Page 73 of Charmed, I'm Sure
“Some hooligans egged the house.”
19
I could do it in heels
Taylor
Mymusclesscreamedinprotest as I shoved the barbell back onto the rack, exhaling a shaky breath. Even with lighter weights in all my circuits, I felt like I might keel over and die—and I still had cardio to tackle. Convinced I couldn’t move even if I tried, I stayed sprawled on the bench, sweat trickling down my temples and soaking through my shirt. Skipping the gym for weeks hadn’t been in the plan when I moved back to Bellevue, but between work and trying to see Magnolia, my fitness routine had taken a backseat. Now, I was paying for it.
Magnolia.
Her name invaded my thoughts at every moment of the day, no matter what I was doing. Yet, I hadn’t reached out to her in days. She’d sent me a few texts—one with a dancing turkey gif wishing me a Happy Thanksgiving and a couple of “just checking in” messages—but I hadn’t replied. Not once. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to; I just didn’t know what to say after Addy had confronted me. I was tired of lying to the people I cared about, but I also couldn’t shake the fear that I was wrecking the best thing in my life.
Sitting up with a wince, I swung my legs over the bench and leaned forward, elbows on my knees.Paralyzerby Finger Eleven blasted through my earbuds as I dragged myself toward the treadmills. Did I want to run two miles today? No. Not even a little. Cardio was thebane of my existence, but I’d earned the ice cream and beer I’d planned for afterward. Life was about balance, even if mine was a disaster.
Half a mile into my run, my earbuds betrayed me, dying right at the guitar solo ofBack in Black. Groaning, I decided to push through to at least a mile. But no way in hell was I slogging through the rest of it without music to drown out the pounding of my feet and the treadmill’s whirring.
I tried to focus on my breathing and the steady thrum of my pulse, but not even noise-canceling earbuds could have silenced what I heard next: her name, falling from someone else’s lips.
I glanced at the domed ceiling mirror and spotted Kyle and Spencer by the weight racks behind me. Their stupid grins instantly brought back memories from high school—the same smirks they wore when they tormented anyone they deemed beneath them, especially Magnolia. My stomach twisted.
Fuck.
Screw finishing my run. If they were talking about Magnolia, they had my undivided attention. Slowing the treadmill to a walk, I yanked out an earbud, angling to hear them better. They either didn’t notice me or didn’t care because their conversation continued like they were the only ones in the gym. Every word stoked my fury.
“Man, it was just like old times,” Spencer bragged, laughing. “And the look on her aunt’s face when it hit the wall right next to her head? Classic.”
Kyle high-fived him. “Serves them right. They don’t belong here. High time we drove them out of town.”
“Bellevue witches? More like Bellevue bitches,” Spencer sneered. “That Magnolia chick is the worst of ‘em.”
“She’s got Hallows brainwashed or something. Sure, she’s hot as hell now, but no piece of ass is worth losing your friends over—not with her brand of crazy.”
Red. A fiery blaze of rage. My finger slammed the treadmill’s emergency stop button, and I ripped out the other earbud.Do no harm,the angel on my shoulder reminded me as I stomped over to the two idiots. I’d always taken that oath seriously, but I’d also never wanted to deck someone as much as I did right then. If ruining my career weren’t a possibility, Kyle and Spencer would have thirty-pound weights embedded in their faces by now.
I marched toward them, fists clenched. My reflection loomed over them in the mirror, but they didn’t flinch. Kyle’s gaze caught mine, his slimy grin widening.
“Well, well. Finally come to your senses, Hallows?” he drawled, setting his weights down.
“What the fuck did you two idiots do now?” My voice was low, seething.
“Calm your tits, Taylor. It was just a harmless prank,” Kyle said, shrugging as Spencer snickered.
Do no harmwas becoming harder to stick to by the second.
“What the fuck did you do?” I demanded again, stepping closer.
Spencer grinned. “You think they like their eggs sunny side up or scrambled, Ky?”
Laughter erupted between them.
I snapped. One second, I was standing there, and the next, my hands were fisted in Kyle’s shirt, his wide-eyed panic fueling my fury as he barked, “The fuck are you doing, Hallows?”
“If you hurt them…” My voice was a growl.
Kyle squirmed as Spencer grabbed my bicep in a weak attempt to intimidate me. When I didn’t let go, his gaze darted nervously around the gym.
Finally, I shoved him back and jabbed a finger into Kyle’s chest. “Stay the fuck away from Magnolia and her family, asshole. I won’t warn you again.”
