romantic?”
“Romantic, or door mat?” Bree questioned back.
Kenzi walked away before she could hear what else they said about Chaz. She wasn’t about to admit she still had feelings for him-she hadn’t even admitted to knowing him, much less dating. When he’d dropped out of college at the end of their sophomore year to pursue his music career, she’d been sad, but not heartbroken. They’d talked and accepted the fact they wanted different things from their careers. She loved programming, anything to do with computers, really, and he lived music. Ate, slept and dreamt it. Now she had a job she loved, working for a gaming company, and he…well, he was Chaz Marino .
Her friends would freak if they ever found out she and Chaz had been a couple long before he and Joey Hughes formed their band, Marino. It wasn’t something she could just throw out there in the middle of a conversation, like, “Oh, you know, I used to do him.” And when they talked ex-boyfriends, there’s no way she could bring him up. He wasn’t some creepy-ass, cheating schmuck she wanted to forget. On the contrary, he’d been so good, he still showed up in a lot of fantasies. And damn, he was superhuman there!
Yeah, she definitely was not mentioning her relationship with him.
After her second cup of coffee, she was ready to run. Moving through her stretches in their room, she called out to the balcony, “Who’s running with me?”
Her question was met with groans and gripes, but they both came in to stretch with her. They took the elevator to the lobby and stretched again when they reached the street. The air smelled so good, clean and salty. The air in Oakland was probably just as clean, with it being so close to the Pacific Ocean, so maybe it was just the idea that she was in the Caribbean that made her think it smelled better here.
The three were silent as they gained their stride. Then they broke into the usual complaints.
“You’d think on vacation we could give up the routine,” Bree said.
“Sure,” Kenzi replied. “As long as we give up eating.”
“And drinking,” Jasmine added.
“Not likely.” Kenzi sidestepped some broken glass on the road without breaking stride. “Just think, running in the morning, snorkeling in the afternoon and dancing at night. We’ll actually lose weight!”
“And sleep for the entire week when we get home.” Bree jogged ahead so they could move single file as a car passed.
They followed the narrow road all the way out to the point before turning back. In the distance, Kenzi noticed a single runner coming toward them. A tall, slender guy, to be more precise. Creamy dark skin. Closely shaved hair. He had on large sunglasses, so who knew what he really looked like, but the rest of him was drool-worthy. Broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist, chiseled upper arms. She could easily picture that body poised above her on the sheets.
He swiped the butt of his palm on the side of his face in a move worthy of an exotic men’s cologne commercial. His teeth flashed in a smile before disappearing behind full lips. Kenzi’s heart rate sped up. No way, it couldn’t be him. She only had Chaz on the brain because Jasmine mentioned him. This guy was leaner. Not scrawny, but wiry. Definitely buff.
And he was wearing Spandex running shorts. The Chaz she knew would never be caught dead in those.
The closer he got, the tighter her stomach muscles knotted. It was Chaz. Did he even remember her? Should she acknowledge him as a friend or play it cool? He was probably trying to avoid attention. Avoid cameras and shrieking fan-girls. She voted for cool. “Hey.” And kept jogging past.
“Lady K?”
Oh, shit. She turned and jogged in place. “Omigod, Chaz!” She sounded like a nerd. She felt like one. She had no makeup on. Her hair had last night’s mousse in it, yanked back in a ponytail to keep it from flapping in her face. And, her running shorts showed every ounce of the five pounds she’d
“Romantic, or door mat?” Bree questioned back.
Kenzi walked away before she could hear what else they said about Chaz. She wasn’t about to admit she still had feelings for him-she hadn’t even admitted to knowing him, much less dating. When he’d dropped out of college at the end of their sophomore year to pursue his music career, she’d been sad, but not heartbroken. They’d talked and accepted the fact they wanted different things from their careers. She loved programming, anything to do with computers, really, and he lived music. Ate, slept and dreamt it. Now she had a job she loved, working for a gaming company, and he…well, he was Chaz Marino .
Her friends would freak if they ever found out she and Chaz had been a couple long before he and Joey Hughes formed their band, Marino. It wasn’t something she could just throw out there in the middle of a conversation, like, “Oh, you know, I used to do him.” And when they talked ex-boyfriends, there’s no way she could bring him up. He wasn’t some creepy-ass, cheating schmuck she wanted to forget. On the contrary, he’d been so good, he still showed up in a lot of fantasies. And damn, he was superhuman there!
Yeah, she definitely was not mentioning her relationship with him.
After her second cup of coffee, she was ready to run. Moving through her stretches in their room, she called out to the balcony, “Who’s running with me?”
Her question was met with groans and gripes, but they both came in to stretch with her. They took the elevator to the lobby and stretched again when they reached the street. The air smelled so good, clean and salty. The air in Oakland was probably just as clean, with it being so close to the Pacific Ocean, so maybe it was just the idea that she was in the Caribbean that made her think it smelled better here.
The three were silent as they gained their stride. Then they broke into the usual complaints.
“You’d think on vacation we could give up the routine,” Bree said.
“Sure,” Kenzi replied. “As long as we give up eating.”
“And drinking,” Jasmine added.
“Not likely.” Kenzi sidestepped some broken glass on the road without breaking stride. “Just think, running in the morning, snorkeling in the afternoon and dancing at night. We’ll actually lose weight!”
“And sleep for the entire week when we get home.” Bree jogged ahead so they could move single file as a car passed.
They followed the narrow road all the way out to the point before turning back. In the distance, Kenzi noticed a single runner coming toward them. A tall, slender guy, to be more precise. Creamy dark skin. Closely shaved hair. He had on large sunglasses, so who knew what he really looked like, but the rest of him was drool-worthy. Broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist, chiseled upper arms. She could easily picture that body poised above her on the sheets.
He swiped the butt of his palm on the side of his face in a move worthy of an exotic men’s cologne commercial. His teeth flashed in a smile before disappearing behind full lips. Kenzi’s heart rate sped up. No way, it couldn’t be him. She only had Chaz on the brain because Jasmine mentioned him. This guy was leaner. Not scrawny, but wiry. Definitely buff.
And he was wearing Spandex running shorts. The Chaz she knew would never be caught dead in those.
The closer he got, the tighter her stomach muscles knotted. It was Chaz. Did he even remember her? Should she acknowledge him as a friend or play it cool? He was probably trying to avoid attention. Avoid cameras and shrieking fan-girls. She voted for cool. “Hey.” And kept jogging past.
“Lady K?”
Oh, shit. She turned and jogged in place. “Omigod, Chaz!” She sounded like a nerd. She felt like one. She had no makeup on. Her hair had last night’s mousse in it, yanked back in a ponytail to keep it from flapping in her face. And, her running shorts showed every ounce of the five pounds she’d
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