Page 31 of Slow Burn (The Boston Beauties)

‘Hello, Sarah,’ he stopped walking. I still haven't gotten used to being called by a name other than Jessa. ‘Where are you headed?’

I looked to the retreat complex about half a mile down the beach. ‘Back to my room.’

‘Right on,’ he nodded. ‘I’m just heading to the staff quarters.’

I looked around, I never really thought about where all the staff stayed. We were out in the middle of nowhere. ‘There’s a small complex across the road, it’s about a five-minute walk. But I much prefer to walk along the beach most evenings.’

‘How far is the nearest town?’ I asked him. ‘I’m starting to need new clothes,’ I said, pulling at my shorts that were no longer all that snug. When I had originally purchased clothing, I got three size sets. These were the last ones, and they weren’t going to last that much longer.

His face lit up. ‘That’s so awesome,’ he sounded giddy. ‘You must be so proud of yourself.’

I nodded, agreeing with him, ‘I am.’

‘I’ve got Monday off,’ he told me. ‘I’m overdue for a trip to civilization for a shop, toiletries, laundry soap, you know, the basics. I’d be happy to take you in with me. We can grab a real lunch,’ he smiled, and it looked as if he was salivating at the thought.

‘But what about my diet.’

He rolled his eyes. ‘It’s not sustainable, you got to treat yourself once in a while. I want to inhale a large combination pizza, and maybe a bacon cheeseburger.’

‘You?’ I asked, shocked and wide eyed.

‘Oh, I love junk food,’ he ran a hand down his stomach. ‘Obviously, I don’t indulge often, but yeah, love it.’

I smiled and nodded at him. ‘Yeah, Monday, that would be great, if you don’t mind.’

‘No, not at all. I’ll see whose car we can steal for the day.’

‘I can see about renting one,’ I offered.

He shook his head. ‘Naw, a bunch of the staff have vehicles here, but they never get used, that’s what we do.’

‘Ok.’

I spent the rest of the weekend working out, reading a few self-help books, one on finding oneself, another on goal setting, and one on motivation.

This experience at the retreat has really awoken something in me. Not that I could be a personal trainer, or a massage therapist, a nutritionist or a chef, but I could see myself working in this area. Helping people change physically, to work on their self mentally, coaching them to live their best life.

But I first needed to practice what I wanted to preach. With some training and life experiences, I could be well on my way. But I needed to first explore it a bit more and not rush into anything.

I’d been doing lots of reading on the subject, about self-discovery through books, articles, and blogs. It seemed like I wasn’t alone in having no direction in life. That following a parent's path was more common than I thought. I had also been researching to find myself a life coach. So far, the most promising one was based out of Arizona; she was ready and willing to meet with me via the internet. I was just waiting on the go ahead and payment transfer from Breton.

On Monday, I did my early morning jog, had a snack, showered, and met Marcus in the lobby of the resort. I had on the only pair of jeans I had brought with me, but they were too big and didn’t look great. He, on the other hand, looked amazing in a pair of fitted jeans, a snug long-sleeved Henley shirt, and Converse sneakers. I’d only ever really seen him in workout gear in the nearly three months that I had been here.

‘Ready?’ he asked me as he walked in and spotted me.

We drove to a nearby costal city about two hours south. We chatted the whole time, mainly about music and the bands that were playing on the radio, the station playing a mix of current popular top hits and songs from the last few decades. And naturally, from time to time, the conversation rounded back to the retreat—where he gave me all the gossip and told me a bit more about himself.

As it turned out, he was working to save for school. His mother had been paying for him, until she got cancer a few years ago, and ultimately lost her battle. His father wasn't in his life, and he thought he might be in jail. They hadn't heard from him in over a decade, and they never bothered to go looking. He left school after his mom got sick, nursed her, then had to work to save up for his tuition and living expenses for two more years of school. His final year of his undergrad, and the one-year Master’s program he intended to do to become a licensed physiotherapist. Through school, he had already become a certified personal trainer, which helped him get the job at the retreat.

Our first stop was to Woolworths, where we both stocked up on toiletries, and him on house cleaning supplies and snacks.

He suggested that we head out to lunch at a pub near the beach, before making our way to some shops where I could pick up new clothing, both for training and a few for outings.

The pub was near the beach, and we took a seat outside to people watch. While it was spring here, the weather was still warm enough for people to frequent the beach—mostly foreigners, he told me.

We placed our drink orders, a beer for him, and a Diet Coke for me. We both looked up from our menus when a group of three well-built guys walked by with board shorts and flip-flops on.

We both eyed them and turned our heads to watch as they walked farther towards the beach, away from us.

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