Page 10 of Winning Play
“Igrew up inVancouver.Ilike the master’s program here—my brother lives inTampa, soI’vevisited a few times.Theweather is a definite plus.”Shestole a glance at the dark blue eyes that focused on her.
“Whichprogram?”
“Communications.Ihope to work in sports information someday.”
“Interesting.”Hereached to hold the open-door button when the elevator stopped on the fourth floor. “Roomfour twenty-six.”
Kimhelped guide the luggage rack from the elevator, andSpencefell in step beside her as he pulled it down the hallway.
“Ithink you have a corner room.Shouldhave a lot of space.”
“Doyou live here?”
Iwish.“No,Ilive in an older building near the sports facilities.Justhappy to haveAC.”
“Wenever hadACat home until recently.Didn’tneed it.”Kimglanced atSpence, whose lips quirked in a smile.
“Tryliving without it here withTampa’shot, muggy weather.Youneed it year-round.”
“Itmay take a while for me to complain about the weather.”Theystopped at her room, andKimunlocked the door.Sheopened it soSpencecould push the cart inside the entryway. “Thisis so much larger thanIhoped.”
“Go, check it out.I’llunload the cart.Thenyou can tell me where everything needs to go.”
Kimmade a quick tour of the apartment.Privatebath, medium-sized bedroom with a single bed and walk-in closet, nice-sized living area with built-in desk and bookshelves, and a kitchen with a slim upright refrigerator, stove, and microwave oven.Alarge pantry provided space for supplies and food.Acounter separated the kitchen from the living area.Windowsabove the sink and along one side of the living area offered abundant natural light.
Spencetook the opportunity to observeKimmore closely.AsEricsaid, she was a “fox.”Kimmade faded jeans and a kelly-greenT-shirt look glamorous.Shemoved like an athlete—just as he’d thought the other night at the arena.Wonderwhat sport?
Kimsmiled and shrugged when she noticedSpence’sexpression. “It’swonderful… very nice with all the natural light from the windows.”Sheshifted her eyes toward the kitchen.
Tooobvious?Toneit down,Spencer… don’t scare her off.Butdamn, she’s cute when her cheeks turn pink.“Youwon the lottery—no roommate or suitemates,” he said. “Somerooms are regular dorm rooms—two beds and a communal shower.Ifyou’re lucky, you get a four-bedroom suite.Tworooms share each bath, then there’s a full kitchen and living area.”Spencegrabbed the box marked “kitchen” and placed it on the counter. “Youscored an ‘apartment,’ ma’am.”
“Whichdo you have?”Kimfollowed with a small box.
“Ilive in one of the quad units, but only three of us live there.It’san older building, butI’mnot there very much.”
“Youplay baseball?”Shepointed toward his shirt. “Youmentioned the sports complex.”
“Yeah,I’mon the baseball team.Theyhouse the athletes in one area—easier to monitor us.”
Kimsmothered a laugh. “So, no wild parties?”
“Notunless we win a championship.”
“What’syour last name soIcan check your stats?”
“It’sSpencer.ChathamSpenceron the team list,ChathamJohnSpencerto my parents.”
“Familyname?”
Herface brightened whenSpencelaughed. “No, nothing normal like that.Igrew up inSavannah,Georgia.Mymom liked the county's name so much that she gave it to her first child, me.Savannah, my sister, got named after the city.”
“Oh,Ilove unique names.So, you grew up inChathamCounty?”
“Iwouldn’t kid about that.Everynew teacher asked if they named the county after my family.Iwasn’t smart enough to agree.”Hegazed at the window in the living area. “Kidscome up with the most embarrassing nicknames.Chatty,Chitchat, and so on.Itried to use my initials as my dad suggested, but it was too late.Whenwe got to middle school, my best friend decided to call me ‘County.’Muchbetter.”Heshook his head with a quiet laugh. “BetterthanChatty, for sure.So, ‘County’ stuck through high school.”Helifted another box and carried it into the bedroom. “WhenImoved here,Ijust used ‘Spence.’Afew teammates use ‘County.’”
“Spence...Thatworks, butIdo likeChatham.Thinkyou’ll ever claim it?”
Heshrugged, running his hand through his hair. “Maybe?IfImake it to the pros, my parents will expect me to use it.”Heturned the cart toward the door. “CanItalk you into a campus tour once you’re settled and we finish practice?”Heflashed what he hoped was an irresistible smile.