Page 34 of Summer Breakdown
Jasmine blushes, and her cheeks look like the sunset Frankie tried to take photos of last night in the hopes that Jasmine would respond to her. She didn’t, but Frankie liked her post of a sunset mere moments later. She likes to pretend it means something. Well, something other than the fact she’s a loser.
“I altered it,” Jasmine replies, smoothing it over her toned stomach. So, the way Frankie can always see a sliver of her skin is on purpose. It’s designed to torture her. “I have to tailor all Lani’s clothes because she is one apple tall.”
Frankie smiles. Now it makes sense why Jasmine’s leather trousers fit her so perfectly.
“Should we go outside?” Jasmine asks.
“For what?” Frankie replies.
Jasmine frowns. “Training. It’s today, right?”
Fuck. She hasn’t put them on the mailing list yet because they joined late, and she forgot to write it on her calendar.
“Well, you can blame me entirely because I didn’t call you and I was supposed to call you, but it’s been pushed back a week.” Frankie could train them herself, but she thinks Jasmine would hate her for it.
“Oh.”
“Because we’re crying, dying over the tax thing. I’m really sorry.” Frankie watches for any sign that Jasmine’s hatred for her has grown in the last minute. Frankie checks her watch. She could train them now and then fix the taxes after. It would push getting home until about eight, but she was only going to self-loathe there anyway. She could postpone it.
“Actually,” Frankie says, looking at her phone. “I can do it now.”
“Aren’t your taxes due soon?” Jasmine asks.
Well, yes, but Frankie wonders if being in prison would be better than Jasmine being disappointed with her.
“I can teach you … if you make me another drawing,” Ezra says, looking at Lani. She’s using his forearm as a chair, swinging her legs over the edge. “If I teach you how to spin on the grass and teach Marc how to tackle, then I won’t get stuck helping with the taxes.”
Frankie frowns. He wasn’t all that much help anyway, and at least Jasmine won’t have wasted a trip. Then, everyone looks over as the door swings open. Marcel’s eyes are wide as Kai walks in.
Fuck.Kai is a flirt. A hideous, monster-level flirt, and God, does it work. Frankie knows Jasmine only likes women, but everyone likes Kai.
“I didn’t forget!” he says, running over to her desk. “My payslip.”
Frankie smiles and tries to figure out a way to get him to go out the back. She crosses her fingers and leans them next to her thigh. Perhaps he wants to walk across the field, even though she can see his bike outside.
“Cheers,” Frankie says.
“Oh, hi!” he says, waving at Lani. Dammit. He might hate kids. Marcel would survive if one of his favourite players didn’t like him. He has two others. It’s greedy.
“Hi,” Lani replies.
“I’m Kai.”
“I’m Kehlani.” She leans closer to Ezra, but she doesn’t look nervous. She might be blushing. “But people call me Lani.”
Kai gasps. “Lani! You’re so famous to me. Mali talks about you all the time.”
Lani giggles. “She does?”
“Yeah. She was trying to decide if she should wear her pink hair or her red hair and told me you would prefer the pink.”
Kai is nice. That’s his whole thing. He’s nice, charming, and way too tall. Frankie doesn’t think he’s hot—she has eyes, and good taste—but other people think he’s hot. Jasmine might think he’s hot. She’s looking at him. Her gaze has slipped from his head to his feet and back twice already.
“I do like pink,” Lani says quietly.
Kai smiles. “Does that mean Marcel is here too?” When Lani looks behind him, Kai spins and gives a little wave. Marcel looks like he might die. Still, Frankie is figuring out how to get Kai out without seeing Jasmine. Marcel is sitting behind the counter on his phone. Jasmine is on the desk. She could get this to work.
“Hi, bud,” he says, going over. “Mal says you’re joining the junior team?”
