- Gemma -
didn’t know where to look when I saw them approaching the front desk, both of them dripping wet from head to toe.
A cursory glance told me it wasn’t Mr. Edwards’ idea to walk through the gym half naked with his clothes in his arms, but it was Alex I couldn’t keep my eyes off. He was so ripped I barely even noticed the fit of his Speedo…until I noticed it, of course. And by that point, I’m sure my eyes were bulging out of my head.
I opened my mouth to speak, but like the rest of the members, all I could do was watch as Alex escorted him towards the door looking more like some Marvel Comic god than a guy who spent his days folding towels and wiping down dumbbells.
“You can’t do this!” Mr. Edwards said, his feet scuffling along in his untied work shoes.
“It’s already done,” Alex said. “And if you ever set foot in a Pump Gym again, it will be law enforcement escorting you out. I can promise you that.”
“But I already paid for my annual membership!”
My eyes stayed trained on them as they passed the front desk.
“You’ll receive a full and prompt refund right away,” Alex said as he opened the door calmly, though the clench of his jaw told me he was feeling anything but.
Mr. Edwards stood dripping on the welcome mat inside the door and looked over his shoulder at countless pairs of wide eyes. When he finally saw me, hope filled his expression, and he opened his mouth to speak.
“Good day, Mr. Edwards,” Alex said behind him, his cut abs rippling with his breath.
I shrugged and his shoulders fell before he hung his head and walked out.
“Show’s over, folks,” Alex said, dismissing the nosy stares of the gawking members.
“Not as long as you’re dressed like that it’s not,” I muttered as he approached the front desk.
He smiled and caught the towel I threw him.
My mouth watered as I watched him tie it tight around his waist. “What happened?”
“The guy’s a scumbag,” he said. “Refund his payment for the year, and tell the rest of the staff to call the police if he ever steps foot in here again.”
“Since when are you the boss?”
He leaned his hands on the counter. “I said I’d handle it, and I handled it. If you don’t think I did a good job, I’m open to your constructive feedback.”
I furrowed my brow and tried not to let my eyes drip down his pecs, which featured the most perfect patch of dark chest hair I’d ever seen. “What did he say exactly?”
“Nothing that bears repeating to a lady like yourself.”
I swallowed.
“But I’m satisfied with my assessment that the guy is a potential predator, and that makes him a liability the gym can’t afford.”
I could tell he didn’t want to go into details, but I was desperate to understand what had upset him so much.
“He’s lucky I never heard him say shit about you or he would’ve had his teeth in his arms on his way out, too.”
I hoped he’d elaborate, but it was almost like he didn’t realize he’d said it out loud.
“I’ll file the incident report,” he said. “So your bases are covered with Mary.”
“What are you going to say about not following protocol?” I asked. “Technically, he should’ve gotten another warning.”
“It’s the 21st century,” he said. “Men shouldn’t need warnings. Not when it comes to treating women with respect.”
Damn. I’d heard of knights in shining armor, but knights in Speedos—
“When you’re done locking up, come join me for a swim.” He patted the counter definitively and took a step back.
“What?”
“I’m going to do some laps,” he said. “Blow off some steam.”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“I didn’t know you cared so much.”
“About what?” he asked, his brows drawing together.
“About the gym,” I said. “About the people here.”
He scratched the back of his head for a moment.
I stared at him and awaited further comment, but all he did was shrug and walk away.
…
Usually, the end of the day dragged, every minute seeming to stretch aimlessly as people took too long getting the heck out at closing time, but ever since Alex invited me to go for a swim, my mind was preoccupied with more pleasant matters than the tedious checklist of closing tasks I could’ve done with my eyes shut.
Like the way his toned butt looked wrapped in that towel.
Not that I intended to join him for a swim.
I had neither a suit nor the desire to get wet, but it was still a sweet offer. And at the very least, I wasn’t going to miss a chance to admire the way he filled out his Speedo again, especially when I could hardly think of anything else.
I turned the sign in the window and was about to lock the door behind the last customer when I heard André call for me to hold on. When I turned around, I noticed he’d put on a collared shirt and pulled his short dreads back into a low ponytail. “What’s the occasion?” I asked. “Got a hot date or something?”
“Something like that?” he said, holding his arms out and giving me a spin. “How do I look?”
“Great,” I said. “I’ve never seen you look so—”
“Careful now,” he said, looking over his shoulder. “I don’t want Alex to think I’m moving in on his girl.”
“I’m not his girl.”
“No?” he asked.
“No.”
“Then you ought to stop leading him on.”
“I beg your pardon?” I asked, cocking a hip.
“He definitely thinks he has a chance.”
“Is that so?”
He nodded and adjusted the strap of his gym bag on his shoulder.
“Did he tell you that?”
“Naw, but after the way you ogled him in his Speedo earlier—”
“I didn’t ogle him.”
He raised his palms. “I’m not judging.”
“There was no ogling.”
“Really?” He squinted at me. “’Cause I saw the whole thing from treadmill eight, and you must’ve licked your lips six times while he was throwing your boy out.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
He started for the door with a shrug.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“For what it’s worth,” he said, pushing the door open. “I don’t think your little crush is one sided.”
“That’s enough, André.”
“I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”
“He doesn’t look at me like anything.”
“If you say so,” he said, saluting as his new Timbs hit the sidewalk.
I watched him walk away, concentrating so hard my head began to hurt. Should I have asked him not to mention it again, or would that have been an admission of guilt? I sighed and returned to the front desk, leaning my hips against it while I took a few deep breaths.
Crushing on Alex was one thing, but l couldn’t let it interfere with my job. Not now. Not when it was the only stable thing I had going for me. I turned my eyes towards the locker room, knowing I couldn’t close up until I got Alex out of the pool.
Unfortunately, after André called me out, I was more nervous than ever to see Alex so naked. What if he could read me as well as André could? What if he knew the crude things I’d imagined when I saw him dripping wet in the middle of the gym? What if my curiosity about him was written all over my face?
I rolled my shoulders back and walked towards the locker room with purpose, checking my subtle makeup in the mirror as I passed through to the pool deck. The humid air hit me like a blanket as soon as I opened the door, and I was relieved to see he was swimming laps. After all, he wouldn’t be able to read my expression with his face in the water.
For a few minutes, I leaned against the turquoise tiled wall and watched his freestyle, admiring the way his powerful arms and back flexed as he moved through the water. He was surprisingly buoyant for someone who should’ve sunk like a rock, and I felt guilty every time I watched his ass pop out on his flip turns.
For someone who helped kick a perv out earlier, I certainly had some explaining to do.
Five minutes later, I called his name, but he kept going until I flicked the overhead lights off, making the whole natatorium dark except for the underwater lights, which glowed all the time. When I flipped them back on, he came to a stop at the deep end in front of me and hooked an arm on the deck.
The sight of him panting made me ache in places I’d forgotten I had. “I didn’t realize you were such a good swimmer.”
He smiled through his shallow breath and flicked his hair back. “Two years on JV will do that to a person.”
“I see.”
“Bullies can only dunk you if they can catch you.”
“Right.” It was too easy to forget that he’d been picked on as a kid now that he looked like Poseidon.
“Turn the lights off again and join me,” he said, pushing off the wall and treading in the deep.
“Not today.”
“That was the agreement.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“You said if I put the Speedo on, you’d join me for a dip.”
I cocked my head. “You imagined that.”
“Then make my dreams come true and jump in.”
“I don’t have a suit.”
“That excuse is no good today, didn’t you hear?”
I groaned.
“Don’t make me beg,” he said. “If you make me beg, you’ll pay for it, I assure you.”
“Was that a threat?”
“Don’t make me pretend drown,” he said. “I’ll do it. I’ll sink right to the bottom, and I’ll stay there until you come rescue me.”
“It’s too late for that. I’ve already seen what a good swimmer you are.”
“All the more reason to not let me drown. Think of the personal embarrassment.”
“Dead people have bigger problems than embarrassment.”
He took a big breath and—
“Wait!”
His hands fluttered at his sides, and he lifted an ear in my direction.
“I really don’t want to get my hair—”
He dropped under the surface and sank like a stone.
“Fuck.”
I shook my head and crossed my arms. Why did he have to be so childish?
I leaned over the side of the pool.
He was lying flat on the bottom and no bubbles were coming from his mouth.
“Of all the pathetic ploys to get mouth to mouth,” I mumbled, smiling at the thought that maybe that’s what he was really after.
Two minutes later, he still hadn’t surfaced, and my mind began to play tricks on me. I mean, what would my defense be if something really happened? That I stood there and watched him drown? That I didn’t even try to save him?
I stomped a foot down on the deck like a petulant teenager, enraged that he would insist on playing this silly game when I said I didn’t want to go for swim. In a huff, I flicked the overhead lights off again so I could see to the bottom of the pool better.
His Y-shaped body looked eerily lifeless.
“I’m going to kill him,” I said as I pulled my sneakers off. “I’m going to dive down there, bring him up, and kill him myself.”
The deck was cool on my bare feet as I stared at the clock. What the hell? How long had he been down there? Should I dive in with all my clothes on? It’s not like it was a real emergency, right? He was just playing a cruel trick… right?
But with every question I asked myself, more time was passing. Too much time.
My pants had to come off. I couldn’t drive myself home in a towel. Not unless I definitely wanted to die on the way home, ’cause that was the kind of twisted world this was. The shirt, though, was a dime a dozen. I could grab another from the uniform bin in Mary’s office.
I glanced at the clock and pulled my pants down when I realized it had been nearly five minutes, silently thanking my lucky stars that I hadn’t worn a thong that day.
Then I aimed my pointed fingertips at his still body and dove straight to the bottom.