Page 19 of On Merit Alone
“Why don’t you come out?” I asked, surprising myself with the invitation. I was supposed to be practicing. But she clearly had a reason for being here, so… “Or are you really up to some shady shit?”
“No!” she grumbled, her feet moving instantly in my direction.
Soeasy to rile up.
Watching her as she stalked her way across the court, I noticed more about her than I did when we were in the office.
Her long, lean legs looked smooth as they stepped into the lights. Toned, under her team-issued practice shorts. Her stride was easy, only becoming easier the further she stepped out on the court like she was stepping into her element. Her long braids were pulled up into a high ponytail away from her face, a headband placed over the front of it to secure it backward. As she walked, the long tailswished from side to side behind her; and when she stopped way too far away from me to be friendly, it flipped over her shoulder, laying there with as much attitude as I assumed she was ready to give me.
“Will you stop it with the stalker stuff already?” she asked predictably.
I picked up a ball to busy my hands, balancing it on one side and then the other as I tried to hide my amusement. “Stop stalking me then.”
“Ira, I—” she stopped, but for some reason, I didn’t want her to. Not when she said my name so hesitantly and looked at me so seriously.
For whatever reason I wanted to let her know that it was okay to talk to me. That I’d enjoy a smile too. But I kept it to myself.
“You, what? C’mon, I was kidding, Six. Stop taking everything so seriously,” I said.
She bit her lip, drawing my attention to the contrasting colors of them. A mix of dusty rose and neutral brown that distracted me. I cleared my throat as I tore my eyes away from them. She was saying something. Something that had her tightening her stance and wringing her hands just slightly.
“Well…” she hesitated. Shutting her eyes tight, she blurted, “Iwassort of stalking you. The other day, I mean. Not today.”
I couldn’t help it. I sputtered a laugh. “I don’t think it matters whichday, Merit. You werewhat, now?”
Groaning, she covered her face, embarrassed. “It wasn't like that! I promise.”
“Please tell me what other way‘I was stalking you’could possibly be,” I pressed, enjoying this more than I should. “It seems pretty cut and dry.”
“Well, it’s not,” she said, dropping her hands and beginning to pace. “I was honestly in the office the other day because I had a meeting, and I honestly had no idea those were your shoes.”
“Uh-huh.”
“But then I heard some people talking about how you were there and I?—”
“Waited for me in the shadows while staring at pictures of me on your phone,” I said.
Curiously, the same look that crossed her face when I teased her a little too much in the lobby and she tried to walk away, crossed her face now. It was obvious she was bothered because her entire face fell, morphing from expressive and spirited to complete stone. Her posture went rigid, and her jaw clenched visibly tight. She was like a robot as she pivoted her shoulders and began her escape.
Shit. I didn’t know how little or how far I could push with this girl. Dropping the ball, I jogged up to her and lightly grasped her shoulders.
“Woah, woah.” I stopped her.
She halted, but her shoulders hitched at our contact. Her elbows went in tight to herself, and her head ducked just a bit. I released her immediately but didn’t miss the feeling of my face constricting, my eyebrows pulling down in confusion. Rounding her front, I held up my hands as a sign of apology.
“I’m sorry,” I said quickly. “You were saying.”
“Nothing,” she said, moving to step around me. “I wasn’t saying anything important.”
I stepped with her, trying to stay her movements—I swear she was like a caged animal. “Woah, hey. Easy, Six—take it easy. I’m here, you’re here. You might as well spit it out.”
She crossed her arms around her middle as she looked away. Unlike the challenging way she crossed them over her chest, this was much more vulnerable and avoidant. I resisted the urge to step into her line of sight, and after a handful of seconds, I let out a sigh.
“Alright, well,” I said, pausing to see if she would talk. She didn’t, so I puffed more air. “If there’s nothing, I gotta get back to practice.”
A few more seconds and still nothing. She actually turned her head further away from me, and I couldn’t help the frown that scrunched my face. She’s the one who literally admitted to stalking me, and somehowshewas playing shy?
I wouldn’t make her uncomfortable, though. I’d probably done enough of that already between the time I’d given her unsolicited advice like some jerk and the two times I’d teased her enough to make her want to run away. I could take a hint.Leave Merit Jones alone.
