The Rub Down

by Gina Sheldon

  After the exchange with Dave, I brushed off any other man’s attempt to talk to me. I was more than happy to remain single if guys like him made up the dating pool.

  Around midnight, my feet were killing me, and I needed food. And there was no better neighborhood to get good eats. I motioned Addison to head for the door, signaling I needed food, and she nodded vigorously. When we reached the coat check, we were finally able to hear each other over the blaring music.

  “Pizza, cannoli, or gelato?” I asked.

  “YES! I want it all.” She giggled, and I was happy she was on my level.

  Out on the sidewalk, we looked up and down Hanover Street to get our bearings. Pizza was our first stop. I knew I was going to regret it the next day, but I didn’t care. Pepperoni was screaming my name, and no way would I ignore the call. Using her best telephone sex voice, Addison ordered a slice of meat lover’s from the poor guy, which had me buckled over at the knees, laughing so hard. I turned into a teenage boy when I drank, and thought everything was about sex.

  “Addison loves meat,” I yelled after I took a breath between loud, obnoxious laughs.

  I inhaled my huge slice, and was ready to walk across the street to get a gelato. Addison preferred a cannoli, so we headed to our favorite café where we could get both. Mike’s Pastry was supposed to be the best in the North End, but it was always packed with tourists, no matter what time it was.

  “Why the hell did our forefathers build the sidewalks out of brick? I can’t walk in heels for shit in this town,” I complained to Addison when I stumbled.

  Over time, the bricks broke and only half remained alongside a gaping hole, or the ground underneath pushed them up. Either way, the sidewalks were uneven, and a total walking hazard, even to the sober.

  “Beats the heck out of me. Every time we go out drinking, we have this problem. Do you think we should either a, not drink so much, or b, not wear heels when we go out?” Addison responded.

  “Fuck that. I’m not giving up my sexy heels or drinking. I’ll just say a small prayer that I don’t fall on my face.” I almost tripped again over a tree root, driving our point home.

  Laughing like loons, we linked arms and crossed the street Frogger-style, avoiding the cabbies like we were playing the old Atari game. We walked in and waited behind a few other partygoers who had the same idea as us. Finally, I ordered a strawberry gelato, and Addison got a chocolate cannoli. Usually chocolate was my go-to flavor, but for whatever reason, I needed sweet and fruity. The restaurant had a few empty, small bistro tables, which I was thankful for since my feet really killed me. Those heels would be the death of me come Sunday when I tried to run.

  Addison and I ate while recapping our favorite moments of the night, and gossiping about the outfits we saw. We were fashion designers/consultants, after all, so we couldn’t help ourselves. And boy, did we see some doozies. One girl wore a white pleather mini, clear plastic hooker shoes that lit up when she walked, and a cotton tube top two sizes too small for her plastic tits. Then there was the guy on the dance floor, doing the worm, hoping the chicks thought it was hot. He missed the mark with his pleated, corduroy khaki pants and his green, argyle sweater vest.

  Mid-laugh, Addison’s eyes got a little bigger. She straightened her posture and pushed her ladies out. I knew this move. A hot guy must have just walked in behind me, and she was putting her best foot forward, if you will. Holding up both hands, I asked her to give me the hotness on a scale of one to ten, and she gave me an enthusiastic ten. I loved having a best friend I could communicate with, without a single word exchanged.

  Slowly, I turned my head, pretending to fix my hair, and trying not to make it look like I was checking him out. I knew I wasn’t being successful, but I didn’t give a shit when I saw who just strolled in.

  “LUKE!!!!!” Wow, I was as smooth as the potholes on I-93 in March.

  Damn, he looked good. His ensemble was a far cry from The Rub Down uniform I saw him in previously. He was dressed in nice jeans, and a black button down that hugged all the right places. Even his shoes were designer.

  “Alexa,” Luke replied as he and his buddy walked over to us.

  I stood to give him a hug, not sure of the proper protocol when greeting your hot ass massage therapist you are insanely attracted to while drunk, but I went for it anyway. It was the first time I was touching his body, and it was as muscular as I had imagined. I wanted to start rubbing up on him.

  Pulling out of the hug, he kept his arm around my waist as he introduced his buddy, Danny. It was probably to keep me upright since I was swaying slightly, but a girl could certainly pretend it meant more. His arm felt so nice wrapped around me, I just wanted to snuggle up to him, but I knew that was not appropriate.

  “Oh, wait! You’re the other owner of The Rub Down, right? Jeff told me about you, too. Nice to meet you.” I turned to Addison. “This is my roommate and business partner, Addison Bradford.”

  Addison sat with her mouth slightly open, taking in the men before us. I had not met Danny before, but he was a very good looking guy. A little shorter than Luke, but he was certainly more muscular. He had short blond hair and blue eyes that I was sure women went nuts for. Just not this woman.

  “Can we sit with you ladies once we grab our gelato?” Danny asked, staring at Addison.

  “Of course,” Addison replied, almost in a trance as she gaped right at Danny. The guys headed to get their gelato, leaving Addison and me to watch their fine asses walk away.

  *****

  Luke

  I couldn’t believe that, of all the gelato places in the North End, we walked into the same one where Alexa and her friend were. Fuck, she looked smoking hot. Her leather leggings showed off her amazing figure. The shoes were sexy as hell, and I wanted to see her stretched out on my bed in nothing but those. I imagined those heels pressed into my ass as I fucked her. Hard.

  “Damn, Luke, Alexa’s hot,” Danny said as we stepped up to the counter.

  My death glare had him putting his hands up in a placating gesture.

  “You can have her. Relax. I want her friend. She’s sexy as shit!” Danny said with his voice low.

  Even in his tone, I sensed his amusement at how upset I seemed at the thought of Alexa and him together.

  We grabbed our gelato and headed back to the girls. Their heads were together, probably talking about us. The thought made me smile.

  “So, ladies, where did you go tonight?” Danny asked as I took the seat next to Alexa.

  “We started in the South End, and then went to The Library and danced our asses off. The DJ was spinning some great music tonight,” Alexa answered. “What about you guys?”

  “Park Square, and then we went to the Alley with some of The Rub Down guys. Jeff joined us, too,” I said while looking at Alexa. “He mentioned you guys aren’t running tomorrow.”

  “Yeah, he wanted to reschedule, and it so happened it worked out perfectly.” Addison held out her hand for me to high five. I gave her a quick slap. “Apparently, I also needed to completely destroy all the hard work you put into my feet today with these shoes.” The sheepish look on her face was adorable. “Sorry,” she whispered, looking down at her feet.

  I pushed my chair out a little bit and reached down to grab one of her feet and pull it onto my lap. Once I had her shoe off, I stroked my finger up the ball of her foot. My thumbs pressed nice and hard up her arch to alleviate some of the pain. Her eyelids fluttered and her mouth fell open at my touch. Her expression made my cock harder than I thought possible. Between her outfit and the look of pure bliss on her face, I was a goner.

  “Did you say you guys went to the Alley? How old are you again?” Addison asked, mocking our choice, which made me laugh out loud.

  “Please, don’t judge us. Mark, an employee of ours, his roommate bartends at a club there, so we went. We wanted to hang with the guys, but that place is a train wreck. After tonight, I will not be caught dead in there again,” I replied.

 
; “Oh, Mark was the guy who gave me my massage this afternoon. He’s great.” She turned to Danny. “Your spa is amazing by the way. I can’t believe we hadn’t been there before. I can’t wait to go again. And we most certainly will be recommending it to all our clients,” Addison said.

  “Next time you come in, ask for me.” Danny gave a wink and wiggled his fingers. “These are out of this world.”

  Danny and Addison seemed to hit it off, and started carrying on a conversation solely between the two of them.

  I looked over at Alexa, and she had the biggest smile on her gorgeous face while I rubbed her left foot. Even her feet were beautiful. I’d never had a thing for feet, but rubbing hers in the little café changed that. I took hold of her other foot, and repeated the same ministrations. I felt her tense.

  “Does this feel good? Too much pressure?” I asked Alexa quietly, not to draw attention to our conversation.

  “No, they’re just sore from all the dancing. I hope they’re okay when I run on Sunday.”

  Her head fell back and she grabbed something from her wrist. Then her blonde hair was piled on top of her head, exposing her long, stunning neck. And there I had been thanking my stars that her neck was covered. Fuck! The sight tempted me to run my tongue up the side of her smooth skin and whisper how turned on I was. But I didn’t. Instead, I just kept rubbing her feet. I loved touching her smooth skin, and was happy for an excuse.

  Ever since I graduated massage therapy school, my unwritten rule was I wouldn’t make a habit of massaging the women I dated. Not that Alexa and I were dating. No massages before bed. No rubbing sore feet at the end of a hard day. Obviously, I wasn’t a total dick, and if my girl needed some loving, she got it, but it was not a regular occurrence. It seemed unfair, but a guy who stares at a computer all day doesn’t want to go home and stare at a screen again for hours. So for me to rub Alexa’s feet at all was a shock, and I would hear some razzing from Danny about it later.

  “So, you mentioned you’re business partners. What do you ladies do?” Danny asked, bringing Alexa and me into the conversation.

  “The company is called Dress Me Up. We’re personal shoppers and fashion consultants.” Her eyes trailed over our clothing. “We help our clients put together wardrobes and find clothes that are in style, in budget, and look fantastic on them,” Alexa replied.

  “Wow, something like that exists? Lukey over here could use some help in the style department,” Danny said, poking me in the arm as hard as he could.

  That job sounded like fun if you were into fashion. Sadly, he was right. I pretty much was blind when going into stores. My sisters picked out all my clothes.

  “You look pretty good to me tonight,” Alexa said as a light pink hue lit up her cheeks. “I mean, your outfit looks good.”

  I gave her foot a small squeeze, letting her know I knew what she meant.

  “What are you guys doing all the way over here if you were downtown all night? Nothing good to lick over on Boylston Street?” Addison blurted.

  I think she was trying to save Alexa from an embarrassing moment by throwing a sexual innuendo on the table.

  “Gross, Addison.” Alexa gasped, slapping her on the arm.

  “There was one chick that wanted to lick Luke. It was hilarious. But no, if we licked any of those girls, our tongues would have to be cut off,” Danny joked.

  I was going to kick him in the nuts if he kept talking about that Wendy chick. Alexa’s head whipped around, and she stared at me with laughter written all over her face. She opened her mouth a few times, as if wanting to ask more details, but in the end, closed it and shook her head while laughing at me.

  “I wanted a gelato, but I also wanted to hit up Stanza dei Sigari for a cigar and bourbon. Mainly, I needed to get away from the children and have an adult conversation,” I answered.

  “Sorry to interrupt your male bonding session,” Alexa said while trying to remove her feet from my lap.

  I held tight to her ankles. “No need to apologize. Sitting here with you beautiful ladies is better than polluting our lungs.” I stared into Alexa’s eyes as I spoke. She really was captivating and stunning.

  “Oh shit! You didn’t even eat your gelato, thanks to me and my stupid feet. It’s all melted. Let me go buy you another one.” Alexa moved too fast for me to catch her this time, and she had her shoes on and stood before I knew what was happening.

  I managed to grab her arm, and pull her to me. I looked up at her and softly spoke. “Please, sit. I don’t need another one.”

  “Are you sure? You were so busy massaging my feet that you only got in a bite or two.” A soft smile graced her face.

  Danny and Addison were in their own little world. My finger itched to trace her plump lips. As we held each other’s eyes, my hand drifted up and down her arm. The moment was intense and intimate, almost as if we were having some sort of conversation without words. I didn’t want to think about what we were actually saying, but wanted to enjoy the moment with her.

  “I’m sure,” I answered. The urge to pull her down in my lap and lick her luscious lips was strong, but the mood was broken when Alexa sat down again.

  The four of us talked until the employees flipped the chairs upside down on the surrounding tables.

  “I think they’re trying to tell us something,” I said, looking around the room. “Where do you ladies live? Do you want to share a taxi toward downtown?”

  “We’re in the South End. You?” Alexa asked.

  “The Ritz down by the Common. We can have the cabbie drop you off first. I want to make sure you ladies get home safely.” It seemed silly for Danny and me to go the extra blocks, but I wanted to be with her as long as possible. It didn’t look like Danny was all that interested in leaving Addison any time soon, either.

  “Sounds great. The booze is leaving my body, and the massage has made me sleepy.”

  Alexa and Addison stood and grabbed their jackets. Like the gentlemen we were raised to be, Danny and I helped them put them on.

  We stepped out onto the sidewalk and signaled for a taxi. Alexa was still a little drunk and unstable in her sexy heels, so I wrapped my arm around her waist to steady her. Then the four of us were whisked away in a yellow cab.

  Addison propped against the console to talk to Danny, who took one for the team and sat in the front seat.

  Alexa snuggled into my side. Having her tucked in close to me seemed natural. Her body molded perfectly to mine, and felt so nice and warm. The smell of tangerines drifted from her hair, and I couldn’t stop myself from breathing it in.

  “Thank you for the foot rub tonight. I’m sure it was the last thing you wanted to do, but my feet already feel better. Your fingers work wonders,” Alexa said, turning her head to look up at me.

  She was so close, all I needed to do was lower my head an inch to claim her mouth. It was so tempting, but I controlled myself in an effort to keep it platonic and professional, when that was the last thing I really wanted.

  “No need to thank me. It’s what I do. I hope it helps, and your next run is pain free. Saves me time on Tuesday,” I replied with a wink.

  When she turned to face the front again, I bent down and kissed the top of her head. Alexa took in a jilted breath upon contact. Maybe she was feeling me as much as I was her.

  The rest of the drive, Alexa and I were silent while Danny and Addison chatted quietly around us.

  Chapter Eight

  Alexa

  The night turned out to be perfect. I danced and laughed with my bestie, and then we ran into the man I couldn’t get out of my head. He looked so good in jeans and that shirt. Well, he was hot in scrubs, but those jeans hugged his tight ass right.

  The ride home with Luke and Danny was unexpected. Addison and I lived a good ten-minute drive from the Ritz, so they were going out of their way to see us home. I somehow ended up snuggled into Luke’s side, his muscular arm wrapped around my shoulder, and his fingers lightly caressing my arm. It felt so nice. I wi
shed I were as fashion conscious as those tramps not smart enough to wear a coat so I could feel his touch on my bare skin. He smelled so delicious, and I wanted to just keep breathing him in.

  When I turned and thanked him for the massage, he looked down at me, and I swear his gaze dipped to my mouth. All I wanted was for him to lean in and capture my lips with his.

  Instead, he replied, “No need to thank me. It’s what I do. I hope it helps, and your next run is pain free. Saves me time on Tuesday.”

  Disappointed he didn’t kiss me, I faced the front so he wouldn’t see it written all over my face. The massage was out of duty, and here I wanted to believe he couldn’t keep his hands off me. As my hope evaporated, his lips brushed the top of my head. My breath caught, and I closed my eyes, absorbing the sweet moment.

  When we arrived in front of our house, Danny and Luke asked the driver to wait, and got out of the car. Luke took my hand and helped me.

  “Thank you, kind sir,” I said in the worst British accent possible.

  “Of course, my lady.” Luke replied in an even worse southern accent.

  God, he was adorable.

  Once we got to our front door, I expected an awkward moment as we said goodbye, but Luke stepped in to give me a big hug. Our bodies aligned perfectly, and we touched from chests to toes.

  He bent down to whisper in my ear. “I’m so glad we ran into you tonight. Thank you for being you. See you on Tuesday, Lex.” Then he kissed the top of my head again.

  I looked up at him and gave him a huge smile. I had no words. He fucking thanked me for being me. Who does that besides heroes in romance novels or movies?

  Danny gave me a small hug and said goodbye, while Luke did the same to Addison. They hopped into the taxi, and we watched until the glow of the brake lights disappeared.

  Addison and I were silent as we walked up to our apartment, but as soon as we crossed the threshold and removed our shoes, we burst out talking at the same time, our words coming a mile a minute.