Pumped (Mars Fitness #3)

Chapter 7

CHAPTER

SEVEN

EVEREST

“Everest?” Beau’s voice booms through the staff locker room at Mars Fitness.

“Over here.” I tug on my work t-shirt and toss my street clothes into the locker.

Beau, one of the owners of Mars and my boss, comes around the row of lockers. “Sawyer said you were here. You know you didn’t have to come in today, right? We can cover for you.”

“I know.” I comb my fingers through my hair once before sliding my cap on backward. “But if I have to spend another second with that jerkwad, I’m gonna do fucking murder.”

Beau’s eyebrows fly up and his lips quirk into an amused smile. “Which jerkwad? And will I need to bail you out of jail?”

“You might,” I mutter.

Owen’s been a grade-A asshole this past week, bossing everyone around, issuing orders, railroading anyone who dares to question his decisions. It’s like he’s determined to get the whole ordeal over and done with so he can go back to his fancy, cushy life. It’s like he doesn’t even care that two people we love have just fucking died. Or that our baby niece has lost both her parents in one day.

I knew the guy was frigid, but I didn’t realize he was so utterly heartless.

Even his reaction at the lawyer’s office this morning. The blood had drained from his face when the lawyer read out the will, like she was reading his death sentence or something. Jesus.

He’d been so quick to pawn Ivy off onto his parents earlier this week when we’d all sat down to talk about it. He’d had it all planned out, every single detail. Ship her off so she could be someone else’s problem.

I hadn’t said anything at the time because, well, it wasn’t like I had a better idea. His parents had raised two kids, so they obviously knew what they were doing, and they're retired, so they have plenty of time on their hands. It seemed like the only choice we had.

But then the lawyer said that Eden and Jeremy wanted us to raise Ivy. Honestly, I was stunned, shocked, staggered. Someone wants me to raise a kid? What the hell do I know about raising kids?

But as the news sank in, the weight of losing my sister suddenly felt a little lighter. I wasn’t really losing her. Not all of her, at least. There was this mini-Eden I’d get to hold on to. I could keep a small part of my sister with me. I could keep the memory of her alive.

Owen didn’t see it that way, though. All he saw was the work it would take. And yeah, I’m not a complete idiot. I know raising a kid isn’t easy. I know it’ll take a lot of time and sacrifice and effort. There will be rough patches, especially at the beginning. But come on. It’s Ivy . She’s an angel. We get each other. We’re cool.

Besides, it was Eden’s and Jeremy’s last wish. That means something, doesn’t it? Of all the people in the world, they wanted me—and Owen, I guess—to raise their daughter. It’s an honor, a privilege. It’s our duty to fulfill their wishes, to do everything in our power to live up to them.

But all Owen cared about was his stupid life with his fancy job and his fancy apartment.

“Seriously, dude, you okay?”

Beau’s standing at the end of the row of lockers, arms folded and voice gruff. To a stranger, he might look intimidating, but I’ve been at Mars long enough to know he’s merely concerned.

I couldn’t be more grateful. For Beau and his husband, Gavin. For Sawyer, Logan, and other guys at Mars. They’ve been like a family to me from the first day I started this job. We joke around a lot and they sometimes give me a hard time. But when life gets real and shit hits the fan, when it really counts, they’re always there for me.

I collapse onto the bench, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by sadness. It’s not the first time it’s happened and it’s always unexpected. Things will be going fine, I’m getting through the day, then wham , a bulldozer full of grief slams into me. “I don’t know.”

Beau leans against the locker like he’s settling in for a drawn-out conversation. “Talk to me.”

Where do I even start? I’m just… sad. Just so fucking sad. But Beau knows that. He and the guys were at the memorial service.

“There was some lawyer thing this morning, right?”

I nodded. “They gave me custody of Ivy.”

Beau tilts his head. “Please tell me Ivy is the name of a motorcycle. Or maybe a plant?”

I roll my eyes. “Ivy is my niece.”

“Your human niece?”

I snort. “Yes, very human. Six years old.”

Beau looks pained as he speaks again. “Uh, no offense or anything, but… why would they do that?”

I throw my hands in the air. “Hell if I know!”

“For how long?”

I blink at him. “What do you mean ‘for how long’?”

Beau shrugs. “I don’t know. Is it for like, a year or two, and then someone else takes over?”

“What? No, that’s not how it works. I have custody until she’s eighteen.”

Beau’s lips form a silent O. “Shit.”

“Yeah. Shit.” I swing one leg over the bench so I can lie down, feet flat on the floor. I stare up at the ceiling, feeling a little bit like I’m in a therapy session with Doctor Beau. “That’s not the worst part. Actually, that part’s not really bad at all. Ivy’s a cool kid. We’re gonna have a lot of fun.”

I already have plans to take her swimming in the ocean and teach her how to skate, how to rock climb. We’ll go to the beach and ride bikes through the park. We’ll have movie nights and gorge ourselves on ice cream.

“You know that this isn’t an extended babysitting gig, right? Raising a kid is nothing like watching them for a few hours.”

I scoff at Beau’s unnecessary reminder. “Of course, I know. But how hard can it be? I had parents. I’ve seen my sister parent. And there’s the internet. You can learn anything from the internet.”

“Right…”

“ Anyways , like I was saying, that’s not the worst part. The worst part is Owen. Fucking jackass.” I mutter the last part under my breath, a ball of anger churning in my chest just at the thought of him.

“I thought he was a jerkwad,” Beau says with a chuckle.

My brain supplies an image of his smarmy face, with his high cheekbones and plump lips. Amber eyes flashing under thick brows. All I want to do is punch him right on his perfectly straight nose. “He’s both. And more.”

“Owen is the co-brother-in-law, right?”

“The…” I lift my head from the bench to look at Beau. “The what?”

“The co-brother-in-law. Your sister’s husband’s brother,” Beau says, as if that’s a normal thing that normal people know.

“How did you know that?”

Beau shrugs. “I know things.”

“Ugh.” I drop my head back down and it bangs a bit too hard on the bench. “Ow.”

“So Owen. What’s wrong with Owen?”

“What’s not wrong with Owen?” I cross my arms and huff. “He’s an arrogant motherfucker and I have to share custody of Ivy with him.”

Beau whistles. “You have to raise your niece with a jerkwad slash jackass slash arrogant motherfucker for the next twelve years?”

Twelve years. Beau’s words feel like a ton of bricks deposited on my chest.

Twelve years of Owen. Of being cooped up in that house with him. Seeing him every day. Talking to him every day. There will be no escape, nowhere to hide.

A shudder of horror runs through me. All the constant judgment. Endless nagging. Never being able to live up to his impossible standards. Just the thought of it is suffocating.

But there’s also something else. Some small part of me perks up at the thought. Things happen when you’re in close quarters with someone like that. Unexpected things. Explosive things.

Like that night.

It’s been years and I still don’t really understand what happened that night. I can’t explain how we went from glaring at each other to kissing each other. It was like a switch was flipped. One moment, we could barely stand to be in the same room together, and the next moment, we couldn’t keep our hands off each other.

It’s like all that pent-up hatred and anger needed somewhere to go and boom , it went into sex.

It was really great sex. Maybe some of the best sex I’ve ever had. And I’ve had a lot of sex. The hard press of Owen’s body against mine. The way our mouths collided. The roughness of his hands on my body. The sound of his growl. The way he threw commands at me, and the way I jumped to obey.

I still think of that night sometimes when I’m jacking off. When I need something quick to take the edge off. It never fails to take me right to the brink in five seconds flat. It’s always a bone-melting climax.

Sometimes I wonder. What if he wasn’t a stuck-up snob? What if we didn’t annoy the fuck out of each other? What if we could channel all that volatile energy between us into sex rather than fighting? Could we have had another night like that? Could it have turned into a regular thing?

Can it still?

I shake my head. No. That’s crazy talk. A regular thing with Owen? Like a relationship? Enemies with benefits? He’ll kill me in my sleep before we ever get that far. Or maybe I’ll kill him. It’ll be a miracle if we both make it through the next twelve years unmaimed. Hell, I could barely make it through a week of seeing him every day.

“Well, we’re here if you need anything. Seriously. If you need to re-work your schedule or cut back on hours. She can come hang out in the staff room if you can’t find a babysitter. Whatever it is. Just let me know.”

With a groan, I push myself up and flash Beau a grateful smile. The weight of grief and responsibility is still heavy, but it helps to know that I won’t have to carry it alone. The guys at Mars have got my back.

“Thank, Beau.”

“Always.” He opens his arms. “Come here.”

I stand and walk into the offered hug. It’s comforting, soothing. I’m going to need as much of these as I can get.