Page 3 of Getting the Grinder
Someone sighs heavily. “It’s a fucking whiteout, man. We won’t be able to see anything.”
I look up, seeing my teammate Silas. He must’ve been in the hot tub, because his hair is wet and he has a towel wrapped around his waist.
“Stay here and sit in the hot tub, then.” I glower at him. “I’m going.”
Everyone comes to find the puppies. The dog leads us to them, but it’s slow going in the storm. It takes us almost thirty minutes to get to the tiny pups, who are curled up beneath a giant pine tree. There are seven, but only six are still alive.
Several of the guys pick up little fur bundles and put them inside their coats for warmth, and I carry the mama dog back to the cabin. We fill a bathtub with blankets and put all the dogs inside it.
Anson and Andrei go out in search of a warming lamp and dog food. I sit next to the bathtub and watch the puppies nursing. The mama dog sleeps, probably exhausted.
“I sent the girls a picture,” Carter says from the doorway. “It’s been made very clear to me that I better not come home without one of those puppies.”
“Darling will love that.”
His pet pig, who was supposed to be a micro, is over four hundred pounds now. He’s a happy, hungry guy who snorts loudly and rubs his nose against people’s faces to show affection.
“So much for debauchery,” I quip.
“Suki, Lainey, and Mara are taking a knitting class. So they’re not getting too wild, either.”
“Maybe Mara will accidentally stab herself to death with a knitting needle.”
Suki’s best friend hates me, and the feeling is mutual. Mara is an overly opinionated, high-strung shrew. I get along with pretty much everyone but her.
“Suki said Mara wants to knit herself a bikini top.”
My mental image of Mara with a knitting needle buried in her chest is replaced by one of her in the shower, water trailing over her perfectly round tits. I only saw them for a split second when I accidentally walked in on her taking a shower and cemented her hatred of me, but it was long enough to know they’re flawless.
Carter laughs, and I look up at him from my seat on the floor by the tub.
“What’s funny?”
“Should I leave you alone with your thoughts about the woman you supposedly hate in a skimpy bikini top?”
I scowl at him. “I was imagining her bleeding to death.”
“Sure you were.”
I scowl at him. “I admit she’s hot, but I’d rather fuck ... absolutely anyone else.”
Carter considers. “George Washington?”
“Like alive and in his prime, or his corpse?”
He barks out a laugh. “You saying you’d rather cornhole him in his prime than Mara?”
No. “Maybe.”
“You two have been at each other’s throats long enough. Make a peace offering.”
I scoff. “Yeah, right. I know she’s smart about lots of things, but she’s just not that deep, man. She’s all about her looks and being snarky and materialistic. Classic mean girl. I don’t want her to like me.”
He shrugs. “Suit yourself. You need help with the dogs?”
“No, I’m good. Close the door when you go. I don’t want Anson taking pictures of me.”
Once I’m alone in the bathroom, I stand up to stretch my legs. There’s a little cry from inside the tub and I check on the puppies. All of them are curled up around each other for warmth, most of them asleep.
