AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I should put you back on that treadmill,” he joked.
“Not a chance.”
“Maybe one day I’ll save up and take you someplace that fancy.”
Without thinking, I reached out and placed my hand lightly on his arm. “The places you take me to are already amazing,” I smiled sweetly. “You don’t have to—”
“Hey BURKE!”
We whirled, and there was Eddie again. He looked redder than usual. Like he’d already been furious, way before he screamed Donovan’s last name.
“I don’t pay you to flirt with the members!” Eddie yelled. “I—”
“You don’t pay me at all,” Donovan shot back angrily. “I make commission based on the clients I bring into this dump! In fact, I pay you a percentage of—”
“One more word,” Eddie broke in. His voice had gone low, but his tone was no less menacing. “Say one more word and you’re out of here, clients or no clients.”
His teeth were clenched. They had a yellowish hue to them. The tension in the room was palpable, even to the innocent people working out nearby.
“You could just be nice you know,” I said carefully. “Connecting with the people you train is an important part of building relationships. Donovan’s only being friendly.”
Eddie laughed. “Yeah. Sure he is.”
I shrugged. “He’s an amazing trainer,” I finished. “You’re lucky to have him.”
The gym owner’s gaze shifted back and forth between us a few times. He waited just long enough to enforce his point before finally turning away.
“Friendly is one thing,” said Eddie. “Touching is another.”
He growled — actually growled — before finally stomping off.
“If I see this shit again,” he said over his shoulder, “You’ll be training your people in the alley outside.”
Twenty-Five
DONOVAN
It was raining buckets. The kind of rain that made it seem like you just emerged from a pool, rather than walked from your car parked at the curb to your girlfriend’s front door.
“Oh my God, get in! You’re drenched!”
Holly pulled me up the stairs to her third-floor apartment, her tiny hand unreasonably strong. I lagged intentionally behind, just enough to catch a glimpse of her smooth thighs sliding beneath her bouncing skirt. Thighs that had been recently developing some very nice definition… thanks to me.
She pushed me inside and slammed the door closed, stripping me out of my coat. As an afterthought she stripped off my shirt too, then crossed to the little laundry area at the back of her kitchen to shove it into the dryer.
“This is the fastest you’ve ever gotten me naked,” I quipped.
“Half naked,” she smiled back, looking me up and down. “And are you complaining?”
“No ma’am.”
She threw me a clean towel. “Then shush!”
I spent the next few minutes taking her place in, staring out through the windows and enjoying the feeling of being warm and cozy and dry. The
place was clean and comfortable, plush and soft. A scented candle burned someplace — coconut, or maybe cinnamon. The lights were dim but not dark, giving the whole place a calm, snuggly feel.
“This is nice,” I said, spreading my arms out as I fell into her couch. “Very homey.”
