“You’re healing, but …”
His smile fades. “There it is,” he mutters under his breath.
I point at him. “No chest presses. No push-ups. No rowing. And no crunches or planks.”
Axle groans.
“And no heavy overhead lifting either.”
Albert laughs. “Boy, you’re lucky.”
Axle looks over at him. “Lucky?”
“All they did was tell you what not to do.”
Charli and I both laugh.
Axle shakes his head. “I’ll be careful. I’m just gonna walk on the treadmill and do some leg presses. Then the sauna.”
That doesn’t sound too bad.
“Fine.”
His grin returns. “Then maybe strip and jump in the river.”
I nearly choke.
Charli’s eyes swing toward me.
Wonderful.
Axle looks entirely too pleased with himself as he turns and heads toward the treadmill.
“Maybe don’t do that. I still don’t trust that old rope swing,” I call after him.
Albert claps his hands together. “We all done?”
“Yeah,” I say. “All done.”
“Good. How about I escort you girls to dinner?”
“Sounds good.”
A few minutes later, we gather our things and start toward the door.
Axle is walking on the treadmill.
Albert pauses. “See you later, son.”
“Bye, Uncle Albert.”
Charli and I follow, and Axle nods to us.
“Ladies.”
Albert stops at the bathroom. “I’ll meet you girls outside.”
As we head toward the exit, Charli slows. She glances back toward her cousin, then back at me and purses her lips.
