“Mm-hmm.”It wasn’t like they lived in different time zones, but Spencer knew exactly where his dad was going with this.He could picture it as clearly as he could picture his dad sitting in the Delaware house Spencer had grown up in.
“This late and you’re just winding down the workday,” Mitch said.“Back when I was working, I’d been home for a few hours and was in the room for whatever show you or your sister had on by this time of night.”
“Because you worked a nine-to-five job, and I don’t,” Spencer reminded him.“It’s not like I’m going home late because I didn’t finish my work, it’s because I meet with my clients whentheycan meet up.For some of them, that means early in the morning or after 5:00.”
“Still, when I was your age...”Spencer could practically recite this speech, having heard it on almost every call since he’d ended his engagement, quit his corporate job, and gotten certified as a personal trainer.When his dad was his age, he’d already had two kids.When his dad was his age, he’d been married for a few years and had recently made a down payment on the house Spencer had grown up in.Blah, blah,blah.
“Hey!”Kurt called out to him from the exit.
Spencer was grateful for the interruption.“I’ve gotta go, Dad, but we’ll talk again later.”
He hung up and turned to face his colleague.“What’s up?”
“On my way for a private session with Naomi.”Kurt grinned wolfishly, then scowled at Spencer’s expression.“Don’t give me that look.I know what I’m doing.”
“It’s not you.That’s my face after talking to my dad.”
Kurt’s face softened.“The usual?”
“Yeah.You’re working past quitting time.When I was your age...”
“And maybe he’d have a point if you were...What’d he do again?”
“He worked in an insurance office.”And thanks to Mitch’s executive position at the local branch office, so had Spencer during the darkest days of his life.
The memories of those soul-crushing days were such that Kurt’s full-body shudder didn’t strike Spencer as melodramatic at all.“And you don’t have to wear a tie or even real pants to work here, and a free gym membership is part of your benefits.Who got the better end of the deal?”
Spencer’s spirits lifted a little at the reminder.“True.”
“If you wanted to take some time in the middle of the day to go for a run or do a workout, I bet office workers didn’t like that.”
“Definitely not.”Spencer had gotten strange looks every time he’d so much as gone for a walk around the block to try to clear his head.
“But they allow—hell, they encourage—that here.Not to mention, weren’t secretaries the only women he worked with?”
“Dude, it wasn’tthatlong ago.”Actually, when Spencer thought back on his dad sharing stories about his workdays and colleagues, he didn’t remember a lot of women being mentioned, if any at all.
Kurt ignored this so he could keep up his pep talk.“But you look around us and see all these great-looking girls in tight workout gear, and they came right to us.Hell, we’re getting paid to meet them!”
“It’s not like we can do anything with our clients.”Not without getting fired.
“Not on gym premises.”Kurt wiggled his eyebrows before heading off to his client’s apartment.
Spencer walked home, trying to hold onto the good aspects of the pep talk and figure out how to better connect with Misty without giving too much away.Or without dwelling on her having sex or touching herself.
He sighed and wiped a drop of sweat out of his eyes.He’d been in the air-conditioned gym during the worst of the day’s heat, but it was still stifling out.Suddenly, he wasn’t sure he could wait for his window unit to cool his studio.He’d feel better after a nice, cold shower.
