35. Head Spinning
thirty-five
Head Spinning
T wo days later I walk into my spin class to find Jacob, Bryan, the guy who played paintball with us, and another guy I don’t recognize, sitting on the front row of bikes.
I smile at them. “Can I help you adjust your bikes?”
"I think I can figure it out. I mean if I can fix a car, I should be able to figure out a couple of knobs,” Jacob says.
"You'd think," Bryan looks confused. "I'll definitely need help, Jess."
The other soldier stands up. He’s tall with red-brown hair and bright green eyes. He has a little sprinkle of freckles across his nose. His smile is warm and immediately likable. "Me too. I've done a lot of biking, but not on something like this."
"Of course," I reach for the knob. "Stand next to the bike.
The most important thing is seat height.
" I make a big deal about setting up the bikes for them and showing them how to work the resistance knobs. I ignore Jacob, who is figuring things out on his own. While I’m adjusting Bryan's bike, one of my regulars comes in. Apparently, he knows Jacob.
“Captain Crawley,” Jacob says. “Good to see you.”
“Good to see you, Ricks,” he answers. He smiles at me. “Are you ready to whip these boys into shape?”
“Yes, sir,” I reply.
I turn on my microphone and climb on my bike.
“For those of you who are new to my class, spin is a low impact but intense exercise class. My job is to work you hard and provide you with motivation. Your job is to push yourself and to listen to your bodies. If you’ve reached your limit, it’s okay to slow down, lower your resistance, or take a break.
If you feel any excess pain or light-headedness, please stop.
I’m trained in CPR, but I’d rather not have to use it. ”
Everyone laughs. The guy sitting behind Jacob says something like, “Mouth to mouth sounds like motivation to me.” I can’t see the look Jacob gives him when he turns around.
“Okay, let’s get started. Resistance on moderate, we’ll start things out slow and then build up our speed.” I look directly at Jacob. “Try to keep up.”
“Bring it,” he mouths.
Ten minutes into the class, there are large drops of sweat collecting under Jacob’s bike. I should have told him to bring a sweat towel. He’s sweating like crazy, but still smiling.
The red-haired soldier wears a look of fierce determination. I can tell by the way he moves with the bike that he wasn't lying about having a lot of experience riding one. Every time I make eye contact with him, it throws me off. I've never seen eyes quite that color of green before.
Bryan is struggling and glancing at the clock by the time the class is half over. Jacob is trying not to look winded, but I know he is. This might be the best class I've ever taught.
“Dude, cheat,” Bryan hisses. “She doesn’t know how high the resistance is set on your bike.”
I don’t think he meant for me to hear that.
I catch his eye. “If the resistance on your bike isn’t set as high as it could be, you’re only cheating yourself.
This is your time, your workout. However , if you have reached your limit,” I look at Jacob again.
“It’s okay to back off and give yourself a break. How’s everyone doing?”
“Great,” Jacob yells above the rest of the class. He cranks his resistance and speeds up. From the back, Captain Crawley winks at me.
My legs are burning. I know I’m pushing the class harder than I usually do.
I'm sweating in places I didn't know you could sweat.
I'm glad for the towel I have draped over my handlebars. It hits me how embarrassed I was when Jacob saw me like this a few months ago. It doesn’t bother me so much anymore.
Jacob makes it to the end without stopping, but even I’m relieved when the class is over. I take my headset off and wipe down my bike. “How did you like it?”
“Okay, you win,” Jacob kneels down and wipes up the puddle under his bike with a paper towel. “It’s a tough class.”
Captain Crawley slaps Bryan on the back. “Excellent class, Jess, I think you almost got three men from the United States Army to surrender. You should come do that for PT sometime.”
The redheaded soldier comes up beside us. “That sounds like a good idea to me.”
I look up, getting caught in his eyes again. "I don't think I got your name before."
“Sorry." His freckles have blended in with the red on his face. "Lieutenant Michael Stevens. I’d shake your hand, but mine are pretty gross. You kicked our butts.”
I laugh. “Thanks. It’s nice to meet you, Lieutenant Stevens. I’m Jess.” I can’t stop staring into his eyes. I extend my hand. "And we're all a little gross."
He takes my hand. "Jess, I like that. I'm pretty sure the sheen looks better on you than it does on me. And it's just Michael."
“Nice to meet you, Michael.” His hand is warm, his grip is strong, and he's absolutely wrong about which of us looks better wearing a layer of sweat.
Jacob puts his arm around my shoulder. “Alright. You showed me up. Now what would you like to do?”
I push him away. “Yuck Jake, you reek. I’m going to go take a shower. You should join me.”
Jacob raises his eyebrows. “You want me to join you in the shower?”
I’m already hot from the workout, but my face flames. “I mean, you should take a shower too, by yourself, a long one, with lots of soap.”
“Maybe you should make it a cold one,” Michael says. Is he glaring at Jacob?
“Sorry,” Jacob moves his arm off my shoulder. “You walked into that one.”
Michael leans against the wall. “We were going to stay and play racquetball. Why don’t you join us?”
“I can’t.” I glance at the clock, really wishing I could stay. “I have a class I can’t miss.”
Jacob is watching Michael. Can I hope he looks even a tiny bit jealous? “She has to get back to high school .” I catch his emphasis on the last part, like he’s trying to make sure Michael knows how old I am.
“Oh, you can cut this once,” Bryan says. “Make the teams even.”
“Sorry, I have a test I can’t miss. Besides, I suck at racquetball. No hand-eye coordination.” I shoulder my bag.
"What sports do you like?" Michael doesn't seem to be in a hurry to shower or play racquetball, or whatever else they have planned.
I finger the strap on my duffle bag. "I swim, run track and cross-country and in the winter I like to ski."
His eyes light up. "I love skiing. We should go sometime."
"I thought you were heading out tomorrow," Jacob says.
"Yeah, shoot. I forgot." Michael looks genuinely disappointed. "Maybe next time I'm—"
“What does this weekend look like for you?” Jacob interrupts him.
I stare at him for a minute. I'm not sure if he's talking to me or Michael. Finally I ask, "What does this weekend look like for what?"
"I have some time off, so I thought maybe I could come work on your car," Jacob says.
For a heartbeat, I thought he was going to ask me out. I know I sound disappointed when I answer, "I'll be around."
"Cool. I'll call you," Jacob answers.
The next class comes in, and I realize how late it is. I wish I were the kind of girl who would ditch a test to hang out with a couple of good-looking guys, but I’m not. “I have to get going. Thanks for coming. It made the class a lot more interesting. If you ever want to come back...”
“Hells no,” Bryan says.
Jacob doesn’t comment. I turn back to Michael. “It was nice to meet you.”
He touches my arm. “Nice to meet you too, Jess. Maybe we'll see each other again sometime."
“Maybe.” I wave to them as I walk away. I can’t help the little bit of triumph I feel. Jacob came to my class. He actually acted jealous that Michael was talking to me. But I can’t read too much into it.
He’s probably just being the big brother again.