Page 33 of Out of Sight

“Five days a week then. Alright. So. Ahem. I say we start every day with cardio to build up your stamina. Mondays and Thursdays upper body, Tuesdays and Fridays lower body, Wednesdays we can focus on your core. Is this time good for you going forward?”

“It’s all good for me, Will.” Her eyes were sparkling. She was enjoying this way too much.

“Alright then. Let’s go for a run to see what we’re starting with!”

Claire paused when I put a hand behind her back to lead her down the front steps. “We’re not actually doing this, right? It’s just pretend?”

“Oh, we’re definitely going for a run, honey,” I smirked. “You can’t just talk about wanting to get fit, you have to actually do it!”

“But I don’t like running,” she pouted.

“That’s okay. But it’s important that you have the stamina to run away if someone’s chasing you. At least so you can make it around the block,” I teased.

She rolled her eyes, but let me lead her to the sidewalk.

I showed her the proper way to stretch, doing my best to keep my drooling to a minimum. Seeing that ass bend over and Claire move her body exactly the way I told her to… It was a lot.

“Alright. Let’s go!”

She huffed, but moved her legs.

Claire wasn’t kidding. She really couldn’t run to save her life—a serious problem when her life was in literal jeopardy. I had to find a way to motivate her to work hard at this. We were crossing the street to run back up the other side of the block when she started slowing down. I sped ahead of her and turned, jogging backwards so I faced her.

“Damn, girl, keep it up! Old Man Jim could beat you in a race!”

She glared and swung an open hand at me. I dodged her easily.

“Come on, baby, push yourself!”

“Don’t call me that!” She swung at me again.

“I’ll tell you what. You make two full circles around the street without stopping and I’ll let you hit me.”

“Anywhere?” Why was she so interested in hitting me again? And here I thought I was getting through her damn walls.

“Sure,” I said, facing forward again and slowing so we were running side by side.

“I’m going to punch you in the balls!” she panted, clutching her side. Poor thing really was out of shape.

“Okay, maybe not anywhere,” I laughed as we passed by Jim on the porch and finished the first circle. “We’re almost done, sweetness. Keep up the good work.”

She let out an exasperated sigh, but didn’t let up.

“Almost there, baby. Half a block more. We’re almost done.”

She grunted.

“And up the walkway… You made it! Way to go, baby! Ow!”

“I told you not to call me ‘baby,’” she gasped, pinching her side. I rubbed my chest where she hit me. Thankfully she didn’t aim for the cojones after all.

“Okay, Claire. Great first run. You made it about half a mile! That’s amazing for someone who’s never done this before. That’ll be our goal this week. Half a mile every day, and try for a quicker time with each run. Now let’s get some weight training in.”

“I am not lifting weights with you,” she argued. “Not after the hell you just put me through.”

“Oh, but I thought you were fully committed to me?”

“That’s when I thought we were only going to pretend to work out. Now I hate you.”

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