Fast Courting Read Free

down at the list again, idly fingering the gold locket at her throat. “It’s a varied group, just as the women are. They come from different areas. Different occupations. All of them relatively unfeatured—except Strahan. Why was he included?” Her attempts to keep her voice even were only marginally successful; even she heard its slight waver.
    “What’s wrong with Strahan?” Chris asked. “He’s brilliant! The Breakers haven’t done so well since the franchise was formed!”
    It was Priscilla who stage-whispered, in a rare display of playfulness, “In case you hadn’t heard, Chris is into basketball this year. Everybody loves a winner.”
    “Uh-uh.” Chris held up his hand and eyed the two women in good-natured rebuke. “I’ve always been a basketball fan. It’s just that this season I’m not afraid to admit it.”
    “Do you go to the games?” Nia asked.
    “Occasionally. When I can get tickets. And, let me tell you, that’s not so easy lately. It’s been one sell-out crowd after the other.”
    “Do you follow the televised games?” There was method to Nia’s questioning, but Chris hadn’t caught on yet.
    “You bet!” He fell right into her trap. “And that’s how I know that Strahan is a wizard. He’s put together a team that works like a team; he’s the one who holds it together. His pregame interviews and postgame comments are amazing—precise, to the point, always accurate.”
    Nia smiled. “Thank you, Chris. You’ve made my point.” She turned her sharpened gaze on Bill. “ That’s why I question Strahan’s inclusion here. He’s probably been interviewed ten times as often as the other four combined.”
    As though Bill had anticipated her argument, he nodded. “You’re right about that. But what do you know about him? I mean the person Daniel Strahan. Forget basketball.”
    Nia’s lips curved up mischievously. “Forget it? I don’t know anything about it to forget! I’ve never been a fan of basketball!” If her declamation was a bit too intense, none of her colleagues noticed.
    “That’s good.” Bill caught her eye and held it with a force that took his words a step further. “If you’re divorced from the game you’ll be able to put together an insightful, very different story about the man. You won’t have to go near the court, if you choose not to.”
    The understanding between Nia and Bill was immediate and gratifying. He knew of her vulnerability, had glimpsed that flicker of pain that she usually covered so well. Of the group gathered here, only Bill seemed to realize that David Phillips had been a die-hard Breaker fan, that he had written up their games for years. Rarely had he missed a home game, or even one on the road. That was what he had especially loved—the road trips. While the players found them exhausting, David Phillips thrived on them. Nia knew she had no right to blame the Breakers for what had come between David and herself. But she couldn’t deny the bad taste in her mouth that came with the mention of the New England Breakers.
    “Anyway,” Chris quipped, lounging back in his seat, “ I can help you when it comes to the technical information.” He held a hand out and studied his fingers. “I used to play myself. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much of a need for a five-foot-four forward.”
    The laughter that filtered through the room lightened the air a bit. “And how tall is this Strahan?” Nia asked, curious as to what form of giant she would be facing.
    James reeled off the statistics. “Six four. Short by present standards. When he played— that was roughly ten years ago—they didn’t come so tall. In his heyday, he weighed in at 190. From the looks of him today, he hasn’t gained a pound.”
    Bill patted his rounding belly. “That’s nice,” he murmured, half to himself. “Exercise. That’s the key. But what can I do? I’m stuck behind a desk all day.”
    “You could always run with me during the lunch hour,” Chris