He still couldn’t quite calm his racing heart. “You know I worry.”
“Just like I know that you haven’t taken an actual day off since Pop moved down to Mexico. Go, Alex. Drink too much. Snorkel with dolphins or whatever they do on those outings. Make out with someone pretty. Just live. Everything will be exactly as it always is back here.” She sighed. “I’m hanging up now.”
“Bye, Cherry.”
The line clicked and he set the phone down. Instead of making him feel better, more assured that things would roll along just fine without him, he had a whole new set of things to flip the fuck out about. If something like that happened to the bar, he’d lose everything.
Again.
He scrubbed his hands over his face. Why the hell had he agreed to come on this fucking vacation? It was a mistake. Surely Pop and Lucas would agree with him once he laid out his argument? Tomorrow, the ship would stop in Orlando and Alex would catch a flight back to Dawson’s Creek. Simple as that.
But neither Pop nor Lucas would be up at this point, so he went in search of the gym. He thought better while in motion, and he knew his friend and grandfather well enough to know that he’d have to create a solid argument for them not to give him endless shit about this.
The gym was empty when he walked through the door, which was just as well. Alex didn’t have it in him to deal with another person right now. He considered his options and moved to the free weights. First legs, then he’d do arms and some core, and then he’d be able to think straight.
He made it through three sets of his leg routine and had just laid down on the bench for arms when the door opened. Alex bit back a sigh. With his crappy his luck was going, it just stood to figure that he wouldn’t last a whole workout alone. He lifted the bar into the air and began slowly lowering it to his chest and lifting again. Matching his breathing to the steady movement was as close to meditation as he ever got, despite Cherry insisting that he could benefit from it.
To his right, a treadmill started going and quickly picked up pace. Even though he knew better—it was shitty gym etiquette—he couldn’t help a glance in that direction.
He almost dropped the bar at the sight that greeted him. None other than the little brunette whose memory tormented and taunted him in turn. Kendall. She had her attention on the mirror lining the wall in front of the treadmill and she frowned like she wanted to run that other version of her into the ground. From her hesitance last night, he would have pegged her as someone who shielded themselves with layers of clothing to avoid notice. He would have been wrong. She wore bright pink shorts that hugged her ass and highlighted the strength in her legs. Her sports bra had more straps than seemed required and was a show-stopping orange. She’d pulled her long hair back into a ponytail and it swung with each steady step as she picked up her pace.
He’d thought she was gorgeous before in the sundress. Sexy in his leather jacket while she was wrapped around him like his favorite T-shirt. Alex didn’t have words to describe how good she looked now.
Burning in his arms let him know that he’d held the weight in a half-lifted position for too long. He grunted a little as he pushed it the rest of the way up and onto the rack. No way could he concentrate enough to ensure he wouldn’t hurt himself with this sight greeting him.
He also couldn’t sit there like a fucking creep and stare at her ass while she ran. She obviously hadn’t seen him, or at least hadn’t registered that it was him. Alex looked around the room. There was no way out that wouldn’t force him to walk directly past her, and if he tried to sneak, then he’d really look like a creep.
Alex sat up and wiped his face with the towel he’d grabbed from the spot near the door. Only one way through this, and it was to stand up and walk out of here like he wasn’t fighting his body’s reaction to this woman he’d barely exchanged a handful of words with. A woman who now had sweat glistening against her skin, taking his thoughts down paths better left untrod.
He stood slowly. If he was a better guy, he wouldn’t keep staring, but Alex couldn’t quite tear his eyes away from her. He’d barely managed to lift them to her face when she looked up and their gazes clashed in the mirror. Kendall missed a step and slammed the big red button to stop the treadmill. She yanked out her headphones. “What are you doing here?”