Straddling the Line(14)
“How often do you see your brother?”
“As often as we can get together.”
“Where does he go to school?”
“He’s getting his premed degree at Washington University here in St. Louis, where he’d also like to go to med school. I think, given his grades, it’s a given he’ll stay there.”
Haven smiled. “How wonderful for him.”
“Yeah. Like I said, he’s really smart.”
“I’d like to meet him and interview him.”
“I’ll see what his schedule looks like and maybe arrange that.”
“Thanks.”
She looked over her notes. “Tell me about your dad. What happened after the divorce?”
“No.”
“No, what?”
“I don’t want to talk about my dad.”
“You and your father aren’t close?”
“I love my mom. My stepdad is an awesome guy and stepped in when my father wasn’t around, which was most of my childhood. He’s the real dad in my life. Let’s just leave my father out of this whole process.”
She put the laptop to the side. “Okay. Off the record, tell me about your dad.”
He stood. “Not now. Let’s take a break. How about a swim before it gets too hot and before I have to leave for the ballpark?”
She looked up at him. “Trevor, we’ve just started and there’s a lot of material to go over.”
He came over to her and grabbed her hand and tugged her up. “And plenty of time to get there. Come on, a quick swim and we’ll get back to work. Life is meant to be lived, Haven. Let’s have some fun.”
She hesitated, then finally nodded, figuring if she kept him happy, he’d be more amenable to answering her questions—even the tough ones. “Okay, but only a short break.”
AN HOUR LATER, TREVOR TREADED WATER IN THE DEEP end while he watched Haven sitting on the pool steps in the shallows. Her elbows rested on the edge of the pool and her face was tilted up toward the sun. She looked . . . relaxed, which was exactly how he wanted her.
This morning was going well. She’d dived into the questions, seemingly into her work, which had been the goal. Unfortunately, it had been him who’d put a stop to everything when she’d brought up his dad.
He couldn’t go there. Not right now, and never on the record. This break was just what he’d needed to get Haven’s mind on a different track. Plus, she seemed to be having a good time. Or at least, she didn’t seem down.
“How can you ever go to work when you have a backyard like this?” she asked, tilting her face up to meet the sun. “If I lived here, I think I’d live in the pool. Plus, it’s heated, so you can swim in here until at least the end of October, depending on the weather.”
“Yeah, it’s really nice. That’s why I bought the place. It’ll see me through to the championship, provided we make it that far.”
“And what do you think of the Rivers’ chances this year?” she asked.
“Pretty damn good. After all, they have me.”
She laughed. He swam toward her and pulled up a spot on the ledge next to her. “So you think you could get used to a decadent lifestyle, huh?”
She slid her sunglasses on top of her head. “What can I say? I’m easily swayed.”
“I don’t believe that. You were always so driven in college. You of the dual degrees and all.”
The look of surprise on her face made him smile.
“How did you know that? You barely paid attention to me.”
“Maybe I do know more about you than you know about me.”
“Seriously. How did you know that?”
“Your dad and I had some conversations. He was very proud of you. He said you could have done anything with your life that you wanted—you got your degree in special education and in journalism.”
“And I chose journalism.” She looked out over the water. “I don’t know if that’s very noble.”
“It’s what you wanted to do, isn’t it?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I suppose at the time. It seemed more exciting to me. I had the opportunity to travel and I so wanted to get out of Oklahoma. Plus, I love sports. That’s why I chose journalism over teaching.”
“Sports is exciting to me. I couldn’t dream of ever doing anything else. You think what I do is noble?”
She opened her mouth, then closed it.
“Okay, then. So neither of us is noble. Get over yourself, Haven.”
She shook her head. “You don’t understand. At first I wanted to teach. I loved tutoring, loved the classes, but the lure of journalism was there, too. Hence the dual degrees. I couldn’t decide what I wanted more. And that’s why it took me longer to graduate, too.”