Page 54 of Unforgettable

As I tried not to double over to catch my breath, instead clasping them on top of my head, I caught sight of Josh out of the corner of my eye, also slamming the stop button on his machine. He’d run nearly as far as I had—just shy of six miles—and mimicked my posture, folding his hands and placing them on top of his unruly blond hair. It was plastered to his forehead as the sweat dripped down his face and chest.

The effects of his more regimented workout schedule were evident. When I’d opened the gym, Josh made it a point to work out with me at least four or five days a week, and the lean muscle mass and sculpted shape of his body was a product of his consistency.

He’d told me to shove it, though, when I’d explained that laying off the beer during the week and extra fries would show even more pronounced results. Then he’d lifted his shirt and flexed his abs to prove that he was doing just fine.

Josh had stepped off his treadmill and his lips were moving, but with the rock music still blaring in my ears, I hadn’t caught a word he said.

“What?” I asked, pulling my headphones out and trying to get used to the much quieter atmosphere of the gym.

“I said, ‘do you like what you see?’ because you’re fucking staring.” He laughed, still trying to breathe normally, but I didn’t return his chuckle.

I hadn’t even realized that I was openly staring at my best friend and his abs that I’d help carve. It wasn’t my fault they were damn good abs.

“I was just thinking that I’m a damn good trainer. And as your trainer, I’m impressed with your results. That’s all,” I said, maybe too harshly.

“Damn, dude. I was just giving you shit.” He headed past me to grab his water bottle where we’d dropped them, and I made it a point to look anywhere besides at him. That’s when I saw one of my managers, Collin, jogging toward me with an intense set to his face.

“Hey, boss. I think you need to have a little chat with New Guy up front,” he said in a hushed whisper. Although everyone in the place knew Adam’s name and how he got the gig, they still referred to him as “New Guy.” It was some kind of hazing shit that I didn’t have time to worry about.

I outwardly groaned and closed my eyes. We’d made it nearly a week without issue, and although that was far longer than I thought he would last, I still wasn’t looking forward to what I knew would happen.

“What happened? Why do I need to talk to him?”

I held my breath as my manager cringed, obviously not keen on having to tell me. “Well, you see… he was actually… okay, let me start over. I was going to—”

“Oh, for the love of God, spit it out, Collin. I don’t have all day.”

He took a deep breath. “Sorry… umm… he set his bag down on the counter, and it fell over, and well… several smaller bags fell out of it.”

My mind went a million different directions as I waved my hands, prompting him to continue and silently asking him to hurry the fuck up.

“Weed. Quite a bit of it.”

I should have been more surprised. Actually, I wished I had been surprised, but it was classic Adam behavior: someone gives him an opportunity and he does some stupid shit like bring drugs to work.

“Where is he?”

Collin’s eyes went wide as an incredulous look passed over his face. He was likely concerned by my lack of reaction.

“Umm… in your office,” he stuttered.

“What’s happening in your office?” Josh asked, stepping up to my right and using his shirt to wipe off the sweat still lingering on his face.

“Adam brought weed to work.”

“Classic,” Josh said with a casual shake of his head.

Collin’s confused expression deepened, and he too shook his head at us.

“Let’s go have a chat with Mr. New Guy,” I said, jerking my head toward my office in the back. Like I knew he would, Josh followed me, mumbling “fucking kid” under his breath a time or two before we made it to my door.

Before opening it, I said a silent prayer that Adam was fucking sweating. That he was terrified I was going to rip him a new one when I walked through that door. That he feared me like the Grim Reaper coming for his soul.

Whether I would rip him a new one was something I hadn’t yet decided. It all depended on his reaction.

I glanced quickly at Josh, who just raised his eyebrows in return and gave me a friendly pat on the back. A silent sign that he was on my side.

I pulled my shirt back on over my head—the fabric awkwardly sticking to my slightly damp skin. In the next second, I opened the door to find Adam reclined in my desk chair, spinning and staring up at the ceiling like I’d kept him waiting.

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