His lips trail down my neck, sending shivers all over.
"I love looking at you," he breathes, brushing the hair off my shoulders. "Will you let me look at you?"
My heart hammers, a wild thing seeking his. "Yes."
So he does. And I feel it. For a long...
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........................................
NOAH
Oh, fuck split squats.
Standing here, trying to mirror Cam's stance, I feel stupid. She's explaining the mechanics, but my body won't cooperate. Every attempt to lower myself with one foot kicked back up on a bench behind me, ends in a wobble that threatens to topple me over.
"Tighten your core," Cam says, holding two 50lbs dumbbells as she lowers up and down on one leg like it's nothing.
"Break," I say, falling to my ass.
"Get your ass off the ground, Bello. Impress me."
Fuck. For her, I'll try again.
The workout continues. She won't let me bench press or bar squat. I could impress her with those. I think she knows that.
Between sets, as we hydrate on a bench and catch our breath, Cam says, "Do you see it?" She points her water bottle to the place, to the people packing up to head out as night falls in the windows. "It's a haven. Everyone belongs here, no matter what. They want to be stronger. I get to help them."
Do I see it? Mostly, I just see her—her humility, her fear, her fire.
That's when the lights flicker twice.
Cam sighs. "I have to clean and lock up tonight. Stay?"
Hell yes. I don't want to leave yet.
It's about ten minutes before the place empties completely. We start re-racking the weights methodically. We disinfect the machines next, wiping them down with rags and spray.
At one point, Axel reappears and pauses when he sees us, a raised eyebrow directed at me.
Let me guess. He's got eyes for her too.
Cam squirts her spray bottle, running a cloth along the handles of the last treadmill. "We're cleaning."
"I'm not blind, Delgado. Just don't fuck each other on the equipment."
"Axel!" she snaps. He just throws a hand over his shoulder and leaves.
The gym is nearly dark now, the only light coming from the emergency exits and the faint glow of the streetlights outside the tinted windows. She clears her throat, leaning against the treadmill. I lean on the handle opposite her, just looking at her, trying not to miss something.
Cam points down to the treadmill with her spray bottle. "What drives you, Bello? Beyond the bachelor's degree. Beyond being the best big brother to the luckiest siblings in the world." Her smile is soft. It hits me squarely. "And beyond your friends. What are you running after?"
The answers are practicality, stability, and maybe a little happiness.But I hesitate.
"Tell me," she says, smiling like she knows I'll give in.
