Flagrant Foul (gxg)

Chapter 19

"Doubt would be good. If you chip away at her story, it can unravel. At a minimum it might be enough to keep you out of being arrested," she noted.

"What are you, a lawyer?" I snickered.

"Almost. I'm a law student." She pointed at the book on the bar, and sure enough it was a law book of some sort. "My dad gave me this bar to help get me through law school." Her voice had a little bit of an edge to it, and I pulled away enough to look down at her.

"You don't seem thrilled by that."

She shook her head slowly. "Don't worry about that. We're solving your problem first. My problem is going away as soon as I pass the bar exam."

"Are you close to that?"

"Yeah. I'm on my last two classes now, so I'll graduate before Christmas. Then I get to study for the bar exam and hopefully pass it in the spring. And finally, I can start taking in clients in my own practice," she told me in a soft whisper.

"That sounds like another statement that needs more explanation."

"It is, yes," she agreed. "And I'll happily tell you about it when we get you through your issues and I take you out to dinner."

"You what?" I was dumbfounded at her statement, though at the same time my heart was pounding in a happy way and a smile took over my face.

"There. That is the smile I wanted to see!" she said happily. "I want to take you to dinner. You're a gorgeous woman, and very nice. Athletic. Obviously going through some tough things. And while I don't want to be a rebound, I very much would like to take you out some time."

I couldn't believe this. "I'd love that. I really would. I was going to introduce my friends to you when I came back, and then ask you the same thing."

"That sounds like a long way of saying yes." She moved her hands to my ribs and gave me a little squeeze, which made me jump as I was pretty ticklish.

"That is very much a yes!"

"Good! Now. Let's get back to your problem, because I'm going to have a hard time taking you out on a date if you're in jail. What was it you said about casting doubt on her story?"

"Okay. At the beginning of spring break, when I met Tegan, she left her sneakers at the hotel by accident. That was why she didn't have them during their first round game last year."

"Oh! I remember that!" Skye exclaimed. "That wasn't the story though, something about leaving them on a plane or something?"

"Exactly. But really, she left them under a bed, and I still have them. They're at my grandparents' place in Charlotte. I was going to return them to her, but obviously not now. If I told the police and coach that I had those, it might make them think twice about taking everything she said at face value."

Skye was silent for a few minutes as she thought about that. "If that worked, what would you like to do? Would you want to go back to the team?"

I opened my mouth to say yes and realized that I hadn't thought that far ahead. What if they reinstated me to the team and the university? How could I play ball with Tegan and the friends of hers that had lied to cover up for her? Would I want to play for a coach that kicked me off without even letting me try to prove my innocence?

"No, I don't think I can play for them again. Even if they offered, I'd say no. I don't know what I'd do, or what my options would be," I admitted.

She nodded thoughtfully. "Can I interest you in an early dinner?"

I nodded quickly. "Hell yeah. But I still want to talk this through!"

"Come back to the kitchen, we'll talk while I cook," she suggested. "I have some thoughts, but you'd have to decide if it is something you'd be interested in."

"Okay. I can do that. Oh, and I can help cook too, my mom taught me a few things!"

"Ben! Cover the bar! I'm cooking!" Skye called back to the guys playing pool again, and they both nodded before headed to the bar. "They're good guys, I'm glad they help out around here."

She brought me behind the bar, and through the swinging door to the small kitchen. I could see why they had a limited menu, there wasn't a ton of room there at all. But the food had been amazing before, so I wasn't going to complain. Hell, she could make the same thing as the last time, and I'd be thrilled.

"What's on the menu today?" I wondered.

"I can do wings again, maybe with a difference glaze if you like," she told me. "Then maybe some loaded fries."

My mouth watered as soon as she said that. "Yeah, I like the sound of that."

"Perfect!" she got a bunch of wings out and then sealed them up in a plastic bag with a bunch of seasoning, and I was instantly confused. Then she dropped that into a container of water, and I was even more confused.

"What is that?" I wondered. "I thought you fried them last time?"

"Don't you trust me?" she asked with a wink.

"Of course. Why do you think I came back here again so fast? You were the only one I trusted to help me through everything again." I just blurted that out, not even pausing to think about it. No, I didn't know much about Skye other than she was a bartender and evidently a law student, but I was ready to trust her with my biggest issues as soon as I met her. She just had something about her that made me open right up, and I guess I felt an immediate connection.

She looked at me with a smile, then stood on her tiptoes, and put her arms around my neck to pull me down to kiss my cheek. "Then trust me when I say these wings will be perfect, okay? Now, lets do the fries. Are you okay with some cheese, green onions, and bacon?"

"Hell yeah, load them up!" Holy shit, she kissed me!

I didn't even care about food now, it was beginning to turn into a great day!