Page 9 of Kiss and Makeup
Chapter Four
Xavier
Maybe I should put myself into situations that frothed my mind, heart, and soul into turmoil more often. It helped me hit new personal bests.
A grunt escaped my tensed chest as I deposited the bar on the brackets, lying back against the weight bench to breathe after finishing my last set of chest presses. Sweat glistened on my skin and plastered my tight athletic shirt to my body, outlining every muscle that bulged with overuse. I could feel the burn… just about everywhere.
I didn’t usually do full-body workouts. Since I went to the gym every day, after a little experimentation years ago, I had found alternating workouts to be the best way to go. Only occasionally, when I had to skip the gym because of work or skull-splitting hangovers the morning after parties, did I indulge in one of those rare full-body workouts.
Work, hangovers and exes. I could add that last one to the list of reasons that drove me to work out every single muscle until I could hardly lift a weight.
Kristen.
I ended up on my feet somehow without realizing I had moved, so I began busily pulling circular weight plates off the barbell.
How was it possible? Chicago housed hundreds of makeup stores and companies. What were the odds that Kristen would become the head of the marketing department at one of these and end up coming to Cruise Media?
Actually… not that small.Cruise Media was a big company. An empire. And BeautyBee Cosmetics had worldwide recognition. Why wouldn’t a successful corporation choose another successful corporation to handle its needs?
But…. Kristen.
Nine years. I couldn’t believe it had been nine years since I’d seen Kristen. The sheer amount of time had hit me almost literally in the scent of her perfume—a delicious, fresh scent that I associated only with her, and it doused me with familiarity. I could even remember the last time I smelled it. In the evening, just outside the Loyola dorms, where I had proposed to her and she had broken my heart.
Never once, in all the years since that day—not even right after, when I had wondered if life would ever be worth living again—had I been angry at Kristen or regretted the time we spent together. She had been everything to me, and if yesterday was any indication…
She still was everything to me. Something had broken inside of me the day of her rejection. Seeing those full pink lips, cool blue eyes, silky brown hair and soft skin I had been reminded that shattered piece was still there, un-mended.
And now that I’d seen her again, it was going to take another nine years to stop thinking about her.
I filled a paper cup with water from the dispenser. Rather, I filled the cup halfway before the dispenser announced its state of emptiness with sputtering that faded into nothingness.
A massive sigh that had little to do with the dispenser gusted the surface of the water into ripples. I leaned against the wall, sipping and looking around.
The gym had everything anyone could ever want to strengthen their bodies. The upscale dining rooms were on the fourth floor of the club where members could sit in their tuxedos and eat with a view while the more casual cafe with comfortable seating and the library were on the third floor. Open 24/7, the indoor pool was a great option for fitness or relaxation, while the outdoor pool opened in the late spring for some summer sun — not to mention the tennis courts and other recreational amenities. And the social activities meet the needs of any member.
Club Chicago reigned above all other fitness clubs, offering an elegance and a collection of possibilities not replicated anywhere else—for a price. I could meet that price. From the ocean of my bank account, the premium monthly membership took only a drop. For years, I had taken that for granted.
If my father gave away ownership of Cruise Media to one of these “good, hardworking, talented people who care about this company”, I wouldn’t have the kind of money I had now. I would have to change the way I was accustomed to living, because I probably wouldn’t even have a place in the company under whatever new CEO took over.
I’d gotten defensive with my father and said some angry words, but now that I had time to cool down and think, I realized he was right. I couldn’t just suddenly know how to run a company when my father decided to retire.
What had I been doing? Kristen had become the head of marketing of a well-known company, all through hard work and perseverance. I’d nearly managed to lose my chance to become CEO of Cruise Media.
This was my last chance. I needed to impress my father, show him that I could handle responsibility within the company.
And maybe, just maybe… Maybe this could be a chance for me to make up with Kristen. Another reason to stick with my pre-New Years resolution. I wanted to show her I was no longer that dismissive, bored college student who had refused to take anything seriously. I wanted to show her I’d grown from her refusal of my proposal and made something of myself.
Was that even true? Only a day ago, I had been lounging around my house without a care for business.
Suddenly, I could see myself from my father’s—from the Cruise Media CEO’s—perspective. All the promises I’d made to change in the past, all the times I’d broken those promises with sports games or club activities…
This time would be different, and I knew exactly why.
Kristen. She had always rubbed off on me in the best ways, making me a better person the more time I spent with her. I had a chance, small but real, to win her back. I would have to change to do it, but Kristen was a woman worth changing for. She wouldn’t make it easy; her business-only attitude yesterday indicated that clearly.
I had to try. I couldn’t lose her again.
And… time to leave.I swung my gym bag out of my personal locker and over my shoulder. A warm, relaxing shower and lunch waited at home before the hour when I needed to leave for Chicago would roll around.
