Sushi (gxg)

Chapter 8

"Is your grandmother going to be a problem?" I asked Kit as we got back to the room.

She gave me a little shrug and dropped her head, and I quickly moved over, scooping her into my arms and picking her up. She squealed a little, then giggled as I sat on the couch with her in my lap again.

"Kit, you're allowed to tell me, okay? I want to be ready in case she causes any issues."

She sighed lightly and laid her head on my shoulder. "Like you told Coach McGinty, I'm 18 now, and I should be able to make my own choices. She wasn't a good coach. I liked what I was doing in the little time I had with Coach Ellis, but my grandmother didn't. But she doesn't want me to do any diving at all. She would rather me be married and then be a good housewife than trying to do something she thinks is a man's endeavor. She took a pair of family fishing boats and made it into a billion dollar global importing business, all by herself, when my grandfather died. She wants me to do something like that."

"Is that why she had the diet that didn't let you get more muscle?" I wondered. I didn't even ask how the hell her grandmother had accomplished what she had, it seemed astounding that you could make a company that big, that fast with just two boats.

She looked up at me in surprise. "You knew?"

I just shrugged. "I guessed. I wasn't sure about your normal diet, but it didn't seem like enough food. You have a wonderful body, but with more muscles maybe you could do even better dives." She blushed furiously, and buried her face, while I blushed myself. Why the hell was I commenting on her body? Was I really that stupid? "I mean, athletically and all." I had no idea if that would salvage things, but she never commented on my statement.

"Coach Ellis wanted me to eat more. Get more protein and work out more. Maybe that would have helped. I don't know if it can do much before the competition though."

"It can't hurt. If we take today off with your ankle, I can show you my yoga and Pilates and stuff, then tomorrow maybe we can look at the exercises she wants you to do. I have to do a lot of those for my swimming too, so I can help."

I felt her hand run up my arms, leaving goosebumps in its wake until it reached my bicep. She gave it a little squeeze, and then I snickered and flexed it, making her squeeze it again. "You're really strong huh? You carried me all the way back yesterday."

"My sport is very different from yours. I need to have a lot more power and endurance. You still need power, but your flexibility is more important. No offence, but you're also tiny, so I could carry you all day if I needed to." I wrapped my arms around her, tickling her ribs and making her break out into giggles.

"I like that you're big and muscular. You're really my hero, just like the show. I feel protected with you around me. When my grandmother was in charge of my training, I never got much in the way of snuggles, so I hope you don't mind if I keep doing this. It feels nice." My heart swelled to hear that, and I was glad she wasn't looking at my face to see the smile and the blush.

"But you didn't need me this morning when you stood up to Coach McGinty. You were brave to do that on your own."

"It was easier to stand up to her after you showed me how. I would have never done that a few days ago. You helped me be strong too."

I pulled her closer to me, and just enjoyed the feel of her in my arms. There was so much I wanted to tell her, but I was terrified of scaring her away when we'd developed such a good bond so quickly. The truth was, I'd never had the chance to date anyone with the health issues I'd had in my past, along with the training I did for the Olympics, so I was as new to this as she seemed to be. Maybe it was better to just keep things like this and hope that something gave me a clear answer later.