Chapter 6
Tyler
“Goddamn, Tyler. You need to chill out on the weights, or you’re going to be more jacked than Ian here is.” Nate slaps Ian on the shoulder with one hand while patting his defined pec with the other.
Ian pushes Nate away from him with a laugh. “Get your fucking hands off me. Or I’ll tell Maggie and Olive you’re feeling me up.”
Nate laughs, but obliges his friend. I continue my set of lat pull-downs with a chuckle and a shake of my head.
Besides having a job that I love, these guys are one of the best things that have happened to me.
Not only do I look up to each of them as if they were my older brothers, but over the years, I’ve developed a deep friendship with them.
Each one is a little different, but all are equally important to me.
Jack joins us after running behind due to a meeting that took longer than expected. “What did I miss?”
Ian rolls his eyes. “Just Nate being an annoying little shit. But no surprise there.”
With a nod of agreement, he says, “Glad to know nothing exciting happened before I got here.”
Nate clicks his tongue. “Well, I wouldn’t say that…right, Tyler?”
I glare at him. I’d been telling Nate and Ian about the woman from the coffee shop a few days ago.
Audrey.
I couldn’t believe it when I turned around and she was there.
The woman who’d been on my mind for the week and a half since I first saw her in that same place.
And then, there she was. Just as gorgeous as I remembered.
Even though I didn’t get a chance to talk to her much, I was glad that I heard her say her name.
Knowing her name made it feel less creepy when I couldn’t stop thinking about her.
We never introduced ourselves, but I know her name and she knows mine, so we’re practically friends. Pretty sure that’s how it works.
Ian adds, “Yeah, Maggie told me Tyler has shown up at her work every day this week.”
Jack turns a curious stare onto me. “Really? What do we know about this woman in the coffee shop?”
I hadn’t wanted to tell them that I’d been going to get coffee every day on the off chance she would be there.
It’s my turn to be mauled by Nate as he grips my shoulders tightly and pulls me into his chest. “This is the great part, Jack. He knows nothing! Well, except for her name.”
Attempting to shrug him off me, I hold up a finger. “And her drink order.”
Ian and Nate continue to razz me as Jack smirks. “I knew it’d happen eventually.”
I shake my head in amused annoyance. “Can everyone calm the fuck down? I’ve said, like, fifty words to this woman. All I said was there was something about her that makes me… intrigued to know more.”
“Translation: he thinks she’s hot as fuck,” Nate provides helpfully.
My cheeks heat as I shrug. He isn’t wrong, so I don’t bother denying it. I start the last set of reps, and Ian and Nate wander off to continue their workouts.
Jack takes the machine next to mine and asks, “You didn’t get her number?”
Frustration burns hot inside my chest. “No,” I grind out. “Bassham called me and was losing his mind over me not being at his house, even though I told him I wouldn’t be there for a few hours that day, and someone would be covering for me.”
Jack frowns. “The money is good, but I’m somewhat regretting accepting this job.”
The weights clatter back into place as I complete the last rep. “It is what it is. Usually, I can deal with his demanding asshole behavior. It was just that particular moment that I would’ve preferred him to have left me the hell alone.”
“Do you think there’s any validity to his claim of being followed?”
A ripple of pride runs through me that Jack’s asking my opinion. I know I’ve learned so much and worked my ass off these last few years, but my experience pales in comparison to everyone else at Nash Security.
I think about my answer carefully. “I don’t know.
He’s certainly suspicious enough and on edge, like something’s going on, but I haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary.
” I don’t admit to him what I told Ian the other day about feeling like I was being watched.
The more I thought about it, the more I figured I was just being dramatic.
“I also don’t think we need more than two guys on at a time. We can manage with just two.”
Jack nods thoughtfully. “Okay, well, keep me posted. You’re more than capable, but if you need any assistance or advice on anything, me and the guys are here for you.”
Having him offer that while making it clear he knows I could handle the situation on my own means more to me than I want to admit. So I go with a simple, “Thanks, man. I’ll let you know.”
His grin widens, and I groan, knowing what’s coming next. “So, tell me about this woman and her drink order.”
An hour later, I’m slinging my gym bag over my shoulder as the four of us leave the locker room, deep in conversation about the hockey season.
We’re halfway through the gym, and I’m just about to reply to a comment Ian made about a play during the game the night before, when I spot a familiar silhouette with reddish-brown hair in the distance.
It can’t be.
I don’t even realize I’ve stopped walking until the guys stop a few feet in front of me and turn back.
“Tyler. You coming?” Jack asks.
I look at them, then back in the direction of what must be a mirage—a conjuring of my fantasies. But no, she’s still there. I can see her profile in the mirror, and it very much resembles Audrey, but it’s hard to be sure from this far away.
“I, uh, forgot something in the locker room. You guys go ahead. Don’t wait for me. I’ll just see you at the meeting tomorrow morning.”
They all exchange a confused stare, but shrug and call out their goodbyes as they leave me.
I narrow my eyes as I walk toward who I hope is actually Audrey. Maybe it’s just her doppelganger, and I’m about to have to make a lame excuse for approaching a strange woman.
As if Audrey isn’t also a stranger to you.
Ignoring the annoying reminder, I close the last few feet between us and, shaking off the nervous energy, I call out, “Audrey?”
She startles and whips around to see me.
My heart stutters. Her hand placement draws my attention to her ample chest and, clenching my teeth, I raise my eyes across her skin, glistening with a light gathering of sweat.
My mouth immediately waters at the thought of running my tongue across what I imagine is the softest skin I’ve ever felt, gathering each drop as I go.
“Tyler?” Hearing my name in her sweet, soft voice for the first time has my skin breaking out in its own sweat that has nothing to do with the workout I just finished.
I smile down at her since I have to be at least a foot taller than her at my six-four height. “What a small world, seeing you here.”
Her chest rises and falls in quick pants as she works to catch her breath. I’m unsure if that’s from her workout or when I startled her. Either way, it makes my mind wander to other things that could cause that.
“Uh, yeah. How crazy. First, the coffee shop, and now, here.” As she takes a sip from her water bottle, her throat transfixes me, the muscles flexing around her swallow.
I give myself a mental shake while punching out any timidity I feel. Seeing her again seems much too like kismet to ignore. The last thing I want to risk is pissing off the universe by ignoring the signs that I’m sure it is flashing right in front of my face.
Taking a breath, I state matter-of-factly, “You know, that can really only mean one thing.”
An indecipherable emotion crosses her face, but it’s gone as quickly as it came. She eyes me cautiously. “Oh yeah? And what is that?”
I gesture between us. “That this is meant to be. We were supposed to meet.”
She huffs out a laugh. “Is that right?”
I nod. “Absolutely. I think you should give me your number.”
She presses her lips together as a smile pushes her cheeks up.
I mock scowl at her hesitancy, hoping the reasoning I used on myself will convince her. “You don’t want to piss off fate, do you, Audrey?”
Her head slowly moves back and forth in the negative. “That would probably be bad.”
I unlock my phone and pull up my texts. Opening a blank one, I hand her the phone.
She takes it from my hand, and I hold my breath when her fingers brush mine.
It slowly leaves my chest as she types in what I hope is her actual number.
It would be awful to get to this point and have her give me a fake one.
When she hands me back my phone, I send her a message.
Me: Tyler Matthews
Relief and excitement push the remaining nervousness when she tilts the screen in my direction, and I can see my text on it.
“Got it,” she says softly.
I readjust my gym bag on my shoulder. “It was good to see you again, Audrey. Maybe next time I see you, it’ll be on purpose.”
That emotion flashes again, but it’s once again gone before I can interpret it. “I would like that, Tyler.”
Giving her one last smile as I turn away, I call over my shoulder, “I’ll talk to you soon.”
“Looking forward to it,” follows me as I cross back to where I first was when I thought my mind was playing tricks on me.
I walk out of the gym with a smile that might be a permanent fixture on my face for the foreseeable future. I may not have officially asked her out, but I can’t wait to get home and start planning our first date.