Martin and Lexi

[SheWrites]

Part 1, Chapter 1

Martin Lynch had bought a gym membership at Healthy Habits which would last him the entire year, but having the discipline to walk twenty minutes just to get there was difficult, especially for a man who normally sat on his ass and ate junkfood all day, so he decided to drive instead. He parked his 2009 Harley-Davidson Cruiser in the off-street parking space at eleven o'clock at night. He figured the gym would be empty by then, because who in their right mind began a session leading into the morning?

He thought he would be alone. Only he wasn't. When Martin looked through the thermopane windows, he saw six or so people operating the machines.

Just my luck, he thought as the front doors slid open and he walked inside. He quickly went over to the reception area to check in with his membership card.

The lady at the desk smiled. "Have a nice workout."

The groggy side of Martin's brain almost made him say, You too.

He walked into the Lifting Area, listening to the dull pop music echoing from the wall speakers. Not knowing what to do, and not knowing where to go, he gave a look around for the free-weights section. Sure enough, he saw it on the far right end of the gym: dumbbells racked neatly in front of an enormous mirror, and to his surprise, only one person standing in front of it. He was both amazed and dismayed to see that it had been a woman. She was wearing dark-grey sweatpants and a black Nike singlet. She picked up a pair of 15-lb dumbbells and her lemon-sized biceps bulged from the effort.

The woman heard Martin approach and gave a slight look over her shoulder. She must have been in her early twenties or late teens, because there wasn't a wrinkle or a blemish on her well-tanned skin. At her feet was a nylon gym bag. Martin supposed it contained nothing more than a towel and a bottle of water. He himself didn't bother to bring such things. In fact, he didn't plan on staying here very long.

"Hi," the woman said. "Late gainer?"

"What?" said Martin.

"You prefer to work out at night? Soothe the nerves?"

"What makes you think that?" he said.

She jerked her head towards the front-facing window wall. "Never seen that bike around here. Looks pretty nice."

"So you're normally here during the day?" he said.

She nodded. "Either here or at home. I installed my own set-up a couple months ago. It's nice to have."

Martin raised an eyebrow. "Yeah." But why are you here now?

"I got a sudden burst of energy." He supposed this woman didn't have to be a mind reader to know what he was thinking. "This is my second workout today."

"Impressive."

She smirked and offered Martin a handshake. He accepted it. She had a firm grip, one that told him she was used to this sort of exchange. "I'm Lexi. Nice to meet you."

"Martin," he said.

"Martin. My dad's name is Martin. You wouldn't happen to be a contractor, too?"

He chuckled. "Definitely not. A failed sales rep, a struggling writer, and a current transaction handler for an old man's clothing store."

"Hey, at least you're doing something."

He nodded, grabbed a pair of 20-lb dumbbells, and began curling them. He wasn't sure what he was doing, but he'd seen enough videos of bodybuilders in his time to know what a bicep curl looked like. Am I supposed to bend my arm a particular way or something?

"You're gonna hurt yourself if you do it like that," she said. "You want me to show you?"

"Would you?" he said. "I mean, you seem to know what you're doing."

She let out an amused snort as she approached his side. She stood about an inch shorter than his 5'10" frame. "First off," she said, taking his dumbbells and placing them back on the rack, "don't start off too heavy. That's a surefire way to pull a muscle." She grabbed a pair of 10-lb dumbbells and placed them in his hands.

"Noted."

"Second: put your elbows at your side and put your forearms out, like this." She gave a demonstration, and then helped him exact that position. She then explained, in detail, how to perform a bicep curl.

"You do this often?"

She looked at him with an open mouth. "Do what often? Bicep curls?"

He shook his head. "Coaching. You a coach or something?"

She laughed. "Heavens no. I started a couple months ago. I used to play basketball and indoor hockey in high school, but outside of that, I've never done any sort of physical exercise, never mind coaching."

Martin found that difficult to believe. "Judging by your arms, and your brains, I thought you'd have been around awhile."

Another chuckle. "Nah. You pick things up while you're here, literally and metaphorically. Besides, I like to do my own research on things. Google workouts, that sort of stuff."

Martin nodded. This girl certainly came well prepared.

He went back to doing bicep curls with the 10-lb weights. He thought he was getting the gist of it.

Then he glanced over at Lexi. She had moved up to 20 lbs and was quietly counting the reps as she lifted the dumbbells. Her delts flexed tightly and her barely visible lats peeked out from her armholes. A bit of sweat began to bead down her skin.

For someone that's only been here a few months, she sure has a good bit of muscle to her.

He didn't put much thought into it until now, but there was something about it. The strength involved. It was almost sexy even. He imagined what he himself might have looked like if he spent as much time in the gym as she did. Two years ago, he had quit his job as a sales rep and gone unemployed for some time. The money just wasn't coming in, even after a month of work.

He had made ends meet by offering his editing services over the web, and by receiving weekly welfare payments. He and his ex-girlfriend had broken up sometime before that. Things were just not working out, which was a fancy way of saying that she had no longer found him attractive. Now he wanted to do something about that, but he wasn't sure he had the same discipline as this woman. The same willpower.

"See?" she said cheerfully. "You're gettin' the hang of it already. It always starts off rough, but trust me, it gets easier. First few weeks I started working out, I puked. It was terribly embarrassing."

"Nothing to be embarrassed about." His arms were starting to feel the burn, as Jane Fonda once said. He gritted his teeth. "Especially since.... Well, look at you now."

"I've got a long way to go." She smiled. "But thank you. Really."

"What's your goal with all this?" he said, and for a moment he thought he might have been probing her too hard.

To his relief, she answered quickly: "Well, my parents aren't exactly all for it, but I'd like to be a bodybuilder."

"Your parents? They still hanging around?"

"Gosh no. I live by myself in the city."

"I hope this isn't too forward," he said, "but how old are you? You seem young, but you're more disciplined than most guys I know."

"Twenty-four," she said. "You?"

"Twenty-six in two weeks," he said.

"We're gettin' real old, huh?" She uttered a half-cynical giggle. "Sometimes I wish I could go back in time and start this fitness crap earlier. I always imagine what I would have been like at sports if I was cock diesel."

"Don't I know." It was just one of those things he liked to say. "I could do with some more of those training tips as well. If you're around, that is."

She put the dumbbells down, and Martin snatched a look at her muscular arms, now pumped from the effort. "Then you'll have to come durin' the day, buddy."

He supposed he could have, but that would mean he would have to get up real early before going to work, and that was too much of an effort for a lifestyle he might not have even stuck with. "I work all day. This is the only time I'm free, save for the weekends, of course."

"I usually work out at the crack of dawn," she said.

"Yeah, well, I could but... you know."

She nodded impassively. "Can't be bothered?"

Yeah, she's a real mind reader.

"Well listen," she added. "How about I give you my number, and whenever we're free, we can arrange somethin'? How's that?"

"That's a lot of effort to go through for a guy you just met," Martin said disbelievingly.

"Yeah, well, I like to help out where I can," she said. "And hey, you seem like a nice guy. All it is is free coaching, and I get to share some of the things I learned. Things some of us don't have time to research."

He laughed at that. This was the first time a random woman had actually been able to make him laugh. He shook his head. "Fine, you got me."

She and Martin exchanged numbers. For the rest of the workout, Lexi showed him various dumbbell exercises to target different muscle groups in his upper body. Twenty minutes later, he was gasping for a drink. Lexi told him there was a small shop in the foyer where he could buy a plastic bottle, and that there was a water fountain he could use to fill it up. He wasn't sure where it was, so Lexi grabbed her gym bag and showed him.

"Thanks," he said. "Seems you can help me in more ways than one."

"I try," she said. "I'm heading out now. I've been here for two hours and that sudden burst of energy is long gone."

"I can imagine." Martin pulled out his wallet. "You walking or driving?"

"Walking." She nodded. "As much as it pains me."

He gestured towards the window wall. "You ever been on a bike before?"

She looked at the outdoor parking space, then back at him with that same convivial smile. "Mmm, I used to ride bikes when I was younger. But a motorbike? No. I can't drive and, well, they've always sort of scared me."

His eyes widened. "Motorbikes? Seriously?"

"Hey," she said, "they look dangerous. I don't know what to tell you."

He laughed and pulled out five bucks. "Never met a girl afraid of bikes before. I can show you what it's like. Won't drive you too far if you don't want to. It's just that it's a cold night and, you know, it's probably more unsafe walking home alone in the dark than a five-minute drive on some loner's bike. You live far?"

She pressed her lips into a flat line. "Half-an-hour walk."

He nodded. "You're from Cross Route then, I take it?"

"That's right," she said. "You know your roads."

"Comes with the territory of being a lazy bastard," he joked. "If you're up for it, I can give you a ride. No pressure or anything."

Lexi gazed at him, holding the strap over her shoulder, deciding, then zipped the bag open. She pulled out a small red whisper jacket. "Promise not to drive too fast?"

"Of course," Martin said, and stuffed his wallet in his pocket.

She placed the bag on the ground and donned the jacket. "I don't see why not...." She smiled again. "As long as you don't make me chip in for gas."

---

He didn't, but he did make her wear his helmet. Not that she had any problem with that. The night was cold and windy, the roads were clear, and Martin could feel droplets as he sped deeper into the metropolis. He kept his promise not to go too fast, and Lexi gave no complaint at all for the entire journey.

Martin dropped her off at her house on Cross Route Lane. It was humble, quaint, and had a luxuriant sprawl of freshly cut grass in the front garden. He pondered where she could have possibly fit a home-gym set-up in a place that more than likely had no spare rooms. No basement, garage, anything like that.

Martin took a sip from his newly purchased water bottle. The HEALTHY HABITS label glistered under the arc-sodiums. "How was it? Am I a great driver or what?"

She chuckled quietly. "You know what? It wasn't too bad."

"You're braver than you think," he said, and shut the lid.

"Yeah, well, what time is it?"

"Almost one," he said.

"Christ," she said. "That's a lot earlier than normal. I take it the drive was what, ten minutes?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Thank you, Martin." There was that pretty little smile again. "I hope you don't mind me using your taxi service for free."

He placed the bottle in his inside jacket pocket. "Well, as long as I can get more of those gym tips, I'm happy."

She nodded. "About that. What do you think about coming to work out at my place from time to time?"

"Your place?" He pointed to her house. "In there?"

"Oh, yeah." She looked back. "I have a gym set-up in the backyard."

"I was wondering where it could have been," he said. "This is a small place."

She fixed the gym bag around her shoulder and pulled the drawstring down to her waist. "Well, what do you think? I only ask that because sometimes I just prefer my own gym, you know?"

Martin was still surprised. He figured she must have enjoyed the company. "No problem. I'm also curious to see what you've built up over the what, couple months?"

"Two and a half months. I started in September."

"And you're already packing on muscle?" he said, shocked.

"I've always been sort of naturally muscular, but not like real real muscular, y'know?" She spread her hands as she spoke. "Anyway, I'll call you sometime. Thanks for the ride, Martin."

Just like that, they exchanged goodnights. Martin drove home to his apartment, thinking everything over. He still couldn't understand how she was so buff for a beginner. He supposed newbie gains were a thing. Well, for some people; he'd known some guys who went to the gym for six months and came out looking almost the exact same. Nutrition was also an important factor, he supposed. That and a lot of discipline, which those guys more than likely lacked.

Lexi on the other hand was packed to the brim with it. There was something about that girl. Something inspiring.

[SheWrites]

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[Wookey]

Great start

[crow004]

Yes, this is a great start! I like the chemistry between them. I hope there's another chapter. I'd like to see how this continues.

[Jaguar]

Excellent start !

[wowser1016]

Very nice and promising beginning. Please continue.

[SheWrites]

Part 1, Chapter 2

The call came shortly after Martin finished up a ten-hour shift at the Old Timers clothing store. He was walking to the parking lot, a can of Red Bull in one hand, a phone in the other.

"Is this Martin?" a woman's voice said.
   
"Lexi?" he said, reading the caller ID. He hadn't heard from her in three days. He thought she might have forgotten about him.
   
"I didn't forget," she said, picking the words rightly from his brain. He could hear her smile through the phone. "You still interested in coaching?"
   
Martin was. In fact, he had gone to Healthy Habits every night after work. Not because he had a genuine interest – he still wasn't sure if this was something he would continue with – but because he had hoped to see Lexi again. Her and that knockout bod. Maybe she would pay him a surprise visit, he had thought.

She never did. Of course.

"Oh," he said, taken aback. "Yeah. Definitely. I was actually just heading up to Healthy Habits now."

"Not there," she said. "How about my place? If you're okay with that."

Martin stopped at the sign which read RESERVED PARKING. The piece of Old Timer's damask cloth wrapped around the pole gave a single lackadaisical flap. "Something happen?" He took a sip of Red Bull.

"What? No, nothing happened. I remember you said something about wanting to see my set-up."
   
Martin remembered that, too, but it was nothing more than small talk really. "What time do you want me to come by?"
   
"Now, if you want," she said. "I just got off work."
   
Martin swallowed. Something clicked in his throat. "Well alright. I'll head on up."
   
"Awesome possum," Lexi chimed. "Don't forget your water either. You shouldn't let that bottle go to waste."
   
He didn't plan to. He had it stuffed in his jacket pocket, and the lid was poking out. "See you in a few minutes, Lexi."
   
"You, too."

Martin kept his promise and was parked outside Lexi's driveway before the clock struck eleven. He was mentally drained from the long day of work but couldn't miss out on the opportunity to see her again.
   
Stars roamed freely across the full-dark sky, tinted by the lustre of a crescent moon. The night was cold but not rainy. He walked up the driveway and knocked on her front door. It opened after ten seconds. Lexi was standing on the other side, this time dressed in a white, sleeveless trim hoodie and polyester sweatpants. She held the same Healthy Habits bottle as Martin did, although the plastic was red instead of green.

As expected, she had a big smile on her face. "You sure look ready to lift. I take it you'll be wearing that jacket like last time?"
   
He half-grinned. "It's cold out."
   
"That's why I bought a heater for my parasol," she said. "Wanna see?"
   
He did.
   
Lexi guided him through the small house into the back garden. Her gym was more expensive-looking than Martin had expected. It was set up under a wooden pergola: a weight bench, a rack of dumbbells going from 10 to maybe 80 pounds, kettlebells, yoga mats, things Martin couldn't even name.
   
Lexi went over to the parasol and switched on the heater. The sodium-vapour lamps thrummed with a red-orange glow. "See? So, what do you think?"
   
"I like it," he said. "It looks like you put some real dough into it. What do you do for work?"
   
"I've been a waitress for five years," she said. "Going on six. Down at the Hungry Lions. You know that place?"
   
"Yeah," he said. "I've ordered from there a couple times. The sauce is amazing."
   
"You mean the solidified grease?" she joked. "Yeah, well, I try to avoid all that stuff. As ironic as that sounds. I've been trying to watch my diet ever since I started, you know..."
   
"Lifting," he said.
   
"Bodybuilding." She smiled. "It's so much more than lifting, trust me. A lot more."
   
"I can imagine." Martin's voice switched from conversational to excited. The best part of this whole thing was getting to watch this woman in action. "So how does this work? Do I do what you do or do you boss me around?"
   
She looked at him dumbly for a moment, not sure how to respond, and then her eyes snapped open with another sunny smile. "First: take that jacket off. I get it, it's winter, you're afraid of catching a cold, but once you get your body moving, trust me, this place'll feel like a sauna. 'Specially since I loaded this sucker up on full blast."
   
He wasted no time zipping down his jacket. Underneath he was wearing a black, sleeved shirt with a print of a white skull on the chest. METALLICA was written in bold, red characters across the bottom.
   
"So you listen to heavy metal?" She cocked an eyebrow.
   
"From time to time," he said.
   
"I'm an AC/DC gal myself."
   
He raised a finger. "That's rock."
   
"What's the difference?"
   
"Metal has more screaming, Rock, not so much."
   
She laughed and walked over to the radio next to the dumbbell rack. She tuned through several different channels until she found a song. "Guess this one's metal." Another laugh. "Alright, normally, I like to do chin-ups, push-ups, and bicep curls, but since I'm focusing on my chest today, I'll probably be hittin' the bench. You alright with that?"
   
"Yes ma'am," he said excitedly.
   
"It's also important that you know how to use it effectively," she added. "After that..."
   
"There's more?" he asked.
   
She looked at him with a puzzled expression, then smiled. "You don't get jacked by doing a few bicep curls here and there. You know that, right?"
   
"Yeah, but how long will that take?"
   
"A long fucking time." She grinned. "What, too much for a big man like you?"
   
He nodded playfully. "You're damn right, boss."
   
She giggled, went over to the dumbbell rack to grab some plates, and attached them to the bar on the bench. "We're gonna start off light on the bench press. A warm-up, y'know? See how high we can go. That alright?"
   
He nodded.
   
"Good." She lay under the barbell and arched her back. She gripped the bar on either end and, with a deep breath, lifted it off the rack. The muscles in her delts and lats immediately tightened, and her forearms rippled with veins. He didn't realise how vascular Lexi had been until she brought the weight down to her chest and pushed it up. She did five reps before placing it back on the rack. She sat up. "You think you could do that?"
   
"Of course," he said. "I'm not that weak."
   
"I've met some weak men over the years," she shot back.
   
"Ex-boyfriend?" said Martin.
   
She nodded eagerly. "Yup. Dating a weaker guy is... well, it's different. For me, I need a man to take charge, and if he's weaker than me, it's difficult."
   
"Don't I know," he said. "The girl I used to date was controlling."
   
"She wasn't stronger than you, was she?" she joked.
   
"If she was, then I'd have been out of there quicker." He laughed. "No, she just wanted to know every detail of my life. Couldn't meet up with any of my mates without telling her the exact plan for the night. We used to live together in her apartment. I moved out after she dumped me because, in her words, things weren't working out. No shit."
   
She pursed her lips and got up off the bench. "Sorry to hear that. Maybe you should put some of that frustration into working out. When I'm mad, I like to let loose on the weights. You ever do that, Martin?"
   
"I'm not frustrated." He waved her off. "But that sounds interesting."
   
"It's good therapy," she said, "as long as you don't overdo it."
   
A moment of preternatural silence passed between them, accompanied by the raucous metal music.
   
"Alright." Lexi stood behind the weight bench, placing her hands on the bar. "You gonna show me what you got or are we gonna stand here and stare at each other silly?"
   
Another chuckle. This girl really knew how to lighten the mood.
   
The next forty-five minutes were a blur. Martin managed to compete with Lexi up to about 110 lbs. By then, his arms were tired and sore, as well as his chest. Lexi, however, got to 120 lbs. Martin was mesmerised, more than anything, by her shoulder muscles. Her lats which flared with every push and contracted with every drop. She pumped out three reps before letting the bar fall to her chest, and Martin came over to help re-rack the barbell. Sweat slicked her skin in fine sheens, glimmering in the light of her laundry room and parasol heater. He couldn't help but picture her naked. It was just one of those intrusive thoughts.
   
Then, as if once again reading his mind, Lexi sat astride the bench and pulled off her trim hoodie, exposing her teal sports bra and, to Martin's surprise, supremely muscular back. It was as if someone had run a chisel through the fibres and knocked them free of fat. He grabbed his Healthy Habits water bottle and took a sip as she caught her breath. Now he could see her abs: six sections of rock-hard muscle pulling tightly into the stomach, glistening, almost glowing.
   
Lexi grabbed her water bottle and gulped more than half of it in one go. Her bicep bulged and a nice vein snaked along the peak. "Told you it would get hot," she panted, slapping the lid closed.
   
You're damn right it did.
   
"Hope you don't mind watchin' a girl sweat," she joked. "I get hot pretty easily. Another reason why I dislike Healthy Habits. It's like a life-sized furnace in the winter."
   
"Don't worry," Martin told her. "I really appreciate you showing me all this, and as expected, I'm nowhere near your level. Especially when you consider I'm a dude and it isn't always easy building muscle as a woman."
   
"I wish people were more accepting of it," she said. "I normally cover myself up because of the looks people give me. Sometimes I get compliments, sometimes I don't. My ex didn't like it all."
   
"I'm one of the few guys that do," he said.
   
She shook her head, beaming, then raised her arm into a bicep flex. It must have been 13 inches solid. "You like this?"
   
"What's not to like?" Martin chuckled. He raised a hand and splayed his fingers. "Like I said, you're dedicated. Most dudes I know wouldn't stick to this shit for more than a week. Hell, I'm not even sure if I will, but you did – are – and that's hot. You should be proud of that, especially considering you've only been working out a few months."
   
Lexi gave a horselike snort. She went over to the radio, which had no longer been playing heavy metal but instead some weird mix between EDM and Pop, and turned it off. The thrum from the parasol heater came back. "You know," she said, "I think you're right. I've actually..." She turned the thermostat knob on the heater and the orange glow dimmed. "...been thinking about signing up for this new fitness programme. Have you ever heard of Adonis?"
   
"The god?" he said, thinking of the old folktale. It was a shabby joke at best.
   
"No." Lexi pulled a towel from her gym bag and wiped her shoulders off. "It's a company stationed in Maine, but they send fitness packages every month if you sign up for their yearly subscription. Supplements, protein powder, gymwear, better bottles than these."
   
"So what's holding you back?" he said.
   
"Money," she said. "A yearly package costs a thousand dollars."
   
He sucked air through a small hole in his mouth. "That's steep."
   
"I'd be skint," she said. "I've been saving up but, with house expenses and everything, it's been unsteady."
   
"I understand that," he said. "How much have you saved up now?"
   
She looked at him quizzically. "How much?"
   
A nod. "As in right now, in the jar."
   
"Five hundred and something," she said, unsure. "I'd have to check. I started it a week or two after I decided I wanted to be a bodybuilder."
   
Martin looked down at the HEALTHY HABITS label on his bottle, thinking for a moment. He pressed his lips flatly when he said: "I can help out with that."
   
Lexi waved her arms in defiance, her smile now replaced with an open mouth. "Nuh-no! You can't..."
   
"If you're going to be giving me all these coaching lessons then I ought to repay you somehow, other than with my handsome face, of course."

There was mild laughter at that reply, but Martin figured she just didn't know what to say. "Look," she said, "I told you I don't mind doing this for free."

"Well I do. To quote the Joker: 'If you're good at something, never do it for free.' It's common courtesy." Martin walked over to her, taking another sip of water. "This is a nice place you have here, Lexi. And I really do appreciate the time you gave me. If it's no problem with you, I'd like to help out, the same way you're helping me."

She dispensed a weary sigh, running the towel through her hair and over her shoulders and chest. She stood up, her freshly pumped muscles hard under the skin, and approached him. "You're so sweet, Martin. It's just, this is the first time anyone's done something like this for me."

He laughed and held out a hand. "I pay you and you give me more awesome coaching. Deal?"

The answer came after another moment of silence, only this time the heavy-metal music wasn't there to fill it. She took his hand and squeezed it with the same strength as a few nights ago. "Deal," she said.

Martin smiled, happy that he could repay her.

When it was time to head home, he sat on his motorbike in her driveway, staring up at the moonwashed sky. He wondered which deity had arranged for him to have met this woman. He also wondered why he had just offered her five hundred of his own cash to help out with her dream. Was it a dumb idea? Possibly.

But to think that a lazy guy like him could synergise with a hardworking girl like her.... That was surprising.

[Wookey]

Loving the way this story is going.

[wowser1016]

Martin just did what I would have done. Bright guy! K+!

[SheWrites]

Part 1, Chapter 3

The following morning Martin took five hundred out of the $1,200 he had put aside. He hadn't planned to spend this money on anything in particular, not in the way Lexi did; he was just a big saver.

He rode up to her house, hoping to catch her before work. Sure enough, when he rang the doorbell, she was standing on the other side, dressed in a pink sports bra and black shorts. She was wiping sweat from her face and neck. Her chestnut hair was tied back into a ponytail, falling halfway down her striated upper back. Her seawater-coloured eyes glimmered in the sunstruck hallway.

"Oh!" she said. "I didn't expect you so early." Once again: that smile. Now it seemed even brighter than before.

Martin pulled out a small, brown envelope and handed it to her. "Five hundred bucks," he said. "That should cover the coaching. And the.... What was it, Adonis?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "Look, you really don't have to do this."

"No arguing." He beamed.

Lexi laughed and wrapped the towel around her neck. "I don't know what to say, but thank you. So much. This means a lot.... Would you like to come in? You aren't heading to work, are you?"

"Not for another hour," he said. "I can hang."

"Cool," she said. "I just wanna show you the Adonis package. What this company has to offer. You're paying half the money so you should at least know."

***

Martin had caught Lexi in the middle of her morning workout. The one she liked to do at the crack of dawn, as he recalled. Despite that, she spent some time showing him the package. At first he thought it was pretty basic. Given his little knowledge of supplementation and nutrition, he figured he just didn't understand how it all worked, what each tablet did to the body, and whether or not it was worth it in the long run. But then he saw the black container with a pink bull printed above SHE-BOOSTER! at the centre.
   
Martin asked her about it, thinking that it was some steroid.
   
"It's not a steroid," she said, reading his mind. "It boosts protein synthesis, making it easier for us ladies to build muscle. It's a new drug approved by the FDA."
   
"I take it this is where all the money's going?"
   
"Dogged if I know." She shrugged, backing away from the computer on her swivel chair. "Either way, it's one of those new things. Those miracle drugs."
   
"Sounds interesting," he said. "Any side effects?"
   
"None worth mentioning by the FDA," she said.
   
Martin secretly didn't know what to think about it. It sounded like one of those things that weren't well tested, and perhaps the side effects were different for each person, making them difficult to categorise. Either way, it was her decision, and if she was willing to spend a thousand bucks on it, then so be it.
   
He also considered the benefits of increasing the muscle-building potential in her body. He even wondered what she might have looked like with bigger biceps, quads, lats.... Was he actually into that? The more he thought about it, the more he supposed he was. She had already shown him that a fit body was attractive.
   
Even sexy.
   
"You're okay to go through with this?" Martin zipped down his coat, exposing his black work shirt. Things were starting to heat up. "Seems dodgy."
   
"I don't see an issue with it," she told him. "I think it's awesome that there's a product out there for women specifically wanting to increase muscle mass. If there were any bad side effects, like taking T, I'd see your point."
   
Martin looked perplexingly at the computer screen, fighting the urge to dissuade her. "Well, it's your choice."
   
"Don't worry. I'm sure it's fine."

***

   
Later that day, Lexi wired the money into her bank account and ordered the Adonis package off the company website. She told Martin about it over the phone, excited and unable to wait.
   
They spent the rest of the week working out together, sometimes in her home gym, sometimes at Healthy Habits. Where they would go depended on her mood at the time.
   
Martin paid so much attention to Lexi's body over the week that by the time the package arrived he had completely forgotten all about it. He had been fixated with her carved back muscles and athletic wings for lats. He had always considered himself an ass person up until that point. Something about the dedication and power those muscles represented fascinated him.
   
Lexi called Martin on the night the package came. She sounded excited and invited him over to look at the contents. Seeing as they had planned to work out together later that day, he accepted. Ten minutes later, they were in Lexi's burgundy-carpeted living room, kneeling in front of the brown box marked ADONIS – "EXPERIMENTAL PACKAGE", LEXI ANDERSON (#236).
   
"236?" said Martin.
   
She nodded without looking, drawing the box to her knees. "I'm the 236th buyer."
   
Martin's eyes narrowed. This meant the project had barely any buyers at all. Then again, 236 customers equated to $236,000. The fact that there were many women out there who were willing to pay for something this fishy surprised him. "How long has this been around?"
   
"About three months," she said. "It's very new."
   
"That explains why they still have the 'experimental' label on it. This whole thing feels like an experiment where the company will come back to ask you about the results."
   
"Yeah." She slid her kitchen knife through the adhesive tape and pulled the box open. A lavender aroma sept out peacefully. Martin didn't expect an air freshener to come with it. "Smells great, though!"
   
They spent the next half an hour scouring through the contents. It had everything listed on the company site: whey protein containers, essential oils, bottles of something called Thermopro Burn (Lexi explained that it was a fat burner), a bottle with a stencil of a woman curling a dumbbell; all sorts of things. Eventually, she pulled out a plastic, black-and-red strongbox. She opened it and, as anticipated, it was the She-Booster Martin had been wary about. Same pink bull print, same black bottle, though it was much larger than it had appeared online; it was about the size of a beer mug.
   
"This is what I'm excited about!" she cheered. "Don't get me wrong, the other stuff is important, but this new drug sounds revolutionary!"
   
"So what is it? A pill? A powder?"
   
Lexi shook the bottle. He heard the tablets rattling inside. "That answer your question?"
   
It did. "How long will this last you?"
   
"The entire year." Lexi looked down and read the back of the bottle. "'Take one every week for three weeks and then two every week after the first month for maximum results'. I presume this is just to get my body used to the stuff." She popped the lid open and pulled out a pink, thimble-sized pill. She tossed it in her mouth, took a sip of water from her Healthy Habits bottle, and swallowed.
   
Martin smirked. "You're really excited about this, aren't you?"
   
Lexi chuckled and shut the lid. "And you're not?" She cocked a seductive eyebrow.
   
His brow furled. "What do you mean?"
   
"Oh come on." She leaned back on her hands, her triceps bulging wonderfully in the seeping fireplace light. "I can read you like a book. You're into me, aren't you?" Her smug grin broadened at one corner, still sweet and not a bit timid.
   
Martin's heart raced slightly. He didn't expect her to say something like that, especially so soon. "What makes you think that?"
   
"I'm good at recognising people's feelings," she said. "People often tell me I care too much, that I overthink things. But I got this vibe from you. Something... hot. It's difficult to explain, but I felt it when we were working out together, the way you were looking at me, and my body. I thought about what you said about finding my determination hot. I thought about what you said about being proud of my achievements. No stranger has ever made me feel that way before. Yet you did – do."
   
He took a deep breath, crossing his arms firmly. "So you think because I saw you lift some weights, and because I decided to repay you for your generous help, that I must be into you? That right?"
   
Her eyes widened and her smile crept away, now replaced with a slanting line. "I..."
   
"You're right," he said. "About all of it."
   
Her smile returned. "I knew it," she murmured. "For a moment you had me scared. I thought, Lexi, you blew it."
   
Martin crawled forward and put a hand on her knee, moving it up to massage her thick, bulging quad, draped in her dark-grey sweatpants. Even through the fabric, it was hard and strong. "There's something about you. I never thought I'd find muscles on a woman this hot, but you proved me wrong. I'm not sure why someone would talk bad about you, but your body is incredible. You're one of the most beautiful people I've ever met."
   
She blushed thinly. "Stop! You can't be serious!"
   
He nodded, continuing as if she hadn't spoken. "I think the guys who shit-talked you were jealous, especially your ex."
   
She smiled warmly. "Martin... you're so sweet. It's hard to come by guys like you."
   
"Likewise with you." He patted her quad, almost testing its density. "I mean, only 236 people in the world have opted for this package, and you're one of them. Trust me, you're unique. You're more disciplined and ambitious than anyone I've ever met, man or woman. And I mean that, really."
   
Silence impressed itself upon them. The fire crackled in it.
   
Lexi lurched forward, placed her arms on either side of Martin's legs, and kissed him on the lips. She brought a hand up to his face and ran it down the side of his neck. For a moment goosebumps pimpled his nape and shoulders.
   
They knelt there, eyes closed, no longer feeling the need to communicate. The kiss did all the work.
   
After maybe fifteen seconds, Lexi leaned closer and whispered in his ear: "I know this might sound forward, but how do you feel about taking your clothes off?"

[Wookey]

K+. Like the way this is going. Hopefully she won't leave him behind or treat him like a toy. Love the stories where they both improve

[wowser1016]

Boy meets girl, boy and girl lift weights together, girl asks boy how he feels about taking his clothes off. And there is the missing ingredient in my life apparently, the part about thislifting weights. No girl ever asked me how I felt about taking my clothes off. Sigh! K+!

[SheWrites]

Part 1, Chapter 4

Martin's heart raced as heat suffused his arms and shoulders. I like the sound of that, he thought coquettishly. It had been two years since he felt this much lust for a woman, and he certainly wasn't going to turn down the opportunity now.
   
Martin began unbuttoning his shirt. "You're an assertive one, aren't you?" he said, speaking in a breathless rush.
   
Lexi stood up, removed her trim hoodie, and pulled off her sweatpants. She wasn't wearing anything underneath. She must have expected this to happen. How cocky of her. Her six-pack abs glistened in the chandelier light, still fresh with some of that late-night sweat. Her trunklike quads were thick and packed with feminine muscle, while her delts were neatly striated down to the smallest of lines and deepest of crevices. She had that figure look to her: a month's worth of exercise away from an amateur bodybuilder.
   
Martin watched as she stuck out her right leg and flexed, causing a few bumps to protrude. Then she raised her arms in a double-bicep flex, flashing him those perfect teeth. "With a body like this, it's hard not to be, right?" she said, more serious than before.
   
His member became fully erect, causing great discomfort in his jeans. He tossed his shirt aside, unbuckled his belt, and pulled his pants down. "God, you're so fucking hot," he said, half expecting his voice to crack as it would have at thirteen. Thankfully it didn't.
   
He pulled her in close and kissed her passionately. They stumbled forward and banged into the fireplace mantel. A couple picture frames fell onto the carpet.
   
"I like it rough," she said.
   
Martin lifted her legs up to either side of his waist, carried her over to the flat side of the living room, and pinned her against the wall. He inserted his dick in her, holding her bodyweight as best as he could. Even for a big man like him, the amount of muscle on her body made it a challenge. Despite that, he thrust rapidly, over and over again, feeling how tight and inflexible she was. It was as though his dick was a piston and her pussy had been a hole that was an inch and a half too small. Thrusting, listening to her high-pitched gasps of pleasure. He could tell that she hadn't felt this good in a long, long time, and neither had he. There was something so different about her. Something... incredible.
   
"Harder!" Lexi squeaked breathlessly. "Fuck me harder!"
   
He pounded harder, but soon she began to weigh down on him, becoming too much to handle. He stepped back and stumbled onto his ass, and she laughed.
   
"Too much for you?" She pressed herself upright and began riding his cock. "I get that a lot. I prefer to be on top anyways!"
   
Her muscles tightened and she suddenly looked more cut than ever. "Oh fuck!" she shouted. "Give me that fucking cock!"
   
He slapped her ass and she continued to bounce up and down. "Flex for me," he said softly.
   
"What?" she said, looking down at him with a gaping mouth.
   
"Flex your arms," he said, wide-eyed.
   
She sniggered before flexing her biceps. Two mounds of muscle rippled to life. "You like that, big boy? You fucking like that?" She brought them down, leaned in closer to his face, and placed her hands on his hips as she slapped her pussy over his dick again and again. "I like it, too."
   
She sure gets feisty when she's turned on. She kept going down on him like an insatiable beast, hungry for more. Never in a million years would Martin expect someone like her to be this frisky.

Did working out make women horny? He heard something about increasing testosterone, but outside of that, he didn't know. Regardless, he was liking it very much.

***

Ten minutes later they both came. Martin had to pull out and Lexi demanded that he cum on her abs. He saw no problem with that and unleashed his hot jizz over her tight stomach. She massaged it into her body and lay on the carpet, drenched in sweat, her hair a wet mop against the fabric.
   
Martin checked the time and saw that it was approaching midnight. 'I should probably head out. This counts as her workout for today.'
   
"Did you like it?" she asked, chuckling.
   
"That was the most amazing sex I've ever had in my life," he said.
   
"Famous last words." Lexi picked herself up off the floor, walked over to him, and kissed him on the lips again. "I'm still up for a good sweat tonight. Shame you're leaving so soon. You men always get so tired."
   
He laughed. "And you women don't know when to stop."
   
"True," she said, almost to herself. "I'm gonna work out some more. Gotta put these drugs to good effect." She nonchalantly flexed her bicep again, staring at the peak with a prideful smirk.
   
"Speaking of drugs," said Martin, "you sure they didn't make you horny beyond belief?"
   
"Definitely not. I've always had a bit of a sex drive, you know."
   
"They don't make many women like you these days," he said. "Not many jacked ones, anyway."
   
"You'd be surprised who you'd find out there," she said, brows crunched. "But I like you, Martin. Come by tomorrow after your shift, or before, or whenever. Just stop by."
   
'We could go out sometime,' he said. "Maybe I ought to visit you at the Hungry Lyons."
   
She picked up her sweatpants and stepped into them. "I'm busy this week. Next Friday sound good to you?"
   
"Time?"
   
"Say, afternoonish?"
   
Martin had work at that time, but he was willing to take some time off for a special occasion. "I'll pick you up around two. We can head up to the Hungry Lyons. Or wherever."
   
"Sounds great, big boy." She put on her trim hoodie. "Have a nice night."
   
"You, too." He chuckled, buttoning his shirt as he walked out the front door.

[Wookey]

Loving it K+

[Jaguar]

This is wonderful writing!!!

I love the characters and how you convey their inner feelings.  Not many authors in this genre can do that so well.


And the plot is excellent too. 

Take your time, don't rush.  But remember, Lexi and Martin deserve to have their story told!!!

[jhunter]

Glad I re-read this. Hope to see more soon.