AllFreeNovel
Share Us
After thirty minutes on cardio that didn't give me quite the punch of endorphins I had been counting on, I made my way down a level toward where the weights were situated.
And I promptly froze on the bottom step.
Because there, reflected in the floor-to-ceiling mirrors for aforementioned gym-flexers to admire their bulging muscles in, were five, yes five, very tall, very dark-haired, very light-eyed, very classically handsome men.
The Mallick brothers.
"You've got to be kidding me." In my mind, that was meant to come off as a whisper of disbelief to myself. In reality, it was said loud and proud for all around me to hear. Including, judging by the smile tugging at one particular Mallick brother's lips, Mark.
Great.
That was just fantastic.
"Fucking knew you made a move, you shit," one of the others said. Of the five, he was the broadest. He definitely spent a nice chunk of his time in the gym picking up and putting down heavy things.
Beside him to the one side was Mark in black basketball pants and a black tee. To the other side was another brother with mostly the same look as his brothers, but there was something more serious, more mature about him. He reminded me a bit of Kingston. So likely the oldest, I would assume. To his side was another brother very much so a human canvas of some very nice ink. And lastly, there was one just the slightest bit thinner than his brothers, with eyes that somehow seemed deeper, kinder, yet haunted. I don't know what made me think it, but there was some strong urge I had to know his story.
Weird, I know.
"Angela, darling," Mark said, lips twitching hard and he didn't even try to mask his amusement as he looked me over.
Thank God I didn't just wear sweats and a tee to the gym. True, my hair was back and my face was makeup-free, but my leggings were a pretty blue and pale yellow floral pattern, and my tank top was deep blue, everything formfitting and somehow sexy even though I was sweaty.
"Still following me around like a little lost puppy, I see," I said, trying to mask the fact that even being halfway across the room from him was somehow affecting me in a less than PG kind of way.
"Honey, this is my Wednesday ritual. Has been for years. You're the one who doesn't belong here. So it would go to follow that you're the one stalking me."
"Right, because I'm oh so into you," I said, raising a brow in a haughty way I knew men hated. It usually worked in ticking off my brothers.
His brothers, I might add, were clearly loving this interaction judging by four almost identical smirks playing at their mouths.
"Well, you know... you were the one to shove me against a wall and kiss me."
Damn. I should have guessed that might come back to kick me in the ass.
"Only to prove a point," I countered, chin lifting higher.
"And what point was that, honey?"
"The point, honey, was that you're not nearly as irresistible as you think you are. And now if you'll excuse me, you kind of ruined the appeal of the weight room," I said, rushing to move around the curve of the wall and down the hallway that I thought led to the locker rooms. But I must have gotten turned around somewhere, because I was standing in front of a door that said it led to the pool instead.
Maybe a bit paranoid about being followed and him proving that he was, in fact, every bit as irresistible as he thought he was, or more, I moved toward that door, deciding I could likely use my exercise bra and panties as a makeshift bathing suit. Plus, it would workout my muscles too which was good. Especially now that I was all wound up again.
I mean seriously, it wasn't like Navesink Bank was some small town. In fact, it was pretty sprawling to be honest. It had a bunch of different pockets to it, different cultures, different house types. I should have been able to walk it freely without running into him again.
But no.
Of course not.
The universe had a messed up sense of humor.
Let's just keep dangling him in front of her like a delicious piece of man meat while she slowly starves to death. That'll be fun.
I did fifteen laps, stopping only when my arms started to feel numb from the strokes, my belly aching from the exertion, my lungs burning, and my ears a little clogged from the water. I pulled myself up to where I had hung one of the complimentary towels on a rail that led into the pool, water cascading downward, exposing my body to the air that felt suddenly much colder than it had before I had jumped in.
