"It probably felt like you were retired," Caleb said. EJ shook his head at the memory. "It did. I was in bad shape that summer. My mom's dad had a workshop in his garage where he did woodworking, and my mom thought it would be good for me to go out there and take up carpentry with Pa."
"Was it?"
"I have no idea," EJ said. "I spent the entire summer with that girl. I didn't do any woodworking at all. I met a girl and I spent every day with her for over a month. She had no idea who I was. I told her my name, but she had no clue about my dad. That was before he retired, too. My grandparents knew I met friends in the neighborhood, they just didn't know it was a girl. I guess I lied about that. I was happy and content, and they thought I was playing outside with some boys. I don't even remember what I told them. They were happy I found friends. But it was a girl. Her parents weren't home, and we stayed at her house all day, completely unsupervised. She had an older brother, but he was never there. I don't even know what was going on at her house, but there were no parents. I basically fell in love that summer, and I could tell no one about it. I went back to the city and straight back into football season after my foot healed, but that girl stuck with me. She was amazing. She did not once mention money. She had no idea who I was. I'm not even sure if I told her my last name."
"Do you know hers?" Caleb asked.
"No. I wish I did. I think she told me." EJ thought for a second and then shook his head, unable to come up with anything. "I'm trying to think. I know her first name is Savannah."
Chapter 2
EJ
A few days later
EJ's twin brother, Dominic, lived in Milwaukee and ran their gym location there. The cities were close to each other, and both boys went back and forth to each gym location at least a couple of times a month. Dom managed Milwaukee and was there most of the time, while EJ managed the Chicago location. Their dad was invested, and he stopped by the gyms as much as he could. The boys were popular at both locations, but gym members especially loved it when they had an encounter with NFL legend Eddie Decker.
EJ (Eddie Junior, the first-born twin) had played college football and baseball and went on to play a few years of pro baseball. He had his fair share of stardom, but his level of fame was nowhere near that of his father's. Eddie Decker was the most beloved Chicago Bear of all time. He would probably go down in history as that.
The boys knew their dad's stardom had given them a leg up when they opened their gyms, but itwasn't the reason why they thrived. The ETC brand was stellar. It was an amazing concept, and the twins had worked tirelessly to make it a success.
People loved seeing EJ and Dom together and getting photo-ops with them. They were affectionately known as the Double Deckers, a phrase that had gained popularity when they were playing college football on the same team. EJ lived and worked in Chicago, and he often got recognized in public, but that intensified when he and his brother were together. It was a common occurrence for someone to yell the phrase 'Double Deckers' to get their attention when they were together.
On campus at the gyms, things were different. They got approached and had conversations with people, but it was a relaxed environment, and the clientele at the gym was full of elite athletes. People were used to encountering them there. Membership was not cheap, and all of the patrons were relaxed.
That summer, both gyms would host a mini-triathlon for kids. They would be held during back-to-back weekends so that both twins could go to both races. It was something they had done before, and it worked out best that way. They had already set the dates for alternating weekends in June.
EJ worked all the time.
He was on his way home from the gym now, and he had been on the phone with Dom for his entire ride home, discussing more plans for the race.
"What was that?" Dom said.
"My phone was switching over from Bluetooth," EJ said.
"Oh, you must be home. Okay, well, I'll let you go," Dom said.
"Hey, I was going to tell you about this thing I'm trying to figure out. I talked to this lady today on my lunch…" EJ trailed off awkwardly.
It wasn't the best way to bring it up, but EJ didn't know how he felt or where to start. The boys had been extremely close their whole life, and it was odd for EJ to have something from their childhood that Dominic knew nothing about.
"What lady?" Dominic said, assuming EJ was still talking about work.
"It's not about the gym," EJ said. "I was talking to Caleb the other day and trying to get his advice about women. It was something about Kayla. Anyway, he brought up someone from my past who… and I realize you don't know anything about this, which is weird. It happened that one summer when I got all depressed about breaking my foot."
"What are you talking about?"
EJ held the phone to his ear by using his shoulder while he unlocked the door and walked into his house. "I'm starting at the beginning. Hang on. (a sigh) Okay. The year I broke my foot… I had gone to Gram and Pa's that summer to work with him in his woodshop."
"I remember that summer," Dominic said.
"Well, they thought I was with neighborhood friends the whole time, but I met a girl. Savannah. We spent weeks together. Every day, I'd go over to her house. Her parents weren't home. It was her stepdad's house, which made it even more amazing that the neighbor remembered her last name. That all happened today. I have to keep my story in order."
"What happened today?"
EJ had taken his shoes off and put his things away, and he washed his hands so that he could heat his dinner. He opened the fridge as he continued. "First, let me say that I met with Caleb the other day, and that's when this all started. I was frustrated about something from the breakup with Kayla, and I was talking to him about not being able to trust women. That's when he brought up someone from my past—wondering if I knew anyone when I was young, someone who I could maybe trust to love me for who I am."
"And now you're thinking you should track down this girl from Gram's house that summer?"
