“You’ve already warmed up on the treadmill, so that’s good,” he said. “Now I’ll take you through several different exercises to get a baseline of what you can do. Then I can design a program for you to help you meet your goals.”
“Great.”
“Make sure you’re hydrated, then we’ll get started.”
“Okay.” She drank some water from her water bottle before following him to a mat.
“Normally a session lasts forty-five minutes to an hour,” he said, “where you would do three sets with eight to ten reps. Today though we’ll just do one set of ten reps for each exercise to get you familiar with the program.”
She seemed to be listening closely. “All right.”
“The first exercise we’re going to do is a basic squat.” He showed her how to do it, then had her give it a try. “You’re doing great,” he said. “Don’t forget to breathe.” He watched her go through the motions and tried not to notice how gorgeous she was, but it was hard to ignore. Then, after having her do another leg workout, he took her to a weight bench to work with free weights.
“Let’s do some bicep curls to work your upper body.” He demonstrated what he wanted her to do, then he watched as she tried, giving her encouragement throughout. “You’re doing great. Three more. Breathe. Nice.”
After taking her through a number of other exercises to assess her body strength, flexibility and fitness level, he mentally began designing her program.
“What do you think?” she asked as she stood and faced him.
He didn’t think she was as stuck-up as he had initially thought. Glad about that, he told her what exercises he recommended.
“Also, you should keep an eye on your diet,” he said. “Do you want to talk specifics?”
Lips pursing, she shook her head. “I know what to eat.”
There was that tone again, like she already knew it all. Why was she bothering with him then?
Did she look like she needed to change her eating habits? Sure, she liked chocolate from time to time. Well, maybe it was more often than that, but she hated that Tyler might think she needed to eat better. Not when his body was Adonis-like. Chocolate probably never passed his lips.
Despite being self-conscious about her flaws, for the most part she’d enjoyed this workout session. Not sure if that was because she had such an attractive personal trainer or because she was eager to start this new adventure, in either case she was pleased that it hadn’t been the torture she had feared.
“When can you come back for another session?” he asked.
Another session? With him?
When she pictured the way his muscles had bulged when he’d demonstrated the bicep curl, a butterfly beat its wings inside her chest. The man was several degrees above hot. Scorching was a better word. If he was her personal trainer her undeniable attraction to him would become a distraction. A distraction she didn’t need.
His brown eyes were steady on her as he waited for an answer.
She pushed a confident smile onto her mouth. “I think I’d like to try this on my own first.” She was being chicken, but that didn’t change her mind.
A hint of disappointment swept over his face.
Because he wouldn’t be able to spend time with her? Or because she wouldn’t be paying for his services? Certain it was the latter, she was glad she’d turned him down.
“Okay.” He smiled, and Arwen regretted turning him down.
With him standing only inches away she had the inexplicable desire to run her hands over his biceps—so firm, so strong.
Oh don’t you dare!
Clearing her throat, she took a step back.
“Well,” he said, “if you need me, you know where to find me.”
She nodded. Right. And that was her first problem. The second being that she just might want to find him. But she wasn’t going to. She was there to work out. Not to flirt with some muscle-bound personal trainer who probably did nothing but work out all day long.
“Thanks for the consult,” she said, then she grabbed her towel and headed to the women’s locker room.
Chapter Two
Taking a moment to compose herself as she sat on a bench in the ladies’ locker room, Arwen blew out a breath of air. “Whew!”
She hadn’t expected to get sidetracked by this unwanted attraction to her extremely hot personal trainer. So now what? He worked there, and she was going to be working out there.
Chewing on her lower lip, Arwen considered how she would handle being around him. It wasn’t like she had to talk to him. After all, he wasn’t going to be her personal trainer any longer.
Lips twisting into a small frown at that reality, she shook her head as she reminded herself that that was a good thing. She didn’t have time for a man in her life.
Making a scoffing sound in her throat, she rolled her eyes. As if she’d even be interested in him for anything beyond his looks. The man was clearly a gym rat. Had she seen that body?
Face flushing, Arwen clearly remembered the way Tyler’s t-shirt had emphasized his fit and muscular form.
Of course it wasn’t just his body. There were his chiseled cheekbones, his kissable lips, his expressive eyes, and his overall hotness.
Blowing out a puff of air, Arwen closed her eyes and gathered herself.
Cool down, girl.
Besides, he probably had a girlfriend.
Telling herself that she didn’t care whether or not he was single, Arwen took a shower before putting on the slacks and blouse she’d worn to work that day. Twisting her long hair into a knot at the back of her head, she glanced at her reflection in the mirror before putting on a swipe of coral lipstick. Then, tossing her gym bag over one shoulder, she headed out of the locker room.
Stepping out of the door and into the reception area, Arwen couldn’t stop herself from sweeping her gaze across the room and then looking towards the glass wall that led to the workout space.
Just one more glimpse. Maybe. That wouldn’t hurt, right?
But Tyler was nowhere in sight. Probably giving some hot chick his personal training attention.
Not liking the hint of jealousy that poked at her, she shoved it down and walked out the door to her car.
Movement in the health club’s reception area caught Tyler’s eye, and when he saw Arwen striding towards the front door, he craned his neck to watch her. Thinking about the way she’d put in a good effort earlier, he nodded with approval.
“Yo, Reed,” a man on the weight machine said. “I’m not paying you to stare at pretty women.”
“Sorry,” Tyler said as his face heated. He needed to pay attention to his job. Not some woman who thought she knew everything.
Turning his focus to his client, Tyler tried to put Arwen out of his mind. But that wasn’t quite as easy as he’d hoped.
And he had to find out why she had such a ridiculous name.
Tossing her purse onto the kitchen counter, Arwen felt better than she had in a while. She hadn’t done enough to have sore muscles, but if she followed Tyler’s recommendations, that would change. Still, knowing she was doing something to improve her body gave her the psychological boost she needed.
A smirk tugged up one corner of her mouth.
That, and meeting Tyler… She shook her head.
Stop thinking about the gym rat.
Pushing aside thoughts of Tyler, she put a small serving of shredded chicken into the microwave to defrost, and as the machine whirred, she tossed a salad and poured herself a diet soda.
“Dinner for one,” she murmured in a tone two steps above self-pity, then immediately scolded herself. Being on her own wasn’t a bad thing. It meant she had the ability to take care of herself. That was what she wanted, wasn’t it? To be completely independent?
Nodding with certainty, she poured some ranch dressing into a tiny dish and carried it, along with her soda, to her dining room table. Looking around at her cozy apartment, she smiled in satisfaction. She was on her way n
ow. Done with school, done with her internship. Yep. She was finally starting her life. And she certainly didn’t need a man to make it complete.
The microwave beeped. She pulled out the chicken and added it to the salad, then brought the pretty glass bowl she’d bought for just such dinners to the table. See? She knew what to eat.
Admiring the new dishes she’d bought—no more poor college student dishes for her—she dribbled a bit of ranch dressing over her salad, then tossed it together. After only a few bites, her cell phone rang.
She swiped to answer. “Hello?”
“Hey, chica,” Paisley, her good friend and co-worker, said. “A group of us are going out tonight. Wanna join?”
Arwen set her fork down. “Where are you guys going?”
“That sports bar. Pineapple’s? Lots of hot firefighters hang out there.”
She smiled. “We do have work tomorrow.” And she knew how her friends were. Hot firefighters? Too difficult for them to resist. She, however, had no interest in finding love in a bar. Still, it would be fun to go out.
Paisley laughed. “Work never stopped us from having a good time. Come on, Arwen.”
“Sure. Why not?” She’d earned a little fun after working out at the gym.
“Great! I’ll pick you up in an hour.”
“See you then.”
Tyler wrapped up his last training session, and after changing into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, he headed to Pineapple’s. Jake and some of the other guys from the station were meeting up to watch a late summer baseball game and Tyler had promised to join them.
“Look who it is,” Jake said when Tyler approached their table.
“Hey.” Tyler pulled back a chair, scraping it against the wood floor, then sat. He greeted the other guys—Damon and Tommy, two other men from his firefighting crew. “Game already started?”
“Yeah,” Damon said, “but you haven’t missed much.”
Tyler laughed. “You’re just saying that because your guys aren’t doing so well.” He pointed at the score: Dodgers 2 Red Sox 0.
Damon frowned. “They’re just warming up. Give ‘em time.”
“Okay. If you say so.” Tyler motioned a waitress over and ordered a beer, then he turned to Jake. “Lacey let you out, huh?”
Jake laughed. “She’s better company than you bozos, but yeah, she’s down in St. George visiting her mom.”
“Nice.” A few minutes later the waitress handed him the beer and he took a deep swallow.
“How are things at the gym?” Tommy asked, then a smirk pulled up one side of his mouth. “Lots of pretty ladies to look at over there, huh?”
An image of Arwen jumped into Tyler’s head, but he pushed it aside. “Shut up. I’m just trying to make some cash.”
“Uh-huh,” he said with a nod as his eyebrows rose.
“Oh!” Jake said, his eyes on the TV. “And the Dodgers score again.”
A group of women walked in, and one in particular caught Tyler’s eye. Was that… His eyebrows shot up. What was Arwen doing there?
Tommy noticed them too. “Now the fun begins.”
Irritated that Tommy would even look at Arwen, Tyler clenched his jaw before reminding himself that she was just a stuck-up woman he’d barely met. Tommy could have her. He was definitely not interested.
But he found he couldn’t take his eyes off of her.
The noise of the sports bar was a bit overwhelming, but Arwen was looking forward to spending time with her friends.
“There’s an empty table,” Paisley said, then headed towards it.
Arwen followed her, and moments later she, Paisley, Sarah, and Lauren were sitting at the high table.
“So,” Lauren began with a grin, “which ones are the hot firefighters you promised us?”
Paisley laughed as she pushed her long blonde hair behind one ear. “I have no idea.”
Sarah adjusted her glasses before glancing around, then she leaned toward the others. “I don’t care if they’re firefighters or not, but there are lots of hot guys here.”
Arwen smiled along with her friends, but she was already regretting coming. Her friends were obviously on the prowl as she’d known they would be, but she definitely was not. Her focus was on her career, not on finding some hot guy to slobber all over.
“What can I get you gals?” a waitress asked as she stood next to their table.
Lauren, Paisley, and Sarah each ordered something fruity, but Arwen ordered a diet soda.
“Boring,” Sarah said after the waitress left to fill their orders.
“Hey,” Arwen said with a friendly scowl, “I just started a new workout regimen. I don’t want to blow it with a high calorie drink.” Plus, after Tyler’s comment about her diet, she was determined to eat better.
“Fine, fine,” Sarah said. “You can be our designated driver then.”
That was all right with her.
“Good evening, ladies,” a man said as he appeared next to their table. “Is this your first time at Pineapple’s?”
“Hey, there,” Sarah said. “And yes it is.”
The man’s smile grew. “On behalf of the regulars here, I’d like to welcome you. My name’s Tommy.”
Tommy? That was a little boy’s name. Not a man’s name. Tyler was a man’s name.
Realizing where her thoughts had just gone, Arwen held back a frown.
“Thank you for the welcome. I’m Sarah and these are my friends.” She swept her hand in their direction. “Lauren, Paisley, and Arwen.”
To Arwen’s horror, Tommy focused on her. “Arwen, huh? That’s an unusual name.”
There were three other pretty women there. Why was he talking to her?
“Uh, yeah.” She forced a laugh. “My dad was a big Lord of the Rings fan.”
What did Tommy think he was doing? A feeling suspiciously close to jealousy climbed Tyler’s throat as he watched Tommy talking to Arwen. Though Arwen’s back was to him—she hadn’t even seen him—he could tell she was laughing as if she was having a great time.
She seemed a lot friendlier now. With Tommy. What was up with that? And why did he care?
Fuming, Tyler turned his focus to the game and tried to tune out the laughter coming from Arwen’s table.
“I’m a big Lord of the Rings fan too,” Tommy said.
Yeah, she’d heard that one before.
“Maybe we can…” he grinned. “Watch one of the movies together.”
She was done. Why had she agreed to come in the first place? She should have known better. “Thanks, but I don’t think so.” She smiled at her friends. “Hey, I’m gonna catch an Uber home. I’ll see you guys later.”
“What?” Paisley said, clearly distressed. “Now?”
“Ahh,” Tommy said. “Leaving already?”
Completely ignoring Tommy, Arwen threw an apologetic smile to her friends. “I, uh, I have some work to do before I go in tomorrow.”
“All right,” Lauren said. “Talk to you later.”
Arwen nodded, then hopped down from her chair and made a beeline to the door. She opened the Uber app, and within minutes she was on her way home. Sighing, she leaned her head against the seat and thought about her life.
Things were going well just then. No reason to mess it up with thinking about a man. Even if he was a hot gym rat.
“Denied,” Jake said to Tommy with a mocking grin when Tommy rejoined them at their table.
Tyler’s gaze flicked to Arwen’s table, which was when he saw that she was no longer there. Must’ve gone to the ladies’ room.
“Next time,” Tommy said, then he scooped up a handful of pretzels and threw them into his mouth.
Tyler couldn’t help himself, he kept glancing at Arwen’s table, but she had yet to reappear.
“You wanna give it a shot?” Tommy asked, noticing Tyler’s not so surreptitious looks at the ladies at Arwen’s table.
Scowling, Tyler didn’t answer. Instead he picked up his beer and gulped it down before asking t
he waitress for another.
Chapter Three
When Arwen left work the next evening, she was surprised at how eager she was to go to the gym. Had she suddenly developed a love for working out? She knew that wasn’t it.
Much to her chagrin, she hadn’t been able to get Tyler out of her mind—images of him had intruded on her even as she’d tried to fall asleep the night before. He’d even made an appearance in one of her dreams. Snippets of the dream filled her mind as she drove to the gym.
He was a patient of hers, and as he reclined on the couch in her office, he told her if she worked just a little harder she would be perfect.
Dream interpretation had always fascinated her. So what did her dream mean? That she feared he couldn’t see beyond her imperfections to discover the person underneath? No, that couldn’t be it, because she didn’t care what he thought. Right?
More likely it was because he’d been on her mind when she’d fallen asleep. That, plus the fact that she found him super attractive. Maybe when she saw him in all his hot gym rat glory she’d be able to forget about him and move on. Someone like that was not for her. If she wanted a man in her life at all—which she didn’t—he had to be smart and well-rounded. And she didn’t mean his muscles. She was not interested in a man who spent his life in the gym—which clearly Tyler did.
After changing into shorts and a tank top, Arwen went into the workout space, her gaze sweeping the area. Disappointed to not see Tyler—and kind of surprised (didn’t he spend all of his time there?)—she stepped onto a treadmill and powered it up. Placing earbuds in her ears, she got into a rhythm and found herself enjoying the feel of using her muscles.
When she’d fast-walked for twenty minutes, she slowed the treadmill, then went to the weight machine, ready to do some of the exercises Tyler had shown her the day before. As she did her leg extensions she remembered the way Tyler’s muscles had looked as he’d demonstrated the bicep curls.
Hearts On Fire: Park City Firefighter Romance Page 2