Page 36 of Beauty Beneath the Sorrow
Lina: I did. But oh, did I love getting yours dirty.
Me: I don’t doubt that.
I pull up at Prickly Pear Park right at 8 am and am pleasantly surprised to see her pink jeep already in the parking lot. I often run in the neighborhood where the park is located. It’s quiet and reminds me of somewhere I’d want to live.
As soon as I open my car door, Lina pops out of hers.
“What took you so long, Hernandez?” Her blonde hair is pulled behind a white baseball cap, and she is wearing similar joggers as she did in Denver, but these are black and highlight every curve.
“Looks like someone needs a good workout,” I quip, walking toward her car.
Lina lifts her nose in the air and crosses her arms at her chest. “I could get a good workout anywhere.”
I click my tongue and rest an elbow on the side of her car. “And yet, here you are.”
She smiles. “I wasn’t doing anything else this morning anyway.”
“Well then, maybe I need to make this session worth your while then.”
“I’m ready.”
I off the back door andimmediately take off in a full sprint down the street. From the corner of my eye, I see Lina come up at my left. I slow, allowing her to match my pace.
“Why do you insist on making me follow you?” Her words come out breathy.
“You like it.”
“Maybe.”
We jog around the neighborhood for almost twenty minutes before she gestures for us to stop near a bench.
“I’ve never been to this park before. We’re running in a circle, right?” she asks, sweat misting her chest.
I wish I could say yes because of the fuss she made about it in Denver, but we aren’t.
An internal laugh bubbles in my chest. “What would you like me to say, baby?”
“Oh no. Carter!” she complains and stops running.
I laugh, halting my speed. “Do you want to turn back now?”
Both of her arms fly up. “I don’t know if you’ve figured this out, but I’m not a runner.”
“As long as we’re partners, my job is to make sure we get as much cardio in as we can.”
“You have to make everything dirty, don’t you?” She shakes her head.
I shrug my shoulders. “It’s a gift.”
Lina pulls on her ponytail, then stretches out her arms a bit. “We do have a ways to go back to the park. Can we head back?”
I’m not ready for my time with her to be over. “Of course.”
We head back into the neighborhood and toward the park and by the time we get there, we’re both out of breath. Bending forward, she rests her hands on top of her knees.
“Alright. I feel good,” she says, panting.
I’m only a little out of breath as I’m used to running up to six miles a day, and even that, I feel like I could do more. “Do you want me to push you on the swing?”
