Page 6 of Wine & Whiskey
She laughs at his surprised tone. “You didn’t think I would? I’m the fanatic, remember?”
He runs his hands up and down his arms, massaging his biceps. “You and Jason both. My arms are killing me from yesterday. Your friend doesn’t show any mercy.”
“What about my planks?”
He winks before nodding. “Those too.”
Jason jogs up as they talk. “I heard your grumbling.” A smirk plays on his lips as he raises his eyebrows at Nick. As always, he takes too much pleasure in his hard-nosed reputation. “I'm going to take it easy on you today because Shae’s tired from last night. But, I'll make up for it next time.”
As they Russian twist, Nick sneaks glances at her. Or, maybe it’s the other way around, since her eyes keep wandering to him. Each time, he smiles, seemingly amused by her inability to keep focused on her exercises.
After they finish, Jason pats Nick on the back and gives him an approving nod. “Good workout. By the way, Shae told me what happened yesterday. Thanks for helping her. His membership has been revoked, so she doesn’t have to worry about him anymore.”
“Good.”
“Shae and I are going running tomorrow morning if you’d like to join us. We meet here at seven.”
A tiny flip-flop whirls in her chest at Jason’s unexpected offer. He won’t even let Carrie run with them, complaining her endless chatter distracts him.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Nick nods and smiles at her. “Sounds good. Thanks.”
Now, her heart tremors after missing a few beats. Forcing herself out of bed at six a.m. might be a little bit easier knowing he’s going with them.
“Okay, see you tomorrow.” Jason holds out his hand to her. “I want to show you these new brochures we’re working on. You can give me your opinion about the graphics.”
He’s nonchalant, yet so obvious. She can manage a conversation with another man without his supervision. “Let me take a shower first, and then I’ll come take a look.”
Jason tilts his head before shrugging his shoulders, feigning a casualness she knows he doesn’t feel. “Okay, I’ll see you in a few.”
They follow Jason down the hallway and pause at the ladies’ locker room. Warmth radiates from her cheeks to the rest of her body from Nick’s gaze skimming her features before settling on her eyes. The intensity burns through her, flailing her confidence. She looks down and brushes away an invisible wrinkle on her tank top. “I know Jason said it already, but I want to say thank you too. I was kind of flustered yesterday, and I don’t remember if I thanked you for your help.”
“Yes, you did. You were perfect.”
A shiver runs through her at his husky voice suggesting he means more than her intention to be polite. “Perfect? I don’t know about that.”
He leans against the doorframe, close enough for her to see the gray flecks in his dark blue eyes. More than a foot of space separates their bodies, but it isn’t enough to quell the longing he ignites in her.
“I do.”
“Anyway, you should know how impressed I am. Jason’s very picky about who he runs with, so he must think you’re okay for him to invite you to join us.”
Feather light tingles race down her neck as he tips his head closer to hers, his mouth only a breath away from her ear. “Just ‘okay,’ huh? What about you? What do you think?”
She licks her lips and pushes away the thought of how they would feel touching his. “Maybe a little bit more. You were my hero yesterday. So, how about ‘good’?”
“I’ll take it. For now.”
Shocked by her uncharacteristic flirting with a man she hardly knows, she seeks an escape. Pushing the door open, she shivers at the heat from his gaze following her as she enters the locker room. “See you tomorrow.”
When she comes out about half an hour later, her stomach flutters. He waits for her, his hair still damp from his shower, curling slightly over his ears. Casually dressed in a green polo shirt and low-slung jeans, he radiates an effortless confidence few men possess. She blushes at her desire to nuzzle his neck, wanting to get closer to his clean, citrusy scent.
Warmth flushes her body again at his sexy smile, ruining her efforts to get her desire under control with a stern self-lecture during her shower. Reminding herself this isn’t who she is, not who her mother expected her to be.
“I know it’s last minute, but I was wondering if you’d like to have dinner with me.”
Nervousness and excitement battle in her stomach at his invitation. Politely declining and running away as fast as she can is her normal response to such requests, but the words fly out of her mouth before she can stop them. “This again? Didn’t we have the same discussion yesterday?”
His eyes dance at her teasing. “What can I say? I’m one of those crazy people who believes in eating every day.”
