Nope. Not going to think about that.
“Nice workout,” I say, raising my voice above the sound of the machine. “What were you lifting? Five kilos?” I’m teasing—I could see her deadlifting sixty, and her leg press was set to a hundred kilos, which impressed me considering how small she is.
She gives me a wry look. “Not all of us want to powerlift an elephant. I just want to stay fit.”
“Fair enough.” I wait a few minutes, then ask, “Do you do any self-defense classes?”
She’s breathing heavily now, and she doesn’t reply for a moment. She steps off the treadmill to either side and presses the button to stop it, and I do the same, and we both have a few mouthfuls from our water bottles.
“I haven’t yet,” she answers finally.
“I can show you some moves, if you like?”
Her eyes are a startling green. I would have said she wore lenses, but I met her mother at the ball, and hers were the same shade. Now, they fill with amusement. “Some moves?”
“Self-defense moves,” I correct, trying not to think about what other moves I could show her.
“I don’t think so.” She clips the lid back on her bottle. “If I want to learn self-defense, I’ll ask one of the female members of the team.”
“Fair enough.” Maybe I’ll get Stacy to suggest it and see if she can encourage Aurelia to take her up on the offer. It would be good if she could learn a few moves to defend herself.
She walks off, toward the exit.
I follow her at a distance and watch her walk across the lobby and get in the elevator. She glances at me briefly, and our eyes meet. Just before the carriage doors close, she shows me her middle finger.
I run my tongue across my top teeth and press the button in the pocket of my shorts. “Principal’s en route.”
“Copy that,” Rick says in my earpiece. He’ll keep an eye on the elevator camera and the one we have trained on the corridor leading to the door of her apartment until she comes back out again.
Blowing out a breath, I go and take a quick shower in the gym and dress in the working suit and tie I brought with me. By the time Rick announces in my earpiece that Aurelia is on her way down to the car park level, I’m sitting in the reception area. I take the stairs, running down to make sure I’m waiting when she comes out. I glance around the car park, scanning the cars. A black sedan is parked near the exit, its engine running, and I ask Rick to keep an eye on it.
The doors open, and she comes out, sees me, and sighs. She looks completely different. This time, she’s wearing a fawn pantsuit, a white blouse, and fawn high-heeled sandals. Her hair tumbles around her shoulders in tight red curls. Her makeup is immaculate. She’s outlined her eyes with winged eyeliner, and her lips are scarlet.
She looks at her phone as she walks over to me, tapping with her thumbs on the screen.
“She’s all yours,” Rick says in my ear.
I press the button in my trouser pocket and murmur, “Lucky me.”
Aurelia looks up at me. “What?”
I don’t reply, and instead say, “Off to the Korero offices, ma’am?” Her schedule has an interview marked for nine-thirty a.m with the news site.
She nods. “I’ll pick up a coffee first at the Bean.” It’s a café en route. She glances at her phone. “Have a great day.” Turning, she walks away, toward her dark-green Range Rover Sport.
I jog past her, and I’m standing by the driver’s door when she finally looks up from her phone. She stares at me. “What are you doing?”
I hold out my hand. “Keys, please, ma’am.”
“Oh no. This is my car.”
“Correct.”
“I paid for it.”
“Also correct.” I flick my fingers.
“I’m a great driver,” she insists, her face flushing.
