When the laughter died down, Rocco said, “Let me tell you what we need help with today.”
I offered to give everyone privacy, but Rocco urged me to stay. When he began telling us about the content he created for the fitness app, Parker and I were riveted, though Parker tried not to show it. Even Mikey and Tiller, who’d clearly heard all this before, seemed impressed.
“How did you get into this?” Parker asked.
Rocco sat back and took a sip of his coffee. “My brothers and I own an outfitter shop in a small town in Alaska. We run all kinds of tours. Fishing, hiking, glacier sightseeing, hunting, and cross-country skiing, depending on the season and the clients. We grew up there, and we all know the area well enough to make our own way. Beautiful out-of-the-way spots are kind of our bread and butter. The problem is, the winter is long and dark. Tourists dry up, and money gets tight.”
Parker nodded. “You should come down here where it’s sunny year-round.” He shot a sideways look at me and clarified, “I mean, not here-here. Not Aster Valley. Obviously. But Colorado.”
Rocco’s smile made it obvious he was attached to his home state. “Nah. But it makes you have to get creative. I was trying to stay fit with the app, using it for some weight lifting and simple circuits, but I kept wishing some of the classes were outdoors just so I could at least get some fresh air. I started coming up with ways someone could do it, and I finally decided to make a class of my own just to get it out of my head.”
I’d heard of SocialAdrenaline. Most everyone had by now. It was like Peloton, YouTube, and TikTok had birthed a social media–based fitness app. Several of the most popular content creators were making a killing on it, not only from the app itself, but from the sponsorships and influencer income that came along with the social media following itself.
Parker was obviously as fascinated as I was. We listened while Rocco explained how the class had gone viral because of the unique settings in Alaska. What had seemed like his same old “crappy view” of the snow-covered dock and ice-coated lake was really a fantasy destination for many people stuck inside working out in a home gym.
So he created more and more classes under the pseudonym Rock Valentine. When the seasons changed, he added cardio classes on trails, cross-country skiing runs, obstacle courses through the woods. He recorded nature walks where he captured footage of wild animals and even frigid swims across sections of the lake at home.
“My brothers don’t know about any of this,” he admitted with a shrug. “I’ve been doing it for a year and a half now. They’re going to kick my ass when I tell them.”
“Where do they think the money’s coming from?” I couldn’t help but ask. “Or do they not know?”
“I’ve been paying stuff off without them knowing, but they’re going to find out soon. It’s hard to travel to Colorado to work with an actual Super Bowl MVP and not tell your brothers about it.”
Parker let out a laugh. “No shit. Tiller probably loaded you up with merch, too. He’s always trying to pawn that cheap shit off on people.”
Tiller flicked Parker on the head. “Cheap shit, my ass. That merch costs me blood, sweat, and tears.”
Parker leaned over the table to stage-whisper to Rocco. “The tears are from being away from his hot fiancé.”
Tiller nodded. “True story.” He glanced down at a notification on his phone. “Okay, the ski patrol has closed off Sky Shadow and Serpentine Cross for you for the next three hours. One is a nice wide blue run, and the other is a black diamond with moguls. If you decide you want something different, just text me.” He turned to me. “You going to join them?”
Rocco glanced at me with a genuine smile. “Please do. Parker mentioned the other night that you were a great skier.” He lowered his voice. “He also mentioned something incredibly intriguing about tattoos that I’d love to know more about, if you’d like to share.”
“Oh. Ha.” I licked my lips. “Sharing. That’s, ah… that’s not…”
Across the table, Parker clenched his jaw like he was waiting for me to tell Rocco that I wasn’t Parker’s best man, I was his man, and that my tattoos were none of Rocco’s damn business. I wanted that too, so badly it hurt. But Tiller and Mikey were sitting right there, watching the whole exchange like they’d stumbled into a reality TV show, reminding me of all the logical reasons why Parker needed to slow his roll.
I cleared my throat. “About the skiing. I’m afraid I have to, um…” I tried to think up a work assignment urgent enough to skip out on skiing and the inquisition I knew Mikey and Tiller would stage if I stuck around.
But before I could come up with one, the cute Grindr guy who’d been hanging with Parker in my living room the other day suddenly appeared at my side of the table, dangling a set of keys toward Rocco.
“M’kay, got your backup battery, and I am prepared be your director of cinematography. Just remember I have my own classes to film tomorrow, so I’m gonna leave the moguls to you and the professi— Ohmigod, no way!” His smile warmed by a thousand degrees when he noticed my best friend. “Parker? Baby, how are you?”
Baby?
He dropped into the empty seat at Parker’s side and leaned up to kiss Parker’s cheek in the same spot where I’d kissed Parker that morning. Not that I noticed or anything.
I also did not notice that his hair was perfectly styled, his dark eyes were ringed with black liner, and he was dressed to ski, like some sort of twinky Goth-jock hybrid—which was way sexier than I would have imagined that combination being.
“BJ!” Parker grinned back, because he was Parker, and Parker’s only two speeds were friendly and asleep… well, unless you were Rocco, who seemed to be the sole exception. “I’m doing great.”
“Yeah?” BJ tilted his head toward me and then back in a meaningful sort of way, like they were passing secret coded messages.
Parker’s face softened, the way it usually only did for me. “Yeah,” Parker confirmed with that same meaningful undertone. “You?”
“Ehhhh.” BJ waved a hand and gave a self-deprecating smile. “Still in sad panda territory, but I swear I’m almost getting used to that. It’s gorgeous here in Aster Valley, though, and work is going well, and I forgot how much I enjoy skiing when I’m not falling on my ass.” He gave Parker a wink that made me want to hit something. Or someone. “Still bendy, you know? That helps.”
“Yeah.” Parker’s grin deepened. “I remember.”
He remembered that BJ was bendy? What exactly had I missed yesterday?
A wave of jealousy swamped me, powerful enough to make my stomach lurch.
I’d figured I was more or less immune to the emotion by now, given that I’d had to push it down a dozen or more times over the years whenever Erin had waltzed back into Parker’s life. But it turned out there was a whole other half of the population I hadn’t known I could be jealous of, and my stupid heart hadn’t gotten the message that we were supposed to proceed with caution here.
Lucky me.
“Sorry, back up. BJ, you and Parker are friends?” Rocco demanded. “How’d that happen?”