Chapter Nine
“From what I’ve seen in videos of sledders, you’re going to want a big burst of speed as you push the sled down the track,” Spencer said from his spot on the pool deck. It was her last day of training, and they were spending it in the pool.
He gestured for her to climb out, and he fastened a band around her ankle. Misty’s heart rate was up from her warm-up laps, and she felt it spike even more at his feather-light touch to such a surprisingly sensitive area.
He didn’t speak again until she’d jumped back in the water. “I’m going to hold this in place, and I want you to push yourself forward. This is going to be a lot easier with nothing attached and on land, and can only help you on the track.”
“Okay.” Spencer tightened the band in his fist, and Misty surged forward in the water.
“Again. Just relax, I’ll pull you back.” She felt like a fish being reeled in, but he might have done it so she could save her strength for repeating the exercise.
“One more time.” She bounced up and down a few times in the water before taking off.
A startled noise behind her caught her attention, and she turned to see Spencer flying off the deck.
He landed in the pool with his clothes on, splashing her and a group of senior citizens from the water aerobics class that had just let out.
The senior citizens laughed, and Misty covered her mouth with her hands. “Oh, shit! Sorry!”
He wiped water out of his eyes. “I’m dressed for this, and it just goes to show how strong you’ve gotten.”
She didn’t feel reassured. “You didn’t have your phone in your pocket, did you?”
“No, it’s on the table with the other stuff. Learned that one the hard way.”
“Good. Well, not good that it happened before, but...”
He ignored her babbling as he ducked underwater to remove the band.
He would naturally have had to hold his breath to do so, but Misty’s own breathing stopped at the recognition of him dipping below her waist, if only for the briefest of moments.
He fumbled a bit to detach the band, brushing against her ankle more than once and sending all sorts of thrills through her.
“I think we’re done with this now,” he said after he surfaced. He set the band on the deck with one hand and pushed his wet hair out of his face with the other.
“What should we do instead?” A number of possibilities raced through her mind at the sight of him in the water next to her.
His wet tank top clung to his chest and revealed the first hint of a patch of dark hair.
Their closeness in height was especially pronounced at this angle, which also allowed her to appreciate the flecks of gold in his brown eyes.
He looked far more approachable like this, not to mention kissable.
The whole thing would be a lot sexier if she weren’t wearing a highly functional one-piece, a swim cap, and goggles, but he’d still better come up with something for her to do to keep bad ideas at bay.
“As long as I’m here, I could do a demonstration. When you’re doing breaststroke, engage your core and inner thighs to help propel yourself forward.” He swam a few strokes before turning back to face her. “You see that?”
“Oh, yeah.” She had hardly needed an invitation to watch his long limbs slice through the water, nor to ogle the outline of his back muscles through that shirt.
“Then let’s see you do it.”
As she swam, she held onto his instructions and the mental image of him swimming. She’d never had a “coregasm” from a workout in her life, but the exercise and the sexy thoughts were sending stirrings below the waist. She’d take care of that when she got home.
“Good job,” he said when she neared him the fourth time. “Now let’s try something else to keep your heart rate up.”
He handed her a pair of swim gloves and strapped on his own pair before bending into a squat. “Spar with me underwater, but stay low and don’t let your arms or shoulders out of the water.”
She bent to meet him at eye level. “Is this a kickboxing throwback?”
A shadow flicked across his face before he answered. “Sort of, but we never did anything like this underwater.”
He started dancing. There was no other word for it. “Come on!”
Misty started moving her feet and bringing her arms forward to meet his.
It felt silly, but she got lost in the fun of the moment.
She had no idea how much time had passed, but soon a lifeguard came up to warn them that the swim team from the local high school would be arriving any minute.
They both hefted themselves out of the water.
“I have some time between appointments. Want to grab something to eat?” he asked as he toweled off his limbs.
“Let’s!” But as she answered, she wondered how this was going to work. She’d worn her dress over her bathing suit and didn’t like the thought of spending the next hour or so in a wet one-piece. But it was either that or go commando.
Her thoughts must have shown on her face because Spencer looked concerned. “You okay?” He paused in the wake of drying off his thigh, which did not help.
“Must’ve spaced out from hunger.” A more than plausible excuse. She couldn't say how the swimming had affected her land-based workouts, but she was certain it had spiked her appetite.
“Then go on and change. I’ll meet you in the cafe.”
Misty ducked into the locker room to fully dry off, get her hair under control, stuff the bathing suit in a plastic bag, and put her dress back on before scrambling around her gym bag on the off-chance a stray pair of panties would turn up.
Nothing did, but she couldn’t leave Spencer hanging.
They were only going a few steps to the gym’s café, and the dress was long enough that it wouldn’t give her away.
It wasn’t a particularly windy day out for when it was time to leave either.
But she was still all too aware of what she wasn’t wearing as they met up again.
She arrived to see Spencer in dry gym-branded clothes and with wildly rumpled hair, probably from rubbing a towel vigorously over it.
He looked younger and more adorable for it.
Hunger must have been messing with her head, and she was relieved when it was their turn to order.
Misty asked for extra chicken in her grain bowl, and Spencer got a wrap.
The barista got the orders ready as they spoke, and it wasn’t long before they were approaching the register.
“Are you together?” the cashier asked. Why did that question sound so loaded?
“Yeah, these are together.” Spencer didn’t seem to notice as he used his employee discount again. They took their food to a table in the corner.
He unlocked the tablet after he sat across from her. “You’ve come incredibly far since we started working together. Want to see?”
He held out the tablet, and she leaned closer to look. The screen showed an array of charts, all of which showed the lines going up. “That’s your progress.”
“Wow.”
About halfway through his lunch, Spencer spoke again. “And soon it’ll be time for the video. How are you going to do that?”
“Tish is going to film me.”
“Where?”
“Still figuring that out. I’d really like to shoot in a park, but I don’t know how we’d measure some of these exercises if I did that.”
“If you want, you can reserve space in the gym. It happens all the time with people shooting social media posts, commercials, what have you. And filming in this setting would show how seriously you take your fitness.”
“That makes sense.”
They finished the last bites of lunch and got up to throw away their paper plates. “You can make your reservation up front,” Spencer said.
“I’d better do it soon. Deadline’s coming up.” With all the work to get ready for it, she’d almost forgotten to worry about it. Fear started to eat away at the endorphins.
He touched her upper arm where it met her shoulder. “You got this, and they’d be lucky to have you.”
At the touch of his hand, all thoughts faded from Misty’s mind except this. She didn’t have to look far to meet his eyes. As she tried to decide what the color reminded her of—honey? Caramel? Tea? Whiskey? Something else delicious and comforting?—the corners crinkled up with his smile.
“Thank you. For that, for lunch, and for everything as you got me ready for this.” It sounded so inadequate, but she didn’t know what else to say.
He didn’t move his hand. “It’s been a real pleasure. Best of luck.”
She stammered out another thank-you as Spencer stepped back.
Nevertheless, the warmth of his touch lingered in the locker room.
She should probably shower after being in the pool, and it’d be nice to do it here with the fancy products the gym stocked.
At the same time, she found herself not wanting to scrub the spot.
She also felt the oddest sense of bereavement.
The days without structured workouts stretched ahead blank and empty.
The days without Spencer to suggest new moves or forms of torture, shout encouragement, and stretch her out at the end.
She wouldn’t have believed it when she started, but she was going to miss him.
She shook her head. What she was feeling was the same thing she did at the end of kickball season, but there was one crucial difference.
After this ending, she knew what was coming next.
She went to the front desk, texted Tish with the open times, and made an appointment with enough time to get the video shot, edited, and sent.
When the day came, Misty took another look at the outfit she’d chosen, smoothed her ponytail, and added a light coat of her Glossier lip balm.
This may have been for a sports team, not a fitness model shoot, but she still wanted to look good in the video.
She rubbed her lucky duck’s head, then put him in her locker and met Tish on the training floor.
“It’s weird to see it so empty.” There would usually be a bunch of other people on the weights and machines, but no one was around today.
“Guess they’re keeping it clear for you.” Tish got her phone out. “The light’s good, you seem warmed up...are you ready?”
Misty took another look. This section of the training floor was clear, but other gymgoers and trainers went about their workouts in the cardio area and in the studios. It was like they’d crammed themselves into the other spaces now that this one was temporarily off-limits.
Through the crowd, she saw Spencer. He was adjusting the settings on a middle-aged man’s machine, and her lips turned up at the memory of him doing the same for her. The unknown guy was in good hands.
Spencer looked up from the Stairmaster. He was positioned in a way that would let him look right at the training floor, and he might have been looking at her.
Just when she was about to convince herself she’d imagined it, he gave a small nod.
Somehow, she knew it was meant only for her, and the sight filled her with the same energy and optimism she got from her lucky duck.
“Misty?” Tish’s voice cut into the moment.
“Let’s do this.” She sent a small smile in Spencer’s direction before getting into position.