Page 63 of Long Shot

In the locker room, Mac hopped in the shower and changed into street clothes. She had to run back to Queens, put on her nicer clothes and head out for the mystery date Taylor had arranged.

But as she threw her towel down to the bench, familiar footsteps approached from behind. Immediately, Mac felt eyes scanning her body. She lifted her head and met Taylor’s icy gaze.

Mac’s heart pounded under her gaze. Taylor looked hungry, like she could devour Mac whole.

Taylor shook herself out of it and went back to her own locker. She pulled out her bag and collected a change of clothes. Her normally slicked back ponytail was a mess of frizz and strays.

Jazz rounded the corner and stopped in her tracks. “Oh, hey.” Her eyes flicked between Mac and Taylor.

Hot on her heels, Beatriz skidded to a halt at their bank of lockers. “Look who it is, the princess of tennis, gracing us with her presence.”

Taylor rolled her eyes. “Nice, haven’t gotten that one before.”

Jazz leaned against the wall. “We’re just surprised that you would want to get your hands dirty down here.”

“Sometimes, playing in the mud is fun.” Taylor winked. A few of the other players in the locker room gave a collective “ooooh.”

Mac let her back rest against the cold metal of her own locker as she watched the group.

Shaking her head, Jazz stepped forward. “You think you can handle the heat this year?”

Taylor laughed, closing the distance. “I live in it. I just want to see what you kiddos get up to.”

Jazz looked back at Mac and laughed. “I mean, we all know what you get up to.” She winked as she gave Taylor a friendly nudge.

Taking her foot off the gas, Taylor shrugged with a sly smirk playing at the corners of her mouth. “I couldn’t possibly know what you mean by that, Jazz.”

The room chuckled as all the players dispersed and got back to their own lockers. It was rare for Mac to see Taylor like this. She probably hadn’t been around so many fellow players since their time together at camp over a decade ago.

After Kim found them out, she had kept Taylor away from all the people she thought were “corrupting” her daughter.

Mac checked the time. “Shit, I’ve gotta run.” Tossing her stuff in her bag, Mac caught Taylor’s eye.

“Anything fun?” Taylor winked, licking her lips.

Mac shrugged. “Eh, we’ll see if she can pull off anything original.”

A few hours later, a car pulled up outside of Mac’s building. But it wasn’t the black SUV’s Mac had gotten used to.

Instead, it was an Audi RS GT. Mac approached hesitantly, unsure if she was about to get kidnapped by a mystery driver. But as she walked closer, the driver window rolled down and Taylor’s face was revealed.

“You know how to drive?” Mac stuttered as she looked inside the car.

Taylor shrugged. “Get in and find out.”

A smile took over Mac’s face. Not wanting to risk anyone seeing them, Mac trotted into the car. She’d settled on black trousers, a white button down, and a black blazer. Her new-found wealth meant she got to go on a shopping spree just for this occasion. Of course, it had been difficult to explain to the salesperson exactlywhatthe event was.

As she slid into the leather passenger’s seat, Mac gawked at the car.

But Taylor’s eyes were glued to her. “You look… incredible.”

Mac blushed as she looked over at Taylor, dressed in a scoop neck, burnt orange dress. The fabric dropped just under her collar bone, letting Mac peek at her cleavage. “You’re one totalk.” At this rate, Mac couldn’t be sure they’d even make it to their destination.

Taylor shrugged. “This old thing?” Before Mac could worry about timing, Taylor stepped on the gas and her engine roared.

As Mac grabbed the oh-shit bar, she examined the interior. “You didn’t mention that you would drive.” It was a pristine, black leather interior with a full, panoramic moon-roof. The engine purred as it sped down the city streets.

Taylor shrugged, letting her hand rest on Mac’s thighs. “Management requests we drive ourselves. The odds of a leak are smaller if we don’t have to have drivers.”

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