Chapter 55

Eric was in the guest bedroom of his house, lost in thought, when Lori walked in to find him.

"I bet you'll be glad to have your home gym back," she said. "That's an amenity that my place doesn't have."

He'd noticed. Since he'd been bunking at Lori's he'd been getting a very different kind of exercise. Granted, it was a lot more fun, but he wouldn't mind being able to work out for real now and then as well.

"Have you always worked out?" she asked. He supposed that it didn't really fit with the stereotypical image of a computer geek.

"I was sick a lot as a kid," he told her. "My mom tried hard to keep me inside and out of chills, drafts, puddles, whatever. By high school, I was the skinny, wimpy smart kid who got picked on a lot. I hated that." Lori nodded sympathetically. He'd bet that with her studious bent, she'd never quite fit in during high school, either.