Frenemies With Benefits (Geek To Chic Book 2) (24 page)

Sighing, he leaned over
Jemma to look down the street at those finishing the race, waiting to see
Izzy’s smiling face.
 
She loved the
runners high.
 
The longer the run the
happier the girl was.
 
Even with his
significantly longer stride, he had problems keeping up with her.
 
She had been running marathons for years and
this year her goal was to do the marathon in four hours.
 
Glancing at his watch, he realized that the
four hour mark for her start time had come and gone.
 
"Crap, she's going to be
disappointed."
 
Alex mumbled.

The discussion about
where to eat beside him stopped.
 
"Who's going to be disappointed?
 
Did you have a hot date that you're late for?" Jemma joked as she
pushed her glasses up her nose.
 

"Huh?"
 
Alex really hadn't been paying attention to
anything but his watch as he calculated her time.
 

"I asked, who's
going to be disappointed?"
 
Jemma
laughed at him.

"Izzy, Izzy's
going to be disappointed.
 
She has been
training for months to do this race in four hours or under and she didn't make
it."
 
Alex could almost feel her
disappointment.
 

Looking from his watch
to the finish line, he saw out of the corner of his eye all of his friends
staring out of him.
 
'What?"
 

They looked at each
other and then back to him, "How did you know what time her heat
started?"
 
Gracey interjected with a
sardonic smile.
 

Crap! Crap!
Crap!
 
Did I just step in something?
 
"Ummm, she told all of us, a few nights
ago, don't you remember?"
 
He was
desperately trying to backpedal, he couldn't exactly tell them that they had
been discussing her start time in bed last night.
 

"I don't remember
that, but then again I only hear about half of what the girls yammer on and on
about."
 
Phin shrugged returning his
attention to his iPhone.

With more force than Alex
thought she had in her small little body, Jemma knocked Phin on his ass.
 
Phin pushed to his feet with a comical
stunned look on his face.
 
As soon as he
was steady on his feet, she knocked him on his ass again.
 
This is great! Takes all the focus off of
my own stupidity!
Alex gleefully thought.
 

"Why the fuck do
you keep pushing me over? And how the fuck are you able to knock me on my
ass?
 
I am twice your size!"
 
Phin grumbled as he rose again, grabbing
Gracey by the arms using her as a human shield.
 

"I took self-defense
classes about using an opponent’s body weight against him.
 
And I did it because you're an ass who
deserves to be knocked over, repeatedly.
 
Did you hear me or am I just yammering on?"
 
Jemma declared with her hands on her hips and
a look of contempt on her face.
 

"Well, I hear most
of what you yammer about I was talking about the other girls."
 
Clearly Phin forgot that he was using one of
the other girls as a shield.
 
Gracey
turned quickly and once again Phin landed on his ass.
 

At this point Alex and
Gavin are almost falling over themselves because they were laughing so hard
watching Phin get the crap kicked out of him by two girls who collectively
still weighed less than him.
 
They were
both in Phin’s face carrying on about how he needed to learn respect.
 

A familiar voice
grabbed his attention from behind him.
 
“Darren, come on let’s find the medic tent.”
 
He turned to see Izzy patting a man who was
bent over vomiting on the back.
 
Leaving
his friends without a word, he was at Izzy’s side in a few steps.
 

“Hey, I was getting
worried.
 
You ok, man?”
 
He wanted to ask Izzy how she was doing after
the twenty-six plus mile run, but figured he better be nice to her puking
friend.
 

“I came across Darren
in mile twenty-four.
 
He should have
already been done with the race since he started a few heats a head of me. Anyway,
I found him limping along, puking every so often.
 
I am not sure if he is dehydrated or if he
has the flu.
 
I couldn’t get him to stop,
he wanted to finish so I stayed with him.
 
Can you help me get him to the medic tent?”
 

Alex nodded in
response, grabbing one of Darren’s arms he placed it around his neck to help
the man along.
 
“You’re still going to
help me even after I took your girl on a date.”
 
Darren joked.

Alex shot Darren a fake
glare, “I had to endure her yelling at me that night because of my
behavior.
 
You could have helped a fellow
man out and gave me a sign you were just friends.”
 

“I thought about
slipping you my phone number, but that would have only made her mad at me,
better for her to take it out on you.
 
At
least you got make up sex.”
 
Darren
winked.
 

Together they got
Darren to the medical tent, where the paramedic on duty seemed to know
Darren.
 
“What have you done now?”
 
The man, who even Alex had to admit was good
looking, earned a smile from the weak Darren.
 
“I guess I will have to take care of you as always.”
 
The winked.
 

“Thanks for helping me
Izzy.
 
I think I’m in good hands
now.
 
Right, Pete?”
 
Darren said weakly with a smile aimed at the
paramedic.
 

“Ok, call me
later.”
 
She kissed Darren’s cheek.
 

“Sorry I screwed up
your time.”
 
Darren added.

“No worries, sweetie, I
am just glad you are ok.”
 
With a wave
and blowing a kiss, she allowed Alex to lead her to their friends.
 

“I can’t believe you
guys all came out.
 
Thank you!”
 
She hugged the girls.
 
“Why is Phin sitting on the ground?”
 

“I’ll tell you
why.”
 
Phin answered, standing
quickly.
 
“I decided to sit on the ground
because your friend are bullies and kept knocking me over, all because I said
one comment about you girls yammering away.”
 

Blinking a few times,
Izzy turned to Gavin.
 
“You were smart
enough to keep your mouth shut weren’t you?”
 

Gavin nodded in
response.
 
“Yep, they have not had to use
their self-defense moves on me once, because I am the nicest guy in the
world.”
 
He boasted.
 
 

“Whatever asshat, can
we go eat?
 
I think I better buy them
lunch so that they will be nicer to me.”
 
Phin whined.
 

Patting his head, like
a child, Izzy leaned in to stage whisper into Phin’s ear, “I think you’re going
to have to buy more than lunch for them to be nicer to you.”
 
She leaned away smiling.
 
“You guys go to lunch, I need to shower,
desperately.
 
Make Phin beg for
forgiveness and I will see you guys later.
 
Any chance you drove here Alex?
 
Since we live in the same building I was hoping you would drive me home.
Unless you wanted to go to lunch with them.”
 

“Nah, Phin doesn’t need
too many witnesses to his graveling.
 
I
can take you.”
 
With a wave they left
their group of friends who were already buys arguing over where to eat.
 
When they were far enough away that no one
would see them, Alex slipped his hand into hers.
 
“I didn’t actually drive but I can call a cab
if you are too tired to walk.”
 

“That would be great my
feet hurt.”
 
She squeezed his hand.
 

A few minutes later the
cab they had called pulled in front of their building.
 
He paid and helped her out. Once they were in
the elevator he spoke again. “So this shower you are in need of, is this a
private shower or do you need help washing your back?”
 

Biting her lower lip a
little, she stepped into his space.
 
“Oh
I think I am going need some help.” She barely finished the sentence before his
lips met hers.
 

~*~*~*~

After a quick shower to
rinse the sweat and dirt from her body, which Alex was so willing to help her
with, they decided to take a bath together to relax.
 
She sat in his massive bathtub, laying with
her back to his front.
 
Her head rolled
back as he rubbed her shoulder.
 
“Mmm
that feels good.”
 

Kissing her hair he
rubbed her shoulders a little harder.
 
“When we get out of the bath, I’ll rub your feet and then tuck you into
bed for a much earned nap.
 
How does that
sound?”

“The nap sounds great,
but you can skip the foot rub.
 
My feet
are nasty.”
 
She made a face of
disgust.
 

He kissed her shoulder
and neck.
 
“Not possible.
 
You are perfect in every way. Plus, I don’t
remember your feet being nasty last time I gave you a foot rub.”
 

Her mind was starting
to fade a little with his hands and lips on her body.
 
Somehow she managed to respond to him.
 
“That was before I started running marathons,
now I have runner’s feet, which means dried, cracked feet that have blisters
and cuts.
 
Not something you need to be
touching.”
 

Feeling his mouth turn
to a grin on her skin, he suddenly moved with speed that made the water slosh
over the side of the tub, he went for her feet.
 
“No.”
 
Izzy screeched, tucking her
feet under her naked ass.
 

“Come on I have seen
every inch
of you, let me see your feet.
I bet they aren’t as bad as you say they are.”
 
The look on his face was one of playful innocence and warmed her
heart.
 

“Nope, every girl has a
part of her body she hates, mine are my feet.
 
Don’t make me drawn you in your own tub.”
 
She threatened.
 

He stood picking her up
and throwing her over his shoulder, as he often did.
 
Playfully he slapped her ass.
 
“I will see your feet.”
 
Suddenly she was dropped onto his bed and was
grabbing at her legs.
 
She kicked and
giggled, but she was no match for his determination.
 
In a few moves he pinned her and was
examining her feet.
 
“Ick! You don’t need
a foot massage you need a pedicure.
 
Get
dressed.”
 
Again he playfully slapped her
ass.
 

“No nail technician
deserve to have to touch my feet.”
 
She
pouted.
 

Ignoring her, Alex grabbed
his phone calling the spa he must normally have his pedicures done at to make
an appointment for both of them to get pedicures.
 
“You better be dressed in ten minutes or I
will carry you out of this place butt naked.”
  
He playfully called out as he grabbed his clothes from the closet.
 

Knowing he would make
good on his threat, Izzy hurried to dress in the allotted time.
 
Twenty minutes later, they were sitting side
by side in pedicure chairs at a very pricey spa in Cherry Creek.
 

“Where’s your mom today
Alex?”
 
The nail technician asked him as
she started to work on his feet.
 

“At home, or torturing
my Dad by taking him antique shopping.”
 

Izzy’s nail technician
took one look at her feet, put down the small pumice stone and grabbed a harsh
looking file.
 
She felt sorry for the
woman.
 
“How often do you and your mom
come here?”
 
Izzy said, flinching a
little as the woman working on her feet roughly dragged the file across her
foot.