For the Win (Playing for Keeps Book 1) Read Free Page B

and salsa this morning before school. Lifting the lid, steam smacked me in the face. As I tested out the chicken with a fork, Skyler came to stand next to me.
    “Stop holding out on me. I want to hear all about it.” She leaned her back against the counter and stared at me expectantly.
    Placing the lid back on the crockpot, I looked up at her. “There’s nothing really to tell. I interviewed him about baseball. He answered my questions. End of story.”
    “What was he like?” Her eyes sparkled under the kitchen lights.
    I frowned, thinking of how he’d acted with Calista. God, I couldn’t stand her and her ‘mean girls’ group. “Just about like you’d expect.” However, even as the words left my mouth they felt like lies. It wasn’t exactly like I’d expected. In fact, until Calista arrived he seemed genuine, kind even.
    Skyler furrowed her brows as I walked into the family room. “What happened?”
    I plunked down on the couch and bent over to take off my shoes. “Calista and her friends showed up while I was interviewing Cooper. Did you know that he and Calista are dating?”
    Skyler sat next to me. Once my shoes were off, I peeled off my socks and wriggled my toes. “God, your feet stink.” Skyler reeled back, plugging her nose. “You really need to start wearing sandals on hot days like this.”
    Without responding, I rolled my eyes. I was used to comments like this from her.
    “I didn’t think Calista and Cooper were dating,” Skyler said, leaning her head back on the couch. “But I had heard that they hooked up.”
    “That’s sort of what he said too.” I sat up straight, pushing my hair out of my face.
    “He shared his relationship status with you?”
    I groaned inwardly, remembering how I pointedly asked him if Calista was his girlfriend. Way to keep it professional, London. “It just sort of came up in conversation.” I waved away her question. “Anyway, it was no big deal. It was just an interview for the paper. I gotta say, you never seem to get this excited about my articles, Sky.”
    “That’s because you don’t usually interview Cooper Montgomery.” She nudged me in the thigh. “You’re so lucky. Every girl at our school wants to get close to him.”
    “I’m not close to him. I just asked him a few questions. That’s it.” I stretched out my legs and arms, feeling tired. If only Skyler would stop asking so many questions about Cooper. I loved Skyler. She was more like my sister than my friend, and she’d been there for me through a lot of shit. But Skyler was boy crazy, and I wasn’t. Also, she’d always been fascinated by the popular crowd. Secretly I believed she wished she could be one of them.
    She nodded. “So that’s it, then? You’re all finished?”
    I bit my lip. “I will be after his game this weekend.”
    Her neck craned in my direction, her eyes like daggers spearing into me. “You didn’t say anything to me about having to attend his baseball game.”
    “I didn’t know until today.” The garage door sprung to life, signaling that Dad was home. I prayed that Skyler would let this drop when Dad came inside.
    She shook her head. “I don’t know how you put up with John. Every time he tells you to jump, you jump, no questions asked. And he acts like he runs the freaking New York Times or something. Not a measly school paper.” She stopped herself, an apologetic look on her face. “No offense.”
    “None taken.” I assured her. “Besides, it wasn’t John who told me about the game. It was Cooper.”
    “Cooper invited you to his baseball game?” Her eyes bugged out so far I worried they would leap from her face.
    “Baseball game?” Dad stepped into the room, his large frame casting a shadow over us. I definitely got my slight frame from my mom. Car grease stained Dad’s meaty hands, grey shirt and black pants. His forehead was slick, his dark hair moist at the ends that curled slightly around his face. If I thought I was burning up at