Page 19 of The Bodyguard and His Bunny

I simply shake my head and rasp, “No.”

“I don’t owe you anything physical because you helped me with the rabbits,” she says.

I rear back. “Of course, you don’t owe me… Sara, that’s not what I meant at all. I would never….”

She leans forward with a wink and a quirk of her lips that destroys me. “Gotcha.”

CHAPTER8

Sara

I don’t have a lot of rules for my life, but as a rule, I’m not a runner. After last summer’s head wound, I only run the other way when I see tear gas and riot gear.

So when Gunther invites me to tag along on his nightly run, I have to laugh.

“What? You could do two miles, easy,” he says.

“I’m not in shape like you are,” I counter. “You look like a five-minute-mile type of dude.”

“I’ll go slow. Slower,” he says, correcting himself when I arch an eyebrow.

I look down at my Vans. “You know these are not running shoes, right?”

He lifts one shoulder. “Easier than running in your usual combat boots.”

Lord, the man is already running in place and stretching by the front door.

“But I have Chutney,” I say.

“Put her in her crate. She’ll survive thirty minutes of not being snuggled.”

I give him a pinched look.

“I think I’ll pass and stick to my nighttime routine of doom scrolling the news on my laptop until I fall asleep.”

“Nah,” he says.

“What do you mean, ‘Nah’? I’m not running.”

He nods. “I need exercise. And you can’t be left alone. So, you’re coming with me.”

“Are you saying I don’t have a choice?”

He nods and stretches down to touch his toes. “You always have a choice. And right now, your choice is to come for a run with me willingly or handcuffed.”

Honestly, I don’t mind staring at his rippling muscles in that gray tee shirt and athletic shorts. He’s got fierce soccer calves, which is a thing I never thought was particularly hot. Until today.

“What will people think?” I ask.

“That they’re jealous they don’t have a kinky new girlfriend.”

Oh, brother.

I sigh with resignation. “Fine. I’ll run. But you’ll have a hard time keeping an eye on me because I’ll be walking.”

“I’m not leaving your side, Sara.”

And dammit, if those words don’t give me a serotonin boost enough to go for a run. Why the hell not?

Source: www.allfreenovel.com