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“No kicking,” Jun said absently, feeling worn down and beaten up. Why was figuring out the right thing for her son so hard? Why couldn’t one day be easy? She shook her head.
She felt as if she’d failed at everything this week. Normally, she didn’t entertain thoughts of self-pity, but today she wished she could go back to bed and throw the covers over her head. She fought so hard to prove her mother wrong, and yet, on days like this, it seemed as though she was proving her exactly right. Maybe she was too young to be a mom. Maybe she was too inexperienced. Maybe she didn’t know what she was doing.
Maybe she was a girl without morals, after all. Just as her mother had said. Just like what her mother had called her before she slapped her across the face.
The insult burned in her memory like red neon.
She thought about what she’d done with Kai the night before and instantly felt as if she’d been toppled by a salty ocean wave. She’d done the right thing pushing him away, she knew she had, yet why didn’t it feel like the right thing? Po was miserable and so was she. Maybe Kai had been right. Maybe the rules weren’t for him at all—they were for her. Why couldn’t she control herself better? Why did he get under her skin...and under her sheets?
Jun pulled up to the day care, fully expecting Po to not want to get out of the car, but miraculously, he did. She walked him to the door anticipating waterworks but instead got just a long look of disapproval from his sad face. That look was worse than a full-on tantrum. She left him at the day care and got back into her car, dreading the drive to Kai’s. She sat there a moment, and her phone lit up with an incoming message. It was from Tim.
Have a minute to stop by the gym? Just for a second?
Tim hadn’t given up asking Jun to take her old job back. She’d been avoiding him while still trying to be nice for the past few months. But he simply wasn’t getting the message. Jun hadn’t wanted to be blunt with him, because she always worried the job with Kai might fall through at any moment and because she knew if she needed a job, Tim would take her back.
She thought about the lovesick look in his eyes the day she’d left the gym and shuddered. She didn’t want to flat-out tell him he had no chance with her, and yet he kept nudging, kept pushing her.
Tell your boss you’ll be five minutes late! I’ve got an opportunity I think you’ll like. Please? Business!
Jun sighed. She’d put him off every day for the past week, and she knew he’d just keep texting.
It’s time sensitive. Got to have a decision by the weekend. Just let me pitch you the idea, okay? I’ve been asking for a whole week! Five minutes.
Jun gave in. Five minutes. What could it hurt? Plus, he said it was business related. He was always coming up with new ideas for healthy drinks or some new fitness gizmo. He’d probably just ask her to taste some new protein shake and then she’d be on her way. It seemed a harmless detour. Still, the drive would take her off her route. She texted Kai. Told him she had to run by Island Fit before heading to his house for their training session but wouldn’t be more than ten minutes late.
Why don’t we just train there for the morning? Will Tim be okay with that?
Tim would definitely not think that was a good idea, she was pretty sure.
Jun pulled into a parking space in front of the fitness center and took a deep breath before she headed to the entrance. When she saw Tim’s beaming face as she walked in, her shoulders sagged. He looked so darn...hopeful. Immediately, he crossed the gym and enveloped her in an unwanted hug. He smelled strongly of too much cologne and she did not want to be touching him. He kept his hand too long on the center of her back and she squirmed away. She was all too aware how much she’d rather Kai be touching her right then.
“I’ve missed you, Jun,” Tim said. “You look great. Really great.” His eyes swept over her and she was beginning to wish she hadn’t come. Maybe this had been a mistake. Tim rubbed her arm and she pulled it back,slightly uncomfortable.
“I can’t stay long. You said something about a business idea?”
Disappointment flickered across Tim’s features, but he quickly hid it. “Uh, yeah, sure... Well, I’m opening a second location of Island Fit. On the other side of the island.”
