Sweet Twins For My Brother's Best Friend: An Enemies To Lovers Romance (The Sweet Twins Collection)

Chapter Thirteen

Hannah

As I step into CHOICE Fitness, I can’t shake the feeling of unease that has been gnawing at me for days.

I hold my breath as I look up at the employees manning the front desk. No Chris. Thank God. The last thing I need right now is for Chris to be here, and the whole plan to be ruined.

I sign the guest waiver and pay my $10 before making my way onto the gym floor. The unfamiliar scent of sweat and rubber greets me as I make my way through the crowded space, my eyes scanning the rows of exercise machines and weight racks in search of Tyler.

I spot him near the back of the gym, his shock of auburn hair standing out in the sea of sweaty bodies. With a sense of relief, I quicken my pace to join him, eager to discuss the troubling suspicions that have been weighing heavily on my mind.

“Hey! Tyler,” I greet him with a too-excited voice.

But I’m anxious, and I feel out of place in the gym, used to getting my workout from running with Lucy at dog parks and swimming at the beach.

Los Angeles has a million gyms and yet somehow also feels like a place that doesn’t really need them, as there are so many ways to exercise naturally outdoors.

Tyler quirks an eyebrow in my direction as he sits on some torture device, kicking his legs up and down while weights lift high in the air as he does.

“What are you wearing?”

I look down at my outfit, a brown two-piece outfit consisting of a sports bra and booty shorts that the lady at the store assured me were perfect for working out at a gym. “You don’t like it?”

“You look like you’re starring in a porn movie made in a gym,” he tells me. “But sure.”

“You watch a lot of those, huh, Sargeant Lonely Heart?” I flick his knee bone, hoping to mess him up, but he doesn’t falter at all.

“It’s Sargeant Pepper. He has the Lonely Hearts club,” he tells me, as he breathes heavily while pumping his legs.

His hair sticks to his forehead, the ends brownish from the sweat.

“I can’t believe you corrected me on such a stupid thing,” I tell him, sitting on a machine next to him and reading the little sticker tutorial.

“You’re one to talk,” he grunts, straining with effort.

“Hey, a guy gave me his number at the dog park just the other day!”

“What’s his name?” he asks, sitting up to take a sip of his water, which is an entire gallon jug.

I look around to see that several men have gallon jugs of water, which is weird, but I can’t exactly make fun of him for it as it appears to be some niche part of gym culture I don’t understand.

“Scott.”

“Is it serious? When do we get to meet Dog Park Scott that we’ve heard so much about?”

I roll my eyes. “Can we just move on already? I have something serious to talk to you about.” I make my tone grave to force him to drop the subject of my love life.

“Go for it. We’ll get to your love life later,” he tells me, spreading his legs apart and leaning his arms on his knees.

Not likely.I steel myself for the sentence I need to say next, breathing in deeply through my nose and closing my eyes. I lay my body forward against the workout machine.

“Well, you know how Chris hired me to help him grow his business, possibly outside of the United States?”

“Yeah, duh, I’m the one who sent him to you.”

“Well, I think someone is embezzling money from Chris” business.”

His eyes widen in surprise, and I can see the gears turning in his head as he processes my words. ”Embezzling? Are you sure?” he asks, his lip curled.

I nod, my heart pounding in my chest.

“That’s so…Ocean’s Eleven.”

I sigh. “You know I’ve never seen any of the Oceans.”

Tyler pinches the bridge of his nose before looking up at the ceiling as though begging God for help with me. ”Just keep talking. How did you find out?”

“Well, obviously, I have to go over his finances as his CPA. Basically, his projected earnings are way lower than his actual earnings. Year over year, every quarter. And the discrepancies add up to about the same amount every quarter.”

“What do you want me to do about it?”

My voice shaking slightly with emotion, I explain, ”Chris is too afraid to face it. I told him about it the other night and that I need to take a better look at the transactions of the business, and he just changed the subject. I”m worried that if we don”t do something about it, Chris could lose everythingng.”

Tyler”s expression darkens with worry, and I can see the tension in his jaw as he absorbs the gravity of the situation. ”Damn,” he mutters under his breath, running a hand through his hair in frustration. ”So, do you have any idea who it is?”

“Not really. I don’t know anything about his employees, do you?” I prompt him, eager to gather any information that might help us identify the culprit behind the embezzlement.

Tyler pauses mid-rep, his brow furrowing in thought.

”Well, I mean, this is heavy, Handy. I don’t want to, like, implicate someone, but if I had to place bets,” he begins his voice thoughtful, “well, Sarah’s been with Chris since the beginning. And, I mean, she is technically in charge of finances –- inventory, that kind of thing. But she”s always been reliable. And Chris loves her. If anything, he wishes they were closer. He feels like she’s a little closed-off.”

My interest piques at his words, and I can feel a sense of suspicion beginning to creep in. ”Closed off?” I echo, my voice tinged with curiosity. ”Why do you think that is?”

Tyler shrugs, his expression thoughtful. ”I”m not sure,” he admits. ”But it”s definitely something worth looking into.”

I grab the handles of the weight machine, checking the weight to make sure it’s nothing unmanageable, and pull with all my might. I mull over the information about Sarah. “Where is she?’

“Sarah?” Tyler clarifies. “She’s just in her office back there. That’s where she works.”

“Alone?”

“Yeah, Chris has been wanting to give her a bigger office, but that’s what they’re working with right now. It’s basically her and a desk.”

Alone, with access to the company finances. No one breathing over her neck, double checking her work.

Tyler interrupts my thoughts with a pointed question, his voice laced with curiosity. ”Do you normally put in this much work for your clients?” he asks, his gaze fixed on me.

I feel a flush of embarrassment creep into my cheeks at his question, and I quickly avert my gaze, pretending to be very focused on changing the weight on the machine. ”I, uh, no, but he’s your best friend, so I’m a little closer to it. I want to make sure he’s okay.”

Tyler nods, seemingly satisfied with my response, but I can”t shake the feeling that he sees right through me.

As we continue our workout in silence, I can”t help but wonder what other secrets lie hidden beneath the surface of Chris” business and what role Sarah might play in unraveling the truth.