Page 104 of Taking the Pitch
“Ew, my brother is among those you are drooling over,” Cass says, pretending to gag.
“Sorry to break it to you, Cass, but your brother ishot,” Kara smirks.
“Ugh, nope, nope, nope. That’s going to give me nightmares.”
“Hello!? Earth to the group of women standing there staring at us like we’re an all you can eat buffet,” Brent says, waving his hand in the air.
“Uh, yep, I can!” Cass answers, holding up her phone.
“Perfect.” Kessler claps his hands together. “Let’s do it! Coach, count us down.”
All the guys, including Kade and Hudson, line up along the edge. I pull my phone out and hit the record button as Lucy counts them down.
“Three, Two, One… Go!”
Un-manly like screams and shouts fill the air as five grown men and two pre-teens surge forward into the frigid water.
“My balls!” Hudson screams, freezing as soon as he gets waist deep. “I think they’re gone!”
Lucy brings her hand to her face, laughing and shaking her head.
Kade is further behind Hudson, only deep enough for the water to hit his knees. Garrett stands right next to him, letting him set the pace and decide how deep he’s comfortable with.
“He’s so good with Kade,” Lucy comments, bumping Kara’s shoulder with hers.
“I love you, but shut up,” Kara retorts, glancing away when Garrett looks back over his shoulder at her.
“He’s hot Kara. You should totally go for it,” I say.
“Not interested.”
Lucy snorts. “Oh, she’s interested. She just won’t do anything about it.”
“I don’t date.”
Lucy places a hand on her hip. “You know, I recall saying theexactsame thing once. And a certain best friend of mine went ahead and meddled in my love life anyway.” She levels Kara with a look. “Sound familiar?”
“That’s different,” Kara says, waving Lucy off. “Plus, I didn’t meddle. I encouraged.”
Lucy blows a raspberry. “No, it’s not. It’s the same.Exactlythe same!”
Now it’s Kara’s turn to put her hand on her hip. “Not even.”
“Please enlighten me on how this is different.”
“The differenceisyou were interested; you were just scared to act on those feelings because of your past.”
“And?”
“And I’m not interested because I already had the love of my life.”
Stilled silence fills the air, the only noise now coming from the guys in the pond.
After a few beats, Marlene clears her throat. “You know, dear, there’s no rule that says you can’t have more than one great love in life.”
Kara gives Marlene a sad smile. “I know, Marlene. I just don’t think I have it in me to try again.” Connie puts her arm around Kara, giving her a side hug.
“C-c-can we have a t-t-towel?” Hudson asks, running up to Marlene with Kade, their teeth chattering from the cold and breaking the heavy moment.
