Love Match, page 8
not to tell Nick anything."
"No thanks, how about dinner at Gotham instead? I got us an eight o'clock
reservation." He laughed as he poked her with his foot over the hooker
comment.
"How pray tell did you manage that, Coach Gary?" The book in her hand
snapped closed so that she could give him her full attention.
"That's easy, I made the reservation in your name. It comes in handy for
me to know the tennis god so well. Come on, you've looked a little flat lately
so this might be fun. We can get dressed up and hit the town." Gary gave
her his best pleading look.
"Sure, what could happen?"
The cab dropped them off in front of the restaurant fifteen minutes early so
they had to wait in the restaurant bar until their table was ready. Sprinkled
throughout the eatery were enough celebrities to take the pressure off Parker,
so she was looking forward to trying the much talked about restaurant.
"Welcome, Ms. King, and thank you for joining us this evening. If you and
your companion are ready please follow me." The hostess led them to a
table almost at the center of the restaurant. A few people nodded their heads
in Parker's direction but otherwise left her alone to enjoy her evening.
Parker took the chair facing the door and accepted her menu from the waiter.
When she glanced up she noticed the same woman from the park that first
morning, only now the woman was wearing a light summer suit and her hair was
pulled into a bun at her neck. The fan stepped into the bar and sat at one of
the stools as if waiting for someone by the way she was looking at her watch.
"What are the chances of seeing the same person twice in a city the size
of New York in different locations?" asked Parker. She put her menu down
and reached for the wine list while Gary turned around to see who she was
talking about. "The Opus One, please." The waiter nodded and left to
retrieve her selection.
"Who are you talking about?" Gary turned almost completely in his
chair to get a better view of the patrons seated around them. Parker was about
to complement him on his superb table manners when a group of people walked
through the front door. Two she recognized right off.
"Holy shit, what in the hell was I thinking when I asked what could
happen? I should have stayed in and finished the chapter I was reading."
"What?" Gary did another quick visual inventory stopping on one woman
surrounded by an entourage.
"Holy shit," was all he could think to add to the moment. If I had
this kind of luck for the lottery, I could retire from coaching, thought
Gary as he continued to stare towards the entrance.
Emily stood off to the side in her pilot's uniform watching as the staff fell
all over the pop sensation Alicia and the group that had come in with her. She
spotted Bobbie in the bar and walked over to meet her. The tall blonde she was
living with wrapped Emily in a hug and kissed her hello.
"How was your trip over from the airport?"
"Not too bad, it was a slow traffic night. It seems more crowed in here
than on the street." Emily took in the happenings of the restaurant from the
circle of Bobbie's arms. The touching greeting wasn't missed by the blue eyes
at the center table, it was the main reason Parker missed Alicia's spotting her
sitting with Gary.
"Ah, poor baby," the tall blonde said kissing the Emily again.
"Park, heads up, man." The waiter had just poured their glasses of
wine after Parker had told him the bottle was fine giving Alicia ample
ammunition. Parker turned her eyes from the second kiss exchanged at the bar to
see the irate singer standing next to her.
"The fucking least you could have done was to blow me off yourself,
asshole, not have your flunky do it." When she wiped the Merlot from her
face she couldn't help but think how good it tasted. If the first glass Alicia
had thrown made Parker think that, Gary's glass only confirmed it for her. The
restaurant manager was the only thing that prevented the scorned woman from
dumping the rest of the bottle in Parker's lap.
"How about Chinese to go with all this good wine?" Parker wiped her
face again and asked the question as calmly as possible.
Gary couldn't help but
laugh as Parker's white shirt stuck to her collar.
"Sounds like a doable plan, Parker, let's go." Gary threw two hundred
dollar bills on the table and they got up to leave. The manager wanted to give
him his money back, but they insisted on paying. It wasn't the restaurant's
fault that Alicia had exacted her pound of flesh.
Emily almost pushed Bobbie down to get to Parker before they left. The tennis
player had not looked in her direction and Emily was surprised into inaction
for a moment when she saw that Parker was with Gary instead of with a date. For
weeks she had convinced herself that Parker had moved on and had tried her best
to try and deal with the fact their little summer fling was just that. One nice
evening that would turn into nothing.
There was a couple getting out of a cab when they walked out and Gary held the
door for Parker. He saw the person run out of the shadows when he turned around
to tell Parker to hurry. The distance between them prevented him from doing
anything but watch helplessly, but the shocked look on his face made Parker
turn.
A dark blue ski mask covered his face but the large hunting knife in his hand
was very visible. All she heard before the pain bloomed was,
"Death to
those who go against God."
Parker held the assailant's hand with the knife in it by the wrist, it was the
only reason it prevented the wicked looking blade from going in all the way and
causing more severe damage. From where Gary stood he could see the red stain
commingling with the purple of the wine on Parker's shirt and jacket. Before he
could get his feet to move the attacker ran back into the alleyway and out of
sight.
The cut was almost in the middle of her chest as if the guy with the knife was
aiming for her heart and it was deep enough that blood ran through the fingers
of Parker's hand she had pressed to her chest. The inane thought of not being
anemic crossed Parker's mind as she saw how dark her blood was against the
white of her shirt.
"I'm thinking maybe some tapioca pudding from the hospital is in order,
Gary. And take a note down for me as a reminder, to never accept a dinner
invitation from you again. You are like a walking magnet for disaster when it
comes to me and women," teased Parker.
Her voice shocked Gary into moving and helping Parker into the cab. Emily
walked out just in time to see Parker's grimace as she bent to get into the
vehicle; the blood covering her hand was visible to her in the light outside
the restaurant. The tennis player and her manager never saw Emily, as she stood
frozen in the entrance to the restaurant.
*************************************************************
***********
"It's not fatal, that's the good news. The bad news is that I'm going to
have to put in a minimum of six stitches to close the cut."
The emergency
room doctor had cleaned the wound and was in the process of deadening the area
before he started his suturing as he gave them his diagnosis. He was still
giving thanks to any deity that happened to be listening for being at the desk
when Gary walked in with a pale Parker.
"Will it affect my play?" asked Parker.
"Well, Ms. King, I wouldn't recommend playing at least until these come
out."
"You are kidding right? I haven't busted my ass all summer to watch the
U.S. Open from my hotel room." Parker was about to get up and walk out in
search of another hospital if the guy's answers didn't change.
"No, one pull from playing tennis and these babies I'm about to put in
could rip. I would advise against playing until you are healed."
"Parker, could you just lie there until the nice doctor is finished? The
tournament isn't for another two weeks, we'll be fine." Gary was busy
studying the bulletin board in the room in an effort to keep his eyes off
Parker's bloody chest, and the wicked looking slice running along her ribcage
on her left side. The police had been called, but without a description of the
attacker they were at a loss as to were to begin.
"These are going to take longer than that to come out," the doctor
added as he probed the area with his fingers trying to decide if it was all
right to proceed.
"Just start sewing and let's get this over with." Parker wasn't about
to argue her playing capabilities with some guy she had just met who looked
like the ink on his diploma was still wet.
"I really enjoyed your play at Wimbledon this year." The ER
doctor
started suturing when the local he had administered had taken effect. The last
person he had expected to see during his shift was Parker King.
"Doc, don't take this the wrong way ok, but more suturing and less talking
would be good. I appreciate what you said but I really would like to go back to
my room and lie down. Religious zealots with large knives do that to me, so
please forgive me if I'm being rude." Parker just watched after that as
the young attendant placed ten small neat stitches in her chest. She had put
the attack out of her mind as she buttoned her stained shirt back up and
concentrated instead on seeing Emily again.
Small world indeed, Captain. What were the odds of sharing her morning
run with the woman Emily was now sleeping with? Parker's gracious acceptance of
the woman's good wishes that morning was polite, but did not invite any further
invitation for a long conversation. She wondered now if the knowledge she had
now would have changed that since she had felt the tall blonde's presence
running just behind her for almost the two hours she was out there. I wonder
if Emily told her that she knows me? Parker figured they were having a good
laugh at her expense now.
"Ready?"
"What, I'm sorry?" Parker finished dressing and looked up to a
worried Gary.
"Are you ready?"
"Yeah, let's go. Doc, thanks for the great service. If you need tickets
just let Gary know and he'll set you up," said Parker shaking hands the
man and signing a few autographs for the nurses before leaving.
The next morning Parker woke up with a throbbing pain in her chest and someone
banging on the door of her room. "Gary, we are going to have to talk about
these accommodations, man." Parker grumbled to herself as she got up and
opened the drapes so she could find her robe. With an impatient yank, she
opened the door pulling her stitches a bit. "What?"
"You royal bitch." More than one guest was standing at their door so
they could watch Alicia scream at Parker having been awakened by the pounding.
The tennis player smiled and waved to one young woman standing at her door in
just a t-shirt and a smile of her own.
"To what do I owe this pleasure to this morning, sweetheart?"
"Don't sweetheart me, you bitch, how could you?" Alicia slammed the
tabloid she had rolled up into Parker's chest before walking passed her into
the room. "Oh my God, I'm sorry, Park." The small singer went back to
help Parker back into the room since she was doubled over in pain. "Are
you all right?"
"Yes, but if you insist on hitting me any more this morning, I will be
forced to ask you to leave." Parker leaned on her former lover and walked
over to the chairs by the windows. She could understand why the woman was upset
with her, but after the wine incident from the night before Parker thought the
temperamental artist had gotten it out of her system.
"Come on, Park, you know I didn't mean it but I saw that trash this
morning and I was upset." The news rag Alicia had brought with her was
lying unforgotten by the door. Alicia went over and picked it up handing it to
Parker. When she unfurled it, Parker felt like she had been hit for the second
time that day.
The headlines read 'Lovers' Quarrel Lands Player in Hospital and Singer in
Jail.' The picture underneath it was of Parker and Gary leaving the ER the
night before. The photographer had gotten a great shot of her wine and blood
stained clothes as they stepped through the door of the emergency department.
"Come on, sweetheart, people aren't going to believe this garbage."
Parker smiled and held her hand out to Alicia. She let out a small chuckle when
all Alicia did was cross her arms over her chest and tap her foot.
"I am many things, Parker King, but easy isn't one of them."
Despite
her words, Alicia moved closer to Parker but stayed out of reach.
"I don't think you're easy, just like I don't think you are a rabid
ex-lover who stabbed me." Parker held her hand out again and this time
Alicia took her up on the invitation. She sat in Parker's lap getting
reacquainted with how great Parker felt.
"You hurt my feelings."
"I'm sorry. You're right, I'm a bitch. I was heading home for the summer
and I figured that's not how you wanted to spend yours so I bailed. I'm just a
tennis bum with a couple of good years left if I'm lucky, while you have years
in the limelight. This was my way of helping you out."
Alicia let out a laugh of her own for the lame explanation before standing up
and pulling the tie of Parker's robe open. She dropped to her knees and placed
a gentle kiss on the swollen patch of skin that was help together by the black
stitches. As her hands caressed the long legs at her sides, Alicia asked,
"You know something, Parker?"
"What's that?"
"You're so full of shit." Alicia leaned forward again and bit down on
an inviting nipple. She sucked at it until she heard Parker moan. "You
know something else?"
It took Parker a moment to pick up the pieces of her brain that formed coherent
speech before she could answer. She was betting that every guy and gay woman
that had seen Alicia on stage would give their right arm to trade places with
her right now. "What?"
"I happen to find that an adorable trait in you." Slowly Alicia rose
from her knees and stood before a now aroused Parker. "You like what you
see?" Parker nodded her head as Alicia raised her arms over her head and
waited. This was the part where the beautiful scorned woman usually said 'too
bad' and walked out she was guessing. Alicia surprised her by stripping off the
tight pullover she had on followed by the jeans. With the slow sexy walk that
drove her fans into a frenzy when she did it in her show, Alicia moved to the
bed and laid down. "Then come on over here and see how much better it
feels."
Parker hesitated. She wanted nothing more than to make Alicia happy, but it was
only sex. Do I want to continue to go after relationships I know won't last? She liked Alicia but there was no chance for love. Alicia saw the uncertainty
that clouded Parker's face and helped her out.
"No strings attached, lover, none at all. Call it pity sex since you're
hurt."
"It's the least you can do since you stabbed me and all."
Parker
threw the paper toward the bed getting Alicia to laugh.
When she got up and
dropped the robe, Alicia sighed.
"You're a bitch, but goddamn if you aren't the best looking one I've ever
laid eyes on." The wetness between the singer's legs doubled when she felt
Parker's skin cover her own when the tennis player laid down and covered her. I'll
make it harder to walk away this time, Parker. Alicia couldn't believe how
much she had missed this with Parker.
She had spent her summer moping through Europe until they finished the tour.
This was the first thing on her to do list and it was working out perfectly. If
getting Parker back into her life was as easy as getting her back into her bed,
Alicia was planning on a ring for Christmas. It was the last thing that flew
through her mind as Parker put her hands to good use.
Continued in Chapter 5
Comments to: terrali20@yahoo.com
The Athenaeum's Scroll Archive
~ Game,
Set and Match ~
by Ali Vali
Disclaimers: See Part 1
Chapter 5
"You can't have been sleeping all this time?" Gary's phone call had
woken her up out of an exhausted sleep. For a minute, Parker wondered who the
naked body pressed up against her back was, until she became fully conscious
and remembered how she had spent her morning. If that didn't pull a stitch,
