“Oh my god,” I see him say aloud, and he smacks my chest. ‘We are over that!’
‘No,’ I tell him, sniffing and lifting my nose into the air. ‘I want my A+.’
He rolls his eyes so hard he probably pulls something. ‘Fine. You can work on your A+. After I get the gym stuff handled.’
‘I’ll be here whenever you’re ready,’ I promise him, the weight of truth heavy on my hands. ‘I’m not going anywhere.’
His smile widens, eyes soften, and then he leans back in to take another desperate kiss.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
DEX
“I’m heading home,”I tell Thom as I move through the gym. “Rome is waiting for me.”
Thom waggles his eyebrows. His mood has improved since the fire. For a while there, he was constantly upset, but now that the rebuild has begun, we’re both a lot less stressed.
“A special surprise?” he asks, and I slug him in the arm while he laughs. “I’m kidding, I’ve got it from here. See you tomorrow.”
Truth be told, Rome has been acting a little weird the last few days. Peering at his phone too often, fibbing when I ask him what he’s looking at. I’ve been worried and trying not to show it. But the truth is, I’ve grown dependent on him. I’m fucking obsessed with this man.
Now it seems like things are slowly going sideways, and I don’t know why. I know I’ve been busy dealing with insurance, the fire department, and contractors, but I’ve always made time for him.
I’ll always make time for him. So if this is about how busyI’ve been lately, I can make some changes. I just want him to be happy. I need to tell him how I feel and figure out why he’s been acting so weird lately.
I need to beg him to stay with me. To give us a chance. I know I’m catastrophizing, but I’ve been under immense amounts of stress, and I can’t help but feel slightly overwhelmed.
Without as much heart as I’d like, I give my brother a wave and walk through the different workout stations, seeing people using the machines, greeting some and even correcting one’s form as well. They’ll thank me for it later when their spine stays attached to their ribs.
My eyes swivel to the part of the gym that was destroyed in the fire. Right now, it’s taped off, and we’re in the process of rebuilding. Luckily, we were able to reopen fairly quickly because the main part of the gym wasn’t damaged, and the fire affected nothing structural.
The only problem is, itwasarson. Someone set this on fire on purpose, and we don’t know why. Luckily, Thorne still has his contacts and is trying to help us as much as he can, but so far, he’s turned up nothing.
I just hope whoever did it will be found, and then we’ll be able to ask why they targeted our gym. Was it random? Or do they have a personal vendetta against someone working here? Until they’re caught, we won’t know.
As I move toward the lockers to grab my bag, I see someone enter the gym, his head on a swivel. It’s Milo. He looks a little out of place, wearing jeans and a well-worn shirt, but when his eyes meet mine, he gives me a nod.
I want to head home to Rome, but instead, I make my way to the front of the gym and greet him.
Bea is blinking up at him from behind the counter, like she doesn’t know what to do with herself.
“I got it, Bea.” I wave Milo over. “Hey, you looking to join a gym?”
“No, I work out enough by moving bodies.”
I let out a strained laugh, and he blinks at me. Oh-kay. I can’t tell if he’s joking or not. “Well, why are you here?”
“Making sure Dennis is okay.”
“He’s great, still a little rude, but you know, nothing I can’t handle.”
“He wasn’t here during the fire.”
“Dude, no. He was cozy in my condo.”
“Oh, good.” It’s almost like he’s relieved he doesn’t need to kill me.
I bounce on my toes nervously. “Anything I can help you with?”
