Page 20 of Reckless Harmony

“Totally, but I mean, Phoebe kind of deserved it. She was so awful to Rayna. Anyway, Phoebe’s dad threatened to, like, sue the school if they didn’t kick Rayna out, but the principal and the guidance counselor smoothed it over somehow.”

Aditi’s face turned solemn. “But, then, two months before graduation, Rayna missed school for nearly two weeks. We were sure she’d dropped out because of being homeless and stuff. But then she came back to school and was, like, showered and had clean clothes, and she graduated with the rest of us.”

“What happened?” Stark asked.

Aditi shrugged. “No one knows. Well, Emma over at Twisted Stitches probably does - she’s been Rayna’s best friend since they were kids - but the rest of us don’t have a clue.”

“Where are her parents now?” Stark asked.

“Oh, they died in a car accident six months after we graduated high school,” Aditi said. “Her mom was driving while drunk, and she was speeding and lost control. They hit a tree, and both of them were killed instantly. I was dating a guy whose dad was a paramedic, and his dad said neither of them was wearing a seatbelt, and they had to scrape Rayna’s parents off the pavement. Rayna had to go in and identify the bodies even though they were all gooey and stuff. Isn’t that awful?”

“Yes,” Stark said. His skin had gone prickly and tight, and the protein bar he’d eaten half an hour earlier was like a stone in his stomach.

“Anyway,” Aditi gave Stark a cheerful smile, “despite her awful childhood, Rayna is so nice, and she does so much for animals. She runs an animal rescue right here in Harmony Falls.”

She turned to her computer and typed rapidly before grabbing the papers and handing them to him. “The documents have been emailed to you.”

“Thank you.” Stark took the documents back to his office. He sat in his chair, stared blankly at his computer, then stood and headed toward the back exit. He stepped outside, regretting his decision not to grab his jacket when the cold air hit his skin, and stared at the white van with “Sneaky Leaks Plumbing” emblazoned on the side of it in bold purple letters parked next to the gym.

He didn’t need to go to the gym. Hollis was perfectly capable of handling the plumbing issue. Nope, what he needed to do was go back to his office and not think about Rayna Abrams and her crappy childhood. What did he care if she’d had a tough start to life? It didn’t change the fact that she had something he wanted.

Perfect breasts with gorgeous pink nipples and satin soft skin.

He muttered a curse and reached for the door handle. He wanted Rayna’s land, nothing else. His sudden obsession with her breasts was just a by-product of not being laid since he moved to Harmony Falls. He would spend this weekend in New Cassel, enjoying his penthouse and the company of a beautiful woman who wanted the same thing he wanted - easy, simple, no commitment sex.

He yanked open the door, hesitated, and then let it go, walking toward the gym. He stepped inside the warm building, letting the door close quietly behind him as he stared at Rayna and Hollis.

They stood at the far end near the entrance to the locker room. Rayna studied one of the weight machines, reaching out to trace her fingers along it as she said, “This is state of the art gym equipment.”

“Is it?” Hollis asked. “I’ve never used it.”

“Yes,” Rayna said. “His equipment is much better than either of our local gyms, and Iron Fitness just renovated last year and brought in all new equipment.”

“You’re one of them,” Hollis said.

Rayna glanced at her. “Them?”

“Gym fanatic,” Hollis said.

“That obvious?” Rayna asked with a grin.

“You’re drooling a little,” Hollis said.

Rayna laughed. “I do enjoy a good workout.”

Stark’s brain immediately went to a vision of Rayna straddling his hips, her firm, naked body riding him hard, both of them panting and sweating and -

Enough!

“Is this place for Stark only, or does he offer memberships?” Rayna asked.

“The gym is for Mr. Stark and employees of Stark Entertainment only,” Hollis said. “Sorry.”

“No worries,” Rayna said.

“Which gym do you use?” Hollis asked politely.

“Oh, I don’t have a gym membership,” Rayna said. “I used to, but this year, I needed to use my gym fee to pay for a couple of cat spays.”

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