“Sure.” His voice, full of sarcasm.
“My performance coach.”
Jaylen grins. “That sounds dangerous already. She’s coming to games and practices. It must be working because you didn’t drop many balls over the last week.”
I shake my head, but the correction slips out before I can stop it. “Annika—Anna.”
“Already have pet names?” He asks so sure of himself.
“She’s just…” I stop.
“What?”
Complicated.
Sharp.
Guarded.
Scared.
“Different,” I say.
Jaylen leans back, and gulps his beer. “Different good, or different I’m about to ruin my life?”
Before I can answer, my phone buzzes. I glance down. Annika and a ridiculous smile spreads before I can stop it.
Jaylen doesn’t miss a beat. “Oh, you’re cooked,” he says as he takes a pull of his beer.
“Shut up.”
My phone vibrates.
Annika: Your sister told me about the time you cried because she wouldn’t marry you when you were four.
I choke on a laugh.
Annika: And now I can stop picturing tiny cowboy boots and a bowl cut, so thanks for that.
My face hurts, I’m grinning so hard. Annika’s having drinks with my sisters.
Jaylen holds his bottle but points at me with his finger. “Is that your performance coach? Or someone else because that smile isn’t all business.”
“Speaking of business, mind your own.”
My phone won’t stop buzzing but this time it’s my sister.
Noelle: I love Anna. She’s amazing and fits right in.
That hits me in a different place.
Quieter. Deeper.
Because Noelle doesn’t say things like that about other women. Her best friends have always been guys. Girls were jealous of her looks, her athleticism and her brothers. She’s cautious and reserved when meeting new people.
And if Annika fits in with Noelle, she fits in with all my family.
No, don't go there. Not yet.