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“Scarlet, the van is leaving for the hotel. Are you coming?” Rove asked.

My real name rolling off his tongue sounded so strange.

“My parents want me to have dinner with them.”

He looked at my parents and immediately stuck out his hand.

“I’m Eero Rove. It’s nice to meet you.”

I felt the surreal sensation of watching my two worlds collide as they all shook hands.

“We’ve heard great things about you,” my mom said, beaming at him. “Thanks for giving our Scar a chance.”

“Of course,” he said with a nod, looking back at me. “As long as you’re back in time for when the bus leaves in the morning, I don’t see why you can’t go see your family.”

“Cool. Thanks, Coach,” I said.

He smiled faintly, his eyes lingering on me for just a second before turning and heading back toward the van.

CHAPTER 44

“So tell us about your life there,” my mom said. “I know you told me a little bit, but I feel like we still have lots to catch up on.”

I dug into my mom’s chicken parmesan and nearly moaned. I’d missed my mom’s cooking. More than anything. Lately, with my protein needing to be higher, I’d been eating a lot of plain chicken and drinking chalky protein shakes.

“Well, you know that my place is right next to the beach, so I take walks there on my days off. I have a new friend. Her name is Lexi.”

“You made a friend?” My dad’s eyes widened like he was surprised by this. He knew how hard it was for me to make friends when I was a kid and even into my NCAA years. It had taken me at least a year to warm up to Mia and Laney. “That’s great.”

“Yeah, she’s awesome.” We weren’t exactly besties, but it would help my parents feel at ease. And I couldn’t very well tell them that the person I was growing closest to was also my coach.

“What’s your new place like?” Jamie asked. “Is it bigger than your other one?”

“Smaller, actually,” I said, pointing my fork at her. “And I have a porthole in my ceiling.”

“A what?” my mom asked, her brow furrowing.

“There’s a circular hatch window in my bedroom. Oh, and the washer and dryer are on the balcony.” I chuckled, and my dad raised a brow.

“That’s odd,” he said.

“Oh, that’s right. I think you did tell me that,” my mom said, nodding.

“Yeah, it’s just me, so I don’t need much.”

“How have you been feeling?” my mom interjected. “Has your body been handling all the elite skills pretty well? How’s this extra training going with Coach Rove and the pain management?”

“I’m feeling good.” I didn’t mention when I had my unexpected period and the pain that had hit me during that week. “I am working with a nutritionist and an athletic trainer. Trying to take vitamins and things, and eat in a way that keeps my body healthy and the inflammation low.”

“Oh, that's really good,” my mom said, clearly surprised by my response.

“Yeah,” I said, glad to see she didn’t seem worried. “And Rove has some great techniques, and so far I’ve been able to train alongside the other girls just fine.”

“That Olympian guy is freaking hot,” Jamie suddenly said.

I choked on my chicken parm.

“Jamie,” my mom scolded.