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jumped up and started shouting over her win.
    Bode had taken a butt kicking and was man enough to admit it. This new Kelsey fascinated him. “Where the heck did you learn to handle a ball like that?”
    “A court pretty much like this one. Of course, I improved a little over the years playing for UT.” She stretched her arms and walked off.
    “How’d you find this place?” He trailed along behind her.
    “Ann is the director here now, but years ago she was in charge of the group foster home where I grew up. David and her being in the same town means a lot to me.”
    He nodded. “I know her, she’s doing an excellent job.”
    “Sounds like you know the kids here too.”
    “Yeah, they enjoyed watching you clobber me. I don’t live far from here and stop by when I can.”
    She circled around the building and strode toward her car. “I’m sure you have better things to do than hang out with me, so let’s forget about dinner, and we’ll play a rematch sometime.”
    This woman kept him off balance with her different personas, and he didn’t like it. He wasn’t sure yet if he liked her . So he surprised himself when he reached out and tugged her around. Dressed the way she was, with her hair disheveled and no makeup, she appeared far too young and innocent. He breathed deep and caught her sweet earthiness.
    “Why do you dress the way you do?”
    Startled, she stepped back in surprise. “What else would I wear to play basketball?”
    He shook his head. “Not now. Now you look great. I’m talking about those expensive suits of yours and the librarian bun.”
    She snorted her annoyance. “Spoken like a true Neanderthal. I have an image to maintain, so I dress to gain acceptance in the judicial world. You haven’t seen me at my best, but I promise you, I’m a force to take seriously.”
    “You donned your warrior gear, huh?”
    “I chose to work harder and longer than anyone else and to dare man or woman to dismiss me.” She reached for her door.
    He placed one hand on the car to stop her. “I’ll be at your hotel at seven to pick you up. Be ready.” He backed up several steps to give her room. She cranked her car and drove off without a word.
    No, this wasn’t a date. Going to dinner tonight would be a guy paying off a bet. He left to finish his jog, the camping trip long forgotten.

Chapter 5
    “Glade, you’re being processed now. I’ll be back to get you when it’s time.” The guard shuffled away as John remained motionless on his bumpy mattress. Hands behind his head, he stared up at a break in the dirty ceiling. The same crack he’d watched every day since being incarcerated in this hellhole.
    Freedom. At a recent meeting with his court-appointed attorney, he’d sat, and half listened as the man droned on and on. The moment they mentioned his possible release, a small kernel of emotion flickered to life in his chest. The ability for anything to move him was unfamiliar after his time inside.
    When he first arrived at the prison, he wasn’t afraid. Real fear came later when they threw him into a cell with another inmate. The guy outweighed him by a hundred pounds and proceeded to initiate him. He’d learned the best way to survive was to be the meanest badass on the block and numb your mind. Hopes and dreams ceased to exist once the door clicked shut.
    Three peeling walls, a filthy toilet in the corner, and a stained mattress should be reason enough to bolt when the doors slid open. Not to mention the odors or the showers that required constant alertness.
    No, it was a single person churning in his memory that kept him focused. It would take hours for the process of releasing him to be complete, so there was plenty of time to plan.
    Bah, what did he have waiting for him on the outside? People weren’t eager to hire an ex-con, and they ended up scrounging for food and shelter. One of the many homeless shadows wandering the street.
    No, one thing interested him now. He wanted revenge. An eye for