Page 16 of A Shot at Love
“You’re his coach,” Sydney said, the words landing deep in Frankie’s chest. “And she’s his…sister.”
”Twin sister,” Frankie added, nodding to herself as she walked towards the edge of the shoreline and watched the sunlight sparkle on the surface of the water.
Sydney laughed and the full bodied sound of it, even over the phone and across an entire ocean, almost made Frankie regret saying anything in the first place.
“So she’s a smokeshow then, eh? Because I might be gay but I have eyes and he’s a good looking specimen so she must be…”
The image of Jules standing next to Frankie on the roof appeared in her head. Her bright blue eyes, the way she had the tiniest dimple to the right of her lips that was almost imperceptible if you weren’t admiring her the way Frankiewas, the way her blonde hair caught the sunlight and the way she smelled like lavender.
“Beautiful. She’s beautiful, Syd.”
“Damn, Frank,” Sydney sighed. “Only you would find yourself wrapped up in something like this.”
Frankie couldn’t help but laugh because Sydney was right. Her whole adult life had consisted of friends with benefits, half assed attempts at what could barely be considered relationships, one night stands in random cities, and an empty bed when Frankie actually wanted someone to be there with her.
To just…be.
Taking the coaching job, agreeing to the move, it was all part of this new plan she had for herself. If things went well with the team and she performed well, she could really settle down here, build some roots, and make a home.
And if she were lucky, find a partner.
Someone to confide in, to talk to about her day while they ate dinner or cuddled on the couch watching TV, someone she could pull in close in the middle of the night just because she wanted the warmth of another person, of her person.
If Frankie were completely honest, there had never been a time in her life when she’d had any of that and she didn’t know when the feeling first started, but she was aching for it now.
“It’s not like she and I have confessed our love for one another or anything. We’ve barely spent two hours together but I just…I don’t know. I feel this connection to her, this…tug, and maybe that sounds silly, especially coming from me.”
What also felt silly was having this conversation over the phone when Frankie wished more than anything that she and Sydney could be together in a bar somewhere, laughing and talking over a pitcher of weak beer.
Right now Frankie was having a very deep heart to heart while wearing running shoes that were starting to give her a blister and shorts that gave her a constant wedgie. They should really include that in the product information on the tag…‘warning – the person wearing these may experience wedgies’.
It wasn’t exactly a comfortable set up for an honest conversation but as Frankie looked around at the water, as she breathed in the salty air, as she felt the warmth of the sun on her skin, she knew it could be worse.
“It’s not silly, Frankie. And what do I always say?”
Frankie smiled and hugged herself. “Everything happens for a reason.”
“And I believe that wholeheartedly. You should start believing it too.”
Just then, the fluffy part of an old dandelion floated along in the breeze, drifting close to Frankie. She remembered the lore from her childhood that if you caught it and made a wish then gave it back to the wind, your wish would come true. So she reached out and closed her palm around it, then closed her eyes and took a moment to think about what she wanted to happen next.
With a silent wish made, Frankie fluttered open her eyes, held her open palm out in front of her then blew.
The wish, as they’d always called it, floated back into the wind and was caught on a gust. It disappeared somewhere out over the water and Frankie took a deep breath before she turned to face the direction she’d come from on the waterway trail.
God, Sydney was right.
She really hated running but maybe, if she were lucky, she’d run into Jules somewhere along the way.
Chapter 10
With her tote bag slung over her shoulder and her Kindle loaded with three new sapphic romance books Jules slid her sunglasses down onto her face as she exited her condo’s glass windowed lobby.
She had zero plans for the day and after doing a little social media research, she’d found a cute coffee shop right near the harbour that had an iced coffee with her name all over it.
The warm air filled her lungs as she rounded the corner and out of the corner of her eye, spotted a familiar flash of red hair jogging up the road.
As the body came fully into view, Jules could tell that it was Frankie and her mouth went dry as she took in the sight – Frankie’s tall, strong frame clad in running shorts and a tight tank top that clung to her body, giving Jules a full view of her defined muscles and sweat covered freckled skin.
