She was being impossible. “I’ll pick you up, strip you and chuck you in the shower if I have to.”
And I would like that very, very much.
I held my breath as I waited for a reply. If she told me to I would. There was no fucking way if she asked me to strip her down to her birthday suit and get her all wet I would be able to resist. I was the lowest of the low.
Brother’s girl. Brother’s fucking girl.
“You can carry me to the changing rooms but I’m pretty sure you’ll get fired if you come in.”
I literally don’t care.
“Fine,” I huffed, pretending to be annoyed. Reaching down, I scooped her into my arms and carried her to the ladies’ changing room.
My supervisor didn’t bat an eyelid as I walked past, probably because I’d worked here forever and had covered his arse when he was off screwing the January women. Most people felt down in January, Christmas was over and it was still freezing. January brought women that wanted to get fit – for what usually lasted one to two months tops. January was Patrick’s Christmas.
I put her down outside the door and she groaned as her feet touched the floor. The sound was almost erotic and alongside the mental image of her naked in the shower, I was not doing well to keep my hormones in check.
“Gotta shower, too,” I said and got the hell out of there as fast as I could. Today’s cold shower was going to be lot earlier than usual.
***
I met Chloe by my car. She was curled up on the bonnet. “Good thing you weigh nothing,” I said, unlocking the doors.
“If you ever suggest a heavy workout again…”
Holding my hands up, I replied, “Got it. You used to do that all the time, Chlo.”
“I used to be fit.”
You’ve always been fit.
“You’ll get there again.”
She flicked her hand in my direction. “Especially with the drill sergeant training me.”
“Hey, you asked for this.”
“Yeah, nice one, Chloe,” she muttered. “Can we go back to yours and not move off the sofa until Cass feeds us?”
“Sounds like a plan to me.”
“And I’ll need a smoothie,” she said, rolling off my car onto her feet. “And a blanket.”
“Wow, you’re going to milk this all day, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
I drove us back to mine and took photos of Chlo hobbling to the door like a little old lady, earning me a slap on the chest and the second death threat of the day.
“Chloe, are you okay?” Mum asked her.
I rolled my eyes. Here we go…
“No. Logan is evil.”
Mum smiled. “Oh, you’ve just been to the gym.”
“Gym, hell, it’s all the same,” Chloe replied and sank down on the sofa.
“She’s handling it really well,” I said sarcastically. “Banana and strawberry or cherry and kiwi?”
“Banana and strawberry, please.”
Mum followed me into the kitchen.
“It’s good she’s getting back into fitness.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“It’s because of you, you know.”
I carried on shoving the strawberries in the blender. “What?”
“You brought her back.”
I smiled up at Mum. “I owed her one.”
“Oh, come on, Logan. No need to play it down. That girl is happy again because you wouldn’t let her wallow anymore. I’m proud of you.”
Yeah, well, I love her so I don’t really have a choice. I needed her to be okay. Jace would have needed her to be okay.
“Thanks,” I said, peeling a banana. “Something had to change or Chloe was going to waste her life away hiding at home and I was going to die of alcohol poisoning.”
“I was so worried about you, Logan. Your dad, too.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have put you both through that. It’s just… the guilt…”
“I understand. It’s all worked out for the best now. I’ve got my son and my surrogate daughter back.” I would’ve preferred daughter-in-law.
“Yeah, things are good.” They had been for a few months now. Finally. Well, apart from her wanting to see other guys. I wanted her to be happy and not drown in depression from missing Jace, but I didn’t want her to be with anyone but me.
If Jace didn’t hate me for the last things I’d said to him he had every right to for how I felt about Chloe. Only I knew he wouldn’t. He loved me and her and if it couldn’t be him he’d want it to be me. If it was the other way around I’d want the woman I loved to be with a person I trusted with my life. It was hard to detach that knowledge from the guilt of wanting his girl, though.
“Smoothie?” I asked.
“No, thanks, love. What’s next for you then?”
Ah, I loved that question when I was so far away from reaching my goals. It was like a little kick in the balls every time someone asked.
“Save money. Buy a house. You want me out soon or something?” I drank a lot of my savings after Jace died. All I cared about was going out and getting so drunk I didn’t remember my brother had died, I’d been a dick to him and wanted to kiss his girlfriend.