Tangled Hearts: Friends to lovers

by Jennifer Hartley

  Adam practically choked on his coffee and Kimberly clapped him on the back, laughing.

  “Don’t do that while I’m drinking hot beverages,” he spluttered with a laugh.

  “Sorry,” said Kimberly with a chuckle. “Are you okay?” she asked, concerned.

  “Yes, fine,” said Adam with a smile.

  “And yes, it’s printed on your forehead,” he said with a wink.

  “It is not!” shot back Kimberly with a laugh.

  She threw her napkin at him, and he laughed as he intercepted it from landing on his food and he placed it back next to her plate, winking at her before starting on his eggs.

  Kimberly studied him; he was utterly perfect. He was the same Adam he always had been, but it was different. She was madly in love and couldn’t believe how lucky she was. Memories of the early hours of the morning returned to her mind, and she flushed. They could never stop at once, and she couldn’t wait to get home without practice and games to get to. She had a feeling they’d hardly bother getting dressed given the opportunity. They struggled to contain themselves knowing their friends and teammates were in surrounding rooms. They were under no illusions that the room was soundproof and didn’t want their teammates to hear them. So they tried, not always successfully, to keep things quiet.

  “Kim,” said Adam warningly.

  “What?” she asked, hoping she wasn’t blushing just from the thoughts that had entered her mind.

  “You are so obvious,” he laughed.

  Kimberly blushed. He’d been watching her and knew what she was thinking. His mind had gone down a similar path as he’d watched her absently dart her tongue out to lick a speck of foam from her cappuccino off her lip. How he wished he could have done that for her. If he wasn’t thinking about making love to her, he was thinking about kissing her. This new phase left them both distracted. It certainly was a good thing they weren’t currently competing, or they would be in serious trouble. He imagined Britta and Dustin wouldn’t particularly be thrilled to have to tell their students off for not sticking to their training and sleeping schedule because they were busy having sex instead.

  Kimberly raised her eyebrows. “Now, you’re obvious.”

  “Sorry, I was thinking that we’d be in serious trouble if we were competing right now,” said Adam, smirking.

  “We would be in trouble for sure,” said Kimberly with a chuckle.

  It was busy after the games. There was always something happening, so Kimberly was surprised when Adam grabbed her hand and making sure no one was looking, pulled her into a tiny room filled with cleaning supplies.

  “Adam, what?” she began before his lips crashed down onto hers.

  She forgot she had wanted to ask anything as she melted against his body, her hands once again moving to tangle through his hair. She twisted a lock of hair around her finger as their reckless kiss continued. They were far from safe from discovery, but somehow that didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was him. Him and her, together. No matter where they were.

  His eyes were dark as they finally parted, both breathless. Their desire was evident, and it was Kimberly who put a little bit of distance between them.

  “I love you,” she murmured. “But we need to get ready.” She could hear the reluctance in her voice, and Adam placed a kiss on her cheek.

  “I know,” he said.

  He smiled at her, and she grinned back, stroking his cheek.

  Adam put a finger to his lips and listened for a moment before cracking the door open slightly, seeing if it was clear and pulling her with him, closing the door and innocently going over to the women’s dressing rooms, leaving her just outside the door.

  “See you soon,” he said, kissing her cheek lightly.

  “See you,” said Kimberly, turning to go inside with a smile.

  Kimberly got ready for the next game, trying not to think about how much she wanted to drag Adam right back to that closet and have her way with him.

  The rest of the games went as planned, and the bus was rowdy as they returned to the hotel, everyone pumped from an incredible set of wins. Adam was animatedly chatting to Jake and Henrique while Kimberly sat with Brianna and chatted.

  Back at the hotel, Adam went to his room to change, Kimberly joining him. Earlier it had been Kimberly who had been surprised when Adam had pulled her into the closet, and now it was Adam’s turn to be surprised as Kimberly pushed him against the wall and kissed him passionately the moment the door had closed behind them, already pulling at his clothes. She’d waited rather patiently throughout the game, but now she could wait no longer.

  “Kim,” he managed to croak out as she pulled his shirt over his head and unbuttoned his pants, giving him a look filled with desire.

  “Mmm,” came the reply as she gently sucked the skin on his neck.

  “I love you,” he said. Kimberly smiled, not even having a chance to reply before he picked her up, with her legs around his waist, and took her over to the bed.

  “Love you,” mumbled Kimberly against his lips as he put her down gently.

  He smiled against her lips, and she broke away to kiss her way down his chest, removing his pants and laughing as Adam made quick work of removing her clothing.

  It was hours before they finally settled down to sleep. Kimberly snuggled against his chest, and he held her close against him, placing light kisses against her forehead.

  They were so tired that they didn’t wake until Kimberly’s alarm went off the next morning. Kimberly stretched, groaning. She hated mornings, but she instantly cheered up when she properly opened her eyes, seeing Adam beside her.

  “Good morning. Do you want coffee or should we go down to breakfast, and you can have coffee there?” asked Adam.

  Kimberly didn’t immediately reply, snuggling against his chest again and closing her eyes.

  “Doesn’t look like I’m facing bodily harm if you don’t get your coffee,” he teased, stroking his fingers through her hair.

  Kimberly chuckled, opening her eyes again. “Good morning. No, you’re safe,” she said.

  “Phew,” he said, wiping imaginary sweat off his brow.

  “Let’s go get breakfast, and I’ll have coffee there,” said Kimberly.

  “Alright,” said Adam.

  “I have no clothes here,” said Kimberly, sitting up in bed and coming to the realization that as they’d stayed in Adam’s room the only clothes she had were the clothes from last night.

  “Want me to go get you some from your room?” asked Adam.

  “No, I’ll put these on and go change,” said Kimberly, reaching for her leggings and jumper.

  Adam stood up, apparently with no idea how delectable he looked to Kimberly who stared, licking her lips subconsciously.

  Adam caught her looking and raised an eyebrow.

  “Put on some clothes before I get distracted, and we’re late again,” she said, blushing furiously.

  Adam laughed, leaning in to kiss her hair.

  Kimberly put on her clothes from the night before and stepped over to Adam.

  “I’ll go get changed,” she said.

  “Alright,” said Adam.

  She kissed him lightly and then exited his room, going across the hall to her own. She freshened up, changing and was soon back in his room, ready for breakfast.

  “Let’s go eat and get some coffee into you,” said Adam, taking her hand as they left the room.

  “I need it, but I did sleep better last night,” said Kimberly.

  “We caught up on a bit of sleep last night,” agreed Adam.

  After breakfast, they headed out for a walk, enjoying the sunshine and greenery of the surrounding area.

  “It’s beautiful,” sighed Kimberly, taking a photo of the path lined with cherry blossoms.

  “It is,” agreed Adam.

  “Go pose,” said Kimberly, pointing as she held up the camera again.

  “I hate photos,” he grumbled.

  “Come on, please. I w
ant one of you with the cherry blossoms in the background. Quick before someone walks into the shot,” said Kimberly, fixing him with a pleading look.

  “All right,” said Adam, doing as she said.

  “Thanks, handsome,” said Kimberly with a wink.

  “Flattery will get you everywhere,” he teased.

  Kimberly giggled, taking a few photos and then Adam made her pose while he took a few photos of her. Kimberly then wrapped an arm around him, and they took a selfie.

  “Alright, do you have all the photos you want?” asked Adam.

  “Yes, thank you,” smiled Kimberly, linking her arm through his for a moment. She then let go, the two of them being careful in public. They’d already failed dismally on the night of their date, so they didn’t want to tempt fate by not being careful every other time they’d been out and about.

  "We've been to Japan so many times, but this is by far the best trip," said Kimberly.

  "It definitely is the best trip," said Adam with a smile.

  "And we'll be back pretty soon," added Kimberly, referring to their return to the court in an upcoming tournament.

  "That'll be a great trip too and so much time in Japan. We'll have to do more touristy stuff and see more of the country," said Adam.

  "Yes, it would be really good. Maybe we can go sightseeing on our days off," said Kimberly.

  "Sounds like a plan," agreed Adam.

  "I can't wait," smiled Kimberly.

  Chapter 10

  “Stop,” said Adam with a laugh as he caught Kimberly’s wandering hand. He looked to see where their tour coach Royce was and then pulled her close for a moment.

  “You’re driving me crazy,” he whispered into her ear.

  “You are too,” said Kimberly quietly, spinning in his arms and arching her back into him.

  “Kim, I will have problems if you keep doing that…obvious problems,” he murmured.

  Kimberly turned to face him with a pout, and he sighed.

  “Kim, that’s not fair, you know what that does to me. It can be a fake pout, and I’ll still want to give you everything you want,” said Adam.

  “Sorry,” said Kimberly with a smile.

  She knew that was his weakness, and she sometimes used it to her advantage. Sometimes. She didn't want to overuse it. Even well before they were together, if Kimberly pouted, Adam would do everything to make her smile.

  “That’s it,” growled Adam as they entered Kimberly’s hotel room after the practice.

  Kimberly let out a squeal of surprise as he picked her up and hurried over to the bed, gently putting her down, his hands busy removing her clothes, kissing her with an urgency that made her smile.

  “We’re…supposed…to be…at dinner…soon,” managed Kimberly in between kisses. Though she had no desire to actually go to dinner. Her teasing of him during practice had her in a highly aroused state already and knowing she’d done the same to Adam with her antics left her already breathless, her body humming with anticipation. She had started off with gentle teasing, but the more he reacted, the more she pushed the boundaries, leaving them in their current state.

  “This is entirely your fault,” said Adam, having removed her clothes and starting to kiss his way down her body, his hands touching her in ways that made her unable to speak.

  “It is my fault,” she managed to gasp out, and Adam looked at her with a smirk.

  “But it’s your fault too,” she added, moving out from under him in one swift movement and settling on top of him with a smirk of her own.

  Adam groaned at the delicious contact between their bodies that she created as she did so.

  He settled his hands on her waist, moving them downwards with purpose, his fingertips pressing into her skin.

  “Guilty as charged,” said Adam, wiggling an eyebrow at her.

  Kimberly laughed, leaning down to kiss him.

  Adam slowly woke to the buzzing of his phone. He couldn’t see it, thinking it might be in the pocket of his tracksuit pants that were lying discarded on the floor. He ignored it, placing a kiss on Kimberly’s hair as she dozed on his chest.

  Kimberly’s phone then started buzzing, and she stirred just as he made a grab for it.

  He saw a missed call, and then a message popped up.

  Kim, where are you? Everyone’s looking for you. Adam too. - Brianna

  You and Adam both missing at the same time. Kim, obvious, really obvious. - Royce

  He snorted in amusement, glancing at the time. They could still make it if they really hurried.

  “What is it?” asked Kimberly sleepily.

  “Oh, sorry, here,” said Adam, handing her the phone.

  “I tried to answer, and then the messages popped up,” he explained.

  “It’s okay, Adam, I don’t mind,” said Kimberly with a smile.

  She blushed and sat up as she looked at the messages.

  “We’re late! And everyone is going to tease us forever,” she said.

  “Maybe,” said Adam, leaning down and fishing for his phone in the pocket of his pants.

  He saw missed calls there too from Henrique and Royce, seeing similar messages to what had been sent to Kimberly’s phone and then one from Henrique that he knew had only gone to him.

  Is there a decade worth of sexual tension you two are trying to relieve? Fucking finally and also we’re never going to let you live this down. – Henrique

  “Same messages?” asked Kimberly, glancing at his phone.

  Adam had blushed reading Henrique’s message and tried to hide it, but it was too late; Kimberly had caught sight of it and grabbed the phone, quickly turning red.

  “He’s so cheeky, I’m going to kill him,” she laughed.

  “He has a point on the decade part,” said Adam with a smirk.

  “You had opportunities, buddy,” shot back Kimberly playfully.

  “And I was incredibly stupid not to take them,” he said with a smile, kissing her shoulder lightly.

  “I love you,” said Kimberly, kissing him.

  “I love you,” said Adam.

  “Up, shower, now,” said Kimberly.

  “Together?” he asked, his eyebrows shooting up.

  “Yes, together. Hands to ourselves, though, we need to hurry,” said Kimberly with a smile.

  Adam laughed, joining her, and they managed to shower and dress in record time. Kimberly had to skip make-up though, throwing her hair into a simple ponytail. They met everyone at the nearby restaurant.

  “Here they are,” said Royce, seeing them.

  “Sorry everyone, I had a headache and lay down for a while. I didn’t realize I’d fall asleep. Adam kept me company. Sorry we’re late,” said Kimberly, glaring at their teammates, daring them to say something.

  Brianna snorted with laughter, quickly turning it into a cough when Kimberly shot her a look, and Adam merely stayed silent, impressed by Kimberly’s quick cover story. He knew no one was buying it, but still, it was a valiant attempt.

  “That’s okay, sit down and we’ll get them to come around and take your orders,” said Shay, ever diplomatic. “I hope your headache is better,” she added.

  “Yes, thanks Shay,” said Kimberly, sitting down.

  Adam settled into the seat next to her, and she perused the menu innocently. They were both starving after practicing all afternoon and then their pre-dinner ‘activities’.

  Their teammates let them be, none willing to risk bodily harm courtesy of Kimberly. Soon they all relaxed, the food was delicious, and drinks were flowing.

  “Want another beer?” asked Henrique, passing a bottle towards Adam.

  “I’m okay, thanks though,” said Adam.

  Henrique shrugged and took the bottle back.

  “You okay?” asked Kimberly, as Adam poured himself some water.

  “Yes, of course,” said Adam, putting his arm around her shoulders.

  “You don’t want any more beer?” asked Kimberly, confused. “Do you want something else?” she aske
d.

  “I’ve had two beers, Kim. I’m fine,” said Adam. “I am fine with water."

  “Is this because we have games starting in a few days?” asked Kimberly.

  “It’s because I want to be the best man for you, Kim. Two beers are more than enough,” said Adam.

  Kimberly sighed and without thinking where they were or the ribbing from their friends, she leaned in and kissed him.

  “You already are the best man for me,” she murmured as they parted, caressing his cheek.

  Adam smiled at her, blushing a little, holding her gaze. Their moment was interrupted by their friends who had, of course, noticed.

  “Oh, my heart!” sighed Sandrine from across the table, a smile on her face.

  Kimberly and Adam laughed and noted everyone was grinning at them. As much as they teased them, their friends and teammates just loved seeing them finally getting things right.

  Chapter 11

  There it was, the awkward moment that someone yelled out “Get married!” and Adam had been so surprised, he’d somehow repeated it. Then he’d jogged in place, carefully avoiding eye contact with Kimberly while he thought of something to say.

  She’d felt bad, she’d wanted to help ease the tension of the moment, and she found herself half going down onto one knee, making Adam and the audience laugh. He’d recovered then, saying the scenario had happened in his dreams before while Kimberly laughed, glad to have lightened the mood.

  Several people weren’t laughing, though. Kimberly had caught sight of both of their mothers in the audience. Penelope had her hand over her mouth in shock and Jennifer was wide-eyed, both hands around her mouth, having gasped as the scene played out in front of them on the court. Kimberly knew both Jennifer and Penelope would have a lot to say at the end of the game and quietly dreaded it.

  Their teammates had laughed and joked about the faux proposal, many wanting to congratulate Kimberly. But Adam had been quiet since. He was too quiet. She was too embarrassed by her own behavior to try to talk about it, and it certainly didn’t help when Jennifer came into the dressing room with a loud, “what were you thinking?”