He nods. “Good idea. I’ll do that too.”
“Great. Meet you back out here in ten.”
“Perfect.”
We’re practically spitting venom at each other before I turn to hurry back down the hall, but Zander calls after me.
"And where are you going? I thought we were going running?"
"Well, maybe I don't want to go anymore," I shoot back.
"Suit yourself, I leave in fifteen minutes."
Ugh! He’s so intolerable!
"Fine!” I snap. “But don't expect me to enjoy it!"
My lungs burn and my muscles ache as we make our way along the jogging path in Cheesman Park. It’s a fairly easy trail, and though I tried to convince Zander I could handle more of a challenge, he insisted we go here, and now I understand why. I’m out of breath a lot sooner than I’d usually be on a run like this, so I begrudgingly appreciate the easier, straight-forward trail.
“You good?” Zander asks, glancing down at me as we try to keep pace with each other.
“Yeah,” I pant. “I’m fine.”
“Why don’t we take a quick break?” he suggests, slowing to a stop. “Have some water.”
I come to a stop next to him. “All right… sure.”
“People don’t usually take into account how thin the air is,” he says, sounding as though he’s not struggling at all. “It took me a while to really get used to it when I first came here.”
My first instinct is to take offense at his words, but the run has cooled my head a bit and I can tell that he’s not trying to insult me. He’s being genuine… even admitting to his own difficulties with this atmosphere.
I take a beat, soften my words a bit, and reply, “So, I take it you didn’t grow up around here?”
He shakes his head. “Nope. Nashville.”
My jaw drops. “No shit? I grew up in Nashville!”
He gives me a wry smile. “I know. You told me the night of the wedding. You just probably don’t remember.”
I tense, my cheeks heating with embarrassment. Fuck, I’ve never wanted to remember a night more than that one. What else did I say to him? How big of an idiot was I?
“Okay,” I murmur, wanting to move off this topic as quickly as possible. “So, you grew up in Nashville… how’d you end up here?”
“Went to the University of Minnesota on a scholarship for hockey.” He shrugs his shoulders. “Got drafted out of school to a team in Washington and played a couple seasons there before I was traded to the Night Hawks. Best thing that could’ve happened to me, honestly. I can’t even imagine playing for another team now.”
“Really? Not a lot of athletes would say the same. Hell, even Tom Brady didn’t stick with the Patriots when he became a free agent.”
“I’m happy where I am,” he answers simply. “And if I go anywhere else, it’s going to be back to Nashville. I’d like to be closer to my family.”
Huh, have to admit, I wasn’t expecting that. Before I can ask another question and do a bit more digging into his background, he checks his smartwatch.
“That’s enough,” he declares, his breathing heavy. “We should get back. I’ve got some things I need to do and I want to message my date from last night before noon.”
Irritation pokes at me and I can’t help but grumble, “Surprised you’re bothering to go back to this one.”
He narrows his eyes into a glare down at me. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Shrugging, I cross my arms, avoiding his eyes. “Just surprised, is all. Must not have slept with this girl yet.”
