Page 59 of That Last Secret
“That guy was being a jackass on those skates and could have run you over,” I say, defending my motives.
“Right,” she draws out.
And with that, I have nothing left to say.
During our walk to the gym, Emiline told me a story about a time she fell off her rollerblades when she was younger and never touched them again. It felt good to just laugh with her.
Once we made it to the gym, she thanked me for escorting her as a joke. I laughed it off, but it only made me want to be the one to walk her to the gym anytime she wanted to go. Those thoughts coursed through my brain my entire session with the trainer. Silas had to take his dogs to the vet, so it was just me and my brain consumed by Emiline.
Once I step foot back into the main gym space, I take a moment to scan the area to see if Emiline is still here. I don’teven know why I allow myself to do this. I’m clearly a glutton for punishment.
My eyes land on her as she steps off the Stairmaster. Sweat glistens on her forehead, and her hair is pulled up in a messy bun. I suck in a deep breath when I notice she’s now wearing nothing but biker shorts and a strappy sports bra that shows off the perfect curvature of her breasts.
Fuck. Even a sweaty mess at the gym, Emiline looks like a goddess.
All of my nerve endings are buzzing right now.
I decide to stay a little longer and ditch my bag in the locker room before heading for the weight room, where I spot her in the corner with a few dumbbells scattered around her legs. I mostdefinitelydon’t miss the eyes on her, and right now, looking at her and seeing how good she looks, I don’t blame them.
The moment I cross the large room to greet Emiline, I’m immediately stopped in my tracks when I notice a man walk up to her first. She takes her headphones out of her ear and offers him a polite smile. I can’t hear what they are saying, but she has a smile on her face.
My stomach churns in… jealousy?
Stuff it down, Bennett.
After the incident with Mason at the bar over spring break, I haven’t allowed jealousy to roar its ugly head inside of me. But all bets are off when it comes to her. Besides, she’s probably just being nice because that’s who she is.
I should turn around and just go home. My energy is depleted, and my arms are toast anyway, but my body is betraying me. Wanting to keep a close distance and not interrupt the conversation, I take a seat on the leg extension machine.
Muscle man picks up a set of dumbbells and Emiline does the same. I watch intently as they both do bicep curls simultaneously while I do rep after rep on the machine,completely losing count of how many I’ve done until I start feeling an intense burn in my thighs.
The second they are done, he reaches out and squeezes Emiline’s bicep. She laughs at something he says before turning to pick up the dumbbells again. When she leans down, he cranes his neck to give her ass a long glance.
That’s when I snap.
I’m not even thinking when I hop off the machine, making my way over to them.
Emiline spots me through the mirror and turns around. Her smile is the same as it was earlier when she says, “Hi.”
“Hi.” I smile down at her, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her body flush with mine for a quick embrace.
Big. Fucking. Mistake.
I clearly haven’t learned my lesson from the last time I had my arms around her.
I didn’t want to let her go then, and I don’t want to now.
So yeah, a sweaty, hot, and big mistake embrace.
“What are you doing?” she whispers, looking up at me with beautiful wide eyes.
“I just finished my session with the trainer and wanted to see how you were doing.”
My eyes bounce from hers to the muscle man standing behind us now and then back to her. Her silence tells me she understands precisely what I’m doing here, and, to my surprise, she goes with it.
“How did it go?” she asks, taking a small step into me.
“My arms are dead,” I say to her before turning my head to give the muscle man one last look. “But don’t worry… I can still pick you up and swing you around later.”