The branch falls harmlessly to the ground. Then I kick it across the woods.
“Axle? You okay?”
I freeze.
Jovie is already jogging toward me.
Great. Just fucking great.
I straighten. “Fine.”
“You sure? You’re hopping on one leg.”
“Yeah. I snapped a branch, and it stung my shin. Just needed to walk it off.”
She reaches me a second later.
Concern softens her features.
Up close, I can see the freckles sprinkled across her nose, and she somehow looks even prettier.
“Let me see.”
“I’m not injured, Doc. Just pissed off.”
“Axle.”
I sigh dramatically.
Mostly because I recognize that tone. It’s the same tone Grandma Evelyn, Momma, and every other woman in this family uses to get her way.
Sure enough, she bends slightly, lifts my pants leg, and studies my shin.
A red mark is already forming.
“Yep,” she says. “You whacked it good. But you’ll live.”
“Told you.”
The throbbing fades as she gently rolls the denim back down and stands.
“What were you doing, sneaking around in the trees?”
“I wasn’t sneaking.”
She studies me over the top of her sunglasses that have slid down her nose.
“I came down here for a cold plunge.”
“In the river?”
“Yeah. I got in the sauna after my workout.”
A pleased smile appears on her face. “Ah. You listened.”
“Don’t get used to it.”
She rolls her eyes. “I didn’t see you in the gym the rest of the week. I hope it wasn’t because of me. I know I can be a little pushy with the advice.”
