Page 112 of Set to Love

“Nice to meet you,” I say, shaking her hand.

The other woman clears her throat with a playful, expectant smirk.

“And that’s Penny,” Alex adds, almost as an afterthought.

She rolls her eyes at him. “Drew’s wife and Alex’s sister. Usually in that order when he’s being a total git.”

My eyes widen. “Tennis is a full family affair,” I tease.

Penny chuckles. “I’m the only one here who doesn’t have an ounce of an athletic bone in my body. I handle the contracts so these three can focus on hitting yellow balls.”

“She’s become a brilliant sports agent,” Drew says, toasting his wife. He looks at me. “Speaking of which . . . do you have one, Katie?”

Adala slides a glass my direction, and I take it. “An agent? No. I didn’t think I needed one yet.”

“In that case,” Drew glances to Penny, “I think the two of you should have a conversation.”

Penny smiles. “I’d be happy to, if you’re interested.”

“You let him speak for you, Pen?” Alex quips.

“Drew’s my husband, and father of my children. Different rules apply.”

“Guys, I love you both, but enough business talk. You’re off the clock,” Olive reminds them gently. Her accent feels like a piece of home. I should’ve recognized it a second ago. But when you’ve had a long day, sometimes your brain takes a second to catch up. Or things get lost in translation.

“You’re American!” I blurt out, unable to help myself.

“You caught me.” Olive laughs as the rest of the table joins in at my expense. “I’m from Hawaii. And I wanted to say, if you need any help navigating life as an expat here, I’m your gal. I’ve been dying to invite you over to our place ever since Alex mentioned you’d joined the club, but he told me I had to wait until your trial was over.”

“I may take you up on that. Grocery shopping has been rough. I haven’t been able to find peanut butter anywhere.”

Drew winces and Alex sticks out his tongue. Olive ignores them both. “They don’t know what they’re missing. I used to live on peanut butter too. It’s one of my comfort foods.” She smiles. “Whenever you have a free evening, let me know.”

“Sounds good,” I say.

“Let’s exchange numbers,” Olive says, pulling out her phone.

We both unlock our screens.

“Who’s the guy? Boyfriend?” Adala asks, catching a glimpse of my wallpaper.

I glance down. It’s still the selfie Max and I took in Piccadilly Circus. We’d posed in front of the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain before Max laughed that he’d completely forgotten Eros was perched on top.

“Something like that,” I say, a tight smile on my face.

Thankfully, they don’t ask for details, and I don’t offer any. It’s still a bruise, but for the first time since we fought, the sight of him doesn’t send me running for the nearest exit. The pain is still there, just a little farther away.

The conversation continues to flow with an ease that makes me forget I’m the new girl. Despite Olive’s “no work” rule, Alex and Drew jump back to tennis and reminisce about their old lives on the road.

As the night begins to wind down and the pub’s bell rings for last call, a sense of belonging settles over me. Max isn’t the only person I have in London anymore. I’ve started building a life of my own.

As we’re gathering our things to leave, my phone buzzes in my pocket.

Max

Let me know when you get home.

“Coming with us to the station, Keller?” Adala asks, slinging her bag over her shoulder.