Page 2 of A Season Of Sin

Peace.

Two

Welp. I’m alive.

The cabin is still standing, and it could probably survive a zombie apocalypse after it handled last night’s storm like a pro. I trekked back to my van this morning through wet, knee-high snow, with my duffle over my shoulder, and now I’m parked outside the local gym I’ve been to a million times when I’m in town. They have massage chairs, a steam sauna, and endless hot showers.

It’s places like this that make the life of a nomad a whole lot easier. I can usually find one in any town I visit.

I could use some lifting and cardio to start my day right.

And coffee.

A truck bed full of coffee.

I’ll lie down on the ground so it can pour straight into my mouth. I’d die a happy man, drowning in God’s nectar as long as it has caramel. Always caramel. Hot or iced, it pairs perfectly either way. I know, I know, that’s not what you expected. Men are supposed to drink black coffee. Yeah. If I wanted to drink something that tasted like bitter piss, I’d take it black. I’m too damn old, and my give-a-fuck busted a long goddamn time ago. If I want to drink my coffee with caramel and cream, I’m gonna. If I wanna drink it blended up with ice like a milkshake, I will. I’m grown. No motherfucker is stopping me. This is your sign to drink whatever the fuck you want. Sugar. No sugar. Vanilla. That disgusting matcha stuff that tastes like grass. It doesn’t account for taste, but that’s none of my damn business.

Shouldering my bag from the passenger seat, I haul my ass into the gym, scan in with my phone, head to the locker room, and change into a pair of black gym pants and a cut-off Harley shirt that shows off my lean muscles that I’ve worked hard to achieve. Popping earbuds in, I select my favorite hardcore heavy metal playlist and head for the free weights, not paying attention to those around me. Some people come here to pick up their next fuck. Not me. I’m here to work out. Not that I would mind gettin’ laid. It’s been a while. A long while. But that’s fine. Most partners don’t appeal to me, anyhow. They’re too boring—too vanilla. A hole isn’t just a hole anymore, like it was in my twenties. I care where my dick goes. Quality always beats quantity.

I take my time through my sets, gettin’ a solid pump in. Wiping the sweat from my face with my shirt, I clean up my area and finish with a relaxing two-mile walk on the treadmill before heading to the sauna—the best routine finisher.

Throwing my soaked shirt into my locker, I step into the men’s steam bath, and the heat fills my lungs. With my elbows on my knees, I bob my head to music as every muscle in my body eases.

The cool air rushes in as another person enters, but I don’t look up.

There’s a light tap on my shoulder.

Grumbling to myself, I remove an earbud and peek up to find a sight for sore eyes.

“I thought that was you,” Jace says, smiling huge as he drops on the bench beside me. A cat has got my tongue as I stare at him. He’s gotten massive since the last time I saw him. We’re about the same height, a little over six feet, and we were both lean the last time we ran into each other.

Not anymore.

Christ.

“You got big,” I comment, taking in his bulging chest and biceps. “What did you eat? An entire fuckin’ horse?”

Redness blooms across Jace’s cheeks. I dunno if it’s from my words or the heat, but it doesn’t matter. He looks fuckin’ sick.

“Jesus,” I hiss and turn to get a better look.

Pride swells in my chest at the roundness of his shoulders and the taper at his waist. He’s wearing shorts, and the definition of his hairy thighs is incredible.

I’ve known this kid for years. We ran into each other when he was just outta college and started working out. We hit it off fast and worked out together all the damn time whenever I was around. I showed him the ropes, as I’ve been lifting for decades.

Shrugging all innocent, Jace pushes a strand of damp black hair off his forehead and combs it back. “I got a trainer.”

I whistle, impressed. “It shows.”

“Thanks, man.”

I clap him on his massive shoulder. “I’m fuckin’ proud of you, kid. You look amazing. Glad you came in when you saw me.”

He nods. “I haven’t seen you around since, what… last summer?”

“Yeah. I’ve been workin’ down south mostly. I was only here maybe a week earlier this year.” When I needed to fill in for a brother, but he didn’t need to know that.

“What brings you back now? Work?”