Page 98 of Salto

“I think so. I try to keep things separate. My life inside the gym and my life outside the gym.”

“And how’s that working out?” I asked, a small smile rising to my lips.

He looked over at me for a moment before looking back at the road, and my stomach committed treason with an inconvenient little flip.

“Pretty well,” he said.

“Just pretty well?”

“Ask me again in a year.”

“When did you start coaching?”

“Only about six months ago.”

I opened my mouth to ask another question, but he stopped me.

“Enough about me. Tell me something only a friend would know about you.”

I thought about it for a minute. What would only a friend know about me?

“I, uh… highlight stuff. A lot.”

“Highlight stuff?” His brow furrowed.

“Yeah, like the Code of Points.”

He chuckled and shook his head. “You're kidding.”

“Nope,” I said, biting my lip.

“You highlight the Code of Points?” His eyebrows rose. “Like in your free time?”

“Don’t make it sound like I’m crazy. I’m sure you’ve watched back old videos of gymnastics routines and stuff like that. Every athlete studies skills.”

He shook his head, still appearing to be in disbelief. “Not like that, Red.”

I rolled my eyes.

“It explains why your technique is so good,” he added.

“Thank you.” I crossed my arms over my chest, my chin jutting out a little. “You can make fun of me all you want, but I actually enjoy it.”

He glanced over at me again. “I’m not making fun of you. I’m actually impressed.”

A little bit of heat crept into my cheeks at the compliment, and I looked out the window, trying to pretend I was interested in the passing scenery.

A few minutes later, we were pulling up to Vanta's house. It was high up in the rolling hills of Carlsbad, in a gated community. The exterior was gorgeous white stone, with black windows and perfect landscaping lit by soft golden ground lights.

He parked right out front by the curb and killed the engine.

I got out, still admiring the gorgeous house. The faint sound of music was coming from the backyard, and the nerves started to hit me.

I must’ve been frozen there for a second because Rove’s voice made me jump when he addressed me.

“Hey,” Rove said, his brow furrowing. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” I said, snapping out of it.