“Car accident. Everyone made it through.”
She let out a sigh of relief.
“How’s my newest little niece or nephew doing?”
Emily ran her hands over her extended belly and smiled. “Kicking up a storm. Pretty sure I have a soccer player in there.”
Ben laughed. “Only a couple more months. You doing okay? Need anything?”
“Nope. Dylan’s taking good care of me, and Bailey has done more research on prenatal diets than any human in the history of humanity.”
Ben laughed and took a long drink of his coffee.
“You better hold off on that,” Emily said with a teasing grin. “I’m told Koios requested a green smoothie this morning. Something about a bet?”
Ben groaned. “Seriously?”
“Yep.”
“I better go face the music. See you later, Sis.”
Emily turned back to the computer, then entered the code to unlock the door to the inner sanctum. Once he’d been buzzed inside, Ben made his way to the training room. He found Koios waiting for him, the dreaded smoothie at his side.
Ben ignored it and put down his bag. “How are you feeling today?”
“Annoyed.”
“So, normal. Any pain from yesterday?” Ben asked as he pulled out his tablet.
“Yes.”
Ben hurried over to the table. “Show me.”
Koios scowled and pointed to the side of his neck. “Right the fuck there. And on the other side, too. You ass.”
Ben couldn’t hide his smirk. “Yeah? Neck a little sore?”
Koios picked up the smoothie and took a long drink. He lowered the glass and continued to glare. “I’m a man of my word. I lost the bet, and now you’re going to explain to me how poking me in the head made my neck sore.”
“Have a seat and I’ll show you,” Ben said.
He took the dreaded smoothie out of Koios’s hand and put it on one of the weight benches while Koios climbed onto the table. Then he grabbed a bottle of water from his bag and passed it to Koios. “Drink this.”
“Sure, Doc. Whatever you say.”
Ben chuckled and took a long drink of his coffee. He’d never been so thankful for caffeine in his life. Once Koios drank enough water to wash down the smoothie, Ben took the bottle and put both it and his coffee cup down.
“I learned this trick from a physical therapist I met in med school. He uses it on a lot of his patients who don’t think his work will make a difference. We have tiny muscles at the top of our neck, especially right behind the ears. It doesn’t take much to engage them, but for a lot of us who spend time in front of a screen, they can become strained.”
“I believe that, but all you did was touch my head. Come on. You expect me to believe I’m this sore from a simple touch.”
“Yep,” Ben said. He put his finger on Koios’s forehead. “Pay attention to your neck. Focus on those muscles behind your ear.”
Ben lifted his finger and waited for the expression he knew would appear.
“Holy goddess, I do feel that.”
Ben nodded and moved his hand to the back of Koios’s head. “And again.”
