Chapter Twenty-Three
Deep in the warm cocoon Mack’s arms provided her, Kayla slept late on Thursday morning.
She didn’t even fully wake up when the alarm on her phone buzzed.
Mack’s arm left her for half a heartbeat to silence it, then it circled her waist, pulling her deeper into her embrace.
She snuggled back as far as she could, nesting her ass into Mack’s lap and delighting in the firm press of her ample breasts against her back.
She really could get used to this feeling.
It was a shame she’d lose this once she and Skye got back together.
She’d never slept this well with anyone.
It wasn’t until Mack had hit the snooze button for the third time that Kayla heard the rain.
It had probably been there the whole time—Mack wasn’t one to snooze normally—but she hadn’t been aware when she was mostly asleep.
Now she was mostly awake, and the patter and plop of rain-drops on the balcony was all she could hear.
A minute or two after she first heard the sounds, their meaning registered.
Her eyes flew open, and she bolted out of bed.
Mack’s sleepy grunt of disapproval followed her across the room, but she couldn’t take it in.
Kayla whipped open the curtains and let out a grunt of her own, but hers was laced with panic.
What she saw through the glass doors was as effective as a punch in the gut.
She dropped her forehead to rest against the glass.
It was far colder than usual, thanks to the storm blocking out the sun.
Mack’s words came out slurred with sleepiness. “What’s wrong?”
Anxiety bubbled up in Kayla’s chest, making it hard to breathe. A ringing started in her ears. “It’s raining!”
“They said it would. What’s her name told us the day we got here.”
Kayla whipped around. Mack was still lying in bed, propped up on one elbow.
Her hair was tousled, and her eyelids still drooped.
It was obvious she wanted nothing more than to curl up back under the covers and sleep.
She was adorable and more than a little sexy, but Kayla didn’t have space for that to sink in, just yet.
Kayla said, “No, they made it sound like it was going to drizzle. Does this look like a drizzle to you?”
She waved her arm at the wall of glass behind her.
Huge raindrops bounced off every flat surface, spraying mini showers of their own in every direction.
There was a massive standing puddle near the outdoor soaking tub and a positive torrent bouncing down the string of bronze cups under the gutter.
The gray sky was so dark it could be black, and the storm clouds stretched far out into the ocean.
This was a storm that would not end any time soon.
“I don’t think they said anything about a drizzle. She said they weren’t booking weddings. I took that to mean it would be real rain.”
“Well, why didn’t you say so?”
Mack scratched her head, tousling her hair even further. “Um, because you heard it, too. What’s going on, LaLa?”
“What’s going on?” Kayla’s heart rate went through the roof, and she started pacing, hoping to burn off some of the panic surging through her.
When that didn’t work, she ran her hands through her hair obsessively.
Pulling out every strand seemed like a reasonable course of action.
“What’s going on is rain. Buckets and buckets of it. ”
“Yeah, I think we’ve established that.”
“And I can’t work the Plan of Seduction during a freaking hurricane.”
“I hardly think hurricane—”
Kayla cut her off. “I was getting so close. Yesterday was like a breakthrough. I had her right where I wanted her and then, bam, I wake up this morning to this.”
Mack finally recognized how upset she was and jumped out of bed, padding over to Kayla and putting a hand on her shoulder. Kayla almost melted into her, but then she opened her big mouth. “Hey, look, everything is going to be fine.”
Kayla’s snapped words came out in a rush and all blended together. “It will not be fine.”
“Whoa. Let’s take a deep breath, okay?”
Kayla closed her eyes and did as she was told. To her utter annoyance, it actually helped. A little. “Dr. Wife Stealer splurged on a villa, Mack.”
“Amy.”
“Don’t correct me.” Kayla sighed and explained, “The villas have a dining room. That means they can take their meals inside and don’t even have to leave their room.”
Even as she spoke, Kayla heard the rattling engine of one of the many golf carts that butlers used to shuttle guests and food.
She whipped around and saw, as she suspected, a butler in a raincoat pulling up outside a villa loaded down with trays of food protected from the weather by cloches.
Kayla felt rather than heard the sob escape her body.
Mack grabbed her shoulders and turned her around, leaning down so they were eye to eye. “Okay, listen to me. Remember when you were sixteen, and you went to your first tournament with the Youth National Team?”
“Yeah, of course. The one in Oklahoma. Why are we talking about this now?”
“Right. It was a Youth World Cup qualifying tournament, so it was really important.”
Kayla knew all of this. Why was Mack talking to her about stuff from decades ago when her world was falling apart now? “So what?”
“You had a really hard group. You said there was no way you’d win the tournament.”
Kayla sighed. “Well, yeah. We were in a group with Brazil, Costa Rica, and Colombia. We were totally screwed.”
“Exactly. You were freaking out about it for weeks ahead of the tournament. Do you remember what I told you then?”
“You told me to take a chill pill, but in your defense, it was 2005, and people actually said that then.”
Mack laughed, and the sound loosened some of the knots in Kayla’s chest. Mack was really cute when she laughed. She almost managed a smile. Mack said, “And did you take a chill pill?”
“Of course not. Opening match, I got into a battle near the goal for the ball, got elbowed in the head, and ended up with a concussion.”
Kayla touched the spot without thinking about it.
She still had a scar under her eyebrow that made the hair grow in wacky angles.
It had all happened within the first five minutes of the game.
Honestly, she had been so frantic that she didn’t even remember those five minutes.
It was a blur of grass, cleats, and panic ending in a blinding headache.
Mack said, “Which meant you had to sit on the bench for the rest of the game. You were able to analyze the other team’s defense.”
That part Kayla remembered. It was the first time in her years of playing soccer that she’d spent significant time on the sideline. She’d honestly never watched the game from the coach’s angle, and it made her think differently about how the whole game was played.
“I pointed out to Sara Robertson how they were playing a really high press and leaving room in the back for a breakout run. She was subbed on at half-time and scored almost immediately.”
Mack said, “Your team won because of it.”
“I see what you’re saying. I should sit back, wait, and observe today. If I remain calm in the face of adversity, I’ll triumph.”
Mack finally released her shoulders and stood up straight. “No, I’m telling you to relax because you’re stressing me out and I’m in desperate need of a Bloody Mary and a massive breakfast.”
Laughter burst from Kayla’s throat, and she slapped Mack’s middle.
She was going to say something about how she’s always thinking with her stomach, but the feel of her incredibly touchable abs underneath the thin tank top distracted her.
Suddenly, she was deeply disappointed that she wouldn’t get to see Mack in a bathing suit today.
Pulling her into a bear hug, Mack said, “Okay, you were right with the first thing. But I really do want a Bloody Mary and a stack of pancakes.”
Kayla squeezed her arms tight around Mack’s waist. How did she always make everything so much better?
She always knew exactly what to say when Kayla needed her.
She was going to need that when she and Skye got back together, since Skye pretty much had the opposite effect on her meltdowns.
It would be hard to manage the two of them after this week, but she would manage it.
No matter what, she needed Mack in her life.
If there was one thing this week was proving, it was how much she needed her.
The rain had tapered off slightly as Kayla finished the last of her breakfast. It was still a significant pace, but not quite the monsoon they’d struggled through to get down here.
To her surprise, the breakfast restaurant was even fuller than usual.
She’d thought folks would stay in, but the less grand rooms didn’t have a ton of space for dining.
Without any options for entertainment, most of the guests seemed content to eat and drink themselves into a stupor.
A new couple approached the hostess stand, and Kayla looked up hopefully. She slumped back in her seat almost immediately. Unless Amy had grown an impressive beard overnight, the couple were strangers to her.
Mack had done a commendable job of making breakfast fun. She made Kayla laugh—mostly at herself, which was what she needed. But Mack had gone to the bathroom and taken all the hope and happiness out of the room. Now Kayla’s mood was as dark as the storm clouds ruining everyone’s day.
What if she came this far only to fail? How could she survive?
Her life had been a string of crushing disappointments.
It wasn’t just her soccer career, although admittedly that one had hurt the worst. Once she’d wrecked her knee, she had to pivot.
Life wasn’t kind to former stars, and she had never even gotten to play to her full potential.