by A. J. Harmon
Anna puts her weight on one foot and then the other, swaying in awkward silence.
“Keep going,” I order.
Chad just remains silent. Smart man.
“I tricked him into coming to my trailer and I wanted to have sex with him, but it didn’t get any further than a kiss before he told me he wasn’t interested. He quit and immediately left.”
Just as Chad had said it happened. I am very glad I chose to believe him.
“I’m sorry, Kate. Chad, I wish things had gone differently. Here.” She pulled out an envelope from her Prada handbag and shoved it at Chad.
In order for him to take what she is offering him, he’s going to have to let go of at least one of my wrists. I can actually feel his muscles tense and release, and tense again as he contemplates what will happen if I am loose. It makes me chuckle.
“I promise to be good,” I whisper into the back of his neck.
With a sigh, he releases both of my wrists and steps away from me to take the envelope.
“What is it?” he asks cautiously.
“A check from the studio for the full amount of your contract. And once you cash the check, you promise not to take any legal action in regards to my behavior.” The last phrase was said with total humiliation.
It. Was. Awesome.
Chad accepts the check and I knew he would try to thank her for her generosity. I would have none of that.
“You think that money is going to save you from the consequences of your actions?” I spat as I swiftly move around Chad so I stood in between them. “You think that you get to just hand over a check and your disgusting sexual harassment will just disappear?”
The look on Anna’s face is one of pure terror. I wish I had a camera to capture the moment. In fact, I wish I had this whole scene on video. It would be fun to watch on Friday night movie nights.
I raise my arm, make a fist and… Chad grabs my elbow.
“Kate.” It was an unmistakable warning.
I unfist my hand and let my arm fall to my side once Chad releases his tight grip. “You are not welcome here… ever.”
“I know,” she pouts. And turns and walks out of the building.
“Why?” I swing around to Chad. “Why didn’t you let me hit her?” I whine.
“You have to ask the question?” Chad chuckles.
*****
“Belly Burners,” I suggest.
“Fat Farm,” says Grace.
“How about The Fitness Center?” my Mom adds her two cents worth.
“That’s a boring name,” I frown. “We need something that says if you’re chubby, we’re here for you… to help you, and we won’t judge.”
“Double Chins R Us,” adds Will.
“You guys are seriously no help!” Chad laughs.
We’ve spent the past several weeks working long hours at the gym and still haven’t come up with a name that we can agree on. Chad wants something that sounds professional. I want something that invites the chubbies to come and work out with us because we are just that awesome. So far, we haven’t come up with anything.
But that hasn’t the stopped the transformation of the space. Our contractor has done an amazing job of remodeling the large space into what will be a high-end, top-of-the-line, state-of-the-art, cutting edge facility with brand new locker rooms and an administration space, as well as private rooms for one-on-one evaluations, consulting, and work-outs, if needed.
Chad has hired trainers, Zumba and Spinning instructors, massage therapists, acupuncturists, and a Nurse Practitioner to be on staff to help with those other metabolic issues that need to be addressed. He’s even contracted with a psychologist, an old friend from college, to meet with any clients that may need emotional help. I am so proud of his vision and what he wants to accomplish. I couldn’t be happier to take this journey with him.
I am charged to oversee the admin side of the business. I’ve hired and trained several front desk people, and a full-time bookkeeper to stay on top of the accounts receivables and payables, and payroll. Her name is Tina.
It was harder than I thought it would be to call her out of the blue. Our last conversation hadn’t been one I wanted to relive. In fact, I’d tried to forget the hurtful words she’d spoken in anger and frustration, knowing she’d said them in a dark moment, but had never been able to push them from my mind. Maybe now it could be water under the bridge and we could start fresh.
I knew that she wouldn’t answer my initial call, so I’d left a message that I’d hoped would pique her interest. It worked. We met for coffee and an hour later she was hired. I’m hopeful that one day she will look back on her termination and decide was all for the best… that she’d much rather be working with us than still stuck in a corporate job that treated their employees more like robots than human beings.
Fingers crossed.
It seems unreal to walk into a once empty commercial building and see the transformation that has taken place under Chad’s guidance and our contractor’s skill. I stand aside as the delivery men haul exercise equipment inside and place each piece on a masking tape X Chad has placed on the carpet. Another set of delivery men have arrived with the bistro tables and chairs that will go in the small area designated as the café. The refrigerators and shelving units were installed last week and once the cash register is added, the juices and energy bars can be purchased and stocked and for sale. One item I have insisted that we sell in the café is donuts. Now, I know what you’re going to say. I’ve heard it from everyone, believe me. But seriously, there are times in your life when you need a donut as much as you need oxygen. I know this because I’ve been there.
Chad saddles up behind me and snakes his arms around my waist.
“I’m still not sure this is real,” he breathes against my neck. “Pinch me and make me believe this isn’t all a dream.”
“If I pinch you,” I giggle, “we’ll end up on your desk and I’m not sure that would be appropriate at this very moment.”
As I finish my sentence, Chad is called to help with placement of some of the weight machines and I’m left standing in the foyer watching the organized chaos around me and agreeing that it all seems too good to be true. So good that before we’ve even opened Chad has had to hire more staff because our membership drive produced twice as many new members as we’d calculated in our proposal for the bank.
I never wanted to be, and protested loudly when it was suggested, but I am the new spokesperson for our gym, The Jiggly Gym. I do commercials and radio spots and have even been a guest on a couple of local talk shows. In fact, a local TV station wants to follow me during the remainder of my pregnancy, and after, and focus on exercise and nutrition for pregnant women and then losing the baby weight. I am terrified that I will embarrass myself, or worse, embarrass Chad, but he thinks it’s a fabulous idea and fully supportive of the camera crew filming us while we work out together. The crew arrives tomorrow to film my session with Chad, the first in the series. I’m nervous as fuck but if it helps people then how can I complain?
The day after Anna Baxter had made her appearance at the gym, I found a poster of her taped to the wall in the break room. She’d given it to Ellis and he’d asked her to sign it, which she did. Now, as I walk in to get a cold bottle of water, I look up at the woman who had almost destroyed the life I’d wanted, but I could no longer feel that immense hatred I’d felt the day I tried to punch her in the face. Although I don’t like what she did, I feel sorry for her. She was a little bit pathetic and for that I couldn’t hate her. In some ways, I understood her. She had the money, the fame, the beauty, and the body, and yet she hadn’t been able to find the one thing to make her truly happy. I didn’t have the money, the fame, the beauty or the body, but Chad and I had found each other and the rest of it didn’t matter… and never would.
It’s interesting how your life can change when you least expect it.
*****
“Right there,” the doctor points at the screen. “This l
ittle nugget is your baby.”
Chad grips my hand a little tighter and gasps as we both see our baby on the ultrasound.
“It’s real,” I whisper.
“Sure is,” Chad agrees. “Is it a boy or girl?”
“We don’t want to know, do we?” I question him. “Do we want it to be a surprise? Or do we want to be prepared?”
“I need to know what color paint to buy,” he replies.
The doctor chuckles. “You have plenty of time to do that.”
“We’ll talk about it some more then,” I suggest to Chad.
“Would you like a picture?” The doctor asks.
“Yes!” Chad and I answer simultaneously.
On the drive home from the doctor’s office, I can’t take my eyes off the photo in my hands. In just the last week or so, I’ve begun to feel little flutters, like butterflies, in my stomach. Froggy is moving around quite a bit and I can’t wait until Chad can place his hand on my tummy and feel his child kicking. I know that will be a special experience for both of us.
“I think that the large closet area we have behind the office should be made into a nursery,” Chad says as he pulls into our driveway.
“But the admin offices were just painted and the carpet installed. You want to make changes already?” I’m stunned. The contractor only has a couple more days of work and then we wait for the final inspections before we officially open the doors to the public.
“It’s not going to take much,” Chad says. “We need to put in a window, so we can see froggy while we’re working, and paint it some fun colors and it’d be done.”
“And buy some furniture and add proper lights,” I add.
“Well, yeah, but won’t it be great? We can be at work, doing what we love, with the baby we love. And as we have more froggies, we can maybe expand the space.”
“Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!” I exclaim. “Let’s get this baby here before you go getting me pregnant again.”
“Okay, but we can start practicing?”
“Practicing?” I ask, almost afraid to hear his answer.
“Getting pregnant,” he grins that incredibly sexy grin that melts my heart and starts my blood pumping faster.
“Absolutely,” I giggle. “What’s your schedule this afternoon?”
“It consists of making love to you… twice.”
“Just twice?” I tease.
“Well, before dinner,” Chad grins as he helps me out of the car. “After dinner, well, watch out,” he growls.
“Is that a promise or a threat?”
“A promise. Definitely a promise.”
About the Author
Born in Perth, Western Australia to English parents, AJ grew up on the beaches in the summer and studiously studying English, music and languages during the school year. Reading, dancing and cooking filled the rest of her time. Moving to the United States as a teenager opened her up to not only a new culture, but a faster paced life and eventually to her own Prince Charming as well. Instilled with the love of reading by her mother at a young age, AJ grew up believing in the fairytale ending. All her favourite books had one, so why shouldn’t she? Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett, and Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester shaped her belief in the happily-ever-after. Now married for over thirty years to her sweetheart, AJ is still perfecting their own happy ending, and loving every minute of it.
It doesn’t take a village just to raise a child, it also takes a village to publish a book. AJ Harmon was blessed with a village in her very own family. She and her husband have two children that she describes as “every mother’s dream.” Her son and son-in-law are stationed in North Carolina, and her daughter is an attorney in Washington. All are vital members of her ‘village’ and she is thrilled to call them her best friends.
When AJ came home one day from her accounting job and announced to her husband that she was writing a book--after the initial shock wore off--he immediately went to work on preparing marketing plans and strategies. As a small business marketing strategist, he was excited at the prospect of playing in the ‘big league’ with the giants of the publishing industry. Never shying away from a challenge, he was up to the task and took AJ on as his number one client. Turning to her son next, AJ has come to rely on him for most everything else. A computer and technical guru, he has been the one who takes a word document and turns it into a book ready for sale digitally or in paperback, among countless other tasks and projects.
Playing with her dog, Max, trying out new recipes and reading are just some of the things that keep AJ busy when she’s not working, but her career of writing romance novels is a source of delight and constant excitement. A USA Today bestselling author, AJ has published over twenty-five books and always has at least five or six in the “working” phase, with countless more characters in her head wanting their stories told too. Follow her on Amazon to stay up to date on her newest releases and signings.
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https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6888970.A_J_Harmon
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Other Books by AJ Harmon
He’s No Saint
Wrecked
A Choice for Claire
White Christmas: A Holiday Novella
Mr. Wright Write Right: A Novella
The Irresistible Collection
(5 erotic novellas)
First Class to New York
(First Class Novels Book 1)
First Class to Portland
(First Class Novels Book 2)
First Class Justice
(First Class Novels Book 3)
First Class Voyage
(First Class Novels Book 4)
First Class Hero
(First Class Novels Book 5)
First Class Menu
(First Class Novels Book 6)
First Class Rescue
(First Class Novels Book 7)
First Class Stamp
(First Class Novels Book 8)
First Class Farewell
(First Class Novels Book 9)
First Class Family: The Complete Collection
(The Boxed Set of all 9 First Class Novels, plus a bonus Novella)
San Diego
love comes in many forms
(Sky Romance Novels Book 1)
Las Vegas
what happens in vegas doesn’t always stay in vegas
(Sky Romance Novels Book 2)
Chicago
a shot to the heart changes everything
(Sky Romance Novels Book 3)
Sky Romance Novels Collection
life isn’t all about the destination – it’s about finding your perfect traveling companion