Page 58 of See You at the Finish Line

Paige gasps and holds her heart. “How dare you, you take that back!” she says in mock offence. I don’t love that she’s joking with Mateo and not me.

“Is it really hot?” Mateo asks, a little unsure now.

“When you first go in you feel like you’re suffocating. You lie on your mat for a few minutes. Your body adjusts,” Shay says with a shrug.

“The heat wraps around you inside and out and it feels amazing,” Paige says, and there’s something in her voice. I turn to her.

“Does it make you miss home?” I ask.

She looks at me, startled. “Yes,” she says after a moment. “But the best part is coming out of class and inhaling that first breath of fresh air. You feel like you’ve left everything negative behind and can breathe again.”

I see it in her face. She’s saying more than she intended, alluding to her struggles. I wish Shay and Mateo would leave so I could talk to her. I need to tell her—

“Paige?” A male voice interrupts my thoughts.

She looks away from me and I feel the loss of her gaze. Following her line of sight, I want to growl.

Nate.

“Oh, hey Nate,” she says, shifting uncomfortably.

“Oh, you’re Nate!” Shay says helpfully, a knowing smile written all over her face. She takes him in from his head to his feet and chuckles to herself. Nate doesn’t acknowledge her. He’s staring hard at Paige.

He’s here with a woman, and I want to rejoice and punch him at the same time. I don’t want Paige with him, but I also don’t want her to get hurt. I don’t think I made the conscious decision, but I swiftly move closer to Paige, extending my arm across the booth behind her.

I could be stretching, or I could be sending a signal that she’s not alone either.

Nate doesn’t miss the gesture and Paige turns to furrow her brows at me. I am the picture of innocence, not taking my eyes off Nate.

“Go get a table, I’ll be there in a minute,” he snaps at his date. When she leaves, he turns back to Paige.

“I thought we had fun the other night,” he says, his voice low.

“We did,” Paige agrees.

“You didn’t answer my call yesterday, or call me back,” Nate says.

“I was busy. Don’t you think you should get back to your date?” Paige answers.

“That’s my sister.” It’s clearly a lie. I know for a fact that Nate is an only child.

Did Paige just breathe a sigh of relief? Nate’s eyes flick back to me.

“Coach,” he says, finally acknowledging me.

“Nate,” I say, voice hard.

When no one else says anything, Nate deflates a little.

“I guess I’ll call you later?” he asks Paige.

“Okay,” she says and watches him leave.

“You’re right, he does have a nice ass. Pity.” Shay sighs and Paige glares at her for a moment before turning to me. I get an elbow in my side.

Reflexively, I reach to stop her, and my fingers burn as they brush over the skin on the inside of her arm. She lets out a little breath and I’m done for.

She recovers before I do. “What the hell was that?”

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