Take a Chance (Chance, #1; Rosemary Beach #7)(14)

I walked past them and my gaze immediately singled out Harlow. She had a pinched, determined frown on her face as she hit every ball Adam sent her way. She also looked like a f**king dream in that skirt.

“That’s it, girl,” Adam called out in appreciation. I didn’t like his tone of voice. He seemed too happy for her. Too . . . interested.

“We’re gonna take it up a notch. Think you can handle it?” he asked.

“Bring it on.” She stopped when her eyes found me. I could see the series of emotions before she closed them off and turned her eyes back toward Adam. “Give me a minute.”

Adam had turned and was looking my way. I could feel his gaze on me but I wasn’t taking my eyes off her in case she got away.

She reached for her towel and wiped the sweat from her face and neck then grabbed her water bottle and took a long swig. I waited patiently, enjoying the way she moved. I had never seen anyone quite as poised as Harlow. She had this graceful, polished way of doing things. Even when she was out here sweating, she reminded me of some sort of royalty.

Her shoulders lifted and fell as she took a deep breath, then she turned to walk toward me. There was a determined gleam in her eyes. It did nothing to deter me. If anything, I wanted to grab her and kiss her until we both forgot the past two months.

“What do you need?” she asked, keeping a good foot of distance between us. The uptight, cold, sexy-as-hell tone to her voice was one I was familiar with. This had been the Harlow before I’d brought her Chinese food and convinced her to trust me.

“We need to talk. There’s a lot I need to explain,” I said.

Harlow cocked an eyebrow. “I’m not deaf or blind. No need to explain. I understand completely.”

Dammit. “Harlow, last night is not what you think. You wouldn’t talk to me. I called and you shut me out. What was I supposed to do? I was . . . Hell, I’ve been trying to forget you. To forget us. Because that’s what you were forcing me to do. And last night I was so f**king trashed I didn’t know my name.”

Harlow straightened her shoulders, and she stared at me as a slow, angry rage lit her big, heartbreaking eyes. It didn’t look promising. “I’m not an idiot. I know that you never called me except for that one time, and then you were too drunk to know your own name. Don’t patronize me to make yourself feel better. I’m a big girl, and thanks to you I’m not nearly as na?ve as I once was. I’ve learned a few hard lessons.” She swallowed hard and shook her head. “No. We have nothing to talk about, Grant. Talking time is over. Please, go to Nan. Enjoy her all you want. I’m not your concern, nor will I ever be.” She turned and started to walk back onto the court.

I reached out and grabbed her arm to stop her. I had to say something. I had to get her to listen to me. This whole time I thought Kiro had told her I was sleeping with Nan. I wasn’t sure where Kiro got his info or if he was just assuming it, but from what Dean had told me that was why Harlow was ignoring my calls.

“If you didn’t know about me and Nan before, then why have you been ignoring my calls?”

Harlow stopped and didn’t try to jerk her arm free from my grasp. She stood there, so calm. The females I knew did not deal with their emotions like this. They were loud. They yelled, screamed, and threw shit. Harlow was so unemotional.

“You called once. You were drunk. You never called again. Now please let go of my arm. I have forty minutes left with Adam and I’d like to use my time properly.”

“I did f**king call you. A million times! You wouldn’t answer. I called the house and got threatened by your dad. Even Dean warned me off. I thought that was what you wanted. I need to explain.”

She spun around and the fire behind her eyes startled me. “No, Grant, you don’t. I’m a real smart girl and I’d know if I missed a call. You didn’t call.” She jerked her arm free and headed for her side of the court.

This was not the way I had imagined this going. And I didn’t have a f**king clue how to get her to listen to me. She was so careful to protect herself. Walls had been erected between us and it felt as if they were made of steel.

“If that is all, Mr. Carter, we need to proceed with our session,” Adam said in a businesslike tone.

I didn’t want to do this here anyway. Not with an audience. Instead of answering, I just walked away. I didn’t know what else to do. I needed to regroup and plan what to do next. I also needed advice. Forget waiting on Rush. I was going to see Blaire.

Harlow

Adam acted as if nothing had happened. Even after I started missing every ball he sent my way. I couldn’t concentrate. Grant’s words were replaying over and over in my head. He was so determined to make me believe he had called me. Yet he didn’t think about the fact that his comment about sleeping with Nan was like sticking a blade through my chest. I just stopped trying. Adam stopped hitting and we stood there, staring at each other.

“I’m sorry. I don’t think I’m going to be able to finish today,” I told him. He didn’t need any more explanation; I knew he’d heard us. We weren’t exactly whispering.

“I’m free for another hour and twenty minutes. Want to grab a cup of coffee?” he asked, surprising me.

I wasn’t sure if that’s what I wanted. I didn’t really have a lot of friends. My books were my friends.