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“Look at you, planning your first date with a man you just met and fucked in a public restroom. I’m so proud of you.” Madison chuckled, bringing her hand to her chest and fluttering her eyes.
“It’s not a date; it’s coffee.” I scoffed, placing a hand on my hip.
“Call it whatever you want, but it’s a date. He’s taking you out so he can get to know you. It. Is. A. Date.” She emphasized those last words by poking at me with the tongs as she served up another plate of food.
I sat back down at the island counter, and she pushed a plate towards me, along with the salt and pepper shakers. I sprinkled a little of each over my food and dug in to avoid talking. I could see why Alexis moaned with the bacon; it was crispy and delicious—perfection.
The eggs were cooked just how I liked them, the yolk runny and the bottom caramelized. I picked up a piece of bacon and dipped it into my egg yolk, bringing it to my mouth and savoring the flavor on my tongue. I did the same with a piece of toast. Breakfast at Madison’s was the best.
“You want to know what happened between us last night, Mads?” I poked my slice of extra crispy bacon towards her and narrowed my eyes. She raised a curious brow at me and leaned forward on her elbows. I knew she’d bite at that.
“He was as amazing as this.” I pointed my piece of bacon down at my plate and moaned again for emphasis.
“Well, that’s saying something; hopefully, round two will be even better than my bacon.” She laughed and began eating her own breakfast—and there went my mind, straight back to Atlas and the thoughts of what I would do to him if there were a round two. What I would let him do to me…
The three of us talked a little more, gossiping about our jobs outside of the work we do together and last night at The Landing. After we cleaned our plates, I stood up and went to fold the blanket I used last night on the couch in the living room. Alexis got up and retreated back to her room to lay down again—that girl loved her sleep, and so did I, but I loved the gym just a little more.
“If we don’t have any plans today, I am going to head to the gym and get a workout in before lunch.” I chirped over to Madison as I dropped the folded blanket over the back of the couch and moved to pick up the rest of my things.
“That sounds good to me. I have lunch plans already, but do you want to meet up later in the evening?” Madison started cleaning the dishes, drying them, and putting them away.
She liked her place to be absolutely spotless when she came home, so she always cleaned up before doing anything else.
“I think I might just take the day to myself, actually. Try to clear my head from last night.” I walked back over to her in the kitchen and leaned on the counter with my forearms.
“From which part?” She inquired, raising a curious brow.
“The latter of the two.” I sighed.
“Good idea,” she nodded. If you need anything, just give me a call; otherwise, I’ll see you later tonight.” She smiled as she dried her hands with the kitchen towel and moved to leave the kitchen.
Realizing I had not responded to Atlas’s last message, I pulled my phone from the back pocket of my shorts and sent him a reply.
Me: I’ll see you tomorrow at nine.
“Thanks, Mads… For everything.” I gave her a genuine smile back and made my way to the front door.
I didn’t need to be specific; she knew what I was thanking her for. I just hoped I wouldn’t regret any of it.
After leaving her townhouse, I returned to my apartment to change into my gym clothes and head to class.
“Last, five… four… three… two… and one. Alright, ladies. We are going to finish up with your mermaids on the reformer. Great job today, everyone.” I could barely hear the trainer over the blood pulsing in my ears as I tried to catch my breath and cool down. By the end of the fifty-minute class, my muscles were shaking, and I was dripping with sweat.
I got lucky with my last-minute drop-in. Usually, they are booked full two weeks in advance, and there is a waitlist to get in, but when I checked at the front desk, Reformer Flow 2 had one space open.
Wrapping up from my late morning class, I decided to take the long route back to my apartment, grabbing lunch along the way. Before leaving the studio, I stepped into the bathroom, sprayed my hair with dry shampoo, and reapplied my deodorant to fight off the scent of sweat oozing out of my pores. Just before leaving, I ruffled my hair to work in the last of the dry shampoo and fluff up my natural waves. When I let down my hair, it reached mid-back, but I preferred to keep it up in a messy bun most of the time.
As people started leaving their offices for the lunch rush, the sidewalk filled up with extra bodies to navigate around. I turned a corner sharply, paying more attention to the traffic than what was in front of me, and ran into a hard body.
I cursed and spun my head around as two hands gripped my arms and supported me from falling backward onto the sidewalk.
“You.” A familiar voice spoke in surprise.
“You,” I whispered as my gaze locked on to a pair of immaculate heterochromatic eyes, based in blue and bursting with greens and browns.
I knew whose eyes those were, and my breath hitched as I snapped back into myself—realizing that he was holding me against him and looking down at me. I couldn’t help but tense in his grasp. When he was near, I lost all sense of self-control. One minute, I could care less if I ever saw him again, and the next, I felt the need to strap him to my bed and claim him as mine. His scent consumed me, wrapping me in a blanket of cedar and spice—I could drown in his smell alone, his eyes the weights pulling me down beneath the surface.
I cleared my throat and pushed away from him, creating distance between us. If I could, I would spend the rest of the day wrapped in his strong arms, forgetting who I truly was behind closed doors.
