Page 4 of Unmasking Her Shadow

“I thought you didn’t have classes on Fridays?” Emily asks as she glides her hand up my forearm at the end of our shifts. We all take care of each other here. At the end of each day, I get to relax in one of the nail techs’ large, cushioned chairs while they ease my tired muscles from my fingers to my elbows. The staff all exchange services with each other. The owner has already expanded the building once and is planning on adding another addition soon. When the management treats employees as well as they do here, nobody leaves and everyone wants to flock here, attracting even more clients. Plenty of staff prevents you from overworking, and you always feel appreciated.

I don’t have to work another job, but I love yoga. It keeps me healthy, and I enjoy getting to teach others something that could change their lives for the better. The only problem is I chose two careers that keep me in a constant state of calm and as of late have been driving me a little insane. I need a couple of hours of controlled chaos.

“My first client this morning asked, well, told me, to have a yoga class at the police department this evening. I’ll be honest, I’m a tiny bit nervous. I’ve never worked with people who didn’t want to attend a class. Can you picture big, burly guys doing the child’s pose?”

She giggles. “I can picture that, and now I want to tag along. How does Xander feel about you being in a room full of sexy men in uniforms?”

Shit. I forgot to speak to him today. I’ve been a little distracted for the past several hours. A notification from the SINS app was like a beacon at the top of my phone screen at lunch. Curiosity got the better of me, and I caved, opening it and agreeing to the NDA and all the other policy agreements. I got to the part where I created a username and then lunch was over and I had to scarf my food down so fast I almost puked. Just because I’m on the app doesn’t mean I’m going to do anything though. I’m just curious.

“We’re not going to work out. I’m breaking up with him.”

Her mouth falls open at my confession. She was obsessed with him after he showed up here a couple of weeks ago, before she found out he was here for me.

“What’s your ick?” she asks in an accusatory tone.

“My ick?” I raise an eyebrow at her question.

“Yeah. There has to be something weird he does that turns you off because that man was DE-licious.”

A laugh gets caught in my throat, causing me to make a snorting sound. I’m not giving her details of my odd sex icks and desires.

“We are not compatible in the bedroom.”

“Small penis?” The sadness and disappointment in her voice cause me to snort again.

“No,” I chuckle. “Sometimes two people just don’t fit together sexually, and it has nothing to do with anything bad or weird.”

I don’t consider my desires to be weird. More like unique. Special. Fun. She looks at me as if she wants to say something she shouldn’t, but is holding back.

Reading minds is easy when you can’t control your facial expressions. “You have my full permission to go after him if you wish, Emily. You two would be perfect for each other.” They’re both sweet and can have all the vanilla sex in the world and still be satisfied.

“That would be weird, though. Right?” She scrunches her nose.

“No. It’s not like I own him. He’s a human, not a pet with a microchip in his neck signaling that he belongs to me. We are all out here trying to find our perfect match. The amount of fish in the sea would shrink tremendously if everyone that had ever been with someone else were off limits.”

She chews her bottom lip as heat creeps up her neck to her high cheekbones. “I promise I’m okay with it,” I assure her.

My hands are as good as new when she lays my wrists gently on the cushion across her table. “All done,” she chirps and I toss some bills onto her table as I stand. Money that she will end up giving back to me when it’s her turn to lie on my table next week.

“Thanks, Em,” I tell her before walking to the back to change.

The restroom is just as pristine as the rest of the spa. Sparkling even after being used multiple times during the day. I replace my t-shirt with a cream-colored padded cropped tank and swap my skirt for a pair of loose sandalwood-colored pants that sit high on my waist and cinch around my ankles. I look like a human cup of coffee.

3

Sam

“Some splashes of color would do wonders in this place,” I tell Captain Pike as he leads me to the workout area. Everywhere you look is either black or gray. Not in a cozy way either, but very depressing. I follow behind him like a pesky shadow, never straying more than a step behind him.

“It’s a police department, Miss Rivers, not a spa,” he replies with a hint of sarcasm.

“Your point? You deal with enough gloom throughout the day, why also have a gigantic rain cloud hovering over everyone’s head at the office as well? And what about the civilians and victims who have to come in here? Even the air feels heavy and suffocating,” I complain, scrunching my nose before I realize I’m doing it and quickly fix my face, replacing it with a warm smile. The yoga mat under my arm is starting to feel like a weight, and nerves are making my stomach swish. I am beyond out of place here. All just to avoid an ex, if you would even consider him that, and so I’m not a liar. That’s it. From here on out, I need to just tell people to fuck off.

He opens a door, and the smell of rubber and sweat punches me in the nostrils. “Let me know if you need anything.”

My eyes shoot to his. “You’re just going to shove me into this dungeon and leave?” My voice comes out higher than I intended.

“I assure you there will be no shoving involved.” He smirks, putting his hands in the air.