"You said you want a trim waist for your wedding day. Unfortunately, that does require three rep sets to tighten your muscles." Her big day was in November, which was in five months. That was plenty of time to get into shape.
"Well, my abs do look amazing ever since I began following your instructions. So there you go. Torture me away. But I still want to know what you talked about with my brother."
Oh, her gorgeous, sexy-as-hell brother! He couldn’t look more different from Isabelle, who was petite with red hair and green eyes. Dylan was tall with broad shoulders, his eyes were brown, and his hair was a mix of dark blond and brown. I didn't want to tell her what we talked about. Not only because I didn't want her to know I still fell victim to fads such as juice diets, but I was also afraid she might be able to tell how attractive I found him.
"If you insist on talking, why don't you tell me about your brother?" I asked. "But you can tell me later, after you finish your workout."
"Why not now? I can do it now. You know, then it'll take my mind off the third set."
"Isabelle, if you can talk like this while you're doing the exercises, then it's not difficult enough. Come on, raise your legs to forty-five degrees. That's going to increase the intensity."
She did as I said, and just like that, she was having a hard time breathing, let alone talking. I wasn't quite sure I wanted to know more about her brother anyway. I could still feel his arms around me. They were so strong and determined not to let me fall, and that was a comforting feeling, one I hadn’t felt in quite some time.
Once we were both done with the abs workout, we switched positions, preparing for outer thigh exercises.
We were both on our sides, watching each other, head propped on one hand, raising the upper leg.
"Okay. Now we can talk, right?" Isabelle said, smiling from ear to ear.
"I guess we can." The only exercises that were impossible to do while talking were core exercises. "So, you were saying about your brother," I prompted, not wanting to be the one to speak.
"My brother is amazing. Well, both my brothers are. I’m very close to them, and I'm so happy they live in New York now. They dote on me, and I dote on them. They pretend they're annoyed with me when I get too much into their business, but I know they're not."
“How do you know that?" Since I was an only child, this was fascinating for me.
"Well, that's what I tell myself so I don't feel guilty. I was hoping both of them would have dates for my wedding, but I’ve kind of given up, even though it’s still months away."
"Why?" I asked innocently, telling myself I did not want to know why Dylan wasn't dating anyone.
"Well, Ian is a bit of a player. And unfortunately, I can see Dylan is following in his tracks as well. He used to be a bit of a romantic, but he had a long-term relationship that ended badly, and that soured him on romance."
"Yes, a bad relationship does tend to do that," I agreed, thinking how Elliot made me question myself and the world around me. But I knew the one was still out there. I would meet him, eventually. But one of my post-accident resolutions after the car crash was to stop dating guys who didn’t want the same things I did, which seemed to be the case with Dylan too. So, even though he was sexy as hell and swoon-worthy, especially as he looked after me earlier, I wasn't going to give him any more thought.
Isabelle was quiet when we moved on to the second leg exercise, and then as we proceeded to inner thigh exercises, the conversation turned to her wedding. I loved hearing about their progress with the arrangements. I was a true romantic at heart, so I was soaking it all up.
When our session ended, Isabelle headed to the changing rooms, but I went back to the reception area for another protein bar. Propped against the reception desk, I glanced inside the main training room, where we had the cardio equipment and the weight stations. I immediately noticed Dylan doing crunches. Holy crap. The man seemed even sexier than before. Was it all the sweat dotting his skin, or had I been groggy from my fainting spell before? His arms were bent at the elbows, palms at the back of his head. His biceps were on display, and his strong arms were my kryptonite.
I immediately glanced away, looking at the floor while I munched on my protein bar. Once I finished it, I headed to the staff bathroom to refresh for my next session.
Dylan, Dylan, Dylan. Why had he made such an impression on me?
By the time I finished all my sessions later in the evening, I still didn’t have an answer. I was pretty tired. The juice diet had been a terrible idea. Oh well, lesson learned, but I still wanted to check on Dad tonight and do some shopping for him, so it would be a long evening no matter what.
“Bye, Shauna,” I told the receptionist on my way out, slinging my backpack over my shoulder.
“Bye. Oh wait, before I forget. A client left you a note.”
I blinked. “What?”
She took a folded piece of paper from the shelves where clients could leave valuables, handing it to me. I frowned, unfolding it.
Mel,
In case you’re wondering why the old-fashioned note, I don’t have your number. Below is mine. I’d be happy if you sent me a short text to let me know how you feel.
Best, Dylan
I reread the note twice more, smiling from ear to ear. I had a suspicion that forgetting about my sexy and chivalrous savior wasn’t going to be that easy after all.
Chapter Three
Dylan
After we finished with the gym, we headed to Isabelle and Brayden’s apartment. They were moving into a massive house outside the city in a couple weeks, and I’d offered to help them pack up their apartment. They could easily afford a moving company, but I knew neither of them wanted to let strangers into their home. As was usually the case with Isabelle, it had turned into a family get-together. Our brother Ian was already here, and our sister Josie and three of her husband’s cousins, Ryker, Cole, and Tess Winchester, were on their way. We were so close to the Winchesters that I considered them family.
“When is everyone else arriving?” Ian asked as the three of us sat on the couch in the living room. The whole place was a mess. Empty boxes were lying around everywhere between stacks of books and clothes.
I checked my phone a couple times, but I didn’t have any message from Mel. She was probably still doing her training sessions. I chuckled, remembering her mischievous smile when she asked me to keep her secret.
“Not sure. Everyone said they’re on the way,” Isabelle answered. “Oh, before they all get here, I want your opinion on something for the wedding.”
Ian and I exchanged a glance. Our sister loved involving us in every decision regarding the big day. The only one I wanted to be involved in was security since paparazzi gave my sister headaches after a few incidents, and I didn’t want anything ruining her wedding.
But security had been discussed over and over again, and I was happy with all the final details. Now I just participated in wedding conversations to appease my sister. It wasn't my favorite topic, but I wanted her to be happy. I wanted her to feel that we were in her corner and supporting her. Brayden’s world was still new to her, and although she had accompanied him on parts of the tour, much of it had been overwhelming. Ian and I moved to New York last year. Prior to that we were in Washington D.C. and only saw our sisters a couple times a year. Now that we all lived in the same city, we wanted to take advantage of getting together as often as we could.