Page 22 of Incoming Layne Shift

All of Layne’s abdominal muscles down the length of her torso were on fire. Her forearms were pressed firmly into the gym mat underneath her, supporting the weight of her body. The short span of her body was suspended in a rigid plank inside the home gym around the corner from the kitchen.

Her forehead donned a scattering of sweat droplets as she squeezed her eyes shut. She had to have been holding this plank for at least thirty minutes. Her body was beginning to tremble as her muscles felt pushed beyond fatigue.

When her eyes opened to take a peek at the timer between her wrists, she was sorely mistaken. The last bit of air in her lungs was forced out in a huff as she dropped her body down flat onto the mat with a groan. Almost two minutes. Her hand slapped the timer off as she laid her cheek against the cushy texture of the mat.

Layne lifted her head to look in the mirror affixed to the wall ahead of her. She saw Joey’s reflection where he was seated on a weight bench at the back of the room. He finished the last shoulder press in his set before he set the heavy dumbbells down. “You’re thinking about it too much.” He said it like he knew exactly what was going on inside her head.

She groaned as she continued to lay there. “What else am I supposed to be thinking about when my stomach won’t stop screaming at me?”

Joey stood and walked past her to the mini fridge filled with bottles of water. Her eyes watched each movement, appreciating that he had done his workout in a pair of navy gym shorts, sneakers, and nothing else. All of his tattoos were exposed for her to admire as they sprawled across the hard muscles of his body which were currently coated in a light layer of salty perspiration.

While he pulled two bottles of water out of the fridge, Layne shifted her position so she was up on her knees and sitting back on her ankles. Her hand reached out to take the water Joey offered her. Twisting the cap off, she welcomed the sting of the icy temperature of the first sip filling her mouth before being swallowed down.

The only other thing plaguing her mind besides her abs being on fire was what had been said at the strip club the other night. “We still haven’t talked about the night at Cassidy’s.” She finally initiated the topic that she had been unable to just let go of. Lord knew she had tried to forget it, but the words spoken between the two men replayed over and over in her mind.

Joey already chugged nearly all his water down in a matter of two large gulps. “Gage is going to be your shadow when I’m not around. There’s nothing else to talk about.” Perhaps it was wishful thinking that Layne wouldn’t press the issue about the other elephant having a tea party in the room with them.

“You know damn well that while I disagree with it, that’s not what I’m talking about.” She pushed herself up onto her feet. “What did you mean that I’m not Rosie?”

He sighed and sucked down the last little bit of water before tossing the bottle a few feet into the open trash can. “Nothing, Layne. It’s self-explanatory. You aren’t her.” Joey did his best to play it all off as nothing but a matter-of-fact observation he had made.

He must have thought she clunked her head and suddenly was stupid enough to accept that explanation. Her eyes narrowed at him as her temper kicked up a notch. “Don’t fuckin’ go there, Joey! You don’t just drop the name of a dead girl randomly and make a comparison like that for the hell of it. What did you mean by it?”

There was nothing but silence from him in response and the tension in the air was palpable. Layne locked her eyes on him, waiting for him—begging him to explain himself.

Losing faith, he was going to clue her in, she began to walk away from him toward the door. “You know what? If you’re not going to tell me, I will be spending enough time with Gage and I’m sure he’ll be more than happy to share.”

As her hand started to draw the door open, Joey rushed over to her shoving it back shut again. The look on his face was a flurry of emotions ranging from panic to desperation and even agitation. “I don’t get why you’re so hellbent on this. It’s all shit from the past. I’m doing my goddamn best to let past shit go with Gage, so why can’t you just drop it?”

Her hand jerked on the door again and to no avail, it remained shut as his hand made sure of that. “Because I see the look in your eyes when you say her name. Because there’s clearly something I’m not being told. Call me fucking crazy, but I thought it’s reasonable to expect you aren’t going to be keeping any more secrets from me.” Her anger pricked at the back of her neck in response to the emotionally charged topic at hand.

Joey looked down and for the first time she saw a pinch of shame in that handsome face of his. “Because it’s not fair to you.” His voice lost its edge as his fingers pinched the bridge of his nose while gathering his thoughts.

“She was our girlfriend.” The proclamation was seemingly harmless on its face, and it left Layne wondering why the hell he had been so hesitant to say something.

“Who was dating her when everything happened?” Layne didn’t quite put it all together on his first attempt at an explanation.

The depths of his cocoa eyes pulled up from looking at the floor and when they connected with hers, he made it clearer. “We both were.”

Oh. Oh. She hadn’t been expecting that. Any responses she had expected to say to him hadn’t been prepared to learn that he and Gage had been seeing her at the same time. Her mind began to jump through a series of thoughts and emotions. Rosie had been with both the guys, and at first, that unveiling was a surprise. Then, Layne was filled with something that was an even bigger shock. She found herself envious and thought about how Rosie had been one lucky bitch.

Furthering down the web of thoughts, she thought back to her first meeting with Gage and the fight that broke out. Joey’s possessiveness had come exploding at an all-time high. After mentally going through the story of his history with Gage, she was able to fill in some of the gaps and unspoken truths. Fast forward to their most recent meeting where the odd response from Gage about asking Joey about sharing suddenly made sense.

All the puzzle pieces clicked into place in her brain and she was unsure of how long she had been standing there stuck inside her head. What does one even say to this? Joey must have been having his own internal string of thoughts, and fortunately for Layne, he spoke up first.

“Layney.” He reached out, taking hold of her arms gently. “I didn’t want to say anything, because I didn’t want you thinking—fuck, I don’t know.” Joey found himself frustrated that he couldn’t cohesively put together a decent explanation for her. He wanted to give her what she deserved to hear without leaving her full of disappointment in him. Even worse? He couldn’t fathom losing the trust she had in him.

Out of all the emotions that were rolling through her, anger wasn’t one of them. When she looked up into his face, she found herself looking for answers. “Did you love her?”

His Adam’s apple bobbed in the center of his throat as he gave a hard swallow. “Gage will tell you that I didn’t, but I did, in my own way.” He moved his hands up to draw her face into his hands. “Not in the way that I love you though, Layne. You are the spark that keeps my heart pumping blood through my veins.”

She shook her head at him. “You don’t have to defend your feelings, Joey. I will always be here making sure that you know you will always have my heart.” Layne wrapped her arms around his waist, stepping up against him. “I will love you so hard for the rest of your life that you won’t ever have to worry about losing that spark.”

When Joey saw the curve of her lips as they lifted into a smile, he fell into a sense of ease and relief. His mouth sought hers out, and before he could fuse their lips, Layne pulled back with a smirk. “One question, though.”

His brow arched at whatever was nagging at her brain. “Hm?”

Layne’s eyes looked at him full of curiosity. “Did you both… at the same time?”

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