve got to hurry or we won’t arrive before Andie.”

She was checking her phone, probably texting Andie that very minute. I wanted to lean over and add my own message, but I held off and glanced up at Georgie instead. She looked so much older than when I’d left her in London a few weeks earlier. In her white dress and heels, it was almost easy to forget that she’d once been my snot-nosed little sister. I could still recall her running after my mates, trying to land a solid punch or kiss. (More often than not, it was the former.) She was always such a confident bugger growing up, and it hadn’t dimmed with age. Even now, no one could stand in her way if she set her mind on something.

“You look pretty, Georgie.”

She waved me away and kept texting.

I laughed and glanced out the window. “How did Andie seem when you left her?”

Georgie had texted me to let me know she was getting ready with Andie. The fact that the two of them had become friends definitely made my life easier. I was in the middle of my races and away from my phone most of the day.

“What?” Georgie asked, sliding her pale green eyes to me. “Do you mean to ask if she was moaning on about how much she missed you and all that?”

I smiled. “A little bit of moaning never hurt anybody.”

“Well that’s too bad. She went on about a dozen or so footballers she’d like to romp around with.”

“Georgie…”

She groaned. “Fine. Actually, she’s smitten, though God knows why. She’s much prettier than you and could have any bloke she fancied, with half the trouble.”