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I pulled out my AirPods and peeled my tongue off the roof of my dry mouth. “Hey, what are you doing out here?”
He made a point of looking down at himself. “It would appear that I’m in the middle of a run,” he teased, the corner of his mouth lifting higher, “and it would seem you’re doing the same?”
I shrugged, feigning nonchalance at this whole encounter. As if him being here right now wasn’t sending me into inner chaos. “I’m headed to training. Figured I’d warm up with a run to get there.”
Curiosity flashed in his expression. “Training? What kind of training?”
“Muay Thai,” I said simply.
Leo huffed out a sound of astonishment. “No kidding?”
I stared at him blankly. “Nope. Not kidding.”
He schooled his face into neutrality, clearing his throat. “Right. Okay. Well . . . be safe? Please. And I’m sure I’ll be seeing you later today?”
I did my best not to let my disappointment show, managing a small smile that I hoped didn’t look too forced. Try harder, Mara, remember? “Yeah, I’m sure you will. I’ll be in a little early today.”
Leo nodded. “Okay, sounds good. I’ll see you then.” He looked at me for another moment before clearing his throat again, pushing himself off the concrete and back into a light jog, keeping a solid few feet of distance from me as he passed.
Pushing my AirPods into my ears, I let Tupac’s “Keep Ya Head Up” drown out the surge of apprehension that rippled down my spine as I thrust myself onward.
My limbs still felt like Jell-O as I unlocked the back door to Larkspur. Today’s Muay Thai class had been more brutal than normal with an extra emphasis on kicks and shin-work. I’d been paired with a man for the sparring segment of class—there were only two other women in attendance, and both of them were beginner-level. The instructor thought that, of the three of us, I’d be best-suited to be paired with a man.
Not that I minded. That was the whole reason I practiced Muay Thai in the first place. I wanted to know that I could defend myself if anything ever happened to me. And if I were ever attacked, it probably wouldn’t be by someone who matched my smaller size.
After turning the lock, I heaved the door open and slipped inside the dark stockroom. No one else was scheduled for a couple more hours, but the inventory shipment would be here soon, and I had things to take care of.
I moved toward the small office so I could set my things down, and just as I found myself at the door, I heard a clank coming from somewhere at the front of the building, followed by a muffled, “Shit!”
Instantly, I was on guard. No one else was supposed to be here. Had someone broken in? I crept toward the quiet but obvious noises coming from somewhere in the front of the building.
As soon as I reached the swing doors, I pushed myself up as far as I could onto my tip-toes and strained to peer over them, finding a man in a dark gray work shirt standing on a ladder.
“You okay?” a second person below him asked. My gaze dropped down to a second man who stood next to the ladder, dressed in a sleek navy suit.
Of course—Leo.
“Yeah, yeah, no problem.” The man on the ladder waved a hand toward Leo as he refocused on the small black orb that he was drilling into the ceiling.
Pushing my way through the doors, I cleared my throat.
Leo turned his body toward the bar, his eyes finding mine. His face morphed into a bright smile. “Mara, you’re here!”
My gaze flitted to the man on the ladder before returning back to Leo. I raised my eyebrows in question. “What’s going on?”
He hiked a thumb toward the ladder. “Oh this? Ah . . . we’re installing a new security system. State of the art . . . a real good one.” He looked back at the black orb with an obvious sense of pride, as if he’d constructed it himself.
“A security system?” I asked. “Why?”
Leo stuffed his hands in the pockets of his slacks and strode toward me, his long body closing the wide space between us in no time. “I was hoping to have everything installed before you got here—I wanted it to be a surprise.” He sighed. “That’s okay though. I’m glad you’re here. You can help me determine the best location for the camera above the bar.”
I blew out a raspberry, exasperated. “Why are you installing a security system, Leo?”
He cocked his head as he stared back at me. “For security,” he said simply.
I rolled my eyes. “Seriously? Why do we need a security system? We have a whole security team. How much are you spending on all this?”
His eyes grew more serious as his tone darkened. “We need a security system because there was a ‘creep’ at this bar last night who walked out on his tab with you. And that doesn’t sit right with me, Mara.”
