I swallowed. “I like to, yes. But I suck at it. So I try never to do it in front of other people.”
“That’s too bad. Life’s too short to worry about what other people think about you,” Saint said in a kind voice. “You should go out to a club one night where you don’t know anyone and just let go. Swing your arms, shake your ass, and throw your head back.”
I imagined Saint doing that and felt my lips turn up. “You’re probably a little bit crazy, aren’t you?”
He laughed again. “Yeah, I guess. My mom used to call me a loon.”
“I can see that. Where are you from?”
“Born and raised right here in Hobie.”
“Oh. I guess I knew that if Hudson is your brother” was all I could think to say. “Are your parents still in Hobie?”
“Nope. They’re halfway around the world living abroad. What about you?” Saint’s smile was still there, but it no longer reached his eyes. I wanted to take back the stupid question that removed the sparkle from his eyes.
“Dallas.”
“Highland Park boy?”
“Something like that,” I replied. I wondered if kids who grew up with my family’s kind of money were automatically assholes in Saint’s book. If so, I could hardly blame him. I knew from experience those guys could be the worst of the bullies.
“Well then,” Saint said, standing up and grabbing our containers to toss in a nearby recycling bin before tossing me a wink. “I’d better let you get cleaned up so you can get home and count your gold bricks.”
I wanted to reach out and stop him. Stop this conversation and beg him to let us go back to a place of easy friendship and semi-equality—when we were just two guys on the mat wrestling around. I didn’t want to be client and trainer or rich kid and not-so-rich kid—or whatever the hell his shuttered eyes were implying. But we were those things. And I couldn’t exactly beg this guy to be my friend.
“Okay, yeah. Guess you’re right,” I murmured, standing up and walking toward the shower room. I felt a familiar numb feeling seep into my body. And feeling numb made me realize that for the past two hours I’d felt fantastically alive. Every part of my being had been awake, alert, and engaged. A day that had started with stressful memories of the shattered car window the night before had ended with a fantastic workout and enjoyable conversation with a nice person.
But, as usual, I’d found a way to fuck it up. I sucked at making friends. It was enough to make me wonder if I should just stop trying.
My muscles complained as I leaned over to shuck my pants and briefs, hanging my discarded clothes on a hook outside the shower area and making sure I had a towel waiting. Since I’d obviously said something to cause Saint to withdraw from me, I assumed he would avoid joining me in the shower.
I turned the spray as hot as I could stand it and stepped under it, facing the wall and bracing my hands against the tile so I could let the spray land on my shoulders and upper back. The hot water lulled me into a stupor, and I must have zoned out.
When Saint’s voice registered from somewhere behind me, it scared the shit out of me. I screamed, jumping and spinning around at the same time I scrambled as far back away from the noise as I could.
His eyes were wide and his mouth open in surprise. “Augie?”
Chapter 12
Saint
What the hell? I hadn’t meant to scare him. I’d called out his name a few times, but he hadn’t heard me. The look of fear in his eyes took me by surprise, though, since he knew I was the only other person in the building. Surely, he wasn’t afraid of me.
Was he?
I wanted to go to him, to reach my hand out to steady him and reassure him I would never hurt him. To be completely honest, I wanted to gather him into my arms and keep him safe. But I was naked in a communal shower. Not the time or place to be touching another man. Especially a client. Especially a client I’d already spent some time fantasizing about naked.
“It’s just me,” I said calmly instead. “Sorry I startled you.”
“Fuck,” Augie muttered under his breath. “Fuck. It’s fine. Sorry.”
I forced myself to turn away and start my own shower spray—act like everything was cool since the alternative would have me interrogating the poor guy to ask what the hell had caused him to spook like that. Clearly there was something going on with him to make him jumpy. It seemed more like he’d been a victim of a beating than a break-in.
My eyes closed as I felt the hot water thrum against my skin. I stood under the water for a while trying to relax. Eventually, I snuck a peek to make sure Augie was okay.