Page 59 of Rivals and Liars

"Thank you. You're letting me close this chapter of my career with one of the best interviews I've ever done," Candela says.

"You're leaving?" Leire looks surprised. "You're leaving journalism?"

The woman nods, closing her notepad.

"I'm leaving this kind of journalism. I've been thinking about it for a while and I've come to the conclusion that sports journalism has a logic that doesn't fit me anymore. The pace, the headline, the next match… I want to try something slower."

"Do you already know what that is?" Leire asks.

"I want to write biographies of athletes who've had to choose between what they do and who they are. There are so many stories no one has told, because no one has sat down to really listen—without a microphone and a deadline in the way."

Leire listens carefully.

"Would you do it?" Candela asks suddenly. "Tell your whole story—not as an interview, but as a book?"

The tennis player lets out a low whistle.

"That sounds like a big deal." She smiles. "Probably yes, but when I retire."

"I'll make a note of that, then." Candela stands and extends her hand. "Thank you again. I'm sure we'll run into each other around. Give my best to Brogan."

"I will." Leire shakes her hand and walks her to the door.

When Candela leaves, she goes back inside, checks the time, and sees she has enough to make it to the airport and pick up the Australian—so she grabs her car keys, her phone, and a light jacket, and runs to the garage with her pulse racing.

Kate is exhausted when she steps off the plane. She's barely slept, and she knows it's not only because she had to say goodbye to her family and to Diane—it's also because she's stepping into a completely new chapter of her life, and she's uneasy not knowing how it'll go. She goes through baggage claim, grabs her suitcase, and heads out. Even with a cap on and her gaze fixed on the floor, someone recognizes her as she walks, and what was going to be a single photo turns into a string of smiles she offers beside strangers without showing a trace of the exhaustion she's carrying. By the time she manages to keep moving, a different kind of smile crosses her face when she spots Leire a few yards away. She's wearing a cap too, but when Kate walks up and they hug and kiss, more people recognize them, and suddenly they're wrapped up in another round of flashes, the two players posing beside one person after another.

"What are you doing here?" Kate asks, holding the handle of her suitcase with one hand and threading the fingers of the other through Leire's, who walks proudly beside her. "I told you I'd grab a cab—you didn't have to come."

"The interview finished early, and I really wanted to see you."

They stop next to the car and Leire takes the suitcase and lifts it into the trunk. When she closes it, she turns around and wraps her arms around the Australian's neck, bringing her lips close—kissing her first, then smiling.

"More than really, honestly," she whispers, kissing her once more. "How was the flight?" she asks once they're in the car.

"Long and boring, you know how it is. What about the interview?" Kate watches her closely, because she hadn't been entirely sure Leire was ready to face something like this—but she looks better than ever.

"It was incredible. Freeing." The Spanish woman turns toward her before starting the engine. "I was nervous at first, but it passed, and when Candela left I felt almost euphoric—like I was stronger, you know? I think you're going to love it, baby."

Kate cuts her off with a kiss.

"I'm sure I will. But I like you more—that I'm certain of. Can we go, please? I need a shower and some food. I'm starving."

Leire wants to ask if they didn't feed her on the plane, but instead she just smiles and starts the car, because one of the things she's learned about the redhead since they've been together out in the open—spending as much time together as they can—is that Kate always reaches for food when she's anxious, even though she barely eats because her stomach closes up on her. Leire knows this new chapter will be hard for Kate, but she plans to be there and be her rock whenever she needs her.

Chapter 28

Two months later.

"Don't close your eyes, baby, please," Leire begs, one hand at the nape of Kate's neck and the other between the Australian's legs, who is straddling her with two fingers inside her.

Kate blinks and gasps at the same time, riding her hand with a slow, steady rhythm that has the Spanish woman completely transfixed.

"Have I told you how much I love seeing you like this?"

The redhead tries to smile as she moves, but all she manages is for her dimples to deepen at the corners of her mouth before she lets out a breathless sound.

"I'm going to come… I'm coming, sweetheart," she gasps before her body tenses, her back arches, and she folds forward seconds later.