I feel a pang of pain in my chest. It catches me off guard. The ache I feel in my chest when I was the two of them together. A reminder of everything I once had. Everything I once lost.
I shake my head free of those thoughts, not allowing myself to go to a place that I’ve kept locked away for so long. A dark place that I can’t show to anyone.
“Yo, lover boy,” Andres calls out, cutting into the quiet. He’s standing by the engine, dripping with sweat. “You looking a little slow over there. You praying that Cap’s gonna come end you of your misery?”
I shoot him a look, grabbing my bottle and dumping water over my head. “Yeah, right, asshole. You know I’ll smoke you in a sled push any day of the week.”
Andres grins, cocky as hell. “Talk is cheap, Rodriguez. Let’s see it.”
Seb whistles low from behind me. “Careful, man. You don’t wanna embarrass yourself in front of the guy Maya says could lift a car with one arm.”
Andres barks out a laugh. I shake my head, biting back a smile. I should’ve known better than to tell those jerks what she said.
“What can I say,” I toss back with a half-smirk, “kid knows what she’s talking about.” I start walking toward the sled, glancing over my shoulder. “Too bad her uncles are trash.”
Andres lets out a dramatic gasp. “The disrespect! Alright, lover boy—put your legs where your mouth is.”
I roll my shoulders back, smirking. “That’s a weird way to ask me to beat your ass, but okay. You want this, too, Seb?”
Seb chuckles behind me. “I’m just here for the show.”
“Okay, grandpa, enjoy the entertainment.” I plant my feetat the edge of the sled and glance over at Andres. “You want a head start? Preserve your ego?”
He flips me off and drops into position on the sled next to mine. “Just don’t cry when I leave you in the dust.”
Captain Nathan walks in just as I tighten my grip on the bars. His eyes flick between us, unimpressed. “Am I gonna regret letting this happen?”
“Probably,” Seb mutters.
For the next hour and a half, we push our sleds across the bay. There’s no quit in either of us. Not with our dignity on the line.
We should’ve tapped out ten rounds ago, but neither one of us is willing to be the first to fold. Every time I stop to catch my breath, I see Andres resetting the weight, and I get my ass right back in line.
By the time Cap comes back, we’re both half-dead, chests heaving, shirts drenched, legs shot.
“I hate you so much,” Andres wheezes, leaning over the sled.
I drop to the floor beside him, gulping air. “Hate you more.”
“Impossible. No one has ever felt the hatred that I feel for you right now. You smell like actual regret.”
Seb strolls by, taking a sip from his bottle of Gatorade. “You idiots done, or should I call for backup?”
I flip him off without looking up. Andres mutters something that sounds like “funeral arrangements.”
Cap pauses next to us, eyeing the two of us collapsed on the ground. “Glad to see all my training methods are in use.”
“Yup,” I manage to breathe out. “Peak conditioning.”
He snorts and walks away.
Tonight is our weekly family dinner at the firehouse, and Analyse and my first time attending together as a couple. The first time in front of Cap.
Cap—Nathan—isn’t the kind of guy to pry, but he can call bullshit from a mile away. Always has. I hope Analyse and I can pull this off, because if Cap suspects something is off, this whole thing will unravel.
Analyse and Maya step through the bay doors, a tray of pastelón in Analyse’s hands. Her hair pinned up, curls fighting for freedom, and she’s wearing that soft hoodie I accidentally left at her place last week. I haven’t asked for it back. It looks better on her.
Seb and Mariana are in the kitchen. Seb is prepping the chicken for the oven while Mariana starts on a pot of rice. Andres has music blasting from a Bluetooth speaker. He’s chopping tomatoes, cucumbers, and romaine for a salad. And Anna is layering her postre de milo.
