Aced (Blocked #2) by Jennifer Lane

smiled at me, and I wanted to punch her. She scooped a ball from the cart but Coach interrupted.
    “Madison’s serving.”
    Nina exhaled as she smacked the ball back into the cart. But my thrill at her comeuppance lasted only seconds as the reality of my situation set in. I knew Coach was giving me one of his little tests to see what I was made of. Testing my mental toughness. Could I serve the ball in play after two errors in a row?
    I heard a noise in the stands and gripped the ball tighter when I saw who’d just walked in: Alejandro! What was he doing here? Damn, he looked hot, with dark jeans and a navy suit jacket over a white shirt. He and his agents went to sit with Frank and Allison, and the butterflies in my stomach batted their wings like hummingbirds on amphetamine.
    I looked at Lucia, who seemed equally surprised by her brother’s entrance. Then she looked back at me. “Don’t forget your pre-serve routine, Maddie. You didn’t do it before the last two.”
    Air left my lungs in a whoosh. Hot damn—she was right!
    Nina snickered again. “How could you forget something so basic?”
    I’d let her get into my head. She’d thrown me off my game. Ho-bag bitch . I glared at her. She’d stolen my boyfriend, but I wouldn’t let her steal my game, too. I took a deep breath.
    I looked at Kara’s clipboard, but instead of a number, she’d written Anywhere you want. God love my assistant coach; she was trying to help me.
    Bounce, bounce, bounce went the ball, and I told myself, Steady toss . Then I launched the ball in the air with a prayer. I followed through with a strong swing, and exhaled as I watched the serve travel in bounds. The ball made a beeline for Kaitlyn, who passed it in a perfect arch to Murphy, who set it to Lucia. With no blockers to stop her, Rez slammed the ball cross-court.
    “Good job, guys,” I called across the net.
    Nina arched a sculpted eyebrow. “ Monkeys could’ve scored off that easy serve.”
    “Fuck. You.”
    “Madison!” Coach yelled, and I gulped.
    Nina shook her head. “Classy. I have no idea why they invited you to the camp.”
    She was still ticked off that USA Volleyball hadn’t invited her to the national team selection camp in April. At least I had that over her.
    Lucia ducked under the net and marched toward us. “Maddie got invited because she’s a top-three hitter in the NCAA.” She glared at Nina. “Despite having you as her setter.”
    “Lucia, get your ass back over here,” Coach commanded, but she stayed put.
    Though I adored Lucia for going to bat for me, she should’ve known it would draw Nina’s wrath.
    “Easy, big girl.” Nina spoke so quietly that I prayed Lucia hadn’t heard her, but her flinch backward told me otherwise. Rez’s face crumpled.
    My heart and mind competed to see which could race faster, and I stalked toward Nina with the intent to put her on the ground. Her fake tan paled as I neared, and her eyes widened.
    I heard Coach yell, “Madison, you’re done. Get out of my gym!” but it didn’t stop me. I just wanted to hurt Nina. But when Alejandro shouted too, I stopped.
    “What the hell kind of program are you running?”
    I spun around to see Alejandro lean over the railing, pointing at Coach, his face red. “You’re throwing Maddie out of practice? Do you have any idea what Nina did to her?”
    I whirled to find Lucia. She’d told him about Nina and Jaylon? Her eyes were glued on her brother as she stood there with her mouth agape.
    Coach frowned. “You’re Lucia’s brother, right? Who let you in here?”
    “I have every right to protect my sister from the likes of you!” Alejandro emphasized the last word by thrusting his pointed finger again. Brad hovered behind him, shifting from one foot to another. The other three agents looked equally unsure of how to handle the situation. How could they protect the protectee from himself?
    “You need to leave.” Coach shook his head. “My practices are closed.”
    “So