Broken Vows

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Brad’s knock sounded on Erin’s door at 7:30 the next morning and despite the late bed time she was already awake.  She’d gotten used to fewer hours of sleep when she became a mother and normally she was up by 4 a.m. to get ready for her morning run and work.

“I’ll be out in a second!” she called as she pulled on her shoes.  She pulled her hair up in a hasty ponytail and then greeted Brad at the door.

“You ready?” he asked, still looking a little bleary eyed.

“I am.  How are you?”

Brad gave her a sleepy smile.  “Tired.  And my shins are sore.  I’m gonna have to take it easy today but I’m hoping this isn’t shin splints.  Such a rookie injury.”

Erin rolled her eyes.  “Yeah, well, even non-rookies can hurt themselves.  Especially when we start running on surfaces we’re not used to.  Want to pound the pavement instead today?”

Brad nodded.  She followed him out the front door and they paused in the drive to warm up and stretch out the kinks.  Then they started through the neighborhood towards the gate at an easy pace.  She could see Brad wince with each footfall.

“Are you sure you want to do this?  Maybe you should give it a day.”

Brad shook his head.  “I’ll be fine.  Just gotta warm up my muscles, get them stretched out.”

“Okay.” Erin conceded, but she wasn’t convinced.

They turned right out of the gate and headed along the main road.  Erin ogled the houses they passed, taking note of the different styles and colors.  She’d love to have her own beach house to come to as she pleased.  Unfortunately she didn’t know any sugar daddies willing to donate to the cause.  Some of the houses had nicely landscaped lawns, others seemed to be surrounded by sand dune.  She would’ve taken any of them.  The morning air was humid but still cool and it felt good against her skin.  She tasted the salt from the sea when she licked her lips.  The town was just waking up and the atmosphere was still pretty quiet and peaceful.  It was a much more relaxing run that her normal one through Two Rivers.  She usually met Brad by 5:15 and it was barely light out when they started their trek through the city.  While Two Rivers was no Philadelphia or Pittsburgh, it was still bustling and even at that early hour there was always traffic and noise. Here, it was just an occasional car, the call of the birds and the sound of the sea.  She loved it.

Brad finally pulled to a stop, bending at the waist to catch his breath and rub his shins.  “I don’t know Erin.  You may have been right.  I’m not feeling a whole lot better.”

“Should we walk back?”

“No, we can finish the run but I think I’d better turn around here.”

Erin agreed and fell back in step with him.  She was careful to watch him and keep the pace easy but she could tell by the time they arrived back at the gate he was hurting.  She slowed to a walk, forcing him to slow too.  “Let’s just walk back and take it easy.”

Brad nodded, happy to oblige.  Once inside he headed straight for the pain killers and a glass of water.  Erin was surprised to see Brody sitting at the breakfast bar when they entered the kitchen. 

“Good morning.” He greeted.

“Morning.” Erin replied, sliding onto a stool next to him.

They watched Brad chug his water and pain killers before he said hello.  “I’m headed for a shower and a leg massage.”

Erin nodded and watched him retreat to the bedroom.

“What’s up with him?” Brody asked.

“Shin splints.  I told him he shouldn’t run but he wouldn’t listen.  Looks like I’ll be doing morning runs by myself for a few days.”