Page 33 of Floored By Love

I headed back to my room, but I was too antsy. I changed into some Under Armour boxer briefs, running shorts, and a tank, and slipped on some running shoes.

“I’m going for a run. Be back in a few hours,” I called out to Cassandra.

“You have your phone?”

“Yes, boss,” I replied. And I was out the door and headed to the village, hoping to somehow run into Cam.

Security scanned my ID card and allowed me in. I made a beeline for the main gym, hoping to see Cam’s familiar blonde head. It wasn’t very busy, and it didn’t take me long to see he wasn’t there. I headed to the practice track next. There was a small possibility he was there, but if not, I could clear my head with a few miles. I didn’t see him immediately, so I stretched for a few minutes, turned some music on, and eased into a steady jog.

I wondered how he reacted to the video. I had watched it a few more times on the Tube and it wouldn’t be so bad if it wasn’t for the commentary. A lot of it seemed like a reach on Ryder’s part. I didn’t even see or hear Iris in the video. But the bottom line was that Ryder’s angle was juicy and I’m sure that’s what the public would focus on. As it was, I hadn’t checked into social media today. I didn’t want to deal with that yet.

After the first mile, my thoughts started settling, and I got into my music a bit more. When a Janet Jackson song hit next, my stride became more relaxed and my pace picked up. I started mouthing the lyrics and couldn’t help the smile that appeared on my face. I switched the music over to my Just Janet playlist and ended up running another three miles. Six more songs had played before I called it quits. My tank was plastered to my chest with sweat, and I had already cleared the wet curls from my eyes many times. I cursed myself for not bringing a towel or water.

“Hey bro, you look thirsty.”

I did a double take into the stands trying to identify the voice and was semi-blinded by Ty’s big goofy smile. He was holding up a bottle of water. I made my way over.

“Thanks, Ty. When did you get here?”

“I’ve been here the whole time. You looked like you were having fun.”

I took a big sip and nodded. “Just trying to clear my head.”

“So, how is the president of the He-Man Cam-Haters Club?”

“Jesus.” I picked at my tank top. “Not you too.”

“Sorry, but I figured you’d seen it. Wanna talk about it?”

“Not really. I was hoping to run into Cam here, actually.”

“I guess you forgot. His mom flew in this morning.”

Damn it. “Yeah, I did.”

“I’m sure they’re hanging out.”

“No shit.” I dropped my head between my knees and felt Ty’s hand on my back.

“Ew, gross.” He jerked his hand away. “You are soaked.”

I chuckled. “Where’d you get the water, anyway?”

“The machine over there.” He gestured to one “They’re all over the village and it’s free.”

“I had no idea. What are you doing here?”

He motioned toward the field with his chin. “Watching Declan.”

I hadn’t seen him earlier. I searched the field and found him working on his long jump. “Think he’ll repeat?”

“No one’s defended their title successfully ever. I know he can do it. He’s been training hard.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“What?”

“I’m sure he’s been-” I held up my fingers, “-‘training hard’.”