Sweat It Out: A Billionaire Love Story

by Starla Harris

Lucy walked back into the main building (an impressive, peace-inducing construction made of all wood and with large windows) and made her way to the elevators. She was badly in need of a shower, and of some food to replenish the energy she had burned during the intense workout in the garden. She felt great, but the calmness bestowed upon Lucy from Alice’s workout didn’t last long.

  There was a small lounge in the large hallway. It was a cozy corner, with Indian-style poufs, brightly hued cushions and couches over which multicolored quilts were thrown. It was supposed to promote peace of mind and relaxation, and yet the woman sitting on one of the couches talking to Anna Campbell, looked anything but relaxed. She seemed tense as she patiently listened to what the nutrition “expert” was telling her.

  “I was hoping you could give me some more ordinary alternatives,” the woman said when she could finally get a word in. “You see, I’m from a small town and I wouldn’t know where to begin to find some of the ingredients you mention.”

  “If you’re in SoCal, you can always drive to Ojai or Los Angeles,” Anna said, with the loftiness of someone who was fortunate enough to be blissfully ignorant of what it’s like to be an ordinary middle class member of society.

  The woman bit her lip nervously. “It’s an hour drive to Ojai from where I am. L.A. is even further away. I was hoping to be able to prepare some healthier meals for myself and my family, possibly with everyday ingredients. You know the kind like you’d find at the supermarket?”

  Anna shrugged dismissively at the woman. She gestured with her hands to indicate that there was nothing to be done. She fluttered her eyelashes at the woman. “I’m sorry, but if you want to be healthy, it’s a decision you have to make. It’s a matter of setting your priorities and putting in the effort to change your lifestyle.”

  Lucy bristled. She’d heard enough. The way she saw it, a mother who took the time off from her probably overwhelming schedule to attend a wellness conference in order to find healthier options for her family was already making a huge effort and didn’t deserve to be talked down to like this. For a split second, Lucy considered biting her tongue and going her own way, but when she saw the disappointment and the hint of shame flooding the woman’s features, she simply couldn’t hold back. She strode over, a sweaty red-faced blonde-haired fury, and planted herself on a pouf in front of the two women.

  “Excuse me,” she said, in as calm a tone as she could muster. “I couldn’t help but overhear. But there are lots of alternatives you can use that you can find anywhere. Take spinach for example, it’s rich in iron and other minerals. You can add a few leaves to a smoothie every day and get many of the same benefits.”

  The woman’s hazel eyes lit up with renewed hope. “Really?”

  “Really. Of course, you’ll have to pair it with other nutritional choices as part of a balanced diet. Herbs alone cannot fix everything,” Lucy said, with a pointed sideways glance at Anna Campbell. “But it’s a great way to pack in some extra nutrients.”

  “Well, that sounds easy enough.” the woman said, smiling now from ear to ear. “I can do that. Do you have any other tips?”

  “You should talk to Alice Baker,” Lucy said. “She’s out back in the garden. She’s a workout coach but she knows about food too. She has a Bachelor’s degree in pediatric nutrition.” Lucy had learned quite a bit in her brief chat with Alice, and her admiration for the woman had increased tenfold.

  The woman beamed at Lucy and stood up quickly. “I’ll go talk to her right now. Thank you so much!”

  Lucy flashed her a smile and watched her go. It felt good helping the woman. However, she had the strange feeling that she was being watched. When Lucy turned around, Anna Campbell’s brown eyes were practically shooting daggers at her.

  “What would you do that for?” Anna demanded.

  Lucy shrugged. She didn’t want to get into a fight with this woman, but she was starting to have the feeling that it would be inevitable. “I just thought she might appreciate Alice’s input, that’s all.”

  “How dare you undermine me in front of a potential client,” Anna said.

  ‘Ah,’ Lucy thought bitterly, ‘so that’s what it’s really all about. Money. As usual.’ She took a deep calming breath and tried to keep her temper in check. “Look, I didn’t mean to make you look bad or anything, but you weren’t giving her the information she wanted.”

  Anna bristled. “Spirulina is—”

  “Just an algae.” Lucy cut the other woman off sharply. Her patience had run out. “It’s not a magical elixir. Spirulina and kale and turmeric aren’t enough to live on. You need to give people a full diet plan.”

  “I give them—”

  “You give them a bunch of juices and a laundry list of herbs and tonics that most people can’t even pronounce, let alone find,” Lucy said. “I was at your lecture. Juicing is great and so are supplements. But if you make it sound like it’s going to be enough to sustain a person on its own, you’re giving them false hope, not to mention some very misleading information. Besides, people like that woman don’t have time to hunt down rare ingredients and make fresh juice every day, and most people don’t have the means to either. Can you imagine how much a daily regimen of your recommended supplements and regular juicing for a family of four would cost?”

  “I know how much it costs.” Anna Campbell narrowed her eyes at Lucy. “Healthy living is a lifestyle choice.”

  “Come on. Who are we kidding?” Lucy rolled her eyes. “We need to give these people something real, something they can work with and incorporate into their real lives.”

  Anna’s thin frame was taut with tension. “And exactly what is it that you give them? I’d love to know.”

  Lucy blinked. She realized just then that she had said “we”. “I give them reliable information and sources,” she said after a moment, thoughtfully choosing her words. “I’m a health and wellness journalist.”

  “Ha!” Anna made a cruel little sound. “Vultures, the lot of you. You know nothing.”

  Lucy arched an eyebrow at her opponent. “Seems to me like you don’t know that much yourself.”

  “How dare you? I’ll have you know, there is a ton of research backing my supplements. And kale has a lot more iron than spinach.”

  Lucy stared at Anna with disbelief. She couldn’t believe she had reduced herself to arguing about the merits of leafy green vegetables with this obtuse piece of work of a human being, but she just couldn’t find it in herself to walk away. Anna was hitting all of her pet peeves and pushing all of her buttons.

  “Kale vs. spinach, which is better? Who really gives a shit? Both are good. The truth is that there is no such thing as a magic pill that can make you healthy and that’s basically what you’re selling with your supplements.”

  She expected a scathing remark. Anna had gone pale with anger and looked like she was just about to let her have it. Instead, her adversary suddenly grew quiet. Anna’s eyes widened as something behind Lucy caught her attention.

  Lucy looked over her shoulder to see what could have taken Anna’s focus off of her and there he was. Lucy’s stomach dropped. He stood just a few feet away and was watching them bicker. Lucy was speechless. Her mouth suddenly went dry from the sheer beauty of the man. She knew Elijah Redford was handsome. She had watched enough of his videos to know he was a good looking guy. But she never dreamed that he would be even better looking in person. She was speechless and couldn’t take her eyes off of him. He was tall with broad shoulders and a slim waist. Every muscle in his body was lithe and well-defined. Even something as plain as the simple black track pants and white V-neck T-shirt he was wearing enhanced his muscular form. He had high cheekbones and a strong jaw. His short brown hair was cropped in a sleek, modern cut that sent the short locks in all directions. He resembled a Greek God, Lucy thought.

  His deep blue eyes stared intently at the two women and his head was tilted curiously to one side. There was a small smirk on his lips that brought out a hint of dimples
in his cheeks.

  When he saw them looking at him, he walked over to join the conversation. “She’s not wrong about the supplements.” he said to Anna Campbell while nodding in Lucy’s direction. He was standing awfully close to Lucy now. He smelled like wind and cologne. “Supplements are mostly bullshit. They’ll do squat by themselves and don’t even get me started on kale.”

  “Academic research shows supplements…” Anna stammered.

  “Yes,” Elijah said. “And exactly which studies are you referring to?”

  Lucy watched as Anna’s face turned even whiter. Realizing she was beaten and there was nothing else to do or say, Anna Campbell set her jaw, squared her shoulders and walked away.

  Lucy watched as the woman stormed off. She couldn’t help but feel a little bit sorry for Anna Campbell. When she turned back around, she was startled to find Elijah Redford staring at her. When their eyes met, she couldn’t help but stare back. It was as if she had fallen into a deep pool of blue and was drowning in his eyes.

  Of course, she had imagined what it would be like to meet him many times over. There were a bunch of different scenarios that played out in her head, but in none of those fantasies was she ever dripping with sweat after a rigorous workout and she most definitely wasn’t arguing over supplements let alone the merits of kale vs. spinach with a complete stranger.

  “You seem to have a lot of passion in what you believe,” he said.

  His voice jolted Lucy out of her trance and she blurted, “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I was staring,” and immediately regretted it.

  A smirk spread across his face. “God forbid people buy the wrong vegetables let alone eat real food.”

  “I…” Lucy opened her mouth and shut it again. It wasn’t often that she was at a loss for words. It took her a moment to remember why she was there. She drew herself up to her full height (which admittedly wasn’t all that considerable at five feet and four inches tall) and tried to look as professional and put together as she possibly could while her hair was plastered to her face. She was pretty sure she smelled like a sumo wrestler. It wasn’t supposed to happen this way.

  “Mr. Redford,” she said, “my name is Lucy Smith. I’m a freelance journalist and I would love to interview you for a profile.”

  She couldn’t bring herself to make eye contact with him again. It felt too dangerous. All the while Elijah was watching her with an amused look on his face—almost as if he was enjoying the spectacle.

  She awkwardly rummaged around in her gym bag until she found a business card and handed it to him. To her surprise, he accepted it. Didn’t he have minions to take care of his dirty work for him and deal with the plebes? Fielding interview requests from random journalists… didn’t that qualify as dirty work?? And wasn’t she a plebe?

  That was before he abruptly said “Thank you” and absentmindedly tucked the card into his wallet. “I’ll hold on to it.”

  Lucy’s heart sank. She was pretty sure that inside people’s wallets was where all business cards go to be forgotten and die. She had the distinct impression that her big break had come and gone, and she missed it. “Okay,” she mumbled while looking down at her feet. “I guess I’ll see you around.”

  She turned and hurried off as fast as she could, almost as fast as Anna Campbell did, without even waiting for Elijah Redford to respond. Lucy didn’t dare look back. Instead, she cursed herself all the way up to her room.

  CHAPTER TWO

  THERE WAS SOMETHING about Elijah Redford that fascinated her. Lucy had been aware of it ever since she started following the man’s career. Of course there was something special about him as a professional fitness coach and wellness expert. If there wasn’t, she wouldn’t be here now, immersed in this joke of an event.

  But what she hadn’t anticipated was that there would be something else that was special about Elijah as a person—that is not until she met him face-to-face. Granted, the fact that he was pretty remarkable was a given. No one created the kind of brand empire like he did by being ordinary. But she never expected to be taken by his presence this much. There was something about his manner that left her breathless and made her think that there was more to him than his public persona. What she had expected was to encounter a man who was full of himself and absolutely insufferable—which he probably was, based on his terse manner and the infuriating smirk that she wanted to wipe off of his face. But for some reason, neither of those flaws bothered her as much as they ordinarily would in anyone else.

  In the afternoon, Lucy attended another seminar—this one was held by a certain Dr. Eric Hathaway, who explained the science behind the gluten-free meal plans he designed for pro athletes who suffered from wheat allergies. Thankfully, he seemed to know what he was talking about. When the seminar was over, Lucy decided to take advantage of a complimentary yoga class in the atrium to decompress from the day.

  But it didn’t work. For the first time since she had started her practice, yoga wasn’t able to settle her mind. By the time she made it back to her room upstairs, there was still that knot in the pit of her stomach that she knew all too well—it was embarrassment. It rose up to her cheeks, painting them scarlet red every time she thought about her encounter with Elijah Redford.

  There was no doubt in her mind that she screwed up and she couldn’t let it go. She couldn’t imagine what he must think of her. Based on the way that she couldn’t even make eye contact with him at the end and could barely form complete sentences, let alone the way she just ran off on him like she did, she was certain that he probably thought she was some kind of amateur fanatic. She wasn’t sure she blamed him either, considering the over-the-top passion with which she had been debating the merits of kale vs. spinach like some kind of crazy zealot.

  Lucy groaned and ran a hand down her face. The fine layer of sweat she found there made her think of what she must’ve looked like when she met him—a sweaty, red-faced mess. She managed to not cross paths with him again for the rest of the day, for which she was grateful. Feeling embarrassed, clumsy and awkward didn’t quite match the go-getter attitude she worked so hard to cultivate. She needed some time to lick her wounds, nurse her ego and get her self-confidence back.

  The one thing she did know was that she’d definitely see him again. She was determined that this wouldn’t be the last that he’d seen of her even though she didn’t know how she’d make it happen, when it would happen or where. As far as she was concerned, the plan was still in motion. She knew though that she’d have to figure it out fast because time was running out.

  Elijah Redford was the break she needed for her career. Snagging an interview with him was the sole reason she was here and there was just no way she was letting “kale” have the last word in the story.

  Lucy stepped into the shower and did her best to clear her head and not think. She tried to let go of everything—her stress, her anxiety, her eagerness and her ambition. There were times in life when life felt overwhelming and this was one of them. By the time she finished her shower and was toweling herself dry, she was starting to feel somewhat in control again.

  In the main room, outside of the small bathroom, the phone rang. For a moment, Lucy wondered when she changed her ringtone to one that sounded so ordinary and boring, but then she realized it wasn’t her cell phone at all giving out such a shrill ring—it was the room phone. She hastily wrapped the bath towel around herself and hurried out of the bathroom. She snatched up the receiver and flopped on the bed.

  “Hello?”

  “Hello, Ms. Smith?”

  “Yes, this is she.”

  Lucy’s stomach cramped with renewed anxiety. She had talked to him only briefly, but it was as if his voice was burned into her permanent memory. She would have recognized him anywhere.

  “Elij—I’m sorry, Mr. Redford?” she corrected herself quickly. She chewed on her bottom lip as she tried to keep the surprise out of her voice. She was pretty sure she had failed.

  “I asked the concierge to c
onnect me to your room. I hope you don’t mind.”

  “No, I…uh…that’s fine, really.” Lucy sat up a little straighter and forced herself to at least try to regain her composure again. What was it about this man that turned her into such a bumbling fool? She paused, mustering up as much of confidence as she could, “How may I help you?”

  “I’m hosting a private dinner here at the resort,” he said. “I’d very much like you to attend.”

  Whoa… That came out of left field! Lucy’s heart started pounding inside her chest. “Who, me?” she asked in a high-pitched squeal. She couldn’t help but hate herself a little, because this time she was sure she failed at hiding her excitement and instead sounded like a little girl.

  “Yes, you” Elijah said. There it was again—the hint of amusement in his voice. “Tonight, 7:00 PM sharp. Is that okay?”

  Lucy blinked. She threw a panicked look at the alarm clock on the nightstand. It was already 5:45. She fought the instinct to lash out at him for inviting her at the last minute.

  “Why, thank you. I’d love to come.”

  “Wonderful.” He sounded genuinely satisfied with her response. “Do you have any food allergies the chefs should be aware of?”

  “No allergies,” Lucy said. “If you don’t mind, what will the dress code be?”

  “Don’t worry about the dress code, just make sure you bring your “A” game, Ms. Smith,” Elijah said. A bit of an edge had crept back into his voice and Lucy could have sworn that she actually heard him smirk over the phone. “I’ll see you at 7:00.”

  He hung up before she could get in another word.

  Lucy’s hand trembled slightly as she placed the receiver back in its place. Maybe she hadn’t made that bad of an impression after all. She must’ve done something right to get invited to a private dinner party. And yet, she still couldn’t shake the feeling that she’d screwed up, somehow. There was no time for her to dwell on what she should’ve and could’ve said and done. She had to get ready and she had to bring her “A” game, whatever that was.