“I’m sorry, but what a bunch of shit.” Stevie bounced on her yoga ball. It was her last week at the clinic. I still had another month to go.
I sat on a blue one across from her. Justin left us to stretch before he put us on the machines.
“It’s not. It’s for the best.” Stevie was the one I felt I could actually talk to. This was not something I could discuss with my parents.
“Dude, Whiskey, you are seriously overthinking all this. You will find all this high school stuff is utter crap and means nothing once you’re out. There should be no restrictions when it comes to love.”
I lifted an eyebrow.
“Well, children and animals are off limits. But if you are of age, human, and can decide for yourself, then all is fair game.” She leaned her elbows on her knees. “Love is love.”
“I didn’t say anything about love.” I stretched back.
“Oh, please, you two are the definition of epic love. The ultimate star-crossed lovers. They should write a crappy movie about this depressing shit.”
I smiled thinly. “It’s not only about the high school shit.” I rolled back and forth on the ball. “That actually is nothing in comparison.”
“But the kid is not even his.” Stevie was the only one I told about Cody and Colton.
“Stevie, I don’t see you stretching,” Justin yelled from across the room. “I’m watching you too, Jaymerson.”
“Fuck.” Stevie rolled her eyes. “He had to be a drill sergeant before this. No one is that much of a tight ass.”
“Well, he does have an exceptionally nice, tight ass.” I grinned, rolling back on the ball.
“No kidding.” Stevie flopped back, doing half-assed stretches. “I wouldn’t mind it bouncing on my kitchen counter.”
I covered my face with a snort.
“Suzie’s can be on the washer…when it’s on spin cycle.”
I rolled off the ball, groaning.
“I don’t want you to feel left out. Want the hamper or the breakfast nook? Your lunch table at school? Now we could really get them talking.” She continued to list random places at school till I was grabbing my sides, trying to breathe through the giggles.
“Nope. I’m out of this one. I’m not having my ass compared with theirs.” I shook my head.
“Don’t worry.” She patted my knee and winked. “I’ll grade on a curve.”
We both burst into fits of laughter. It might have been silly, but it was exactly what I needed. Tears only released a portion of stress. Laughter was still the best medicine, and I seemed to laugh little these days.
“Stevie, Jaymerson. Machines,” Justin called over to us.
“Jeez, he seriously needs to relax.” Stevie reached her hand out for me to help her up. “Sex. Have some. Might loosen that stick in your ass,” she yelled over at him.
“Machines now, Stevie,” Justin ordered, ignoring her. He, like everyone here, was used to her mouth.
“Speaking of sex?” I nudged her shoulder, my eyebrows wiggling. “Seen Tarzan lately?”
“Maybe…” Stevie dipped her head, a slight blush coating her pale coloring. “He wants me to come to the next race to watch him. Chris on a bike covered in dirt and sweat? Yes. Please.”
“Chris?” I transferred my weight to my good leg, watching her closely. My mouth fell open. “Oh my god. You really, really like him.”
“What? No, I don’t.” She contradicted me, her cheeks turning a deeper ruddy color.
“You called him by his name.”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Yes, you did.” My smile grew. “Holy shit. You are completely smitten with him.”
“No.” She shook her head. “We had some fun, but that’s all it is. In all honesty he’s making me want to go back to women,” she said, but there was no strength behind her statement.
“Wow. The one thing Stevie Colvin can’t be truthful about is actually liking someone.”
She shifted uncomfortably. We all had our things. Stevie had lost her father. She was not immune to hiding and protecting her heart from getting hurt, like the rest of us.
“He’s cool. We have a good time…whatever.”
“Sure.” I smiled, letting the subject drop. “Come on. Before Justin adds more repetitions.”
“It’s my last week here. Shouldn’t I get a break?” She strolled over to the leg press grumbling.
I bent over and reached for my hoodie on the floor. As I stood, someone came around the corner, slamming into me. I stumbled to the side. Large hands grabbed me, pulling me firmly against them, keeping me from falling.
My body knew before I even looked into his blue eyes. I hummed with energy and desire, a chemical reaction I could not control. My eyes drifted up and locked on his.
What the hell is he doing here? This is not his day.
“Sorry,” he muttered. The feel of him against me was like taking a dose of ecstasy. He held me for another beat, his expression flat, giving nothing away. He stepped away, his gaze drifting over my head to Justin by the treadmill. Hunter’s shoulders set in a firm line, his tall, broad backside was firm, and every tight muscle showed through his shirt and workout shorts as he walked over to the trainer.
His nonchalant, indifferent attitude toward me cut as sharply as bare feet on a floor of broken glass. Even if it had been my decision, I felt like I was the one standing holding my heart, gasping and flopping around like a dying fish.
It wasn’t till I looked over at Stevie, her eyebrow lifted, did I realize I’d been caught outright staring at him like a lost puppy. A heartbroken puppy. She shook her head. I jerked my chin, pointing it at the floor and moved to the leg-lift machine.
“Hey, Hunter, glad we could switch your appointment.” I heard Justin say.
“Yeah, sorry. Had a family situation to deal with.”
Family? Was it Cody?
The book closed. The final confirmation I’d been looking for. Just not the one I wanted. His life was with them. Cody and Krista were his family. His priority. It would always be.
“Oh sure. For the best.” Stevie walked up next to me. “I believe that like my mother believes finding me in bed with my college roommate was only because the heat went out in our room.”
My eyes roamed back over to Hunter. His back was to me as he slowly jogged on the treadmill he fell off of before we first kissed. I couldn’t help glancing at the spot where he laid me on the ground. A kiss leading to jail.
That should have warned me…