Between Heats (Downtown Aquatics Book 1)

by Laney Castro

  “Five more minutes?” Aaron asked, looking into her eyes. “Please?”

  She sighed. “Well, I do need to take another shower…”

  Aaron smiled, his lips on her neck. “I’ll take what I can.”

  Finally, it was Madison’s insistent reminder that he had to get to the aquatic center that sobered Aaron up. He poured two quick bowls of cereal for both of them, insisting on driving her to her apartment, but she didn’t want to give in.

  “I don’t have anywhere else to be this morning. I’m in no rush; I’ll be fine,” she assured him, playfully tugging a lock of his dark hair. “But you’ll be late.”

  “All right,” he agreed reluctantly. “I’ll be out of the pool by 9. How about we do brunch?”

  Madison smiled slyly. “Aren’t you tired of me yet, hotshot?”

  “I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t give up until he gets what he wants,” Aaron reminded her, taking a step closer.

  But she agreed, and Aaron found himself too pumped up for training. On most days he was a machine, conditioning himself one day at a time. Hitting his stroke rate. Mastering his drills. Perfecting his turns. Keeping himself streamlined. Shaving seconds off his time through a carefully-designed regimen. But that morning, instead of taking extra time to warm up after his two-day rest, he exploded with a jump start and went through his laps like there was a record to beat; meter after meter of raw power fuelled by the thought of her eyes, her skin, her lips.

  When Madison went home to her small and cramped apartment in Little Tokyo, she thought she was all ready to pass out and sleep the rest of the night off without dinner. Her supposed typical midday shift at the Common Grounds wasn’t so typical at all. It was as if there was a convention nearby and the place was packed more than usual. She overheard a couple of bearded guys in plaid shirts complain that the place has become too popular for them, but they stayed anyway. They also ran out of beans in the grinder so she had to go out back and get a whole bag since no one else would do it. When the crowd thinned just as her shift was ending, she was asked to extend to cover for an absent Sandra. She didn’t really complain since it was extra money, and she hoped this meant she and Sandra were now even.

  But the truth was, she was too keyed up to relax. She couldn’t help but think about how extremely well last night—and this morning—went with Aaron. Now she couldn’t stop thinking about him and his hot body, and the way they were in tune with each other’s needs. She felt herself flushing at the thought of seeing him again, and that surprised herself.

  Early on she knew nothing in life was permanent, and that she had to keep moving if she had to make sure she still had a job by day and then make it to a casting call somewhere. If she wanted to pursue acting full-time and secure her career, she needed to do a lot more than just brewing coffee and looking pretty in front of the cameras.

  Maybe she didn’t have any plans in going further than one night with Aaron, but she wanted to see more of him. Heaven knows she wanted more. But doing so added variables she might not be able to control, and uncertainty wasn’t an option at the moment. At least for her.

  Madison was still deep in thought when her phone started ringing. Thinking it was Aaron, she excitedly sat up and took out her phone from her bag. Only to see someone else’s initial on her screen. She had to talk to him sooner or later.

  Fuck.

  She took a breath before answering the call.

  “Finally. You’ve been dodging my calls lately,” the low, familiar voice said by way of greeting.

  “I’ve been busy. There was that Stroke catalog shoot I needed to do,” Madison informed her caller.

  Sean chuckled. “Well, I’ve been missing you. A couple of scripts landed on my desk; you may be perfect for one of them. Dinner tonight?”

  She hesitated. She didn’t know if last night with Aaron changed things—or if she wanted things to change in the first place. Her arrangement with Sean may be complicated but at least they both knew where things stood between them. None of these odd lingering notions from last night, like fear or desire or great bliss that threatened to sweep over her whenever her thoughts wandered to a certain swimmer.

  She cleared her throat. “Where?”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Madison wasn’t able to sleep, even if Sean had been demanding in bed last night and she was exhausted. But she wanted to leave, and she could, so she did. After quickly putting her clothes back on and starting the coffee, she had left his posh apartment to go back home.

  That was the best part of this arrangement: no questions asked. And it was supposed to be easy.

  But last night was completely different. Even if the promise was a lead role in a popular, though low-budget, movie franchise, she found it hard to be with Sean. The sex was good, especially with a man of his experience. But in the end she had to imagine another man’s clear gray eyes instead to get a satisfying payoff.

  She wasn’t quite sure how exactly she got into this arrangement in the first place. Madison had met Sean at an industry party more than a year ago. He had enough clout to rub elbows with the big league players. They must have crossed paths a few more times before they hooked up.

  It was a relationship that she hid from everyone else, especially her family. Only Elliott knew. They saw each other for dinner or a gallery opening, and then some. It was no big deal. They were both single and unattached, he was easy to get along with, and they both had needs. It was half a year ago when it started being beneficial as well. He'd find her acting projects, and she’d get a call. He made good on his word, as she had already gotten a couple of acting jobs, albeit bit roles, in less than a year. More than she could get through her small talent agency in this competitive city.

  It was an open relationship and there were no emotional commitments. Easy.

  But why did it sound so pathetic right now?

  Was it her guilt at seeing Sean that drove Madison to see more and more of Aaron? It wasn’t as if he had come out and said they were dating exclusively, and she didn’t want to be the first to broach the subject. Besides, how was she going to explain Sean to him? Oh, by the way, I’m seeing someone else, too. But don’t worry, we’re not serious. Or the more direct You don’t mind if I take this booty call, right?

  If Aaron noticed anything wrong, he didn’t show it. They saw each other thrice in the first week, a record for Madison and—if his unforgiving schedule was any indication—for Aaron as well. Soon they had established a comfortable rhythm. With her car back in commission, it was easier for her to see him.

  They ate out a lot together. Aaron needed to eat almost all the time to compensate for all of his training, but he easily burned everything off. They would either have to do a brunch date after his morning training and before his midday nap, or dinner after his afternoon training. Or both. She didn’t mind adjusting her diet around their dates, and it almost always ended up with her just ordering a juice or a glass of water, or a nice salad if it was available on the menu.

  Madison once brought him to the farmers’ market down on 3rd and Fairfax, since he said he’d never been. It wasn’t really a grower’s market, but there were a lot of different food stalls from Jewish to Spanish to Malay. But it was with him that she discovered a lot more food trucks. She indulged in some of them, and decided that all the workout they’d be doing afterwards would make up for all the bingeing anyway.

  Conversations with him ranged from comfort food to Japanese rock bands, something she decided, she didn’t mind at all. They’d also talk about things from her own field—movies and industry politics and coffee roasts—but their conversations also meandered to more mundane things like weather, or what their days would be like, or where they’d eat next. It made Madison happy to be on someone’s top-of-mind. They were strangely matched at times, a girl who ordered the least fattening thing off the menu and the guy who did nothing but eat, but they had found an easy and familiar rhythm with each other.

  Aaron was a different man e
ntirely when the topic revolved around swimming. He would talk about it enthusiastically, how he loved being in the water and he could spend hours in it. His life revolved around it so she couldn’t blame him. Little by little, he opened up about starting at a young age because his father had swum competitively. Once Aaron could keep up with the older boys, he began competing seriously himself. Madison noticed that he’d grow tense whenever the conversation shifted to his dad. From what she could gather, Mr. Harding was an extreme perfectionist.

  She secretly read up on interviews and articles about him, and also to keep up with the terms he kept mentioning. This was actually the part that her sister Mackenzie was the biggest help; Mac was a bit of a fan, and after Madison had convinced her that Aaron wasn’t the douche she first thought, Mac was her constant source of info. She was thrilled that Madison was dating an Olympian, a thought that never really entered Madison’s head until Mac mentioned it.

  But she didn’t leave everything to her sister. She even visited him once or twice during his morning practices, and saw how much he was really into swimming. But whenever she asked him about the more technical stuff, he’d just shrug and grin, “Simple. The fastest guy wins.”

  When he had time, and when she let him, he returned the favor and watched her at a couple of shoots for small local magazines. Even if shooting the covers for Quilt It Simple or Yoga Monthly wasn’t as exciting as the Stroke campaign, he told her he enjoyed watching her work.

  Aside from always being hungry, he was always sleeping. There were times she actually found it endearing, because he looked calm and adorable when he dozed off, but it did tend to take up the time they could’ve been spending time together.

  One time, she asked him to catch a foreign film at an art house theatre on Santa Monica Boulevard. “Are you sure you wanna watch this one?” he asked with a frown when she pointed at the poster.

  “Yeah, why not?” she asked him. “It looks interesting, and I thought you’d like it since it’s Japanese.”

  Aaron simply shrugged. “Sure. Your call.”

  He made it sound like she was dragging him to watch paint dry. And it felt that way, too, since he fell asleep fifteen minutes into the movie. He had his head leaned back and didn’t seem to be moving, and so she had to look closely to see that he really was sleeping. Madison even poked his shoulder once but he didn’t budge. She shook her head and just leaned back. With his training getting more and more intensive, she knew that Aaron needed as much rest as he could get. She enjoyed the movie nonetheless, liked its quiet pace and characters, but she just wished he was awake the whole time to enjoy it.

  So she decided to tease him when they walked to a small cafe afterwards. With her hand tucked in his, they lined up for drinks, and after they had gotten a cup of Darjeeling for her and a smoothie and slice of cake for him, she nudged him. She wasn’t going to let him live it down.

  “So, Mr. Harding, what was your favorite part of that beautiful movie?” she asked him in between giggle fits.

  She was all prepared to laugh at his confused expression when all of a sudden, he leaned forward and looked straight at her. “When the owner of the bath house in their town died, and the guy had to prepare the body in front of the family. I liked that he really earned the respect of his wife and of their small town, for a job he had learned to value as well. Thought that was pretty cool.”

  Madison looked at him, mouth open in surprise. “B-But you were sleeping!”

  “I was?” Aaron asked, a sheepish smile on his face.

  Realization coursed through her. “You’ve already seen it!” Of course he had. He seemed like the type to get into Japanese culture—food, music and film. “Why didn’t you say something?”

  “Well, you seemed you wanted to watch it,” he said, ducking his head and staring at his orange smoothie. “And I still wanted to spend time with you,” he said in a low voice. “I’m sorry I dozed off though.”

  Damn this man. He was adorable and sweet, and she felt an unfamiliar tug inside of her, and it warmed her to her toes. There was something with what he said and how he said it that made her want to hug him and kiss him. And just be with him. She settled with leaning forward as well, their heads almost touching, the lingering smell of chlorine already so familiar, and she smiled at him shyly.

  “Thank you,” she said softly. For what exactly, she didn’t know.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Hey, Harding, we’re hitting Papa Mel’s,” Craig Parker, one of the younger guys on the team, invited him after practice one afternoon. He had his leg stretched out for a massage from one of the club’s therapists. “You coming?”

  He opened his mouth but his teammate and oldest friend Patrick Donoghue beat him to it. “C’mon, Parker, don’t tell me you didn’t see the hottie who came to pick Aaron up. He’s not going to line up saying ‘Bros before—’”

  “Can it, Donoghue,” Aaron sniped good-naturedly. He and the rest of the guys trash-talked each other a lot, but the truth was they were a pretty tight team. People always thought swimming was an individual sport, but that was before they realized that swimmers spent so many hours together, working and training like a unit. He couldn’t imagine swimming with a different bunch even if they talked smack about each other. “Besides, it’s no contest. Your ugly mug’s got nothing on her.”

  “Dude, if your reaction time’s any indication, I’m guessing the lady’s not all satisfied in bed,” Patrick quipped, upping the ante.

  Aaron shook his head, grinning. He had showered in record time because Madison had dropped by and he didn’t want to waste any more time trading wisecracks with the rest of the guys. All he had on today were jeans and a plain black shirt, but Madison hadn’t sounded like she wanted to go anywhere fancy. Still, if he wanted to get the night started, he had to get going. He grabbed his bag from his locker. “The next time you guys take a dig at my reaction time, it’ll be because I’ve kept you out of a podium finish,” he countered. They always got a little competitive around meet time. “See you tomorrow, ladies.”

  Aaron ignored the jeers and shouts from the rest of the guys as he hurried over to where Madison sat talking to Coach Didion. She was talking animatedly and flailing her arms, and he could only guess that she was talking about swimming. Coach Didion bade them farewell when Aaron came jogging up.

  “Hey, hotshot,” Madison said with a lazy grin as he leaned down to kiss her. “The water’s so tempting that I want to jump right in.”

  Damn. The thought of her in the pool was enough to heat him up. “Why don’t you? I can join you.”

  She laughed. “I’m not sure I should. You know our history with pools. I’d rather just sit here safely where I’m guaranteed not to get thrown out.”

  Aaron sat down beside her and threw an arm over her shoulders, giving her a reason to nuzzle closer. He breathed in her familiar aroma. “Did you come from the cafe?” he asked.

  “Did my eau de caffeine give it away?” she kidded, cradling his cheek and giving him a long kiss. Her fingernail scraped against his jaw, teasing him.

  He could kiss her forever. She tasted like coffee, giving him a jolt with every darting lick of her tongue against his lips. “What were you and Coach talking about?” he asked when they drew apart.

  Madison leaned against him. “He asked me if I was a member of the club and I said that I wasn’t a swimmer like you. He was nice enough to say that he was pleased you met a girl like me because he was starting to worry about you.” She gave him a sly sideways glance.

  Aaron groaned inwardly. “They work us to the bone and then wonder why it’s so hard for us to be in serious relationships,” he grumbled. “Coach wasn’t too happy with my drill work today. He thinks I haven’t been conditioning enough.”

  A look of worry crossed Madison’s face. “I’m sorry! Is it because of me? But we hit the gym often—”

  He kissed the top of her head. “Hey. Don’t worry about it. He’s just in a bad mood because we’re going t
o start tapering off practice. That’s the break we get before a competition, so we’re relaxed. Maybe Coach is already missing yelling at us so he’s trying to make up for it.”

  “I don’t want to get you in trouble,” she murmured, snuggling closer, making Aaron not want to move from his spot at all. “But I know you work harder than anyone. You’d be doing drills in that water if I weren’t here. He’s probably just as proud as your dad is.”

  He wasn’t too sure about that. His dad had been a competitive swimmer once and he still kept a close eye on his training. It seemed to be the only thing they talked about. He’d be all over Aaron’s case whenever he did something that wasn’t part of the plan. Just once Aaron wished someone could show up to his meets and not judge him for underperforming. Madison’s family wasn’t in LA, but at least they had kept a close bond. “How was your day?” he asked, immediately changing the subject. He remembered her texting him earlier about a go-see. “How did the casting go?”

  “Which one? The mall runway show? The commercial? The fashion house looking for a new fit model? Three jobs and I didn’t book a single one,” Madison sighed. “Oh, sure I got a ‘you-fit-our-look-we-can-use-you-next-time,’ but at the end of the day, that just comes down to one fat zero. I mean, they needed someone’s back for that commercial! You’d think I had a decent back—”

  “Mighty fine back,” Aaron interjected, kissing her shoulder but that didn’t deter her from her rant.

  “Apparently, I don’t have the right dimples of Venus.”

  “What are dimples of Venus?”

  “My point exactly.” She shook her head. “I had really hoped that after the Stroke campaign, offers would be coming in. I know it hasn’t been released but...”

  Aaron frowned. He hated seeing her sound defeated. She was usually much sassier than this. “I can’t imagine anyone saying no to you.”