Chapter 3
Three Weeks Later
It had been a while since I had gone to the gym.
The only thing I had been doing was putting on weight, which wasn’t good for me, especially since I was already curvy.
Before I slacked off with my workout, I used to love going to the gym.
Now, I was back and ready to put in extra work if I had to.
I’d run on the treadmill for a while before I went to the punching bag.
Before I could start walking on the treadmill, I felt someone behind me.
I whipped my head around and came face to face with Nashton Sims — the gym owner.
He was fine with a creamed coffee complexion, a full beard, and heart-shaped lips.
He had dark brown, hooded eyes with a low fade.
It had been a while since I laid eyes on him.
Whenever we did see each other, he’d flirt with me, but I always brushed it off.
“Wassup witcha? It’s been a while since I’ve seen you here.”
I shrugged and stepped down from the treadmill and had to tilt my head back. He was tall, about six foot one with hella tattoos.
“I took a step back from working out.” That wasn’t a lie, but I knew I was about to pay for it.
He whistled. “Good luck to you then. Your muscles are about to burn.”
I rolled my eyes skyward. “You don’t have to rub it in.”
We shared a laugh.
“I’ll let you get to it then. If you need me, be sure to reach out.” With that, he walked away, moving with confidence, his head held high.
I got back on the treadmill and picked up my phone to turn on some music.
Once I found what I wanted to listen to, I walked until my legs were begging me to stop.
All along, I felt eyes on me, but I hadn’t turned around to see who watched me.
That was asking for trouble when it could be Jonathan.
That man had me looking over my shoulders everywhere I went.
I hated him and didn’t want to see him anymore. He was dead to me.
After walking on the treadmill for an hour, I’d be damned if I didn’t think of punching the punching bag.
I had a feeling it would be punching me.
Sweat glistened on my body as my chest heaved up and down.
When I got home, I planned to take a nice shower and climb into bed for the night.
I hated eating after I worked out since it defeated the purpose.
More than likely, I would wake up in the middle of the night to get a snack.
I strolled to my car with my gym bag on my shoulder and a water bottle in my hand.
“Kenzlee, wait up!” I heard a voice call out.
I looked over my shoulder, and Nashton jogged toward me. He had a smile on his handsome face per usual.
“Is there anything I can help you with?” I asked him. He had never stopped me like this before, so it had me wondering what he wanted with me.
He nodded with a smile. “Where are you off to in a hurry?”
I arched a brow. “Home. I’m tired.” I wondered why he was asking me that. Nashton had never said this many words to me in the past. It had me wondering what he was up to.
Nashton’s eyes raked down my body in a way that nearly had me shifting from one foot to the other. And again, this was something new he did. Truth be told, I liked it though.
He gawked at me. “You only walked on the treadmill. There’s no way you’re tired.”
Wait. Was he being for real? I placed my hands on my hips and shot daggers at him. “Excuse you? I walked for an hour straight. That’s a lot.” My legs were sore to prove it too.
He chuckled, licking his lips. “If you say so. I don’t want to fight.” He held his hands up and backed away from me.
I rolled my eyes skyward. “Is that all you want me for? You came out here to tease me about my work out?”
He shook his head. “Nah. I hope you didn’t take offense to what I said. I was only playing.”
I waved him off. “Please. I’m not that sensitive. You’re a gym owner, so of course, you’re going to think I didn’t push myself as hard as I could.”
“Nah, you do what’s best for you. Never push yourself too far. It’ll hurt you in the long run. You stopped when you needed to.”
The sun beamed down on my back, causing me to move from the spot I stood in. His eyes followed my movements. The gym bag was too heavy, so I shifted it from one shoulder to the other. I felt his eyes watching my every movement.
“I need to go. Plus, the sun is beaming on me too hard.”
Nashton had a guilty look on his face. That was something I didn’t want him to have. I enjoyed talking to him. It was refreshing to have a conversation with other people other than Farrah and Kaye. This was different for me.
“Aww, damn. My bad. I didn’t mean to take up too much of your time. Let me walk you to your car, and if you don’t mind, let me carry your bag for you.”
That was so sweet of him. I wasted no time pulling the bag from my arm and giving it to him. “Here you go. And thanks! That has helped my shoulder a lot.”
We shared a laugh and commenced walking to my car.
“I still didn’t tell you the reason I stopped you.”
I tilted my head to peer at him. “Okay. hat is it?”
“If you’re not busy tomorrow, would you like to get coffee with me?”
I gulped. That was something I hadn’t expected Nashton to ask me.
I stared at him, trying to find the words to say no.
Should I say no, or is this my chance to move on?
I wanted to move on from Jonathan and needed to pick up the pieces of my life.
The man only wanted to get coffee with me. That shouldn’t hurt anything.
I smiled. “Sure, I’d love to get coffee with you.”
The smile that spread across Nashton’s face had my panties getting wet. It was time I got away from this man. He did things to me without even trying. Who knew a smile could turn me on like this?
When we reached my car, I popped the trunk, and Nashton placed the bag inside before closing it.
“Okay, cool. Will it be okay if we exchange numbers in case something comes up and one of us can’t make it?” Nashton pulled out his cell phone.
I nodded and recited my number while unlocking my car door.
“I’ll make sure I shoot you a text to give you my number.” Before I could open the door to get in, Nashton beat me to it with a smile on his face. I slid in and buckled my seat belt. “I’ll see you later, beautiful.” With that, he turned and walked away.
In my rearview mirror, I watched Nashton until he walked back inside the gym. Hopefully, this was the start of something new.