Page 77 of Pickled
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GIDEON
I was lyingon my living room floor, going through the same boring balance exercises I’d been doing for weeks. But every time I closed my eyes, I saw Piper’s face. How much time did she need? This was worse than waiting to see if she showed up to the game. Now, I was waiting to see if she wanted to show up for…us.
C.C. pounced onto my chest and sashayed from my belly button to my face. I winced as he started kneading my chest, but his diesel engine purr was too cute for me to push him off. I tried to do the shoulder exercise, but my arms dropped to my side.
Thinking about Piper had taken over my life. Getting Piper back into my life occupied more of my knocked-around brain than getting back on the ice. I needed to get out of this house with the empty white walls.
I grabbed my phone and scrolled through my contacts until I found Jameson.
“What’s up, Grumpster?” he answered on the second ring. After the first Grumpster, I’d decided to let it slide.
“Want to hit the gym? I need some equipment I don’t have here.”
“Sure, dude. Which gym?”
“Azalea Bay Club. You can be my guest.”
There was a pause. “You’re inviting me to your fancy country club?”
“Don’t make it weird. Just meet me there in an hour.”
“Do you want me to invite some of the other guys?”
My instinct was to say no, but I didn’t. “Sure, man. The more, the merrier.”
Movement was the answer. I just needed to bench-press something heavy to stop thinking.
An hour later,Jameson, Owens, Riley, and the new guy, Morgan, were knocking out Bulgarian split reps at the squat rack. “Nice place.” Jameson leaned against the rack and grinned as he drank from his water bottle. “No wonder you don’t want to come back to our shitty team gym.”
“I like the gritty gym.” I loaded a straight bar with weights for my shoulder set. “But this one is closer.”
Morgan held up his water bottle. “And they have cucumbers in the water.”
Owens laughed. “And rich stay-at-home housewives.” He pumped his eyebrows. “And they’re bored.”
We’d passed Izzy and Kensingtonon the way through the lobby, and the two of them had practically eye-fucked Morgan before Kensingtonwaved at me. “Hiiii, Giddy,” she’d cooed.
“They’re just bunnies with bigger wallets and a lot more baggage,” I grumbled.
The door to the weight room opened, and Margie peeked into the room. “Hi, Gideon. I thought I saw you come in here. Will we see you tomorrow at the usual time? I’ve got a new muffin recipe I’d like you to try.”
I didn’t dare look at the guys; I knew what was coming. “You bet, Margie. I love your muffins.”
She grinned and gave me a thumbs-up before closing the door.
The three of them were standing in a row, all with their arms crossed and huge grins plastered across their stupid faces. “You love her muffins, huh?” Jameson said.
I grabbed a foam block and tossed it at him. The block missed and hit an unsuspecting Owens in the cheek. He picked it up and hugged it to his chest. “Mmmm, Margie and your muffins.”
“Grow up,” Jameson grumbled.
“Hey, that’s my line.”
We all laughed. Did I actually miss hanging out with the team?
“I still can’t believe you’re playing pickleball,” Jameson said. “Weren’t you the one who said it wasn’t a real sport?”
