Moment of Truth (Love, Life, and the List #3)(2)

“Ice.”

He jumped out of his seat. “Shoulders?”

I was only ever in here for one reason: my shoulders. “Yes.”

“Come in.” His hands were gentle as he guided me to the seat he’d just abandoned. “Your races go okay? You seem upset.”

“I’m fine,” I said, not wanting to talk about the only race I lost tonight and how irritated I was about the distraction. Apparently my face had already done the talking for me. I changed the subject. “I didn’t think you’d be here tonight.”

“I’m here so the real trainer can be poolside.” He scooped ice into two large ziplock bags. Only half of his last scoop made it into the bag, the rest spilling on the floor. He fumbled with trying to clean it up. I bent down to help him and he waved me off and left it there scattered across the floor. He returned to my side.

“I know you don’t take this pain very seriously, Hadley, but if you’re not nicer to your shoulders, this could get serious soon. You need to rest them more.”

“I’m nice to my shoulders.”

He gave a grunt of disagreement and placed a bag on my right shoulder. “Hold this.”

I did and he grabbed the plastic wrap, then began to secure it down. As his hands worked their way around my shoulder, his shirt brushed my cheek. It smelled so good that it relaxed me a bit. He moved on to the other shoulder and I looked away to control my urge to sniff him.

“Okay, you’re all set.”

“Thanks.”

“Maybe for a while, until your joint pain settles, you could work on your form.”

I smiled. “Yes, Coach.”

Amelia, my best friend, was applying mascara when I joined her by the lockers. After she put it back in her bag, she turned and poked one of the ice packs attached to me. “Nice. You’re all suited up for some football.”

“Funny.”

“How was DJ? As dreamy as ever?”

“Yep. Still the cutest nerd I know.”

“Do you think he’d date a high school student?” Amelia often set her boy-sights high, determined to land guys that were mostly unavailable to her. I liked her confidence, even though her plans almost never worked.

I always supported her unrealistic hopes because I knew that she knew they were just that. “He only graduated last year, right?” I wasn’t exactly sure because he’d gone to a high school across town.

“Yes, but I feel like college years are like dog years compared to high school years.”

I opened my locker and pulled out my towel and bag. “Dog years?”

“Yes, for every year you’re in college, you’re like seven years older than a high school student.”

“You’re weird.”

“And proud of it.”

I opened my bag and stared inside blankly. “Were you out there for my last race or were you already in here?” Amelia swam the race right before mine so she was often changing when I was up.

She scrunched her nose, looking guilty. “I’m sorry, did you want me to watch? Are your parents not here tonight?”

“No, it’s not that. Heath Hall was here. He jumped into the pool.”

“What? And I missed it?”

“He completely distracted me . . . and probably all the swimmers.”

“That sucks. So . . . did you get a good look? Who is he?”

“What?”

“That’s the online debate. He’s obviously someone from around here because most of his public appearances—”

“Public disturbances,” I interrupted.

“Have happened within, like, a hundred-mile radius.”

“How do you know this?”

She turned one way and then the other as she looked at herself in the long mirror on the inside door of her locker. “Someone did a map of them.”

“People have too much time on their hands.”

She shut her locker and leaned her back against it. “By the way, did I ever tell you that my brother met the real Heath Hall last year? I mean the guy who plays him—Grant James.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, only a million times.”

“That’s because it’s cool! And Grant James is hot.”

I shoved my towel into my bag and zipped it up. “Is that what Cooper said?”

“Yes, actually, he did. Was this guy hot?”

“What? No, I mean, I don’t know, he was wearing a mask.”

Her eyes went wide. “Just a mask?”

“Yes, just a mask.” I shoved her shoulder. “No! He had on a Speedo and a rash guard too.”

“So . . . did he have a nice body?”

“I don’t know. I wasn’t paying attention. He jumped into my pool!”

Amelia raised her eyebrows. “Your pool?”

“Well, my lane, whatever. He spread his bad mojo all over it.”

She laughed and slung her backpack over one shoulder. “You and your rituals.”

“I don’t have rituals, I have routines.” Routines that made me win races and today that routine was wrecked by a wannabe Heath Hall. If I ever found out who he was, I’d have some words for him.





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