By her third snatch, the rest of the class started to filter back into the gym. By the time Katrina made it inside, Constance was halfway through her push-ups. She felt a surge of energy, a natural high that propelled her through the bicep burning push-ups and on to the rower to knock out her calories. She’d gained just enough time, through her speedy run and ability to execute the snatches quicker and smoother than Katrina, that Constance actually had a chance to beat her. Katrina’s push-ups were ten quick bounces and her row would be slightly quicker, too, with her longer body and better technique. But Constance had the lead and the snatches were going to be the great equalizer.
Constance drew a deep breath and focused on her own work. She ignored the clock and put Katrina out of her sight. All that mattered was that she did this workout as quickly and as well as she could. She didn’t even think about the fact that she’d done her first eight-hundred-meter run outside in over a year; she could celebrate that later.
Once her five rounds were complete, Constance’s legs and arms were on fire. She faced the rope, stood there staring at it while she caught her breath and sweat dripped into her eyes. The electrical tape looked really high, almost impossible to reach.
“Jump into it!” Rhett shouted. “Hook those feet! I don’t care if you’re tired! Embrace the suck! Go!”
Constance summoned any energy left and leaped onto the rope. Her feet flailed around while she tried to grab it and she dropped back down.
“C’mon, Red!” Duke was a few feet away, all finished and clapping his hands together. “Get your ass on that rope!”
Constance leaped a second time, this time bringing her feet up as quickly as she could. She got the J-hook so fast she hung there a moment, stunned.
“Go on!” Duke circled around her. “Don’t burn out! Go!”
Holding the rope tight, Constance leaned back, brought her legs up and hooked her feet again. She remembered Rhett’s command—stand up—and fully extended her body. She looked up at the tape and found herself only one tiny step away from being able to tap it.
“Don’t let go now!” somebody yelled.
Out of the corner of her eye, Constance saw Katrina fail her snatch. She’d pulled too early and couldn’t get under it. In fact, Katrina had failed a lot of her snatches and that had kept her behind. Focus, Constance told herself. That woman is not your problem.
Dredging up every last ounce of blood and sweat Constance had left in her, her arms screaming, she bent her knees, secured her feet—this time not much higher than where they’d been before—and stood up on the rope. She reached, and her fingertips just barely tapped the tape. Her heart surged, and in her excitement, she slid more than she rappelled her way back to the floor. At the bottom, she landed on her feet, but quickly sank to her butt, then flat on her back. Eyes closed, heart pounding, Constance remembered back to her first day. She’d lain on the floor then, too, after doing her rope climb. But back then, she’d done the scaled version, and was the last to finish.
Her eyes opened as soon as the pain started to recede, just in time to watch Katrina jump on the rope, climb it in about fifteen seconds, and drop to the ground.
Katrina, covered in a sheen of sweat, looked lithe and supple and made the rope climb look easy. Constance lay there, unable to move, and grateful for the people that weren’t done yet so that she had more time to recoup before she had to clean up her equipment.
By the time Rhett turned down the music and told everyone they’d done “not horrible,” Constance could stand. Everyone was giving high fives. Katrina, face stony, accepted the high fives that came her way but offered none of her own. She was intent on cleaning up her barbell as quickly as possible.
“Nice work,” Constance offered. “Your rope climb was beautiful. I hope I get mine that quick someday.” She held up her hand.
“Thanks.” Katrina gave her palm a swipe that barely counted as a touch. Then she grabbed her water bottle and walked away.
“Red!” Duke stormed up to her, like he was angry, but then stopped, wrapped his arms beneath her backside and lifted her up. “Heard it was your first rope climb! Good job!” He bounced her against his sweaty chest, then set her back on her feet.
“Second rope climb,” Rhett’s voice corrected as he strode out from behind her. “And nobody wants to touch your sweaty body, Duke.”
Duke smoothed back his hair. “Don’t be jealous, Santos. I’ll pick you up, too. Soon as you do something awesome. Which is never.”
Rhett gave the smile he did only with his eyes. He shoved Duke in the chest, then turned to Constance. “How was the run?”
“I honestly don’t remember it.” Constance wanted to laugh and cry, all at the same time. Only now, with her adrenaline dying down, did everything that had happened this afternoon sink in.
“I’ll take that as a good thing. I knew you could do it.”
“Makes one of us.” Constance laughed at herself, but let it die off when she saw that Rhett wasn’t joining in her humor.
“You knew you could do it, too. That’s how you got it done. Same as that rope climb.” Rhett’s jaw tightened. He had about two days’ worth of dark growth on his face and his hair was getting a little long in the back, so was starting to curl up around his neck and ears. His gray T-shirt was just tight enough across the chest and shoulders to show how big his muscles were, even fully clothed. His sleeve was shoved up just the tiniest bit, and Constance could see the hooves of the stallion tattoo.
“I think you pissed off your girlfriend.” Constance nodded in the direction of the open bay, where Katrina exited with a great show.
Rhett followed her gaze, then shrugged. “She’s not my girlfriend.”
“I don’t think she was happy about you changing up the workout,” Constance pushed, even though she probably should’ve let it drop.
Rhett eyed her in silence for a moment before he said, “I don’t think she’ll be back.”
“Oh, that’s a shame.”
“Is it?”
Constance remembered everything Callahan had told her today. Rhett’s energy was changing by the second, like a storm coming suddenly to sea. “First time I’ve run in a long time,” she said, not wanting to talk any more about Katrina. “I still don’t think I want to make it regular, but I’m glad I ran today.”
“Warm weather is here.” He nodded toward the open bay, where Katrina had made her huffing exit. “We run a lot after winter’s over. Sometimes into the woods and back.”
Constance eyed the leafy green trees across the street. This was the first time she’d noticed that Greenview Park butted up to the gym. Greenview Park was where she used to run with Josh. Greenview Park was where he gave up on her. “Trail running used to be my thing. Once upon a time. Not sure how my mile would fare these days.”
Rhett stared down at her, silent, his eyes unreadable. A few people walked past and said goodbye or slapped him on the shoulder. He responded to all, but then turned back to Constance and looked down at her again.
“I’ll run with you.” His eyes softened. “I’ll run with you different places outside. On Sundays, when we’re closed. Get your legs back. If you want.”
Constance bit down on her lower lip. That was not at all what she had expected him to say. She’d expected him to shrug and tell her to man up. She had tremors and butterflies and no way to tell which was which or what they meant. “Okay. But you have to let me help you, too.”
He narrowed his eyes. “I don’t need any help.”
“Yeah, you said that,” Constance pressed. She wasn’t going to let him put up his facade this time. “We’ll swap. You run with me, I’ll massage you.” She nodded at his leg. “That limp is bad again, and it’s not even cold. And you look tired, even though you hide it. You’re not sleeping well at night. And even though we’ve never talked about Humphrey, I think you were having a panic attack. T
hese are all things I can help with.”
A long silence passed. Duke went by and yelled goodbye to them both. Neither one of them broke their shared gaze, even when they both muttered, “Bye, Duke.”
Finally, Rhett stuck out his hand. “Okay. Deal.”
twenty-seven
Sean sat in front of the window, bathed in full sunshine. He’d pulled the chair from Sunny’s vanity and plunked it right there, with a view to the gardens. His skin looked tanned and his hair tinged with blond in the bright light.
“What’re you doing over there?” Sunny sat up in bed and stretched.
“Watching.” His chin rested in his hand, so the word came muffled.
“Watching what?” In all their weeks of weekend mornings, she’d never found him anywhere but in her bed, getting dressed or gone.
“Your rescue.” Sean continued to stare out the window. Eventually, he stood, flipped the chair around and settled it back at the dresser with Sunny’s makeup and mirrors. “You’ve got some loyal people helping you. Impressive.”
“Thanks.” Sunny glanced at the clock and jumped from the covers. “Oh, jeez. I’m going to be late.”
“For?”
“Meeting with Pete about the pups.” Sunny yanked on a pair of leggings. She hurriedly pulled on a T-shirt, then realized she’d forgotten her bra and stripped it off.
“You hang out with Pete a lot.” Sean watched her scramble around. “I think he’s sweet on you.”
Sunny’s fingers slowed on the clasp of her bra. “I’ve known Pete since I was a kid. And it’s Cici he’s sweet on. Besides, he knows we’re sleeping together.” Top on again, she glanced in the mirror, saw she’d put on a black bra beneath a white T-shirt and stripped the top over her head again. She balled it up and tossed it in the corner. “Sorry. I’m not a morning person by nature.” Sunny dug a black shirt from her drawer and pulled it over her head.
“No need to apologize.” Sean leaned against the wall, like he was settling in for a show. “I’ll watch you undress as much as you want.”
Sunny gave his reflection a smile as she fluffed her hair with her fingers. No time to make it look good.
“Is that what we’re doing?” he asked.
Sunny dabbed gloss on her lips and rubbed them together. “What?”
“Sleeping together. Is that what we’re doing?”
Sunny tossed the gloss on the table and turned to face Sean. “Well—” she shrugged “—aren’t we?”
“Yeah.” Sean pushed off the wall. “Sure.”
Sunny rubbed her lips together again, slowly. “Are you...? What are you...?” She put her hands on her hips as the question faded out. This was a new scenario for her. Now that she thought about it, she wasn’t sure she’d ever had a man ask her where they were at in their relationship. She’d certainly never asked it herself. Besides, she knew Sean was technically still married, even though he was separated.
“I was thinking.” Sean’s expression was his typical cool, calm and collected. “We should have dinner, maybe.”
“Dinner?” Sunny shifted her weight from foot to foot. Shoes. She needed shoes. “Um...sure.” She disappeared into her closet and returned with a pair of red Italian sandals.
“Sure?” Sean narrowed his brow, gave a little shrug.
“Sure.” Sunny slipped on the sandals and grabbed her purse. “We can have dinner.”
“When?”
“Soon.” Sunny glanced at the clock. “I need to get going. Just text me and we’ll figure it out.”
Sean shrugged again. “Okay.”
Sunny walked over, planted her hands on his chest, leaned in and gave him a peck on the lips. “Gotta run. You know the way out.”
Sean caught her arm as she turned to go, drew her back in and gave her a long, slow kiss that made Sunny want to get undressed and get back into bed. The way Sean’s hands slipped beneath her shirt told her he felt the same way. “No, no, no,” she whispered, pushing him gently away. “Oh! White Fern Road.” In all the mess with Janice Matteri, Sunny had completely forgotten about the poor dog that lived out by the barn. “Have you had a chance to peek over there?”
He held on to her another second, then released her. “White Fern Road. Yeah, I peeked over there. Didn’t see a dog at all.”
Sunny’s chest tightened. “Maybe he was around the other side, where you couldn’t see him.”
“Maybe. I’ll drive by again.”
“Thank you.” She kissed him once more. “Okay. Now I really am late.” When Sunny made it to the door, she glanced over her shoulder and saw that Sean was once again staring out at the grounds.
* * *
Pete was letting Chevy’s pups have the run of his living room, which used to be his parents’ living room. He’d taken over the house when his folks moved to Florida a decade ago. This was the same living room where Sunny, Cici and Pete used to play—Twister on the hundred-year-old floor or Space Invaders on the boxy television. The irony was not lost on Sunny that Pete’s mom had hated dogs, and would never let him have one, and now canines ruled this roost.
“That one.” Pete pointed to Ziggy, a wiggling ball of energy. Her brindle coat was heavy on the black and her ears were larger than a typical pit bull’s. “She’s being trained for mobility service. And that one—” Pete pointed to Munchkin, the smallest, who had a large caramel spot around his left eye “—is being trained for psychiatric service. And that one—” Pete pointed at Zelda “—the one rolling around on her back like a buffalo wallowing in the dirt?” She was mostly white, with random splotches of tan and black that looked like continents on a map. “I still haven’t figured that one out.”
“Different personalities for different jobs,” Sunny agreed.
“I’m tempted to rename them.” Pete gave a sly grin. “Cici, Pete and Sunny.”
“Oh, no, you didn’t.” Sunny giggled. “I’m the one wallowing in the dirt?”
“You know it.”
Sunny gave him a shove. “I hate you.”
Pete tilted back the brim of his baseball cap and grinned. “I’m happy to see that smile. You’ve been really tense lately.”
“I didn’t know you’d noticed.” Sunny reached out and ran her fingers down the sides of his chin. His beard was softer than she’d expected. “How long you going to grow this?” Personally, she liked it right where it was. It gave him a sexy, rugged look, but any longer and Pete would start to look like a guy from a Civil War photo.
“Don’t change the subject,” Pete said. “But since you asked, I was thinking a little longer. What do you think? You like it?”
“I do like it.” Sunny was surprised. Typically, she preferred clean-shaven. “But any longer and you’ll be trendy.” Pete grimaced. Sunny pointed a finger. “I knew that would get you.”
“Yeah?” Pete’s humor died a little. “And what’s getting you? You haven’t been yourself lately. That guy you’re dating treating you right? The cop?”
“Sure.” Sunny sank to the original hardwood floor of Pete’s living room. Sunny often thought about all the feet that had walked on this wood, what kind of shoes they wore and where those shoes had roamed. Zelda, the little crazy one who Pete couldn’t figure out, streaked into Sunny’s lap, her head hitting Sunny’s abs as she flopped onto her back. “We’re not really dating, anyway. I’m not sure what we are, other than the product of a bargain. Sean lived up to his end in spades. Took out Janice Matteri’s puppy mill in one fell swoop. I’ve been picking away at her for years, and along comes Sean, with his badge, and she’s down for the count.” Sunny shook her head. “Who knew?” She left out the part about Janice’s threat. Even though weeks had gone by and nothing had materialized but a moved feed bin, Sunny still felt Janice’s icy words in her veins.
“You’re the one that took her down,” Pete corrected. He rolled his eyes as Sunny indulged
Zelda’s “crazy” by rubbing her tummy. “Your cop wouldn’t have had any interest in Janice Matteri without you in the pot.”
“In the pot?” Sunny gripped Zelda’s ears gently in both hands and stroked them, enjoying the silky feel in her palms. She was pretty sure that the stray who mated with Chevy was a lab, based on the puppies’ ears and coloring. “You make me sound like a bargaining chip.”
“No offense to you, Sunny, but your cop isn’t helping you out of the goodness of his heart or for the love of the dogs. You’re not just part of a bargain to him. He’s helping you because he’s sweet on you.”
Sunny kissed Zelda on the head and rose up to face Pete. “That’s funny. Sean said the exact same thing about you.”
“What thing?” Pete’s eyes narrowed.
“He said you were ‘sweet on me.’” Sunny laughed as she made air quotes. “He brought up how much time we spend together and suggested you like me. Isn’t that the most hilarious thing you’ve ever heard?” Sunny giggled and waited for Pete to bend in half, his body racked with laughter.
“Oh.” Pete’s face relaxed, all lines erased as he considered her words. He watched the puppies race around with each other. “I guess he’s a pretty good detective, then.”
“I know, right? I told him how dumb he sounded. I told him how you’ve always had a thing for Cici and... Wait.” Sunny’s mouth closed. She did a mental rewind. “Did you just say he was or wasn’t a good detective? I don’t think I heard you right. Or maybe you didn’t hear me right?”
Pete crossed his arms over his chest. “I said he was. And I heard you right.”
“Oh.” Sunny thought back on her words, just to make sure she’d said them the way she meant to say them. “But that means that...”
“Guess we know who isn’t a good detective.” Pete’s seriousness ceded to a half smile. That was his uncertain smile. One side of his mouth would tuck up at the corner and his eyes would get big. He’d been doing it since that day, ages ago, when he’d come upon Sunny and Cici in the woods, halfway between their homes, and said, “I’m Pete. You guys wanna play hide-and-seek?”
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