Page 2 of Jacked
I bend down to grab my phone, but he goes for it at the same time. Our thick skulls collide with a loudthunkand anotheroomph.
“Shit,” he mutters again.
I chuckle and rub the sore spot on my head. My shaggy hair flutters in a light breeze that cuts through the heat for just a second, and I realize my hat is missing.
“I got it,” I say with another laugh, holding up a hand so we don’t both go for my phone again.
I grab my phone, and when I straighten back up, he’s holding my hat outstretched in his hand. Now that I’m getting a proper look at the guy, he makes those earlier gym rats look like string beans. Dude is jacked as fuck. He’s wearing a tank top with wide open sleeves that show off his cut obliques and his thick arms. It dips low enough in the front for a full view of his bulging pecs. They’re so round and perky that they put most of my ex-girlfriends’ tits to shame. Except for, you know, all the dark hair they’re covered in. And the guy clearly does not skip leg day. A pair of silver shorts cling to his massive thighs like one more squat might just be the end of them.
“Sorry, but I don’t swing that way,” he says with a laugh that’s just a little too loud and slightly wheezy. It’s areallaugh, no holding back, nothing self-conscious about it. It makes me like him immediately.
I blink, realizing for the first time that I’m staring at him. I shove my hat back onto my head, with the bill backward again, and shoot him a cockeyed smile.
“I was actually just wondering about your gym routine.”
His bushy, dark eyebrows creep up his forehead like maybe he doesn’t quite believe me. But he turns on a full-blown, toothy grin.
“I’m starting as a personal trainer at Sweat, right down the street, later this week. Come on by and we can do a consultation.” His eyes sweep over me, assessing me, and a wave of heat rushes through me. Stupid heatwave. I really do need that cold shower sooner rather than later. “You look like you aren’t doing too badly on your own. I can see a few spots that could use improvement though.”
“Hey.” I bristle.
He laughs and claps me on the shoulder. There’s something so satisfying about that feeling of a rough touch from another dude, that no-holding-back kind of physical communication that’s all testosterone and caveman shit. I punch his shoulder playfully, and then my thoughts all catch up and click into place.
“Wait a minute, you live here and you work at Sweat?” I point at the building.
“Yeah.” It must click into place for him too because his dark eyes light up with recognition. “Oh, shit, are you Slater?”
“That’s me.” I offer my hand, and he takes it in a handshake just this side of crushing. I squeeze his hand right back, grinning like an idiot. AJ seemed cool enough in the emails, but it’s a relief to meet him in person and realize he’s exactly the guy I would’ve picked for my roommate.
“AJ,” he says needlessly. He drops my hand and glances around. “Do you have shit to move in or what? I can give you a hand.”
“Seriously? That would be great. I don’t have a ton, but I could definitely use some extra muscle.” I squeeze his bicep and waggle my eyebrows. “You clearly have some to spare.”
He rumbles another laugh and nods. “Yeah, of course. I was about to head out to grab a bite and a drink, but this is even better. I’ll help you unpack and then you can come with me so I won’t have to eat alone.”
“You’re on.”
He unlocks the door and props it open, then I lead him back around the corner to the truck. Most of my boxes are filled with clothes, with the exception of the few that contain my free weights. I stack two boxes on top of each other and AJ flashes me a challenging smile, choosing one of the boxes labeled “weights” and stacking two of those. He grunts and his muscles bulge as he crouches down, his back straight and ass out in a perfect lifting stance, then heaves them up.
Show off.
I eye the other boxes of free weights, considering whether I need to add at least one to my own stack so I don’t look like a pussy.
“Come on.” He bumps his shoulder against mine and I decide to redeem myself on the next load instead.
We weave around people on the sidewalk and head into the building. It’s a walk-up with our apartment on the second floor. When we reach it, he sets the boxes down, his tongue sticking out between his teeth as he fishes the keys out of his pocket. The motion pulls his shorts even tighter across his thighs and the bulge between his legs. Heat rushes through my gut and I look away, swallowing a silent laugh. I’m no slouch in the size department, but I can never help sizing up the competition. It’s gotta be another one of those primal instincts, right? Gotta see what the other alpha males are swinging around if you’re gonna try to beat them out for mating opportunities. Just because we aren’t apes baring our teeth and actively swinging our dicks around to attract the ladies anymore doesn’t mean those instincts ever go away.
AJ gets the door open and nods for me to go ahead inside while he picks his boxes back up. The place is a lot nicer than I was expecting. I guess that’s the benefit of rooming with someone rather than trying to swing the cost of my own place. The floors are wood, and there’s nice crown molding that looks like it’s original to the building. Large windows in the living room flood the space with plenty of light and give a nice view of the city. It’s open concept, with the kitchen and living room separated by an island counter, and then a short hallway that leads to the two bedrooms and single bathroom we’ll be sharing.
The other benefit of this apartment is that it came furnished, so there’s already a bed and dresser in my bedroom. I toss my boxes onto the floor at the foot of the bed and he comes in right behind me, setting his down more carefully since they’re a hell of a lot heavier.
“Not bad, right?” He gestures around.
“Not bad?” I echo, my smile widening. “This place fucking rocks.”
“It’s roomy enough, but the building’s water heater is ancient, so it’s a little iffy at times. And the nice old Mexican lady who lives next door cooks a lot, and for some reason it always ends up smelling like spices and cooked meat in this room specifically.”
Now that he mentions it, I can definitely smell the strong scent of garlic hanging in the air. My mouth waters and my stomach rumbles. AJ chuckles and claps me on the back again.
