The Slam Read Online Free

fine line between getting people to agree and tricking them into agreeing with your wishes, and Camille had always toed that line. And if that didn’t work, she’d nag a person into a yes or strong-arm them until they saw things differently.
    There was no point in arguing with my grandmother. “How are you doing, Camille?”
    “I’m fantastic. All this modern medicine is keeping me alive and healthy, and I’m spending away any chance of you and Edric having a decent inheritance. Hah!”
    I smiled. “Are you ever going to come back to the states? Or is Australia your permanent home now?”
    “Oh, I love it here, Ender. The people here took an arid rock and turned it into an island paradise.”
    “Really,” I said flatly. “I always thought Australians lived in two or three cities on an otherwise uninhabitable wasteland. Enjoy the giant-ass spiders and venomous snakes in the desert of death.”
    “Don’t be silly, Ender!” she chided. “You boys used to love it out in the bush! You and Adelaide—the two of you would spend hours in that desert of death, messing around with all those snakes and spiders. I’m surprised either of you made it to adulthood.”
    “I know.” I laughed. “We did. I’m just joshin’ witcha.”
    “Now tell me,” she said in a serious tone. “How is my darling Adelaide?”
    “Why don’t you ask her yourself?” I said, getting to my feet.
    Jogging down the hallway, I knocked lightly on her door. “Adelaide?”
    There was no answer.
    Turning the knob, I peered inside and found her fast asleep. Quietly, I shut the door and stalked back to the living room. “Sorry, Camille. She’s already hit the sack. Why don’t I call you again tomorrow and you can talk to her?”
    “Ender, the girl needs her own phone. Do me a favor and take her to the AT&T store. Get her set up with an iPhone.”
    “Sure,” I said easily.
    “Good,” she said. “Good. Good. Now tell me, what have you boys been up to?”
    “The usual,” I replied. “Got a tournament next week.”
    “Edric, too?”
    “Yeah.”
    “I bet Adelaide could break you on the tennis court.”
    I smirked. “I highly doubt that.”
    “Oh, yes she can! She’s very athletic, you know. That girl’s been playing competitive tennis for eight years; she was the number one singles player on her high school varsity team.”
    “Seriously?”
    “Seriously.”
    “What about volleyball?”
    “What about volleyball?” Camille asked.
    “Is she a beach volleyball player?”
    “No.” Camille sounded confused. “Why?”
    “Never mind,” I said, closing my eyes. “Forget I asked.”
    There goes my fantasy .
    “Well,” Camille said thoughtfully. “Adelaide has excellent ball-handling skills and she doesn’t mind being on her knees. She owns a pair of kneepads and she loves to get sweaty, so I’m sure she’d be great at beach volleyball.”
    I pressed my fingers against my eyes, suppressing a grin. Camille didn’t even know she was dropping sexual innuendos left, right, and center.
    “Adelaide’s great at everything she applies herself to—sports, studies, you name it!” she went on. “That girl pushes herself a lot. With her, it’s all or nothing. She has a strong will and a limitless determination to achieve what she sets her mind on. And when she sets her mind on tennis, you better watch out.”
    “Interesting,” I said. “I didn’t know she played tennis.”
    “You didn’t?”
    “Camille,” I said dryly. “It’s been ten years since I’ve seen her, and back then she didn’t play any tennis. What else can you tell me about her?”
    “Well…” she hedged. “I know she lacks self-awareness and she can be too honest at times, almost to a fault, but try and understand that with Adelaide, getting things right isn’t about being right all the time or being a know-it-all. It’s more about having things as they should be.”
    “Is that because of her… erm, condition?”
    “It’s her black-and-white