by Karen Deen
Mind you, Nat and Xavier will have other clients after us, so it will be annoying to them, I’m sure, if we are late all the time. I will have to mention that to Lilly, so she makes sure she has her act together every morning. If it becomes a problem, I’ll start to drive myself and then it’ll be her fault she’s late, not mine. I pride myself on my organization and being on time. I’m standing in the foyer waiting for her and it’s already five minutes past when she’s supposed to be here. Not a good start. Especially from the girl who was big on telling everyone she would pick me up, so I couldn’t back out of it. I notice she never said anything about getting me there on time. I see the headlights coming up the road and head out the front door, only to get half way to the kerb and realize it’s not Lilly’s car. Damn her. Turning towards the building, cursing under my breath, I hear my name being called out from the car approaching. My body freezes, as I register hearing the voice I already know too well.
“Hey, Ally. Lilly sent me to pick you up. She’s running late and doesn’t want you to miss out on a single minute of the session. You’re on my way, so I said I would grab you.” Xavier’s voice starts the tingles on my skin before I even turn to look at him. I know one thing for sure, though, and that is I’m going to kill my sister. I bet she had this all planned. She could have just messaged, and I would have driven myself. But no, she decided to torture me instead.
Slowly, I turn to see him standing next to the front passenger door, holding it open for me.
Bam! There is that smile, those shoulders, arms and a cheeky grin that tells me he knows how much I am irritated with Lilly right now.
“Come on, gorgeous, I promise I don’t bite. Not this early in the morning, anyway.”
I can’t help but laugh a little. So far, I haven’t heard him say a serious thing. I start towards the car because at this current moment I don’t really have a choice. I don’t want to offend him for being nice and offering to pick me up. Lilly, however, is a different story, and she will be on my shit list today.
Sliding into his Jeep, it’s just the type of car I would picture him owning. Driving along in summer with the roof off, paddle board on the roof racks, or skis in the winter for a trip to the mountains. He seems to me the type of guy who would be into all the different types of outdoor sports. We are lucky where we live that most things are not too far away.
He jumps into the driver’s seat, whips it into gear and swings out from the kerb. Not quite the cautious driver I am, but then the boys tell me I drive like a Grandpa. Better than Lilly, though, who has lost count of the number of accidents she has had.
“Feeling eager for another workout this morning? And how did you pull up after Saturday morning?”
I wasn’t sure how to answer that. If he meant how did my muscles feel, then the answer is not too bad. If the question is, how did my lady parts feel all weekend, then the answer is aching and needy! Pretty sure that will be way too much information, so I stick to the basics.
“Better than I thought. Mustn’t be as unfit as Lilly thinks I am, but let’s see how I go today.” I take a big breath to calm myself from being able to talk and answer his questions. I’m in a car, by myself, with the hottest guy I’ve ever met and holding a conversation. Wait until I tell Emily, she will be impressed.
“I think you doubt yourself too much, Ally. You are as fit as your sister. You just need to believe that. Don’t let yourself down by placing yourself behind Lilly all the time.”
How the hell does he know that about me? He hasn’t known me long enough to work that out, surely. Glancing at me, he smiles. “You might think you can hide from me, Alesha, but I see you. What I see is beautiful, so relax and let’s get to know each other.”
I feel my cheeks blushing in the dim light of the morning.
Stammering over my words, “I, you, um, how do you, um we…” I give up. I can’t string a sentence together. He has floored me, and we haven’t even made it five minutes in the car. Those words made no sense at all. Xavier must think I’m an idiot, but instead he just starts to laugh. And not just a little laugh, but a big belly one. It’s infectious. I can’t help it. I start to laugh, too. Why can’t I just get over this and act like a normal woman?
“Now, that’s better. Just relax, Ally, and have fun. Stop worrying so much. I’m just a normal guy and you’re just a normal girl. That’s all we need to think about. Let’s just be normal. Think we can do that?”
I look at him hard and concentrate. “It’s what I want, too. I’ll try, I’m just not good at this. You make me nervous and the words get stuck.” He grins at me as he pulls the car to a stop in the parking lot. Turning to look at me he leans closer. His hand placed on top of mine.
“Then let’s make it easy and help those words to stop sticking, one sentence at a time, okay? I like you, Ally, I think you know that. I want to get to know you, but I don’t want to scare you away. So, let’s take this slow and just be friends. Just like you are with your brothers. Know that I won’t hurt you and I will never push you further than you want to go. Do you think we can try being friends and training buddies?”
My heart is beating so fast and my breathing is short and shallow. I can feel the shaking in my body from nerves. I’m not sure I can speak so I just nod. Everything he said, I want. Badly. I just can’t tell him that. Hopefully my nodding will be enough.
“Great, then let’s get inside and warmed up. Every day will get a little bit easier, I promise.”
I roll my eyes and mumble, “What, the training or holding a conversation?”
Xavier just bursts out laughing. “Both, gorgeous. Let’s go.”
Natalie is inside setting up a workout in the corner as we approach her. She looks full of concentration, studying her clipboard.
“Hi, sis. Lilly is running late so I’m going to get Alesha started. What equipment are you setting up there?”
“Hi, guys. Sorry, I had a quick change of plans this morning. I’m going to train Zara while Xavier does you girls. Is that okay with you, Alesha? I can swap with Xavier if you need.”
I want to say yes, please swap, after what just happened in the car, but I can’t. He would be hurt. I can’t do that to him after what he said to me. I’m not sure how often that soft side of Xavier comes out, so I can’t be the person to crush it. Plus, part of me wants to spend more time with him.
“No, it’s okay. You do what you need to with Zara. She needs you more than I do, I’m sure.”
“Great, we’ll leave you to it. Let’s get warmed up, Ally.” Xavier grabs my arm, directing me to the treadmills. He jumps on the one next to mine, walking with me. I think he feels he needs to keep me company until Lilly gets here, but I will be fine on my own. “Let’s pick up the speed a bit so we are nice and warm to start the circuit.” I’m warm already, for the second time in a row it has nothing to do with the exercising.
Just as we start our first rotation of exercises, my cheeky sister comes casually walking across the gym looking very pleased with herself.
“Morning, all,” she announces in her cheery voice. “Sorry I’m late, I slept in. Thank you so much, Xavier, for picking up Lesh for me. I didn’t want her to be standing out in the dark on her own, wondering where I was.” I give her the death stare from behind Xavier’s back and she returns it with a smug grin.
“It was no problem, she’s on my way, so I can pick her up each morning if you like. Give you that extra five minutes of sleep,” he happily announces to us both.
“I can drive myself, you know,” I blurt out to no one in particular.
“But you have to admit, the trip is more fun with me. Bet you wouldn’t laugh like you were this morning if you were on your own. Next station, Ally.”
Moving to the next machine, I know he’s right, but, how do I get out of this? I have a feeling he’s just like Lilly and is going to steamroll me into what he wants anyway. I lay my head back against the headrest while I push the leg press and hear Emily’s voice in my head. ‘Go with
your gut feeling, it will usually send you in the right direction.’
“Obviously I’m not going to win this one.” Surprisingly I’m the only one not laughing at this comment.
“You’re a quick learner. Same time as today, every morning we are booked in for training. I’ll be out front waiting for you,” Xavier said.
Lilly looked like the cat who ate the canary. “Then I can take you home, Leshy.” Which was said with a way too nice, sweet and innocent voice.
“Hmmm,” is all I manage.
No matter how much we’re talking, Xavier never loses concentration of our training and making sure we are doing the exercises right, staying safe. He is obviously very good at his job. I guess that is why he is so popular. That, and perhaps, because his looks are like God’s gift to women. I manage to get through to the end with a few short conversations and plenty of death stares at Lilly. Just as we are saying goodbye and ready to head home for a quick shower before work, Xavier’s next client arrives. She is checking us out from the corner of the room before she heads straight towards him. Before we got to finish discussing our next training session, she’s there in between us. If I didn’t know better, I would say she was trying to stake her claim. Maybe she is one of Xavier’s previous conquests or even a current one. I can feel myself crawling back into my shell.
“Morning, Xavier. How did you feel yesterday after our meet up on Saturday? It was a great day, wasn’t it? I was exhausted after all our sweaty activity.” With that, I am walking as fast as I can to the exit. I don’t want to hear anymore. What a fool I feel like. I fell for his words hook, line and sinker. He is exactly what his sister said he is, a ladies’ man. I am just another challenge he is looking to conquer. Who am I kidding to think he is truly interested in me. I have nothing on that woman in there. They obviously had a good workout together on Saturday after he saw me. While I was fighting to get him out of my head all weekend, he obviously had no such trouble.
Standing next to Lilly’s car waiting for her to catch up, I can feel tears building at the back of my eyes. It’s totally ridiculous. I hardly even know him, yet he has me tied in knots. As soon as I hear the click of the locks on the doors, I have mine open and am in the car closing it in case Xavier comes and tries to stop me. Lilly jumps in the driver’s door, takes one look at me and knows she just needs to drive. No talking, just getting me out of here is her job.
Xavier
Fucking Dana strikes again.
I need to stop Ally and explain. I can see the hurt in her eyes. In four sentences, Dana managed to make me sound like the player everyone thinks I am. I promised Ally I would never hurt her, and within an hour of my little speech, she looked like someone had stabbed her in the heart with a blunt knife. I want to run after her, but Dana is standing in front of me still babbling on about God knows what. Hands on my chest and way too far inside my personal space. I can’t make a scene in my workplace or upset a client, but I’ve got to let Ally know that Dana is just a typical gym bunny who thinks she has a chance with me. Not in a million years would I touch her.
Trying to think quickly, I fake a coughing fit, just to pull back from Dana and let her know I need to get some water. I mean, my water bottle is sitting right at my feet, but she’s too self-absorbed to figure that out. Moving quickly to the front counter water cooler, I slip out the front door, trying to spot the girls. All I can see is the tail lights of a car leaving the car park.
Grabbing my phone, I try to ring her, but it just keeps going to voicemail. I’m about to leave a message but decide against it.
Xavier: Ally don’t get the wrong idea about Dana. I saw you hurting. It’s not what you’re thinking. Let me explain, please.
I stand, waiting to see the dots appear that she is replying. Instead, nothing. The door opens behind me and I feel a hand on my shoulder. I start to cringe before I realize it’s not Dana.
“What are you doing out here, Xavier? Nat is inside looking for you. Apparently, the whinging bitch Dana doesn’t want to be trained by her, only you will do, Mr Super Stud.” Zara laughs at the look on my face when she talks about her.
“That woman is doing my head in. I need to get rid of her, but I know if I make a thing about it, she will start badmouthing me to other clients or future clients. I can’t afford to do that when we are trying to get to a point of opening up our own gym. Arrgghh!” I stare down at my phone and still nothing. I need to go back inside, face the weirdo, bite my tongue and put on the charm
“Wow, good luck with that one, Xav. Tell Nat I will message her later. Obviously, there is more to this story than you have time for now, so she can fill me in. Don’t think you are getting out of it, either.” Zara kisses me on the cheek, turns me around and pushes me back towards the front door. Ugh, some days just turn to shit right before your eyes and this is going to be one of them.
“Where did you go, Xavier? I’ve been waiting for you and was worried about you running off like that.” She talks like butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth. Her hands are already in the air, trying to reach out to touch me. I’m too pissed off for her to be anywhere near me right now. Stepping sideways to put the stair climber machine between us, I can see Nat trying not to laugh. Taking a deep—yes, very deep—breath, I try to get in the trainer zone. I’m thinking about the badass workout that Dana is about to have unleashed on her today. It’s the only way I can get my frustrations out while still having a smile plastered on my face.
“Sorry, Dana, just had to grab a bit of fresh air to clear the coughing fit. Jump on the treadmill and start the warm-up. I’ll be back in a moment, just need to visit the bathroom.” I can see her still looking at me, trying to work out what is going on this morning. Damn sure it is none of her business. Walking away, I grab my phone again, still no reply to my message. I step into the hallway leading to the bathrooms and call Ally. Maybe she will answer this time. Ring after ring, my chances are getting lower.
‘Hi, you have reached the voicemail of Alesha Stevenson of Stevenson Constructions. Please leave me a detailed message and I will return your call. Thank you.’
So polite, professional and refined. It makes me wonder what she would ever see in me anyway. Maybe I’m just kidding myself. It doesn’t matter right at the moment, though. It’s just important she doesn’t think I’m a total sleazebag.
“Lilly! Of course.” I bang my fist against the wall I’m leaning on. Why didn’t I think of that?
Come on, come on. Please answer. Trust me, Lilly. Pick up the damn phone.
“You better have a very good explanation, otherwise I will be sending Grant around. Let me assure you that would not be fun. Start talking.” Lilly was not the normal bubbly woman I’m used to. She is pissed off and her sisterly, protective claws are out.
“That’s why I’m ringing you. Ally won’t answer my call. It’s not what it sounded like. Not even close. She is just a client who would like to be a lot more. I ran into her for no more than five minutes on Saturday while I was out hiking. That’s it. Nothing more, I promise. I need to explain that to Ally. I have upset her but it’s not my fault. How can I get her to listen to me? I promised her this morning I wouldn’t hurt her and now I’m promising you. I like her, Lil, and I want to get to know her. She’s different, and in a good way. I need your help. You need to trust me.” There is silence on the other end. I’m dying and just about to start another big spiel when I hear a quiet little sigh.
Then a soft whisper, “I like you too.”
Fuck, it’s Ally.
I must be on speaker. “Ally, thank God, I’m sorry. Please listen to me. It is nothing like it sounded. I need to see you. We need to talk. Can I meet you for lunch? I don’t want to do this on the phone.” My heart is thumping in my chest, waiting for her to answer, but of course she can’t.
“She is nodding her head. Meet her at the office at one o’clock. I’ll message you the address. Bring your best grovelling, ‘pussy whisperer’.” Then the line goes dead. I have never hated tha
t name more than I do right this minute. High school football, lots of beers and names that seem to stick forever. I gave up trying to get rid of it, instead I just own it. Now I just wish it never existed.
Ugh, now to go and face Dana again. At least I have something to look forward to that will hopefully make the morning less painful.
Chapter Nine
Alesha
Why in the world did I agree to lunch?
Well, technically, I didn’t say yes. Lilly did. I may have nodded my head, but no words came out. Is that even really an acceptance? I mean, I could have been nodding for any number of reasons. Like telling Lilly it’s okay to answer no, or I had a sore neck, or there was an insect buzzing around me, or any random reason I can think of that will get me out of this. I can’t even hold a conversation when we are in the gym with Lilly and Natalie. How am I going to be able to talk to Xavier in a café where there is no one else to fill the silence?
Dropping my head into my hands on my desk, I ask the universe for some divine answer to the obvious question. “What was I thinking?”
“I would say you were thinking Xavier is pretty hot and I really want to jump him, so this would be a good way to get him to beg for forgiveness. Am I right?” Lilly plonks herself into the seat on the other side of my desk in the office we share. She places the coffee she made in front of me, which does not happen often. It’s usually me, partly because I am the queen at making a good coffee.
“It’s me we are talking about here, Lilly, not you. I’m pretty sure I have never ‘jumped’ a guy before in my boring life, and I’m not about to start now. Or have a guy beg me to do anything. I worry about you sometimes, Lilly.”