Trained At The Gym: A Contemporary Reverse Harem Romance

by Cassie Cole

  But I knew the points contest wasn’t the only thing they were disappointed in.

  What was wrong with me, dating all three of them at the same time? It was absolutely stupid trying to juggle Finn, Max, and Brody. I should have chosen one of them long before now, letting the others off gently. Instead, I had put it off until it all came crashing down.

  It felt like my throat was tightening, making it tougher to breathe. The crowd pressing in around our two treadmills made it feel like I was in a fishbowl. I needed to get some space.

  I hit pause on the machine. “I need a quick break.”

  People muttered encouragement as I pushed through the crowd, but their words were meaningless.

  I hobbled across the gym and then upstairs. For some reason, walking hurt just as much as running. I groaned when I reached the Nutrition Bar. The lights were off, and nobody was working. I forgot it closed at nine.

  Finn and Max appeared at the top of the stairs. “What do you want?” Finn asked. “I’ll make you anything.”

  “Strawberry and banana, please.”

  “Coming right up.”

  I sat in one of the chairs and looked at Max. “You two have been talking, haven’t you?”

  He crossed his arms and nodded.

  “I’ve got to say, we’re both a little shocked,” Finn said from behind the bar.

  I put my head on the table and groaned. “I’m sorry. I’m an idiot. It’s all my fault. First I was fooling around with Finn, and we agreed that it wasn’t allowed so we needed to keep things platonic. Then I started seeing you, Max, and it was amazing and fun and new. But at the same time, Finn and I were still flirting and teasing each other, until finally we stopped caring about getting in trouble…”

  “It’s kind of my fault,” Max grimaced. “I’m the one who told him to follow his heart and not worry about the rules. Although at the time I didn’t realize his love interest was you.”

  “I wish that I had known about Max,” Finn said solemnly. “I don’t know if it would have changed anything, but…” He shook his head and brought me the smoothie. “I wish I had known.”

  “Do you hate me?” I asked them with tears in my eyes. “I’ll understand if you do. If neither of you ever want to see me again.”

  They looked at each other. An unspoken conversation passed between their eyes.

  “We don’t need to talk about this now,” Max said.

  Finn nodded. “You need to focus on the rest of the contest. That’s the only thing that matters. And we are both here for you.”

  “But…” I protested.

  Max pulled out another gel. “Take one of these. You’re probably sick of them, I know, but it will absorb into your blood faster than the smoothie.”

  I was too tired to argue, so I sucked down the toothpaste-like gel and quickly washed it down with the smoothie.

  Finn dropped to the ground and began probing my ankle. “You said your joints hurt. What part? It won’t help much, but I can work out some of the swelling…”

  Max came around the back of my chair and gently rubbed my shoulder. “I saw you tensing up on the treadmill. Let me work on your trapezius muscles…”

  My two coaches—and two lovers—tended to my body while I finished my smoothie. But as nice as it was, all I could think about was how we were delaying a very uncomfortable conversation.

  As I rose from my chair at eleven o’clock and prepared to go back downstairs, a cheer went up from the crowd. I knew without looking at the screen what had happened.

  25-29 AGE GROUP

  BRODY F:_____20,329

  KATHERINE D: 20,328

  “For the third time today, we have a lead change!” the store manager announced. “Can Brody hold onto the lead going into the final hour?”

  When I returned to my treadmill, the crowd gave me smiles of pity rather than encouragement. I probably looked like a train wreck, while Brody was still gliding along the treadmill at a steady, effortless pace.

  “Come on, Kat,” Brody whispered as I began jogging. “Put up a fight.”

  “I’m trying,” I snapped.

  He gazed at me with concern rather than smugness.

  Starting my jog felt tougher than it had my first day in the gym three months ago. All the parts of my body started aching again—ankles, knees, the side of my thigh. Plus the muscle in my groin felt tight, now.

  But I pumped my arms and moved forward.

  I tried not to look at the scoreboard. I knew what it would show. Brody was ahead of me in points and rapidly pulling away. Even if he slowed his pace to an easy jog, he would stay ahead of me.

  It was over.

  But the two men to my right kept me going, putting one painful foot in front of the other. Max and Finn were smiling encouragingly and shouting, “Let’s go, Kat!” like my own personal cheerleaders. They had worked so hard to get me to this point. I didn’t want to let them down.

  I also knew that as soon as I quit, the three of us would have that uncomfortable discussion about our relationships. Compared to that, the pain of jogging was easy to handle.

  With that looming over me, and the failure of the contest, my mood darkened. The points contest was the only thing I had going in my life, I realized. For the past three months I had been pouring all of my time and energy into it, along with my emotional expectations. Sure, Pacifica was opening in April and my store was going to go out of business, but at least I had the points contest to focus on. At least I had my handsome coaches to look forward to.

  Now, I saw it was all a waste of time. I was about to fail the points contest, and then my relationships with Finn and Max would crumble.

  More failures added to the pile. It was almost enough to make me start crying.

  And then, without warning, Brody cried out in pain.

  One moment, Brody was running along easily. The next moment he yelped in pain, stumbled, and then hopped off the side of the treadmill. The crowd made room for him as he dropped down into a seated position, gripping his foot with both hands.

  “It’s the ball of my foot.” He tried to flex his foot, but winced.

  “Don’t. You dare. Let me win,” I warned in between gasps.

  “I’m not,” he growled, more out of pain than anger.

  Finn and one of the other trainers bent at his side and helped him remove his shoe and sock. The moment they touched his bare foot, Brody let out a noise in anguish.

  “Let’s get you up to the recovery room,” one of the trainers said, putting an arm around Brody and helping him up. “We can ice it as needed.”

  “Whatever it takes to get me back on a machine,” Brody said.

  They disappeared upstairs.

  My pace was barely more than a walk, but I kept moving forward. The aches in my lower body were only getting worse. I could tell my running form was awful as I began using secondary muscles rather than the proper ones.

  Yet my points kept increasing, and Brody’s stayed the same.

  He was gone for ten minutes, then fifteen. I started alternating walking and running again, because otherwise I couldn’t catch my breath. Each time I started running again it was like stabbing my legs with needles. It would have been easier to give up.

  But I was only ten points behind Brody.

  “Looking good, boss-lady!”

  I glanced to my left. “Paul?”

  My stoner employee was looking around the gym in wonder. “This place is nuts. Way above my pay grade. But you’re doing awesome.”

  The sight of him put a smile on my face. “Thanks. How’s… the… store?”

  “Same old, same old. Forget about that. Just keep truckin’. Or whatever you runners say to each other.”

  Suddenly Brody’s points began increasing again. One point, then another. “What’s he doing!” I demanded.

  Max ran out to the middle of the room and looked up at the second floor balcony. “He’s on a bike.”

  I groaned. That was it. If he could find a way to spin eas
y for the remaining time, he could stay ahead of me.

  Just when I was considering quitting, Finn came running downstairs. “Brody’s foot. We think it’s a stress fracture!”

  “It doesn’t matter,” I said while walking. “If he’s still spinning, he wins.”

  Finn shook his head. “He had to stop after a few minutes. He’s done, Kat. You have a chance to beat him!”

  I looked at the time. It was eleven forty.

  Despite my protesting legs, I increased the treadmill speed and began jogging again. A moan of pain escaped my lips as I stumbled forward. I had to grip the side rails to keep from falling forward, but it allowed me to keep moving my legs.

  The clock ticked closer to midnight. Soon even glancing up at the scoreboard took too much of my strength, so I stared straight ahead.

  One foot in front of the other. One step at a time.

  I thought about Brody upstairs. Was he faking it to let me win? In my exhaustion-addled brain, that seemed likely. Maybe he was trying to be chivalrous.

  He’d better not be faking it, I thought bitterly. Or I’ll never forgive him. I wanted to earn this, not have it gifted to me out of pity.

  I was sick of people pitying me. Since my parents died, and in the years after, and since it became clear that Pacifica was opening down the street. I didn’t want anyone’s pity.

  I wanted to be successful.

  Suddenly everyone in the crowd gasped, then cheered. I pulled my eyes up to the scoreboard.

  25-29 AGE GROUP

  KATHERINE D: 20,334

  BRODY F:_____20,333

  “You did it!” Max shouted in front of me. “Kat, you won!”

  I groaned. “There’s… Still… Ten… Minutes… Left. What if… he starts…”

  Max shook his head before I could finish. “Brody’s done! It’s over! You beat him!”

  It took a few more seconds for my mind to accept it. Then I hit the big red STOP button on the treadmill and fell to my knees.

  I did it, I thought as the room erupted with applause. I won!

  32

  Katherine

  Max helped me up, and then Finn was on the other side of me. Together they carried me over to the wall and lowered me onto a stool next to the clean-wipe station. Sitting down felt amazing.

  “I need to clean down my machine,” I said, reaching for an antiseptic wipe. “It’s covered in sweat. It’s the rules.”

  “Just this once, I think we can ignore the rules,” Finn said. He smiled warmly at me. “Kat, I’m so proud of you.”

  Brody came walking down the stairs, holding onto the railing for support. His right foot was wrapped in a bandage, and he had an ice pack in his hand. With the help of another trainer he hobbled his way over to me, and stuck out his hand.

  “You beat me. Congratulations, Kat. You earned it.”

  I glared at his hand. “Did you let me win?”

  He narrowed his eyes at me. “I can assure you, this foot injury is quite real. You won fair and square. Now shake my hand before I decide to be a sore loser.”

  I finally shook it, and we smiled wearily at each other.

  The next ten minutes were a blur. The manager of the store announced me as the winner, and said that another year of platinum membership would be credited to my account. I was going to be a member of RMF until 2022.

  Then Finn and Max helped me upstairs to the Rejuvenation Lounge, where a big tub of ice water waited. I yelped as they lowered me into the freezing water. It felt like I was being stabbed with needles up and down my legs. But I was too exhausted to try to climb out, and soon my lower body had gone numb.

  “Stay in here for fifteen minutes,” Finn said. “Trust us. You will thank us tomorrow.”

  I flashed them a thumbs-up and closed my eyes.

  As crazy as it sounded, I actually dozed off inside the freezing tub. I woke up shivering and blue.

  Max and Finn were gone.

  I pulled myself out of the tub and dried off. I stretched my legs out—they actually did feel a lot better. It was like walking on legs made of rubber, but at least the pain was gone.

  The gym was practically empty as I went to the locker room to shower. Everyone had cleared out once the contest was over, I guessed. The scoreboard on the wall had already been reset—it showed a column of zeroes next to our names.

  After showering and changing clothes, I found someone waiting for me in the lobby.

  Brody smiled at me weakly. “Hey there, champ.”

  “Hey there, second place.” I looked around. “Have you seen Finn or Max?”

  He jerked his thumb toward the door. “Actually, they left about twenty minutes ago. Said they were going to a bar to get drunk and talk about some stuff. Whatever that means.”

  “Huh.” I pretended like I didn’t know what that meant. Maybe it’s good that I’m not there for that conversation. After the day I had had, the last thing I wanted to do was talk with two of the guys I had been seeing. I just wanted to go home and sleep for twenty straight hours.

  Brody fidgeted. “Hey. I have a favor to ask. I kind of… Can’t drive myself home.” He stuck out his bandaged foot. “Would you mind driving me?”

  I laughed. “You really aren’t faking it, are you? Just call an Uber.”

  “I would, but I don’t want to leave my car here overnight.” He grimaced. “Pretty please? It’s the least you could do after kicking my ass in the contest. Be a gracious winner and take pity on me.”

  I took his keys, got his Subaru from the parking garage down the street, and picked him up in front of the gym. Then I followed his directions as he led me back to his apartment. I parked in the parking garage their and we got out of the car.

  “I’ll call an Uber for you,” he said. “I really appreciate this.”

  I looked inside the doors to his apartment complex. “How far do you have to walk?”

  “Oh, just to the end of that hall to the elevator.” Brody paused. “Then on the fifth floor I have to walk all the way back to this side of the building. But I’ll be alright.”

  I looked at the time and sighed. “Come on. Let’s get you upstairs.”

  I put an arm around him and helped him to the elevator.

  “I’m surprised you can still walk,” he said as we rode it to the fifth floor.

  “Me too. The ice bath I took really helped.”

  “They’re painful, but they work.”

  The door opened and I helped him down the hall.

  “Hey, random question,” I asked. “Have you told anyone about us dating?”

  “Oh. Um. Yeah, I’ve told a couple of people.”

  I felt myself tense. “Like who?”

  “Friends. A coworker back in California. Um, I sort of told my mother, too. Was that a mistake?”

  I laughed, too relieved to care. “Nope, that’s totally fine.”

  We reached his door and I helped him inside. “Woah. This place is nice.”

  “Not on account of my taste,” he replied. “It’s a fully-furnished apartment. Thanks for helping me get up here.”

  “As the winner of the quarterly points contest, it was my pleasure,” I teased.

  Brody turned and took me into his arms. “If I was going to lose to anyone, I’m glad it was you.”

  He kissed me softly. A kiss of thanks, and of celebration. But when he pulled away, he kept gazing back at me with his impossibly-blue eyes.

  I raised an eyebrow. “Now I think you’ve been faking this whole time as a ploy to get me up to your apartment.”

  He stroked my cheek with his thumb. “It’s real, Kat. It’s all real.”

  Brody kissed me again. This time it was more passionate and needful, like I was the Gatorade he craved after a long day of exercise. And as weary as my body was, I yearned for him just as much.

  Our hands explored each other’s bodies there in his apartment doorway, and then we kissed and stumbled our way into his bedroom. The furniture was all tasteful mahogany with cream-colored
cushions and sheets, including his king-sized bed. We fell onto the soft comforter together, our kisses growing quicker and more eager.

  Within seconds we had our clothes off—although Brody needed help getting his pants over his bandaged foot. I climbed on top of him and lowered myself onto his cock. After all the teasing, and kissing, and almost-sex we had had for the past few months it felt better than I ever could have imagined. He filled me completely, like our sexual organs were sculpted to fit together. Puzzle pieces finally being united.

  No matter how tired my legs were, I found the energy to ride him steadily. I lowered my torso to him and he took one of my nipples into his mouth, sucking gently and sending electricity through my chest. Then he wrapped his arms around me and rolled us over onto our sides. Our lips found each other again and we kissed passionately while making love, racing together toward the finish line in a completely different kind of race than the points contest.

  After, we took turns spooning each other while we slept. When I was the big spoon, I buried my face in his blond hair and breathed deeply of his scent. Even though he had showered at the gym, I could smell a hint of his salty musk. Just beneath the smell of shampoo.

  I slept deeply, dreaming of gliding on the treadmill toward victory while Brody, Max, and Finn congratulated me with hugs and kisses as if nothing was wrong.

  The only time I woke up was when Brody got out of bed to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. I was distantly aware of him kneeling next to the bed, rustling with the clothes. Then I heard the sound of keys jingling.

  “What are you doing?” I murmured, half-asleep.

  The key-jingling stopped. “Looking for my pants.”

  “Why? Are you leaving?”

  “I have to go to the bathroom.”

  I rolled over and sighed. “Go naked.”

  “It’s cold!” he complained.

  I laughed and drifted back to sleep, waking again only when I heard the jingling of keys as he returned and took off his pants before curling up in bed with me.

  My phone alarm went off at seven. I hit snooze twice and then finally turned it off so I could keep cuddling with Brody, who was sleeping like a log. A warm, muscular log that I could wrap my legs around and hold tight.