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Jay stayed beside her on the mat, leaning back on his hands with his long legs stretched out in front of him, as he chatted about the workouts he usually did with the guys on the football team. Misha was glad that he hadn’t abandoned her and yet also didn’t seem to expect her to hold a conversation with him.
As her heart rate returned to normal, Misha began to register how yucky she felt. Sweat seemed to have soaked into everything she wore, and it was just gross.
“You can keep laying here,” Jay said as he got to his feet. “I just need to wipe down the treadmills before someone else needs to use them.”
“Should I help you?”
“I got it.”
Misha turned her head on the mat to watch as he walked back to the treadmills and grabbed a spray bottle and a cloth from a shelf on the wall next to them. With quick movements, he sprayed the machines, then wiped them down. Once done, he put the spray bottle back on the shelf and tossed the towel into a nearby basket.
As he headed back to where she was, Misha pushed herself up into a sitting position, crossing her legs. “Do we need to wipe down the mats, too?”
“Yeah. They do have a cleaner that comes in later tonight, but just to be safe, it’s best to wipe the mats down, especially when we’ve been sweating all over them.”
They’d used the same set of mats for both times they’d stretched so they were able to wipe them down quickly. Misha did so on her hands and knees. Then, after handing back the spray bottle and towel she’d used to Jay, she sat back on her heels, trying to find the energy to get to her feet.
“Here.” Misha looked up to see Jay holding out his hand. “Let me help you up.”
After a brief hesitation, she placed her hand in his and allowed him to help her to her feet. The strength in his hand wasn’t surprising, but Misha’s reluctance to let go was. Giving his hand a squeeze, she forced herself to release her grasp on his fingers.
“Thanks.” She took a couple of steps to test her legs, relieved that they didn’t give out from under her. “Wow. They still work.”
“You should probably stretch them out again right before you go to bed and when you wake up in the morning, just to keep your muscles limber.”
“If I call in sick tomorrow, it’ll be because I can’t walk.”
“Just make sure your doctor writes you a note.”
Misha grinned. “I can do that.”
She headed for the changing room where she grabbed her stuff, only taking the time to swap shoes. She had no desire to pull her jeans back on over her sticky legs, so she just shoved them into her bag. Since she was going straight home, it wasn’t a big deal. Next time she came—and yeah, she probably was going to show up again—she would come better prepared.
When she exited the changing room, she spotted Jay standing next to the counter, staring down at his phone. He’d put on a different shirt, but he was still in his shorts. A duffle bag sat on the counter beside him.
He looked up when she neared him. “Glad you’re still upright.”
“For now,” she said as they headed for the front door. “My mom is going to have a good laugh at me when I get home. The last thing she said to me before I left was to have fun.”
“Are you telling me that you didn’t have fun?”
Even though she was chilling in the cold evening air, Misha came to a stop in the parking lot, forcing Jay to turn to face her. “Did I look like I was having fun? Because I kind of felt like I was dying.”
“You looked like you were trying to keep putting one foot in front of the other. But if you keep coming to the gym, it’ll be more fun.”
“Only time will tell.” Misha began to walk toward her car, and Jay fell into step beside her.
“Do you plan to come back again?”
“Probably,” Misha said with a sigh. “Though my legs have a different opinion at the moment.”
“It’ll get easier.”
“I probably won’t be back tomorrow night, though,” Misha said. “I’m not sure I can handle two nights in a row just yet.”
“That’s fine. Just keep stretching and maybe go for a walk with Ciara tomorrow instead. You don’t have to do an aggressive workout every day.”
As they reached her car, Misha unlocked it with the key fob. “Seriously though, thank you for taking the time to help me.”
