Chapter 20 Hawk
TWENTY
hawk
I heard the whir of the treadmill as I stepped into the gym on Monday morning. The sound of the machine competed with rapid footfalls. Kendra was in the zone, pushing herself through a hard run. I watched her for a few minutes before she realized I was staring at her.
“What are you looking at?” she asked after turning off whatever was playing in her headset. My eyes flicked to her nipples, yup, glass cutters this morning.
“I was wondering how you managed to get all that beer out of your system?”
“Oh, it’s not. But I figured a good sweat would help.”
Why was Kendra sweating so fucking sexy? She dripped. But she also didn’t miss a beat with her run as she talked to me. Her pace never faltered.
“Are you training for something?”
“Marathon Monday comes fast. And as much as I love a good run in the cold, ice isn’t my thing.”
Huh. If she were running Boston, this wasn’t her first marathon. I loved a good 5K, but it was more about the beer afterward.
“Okay, get back to it.”
“No cardio for you?” she asked.
“Not on machines. I hate machine cardio.” I also hated winter cardio, and after taking a break from it since the summer, there was no way I would get on a machine anywhere in her proximity. I wasn’t one to purposely humiliate myself.
“Oh, I don’t love it either, but sometimes you need to suck it up and motivate.”
I ran through my workout; my eyes continued to wander back to Kendra.
Yes, her body was a fucking machine, but it was the determination she showed in everything she set out to do.
Running was a physical exercise, but distance running required more mental focus than the average human had. My opinion of her ratcheted up tenfold.
She was gone by the time I finished my workout. Disappointed, I showered and dressed before heading to the office.
Kendra: I didn’t mean to run out on you, but I would have been late for a very important meeting. The boss doesn’t like tardiness.
Me: That motherfucker sounds like a prick.
Kendra: If he has one, I wouldn’t know.
Me: I’m making chicken parmesan tonight. Interested?
Until five minutes ago, I had planned to eat alone at the bar. But after remembering Kendra’s expression as she ate my soup and sandwich, I was willing to change plans. If she let me, I would cook for her every night.
Kendra: Uh, yeah. Is this even a real question?
I laughed out loud and then looked around to see who had seen me grinning like a fool at my cellphone. Food was my way into Kendra’s orbit. I sent my assistant a list of groceries for delivery and canceled my last meeting of the afternoon.
Me: Come at six and bring wine.
Kendra knocked at my door promptly at six, and the dinner was already in the oven by then. I opened the door, and she rushed into my apartment.
“Oh man, I could smell the food from the elevator and hoped it was coming from in here. Chianti or Chardonnay?” she asked, holding up two bottles of wine.
“How about both? We can start with the white.”
I was halfway through opening the wine, and Kendra had rifled through my cabinets for two white wine glasses when Colby barreled in the door. Both my sister and Kendra entered a room and commanded attention. I sat back and wondered how they would get along.
“Nonna told me you were cooking. Did you forget my invitation?”
“Nope. I didn’t forget to invite you. Colby, this is Kendra. Ken, this is my sister Colby.”
Colby grabbed Kendra and hugged her. I saw a moment of panic in Kendra as my sister’s sudden affection surprised her.
“I’ve heard a lot about you,” Colby said, helping herself to a glass from my cabinet. “Sorry to interrupt your date. Chicken Parm is my weakness.”
Kendra’s eyes darted to mine, surprised. I shrugged in response, knowing that Colby was going to say whatever the fuck she wanted.
“And? What exactly have you heard about me?” Kendra asked.
“Is Jonathan still in the friend zone?”
I let out a gasp—Colby went right in for the kill.
“Is that what he told you?”
“Don’t be alarmed, but he was texting me the night you got sick.”
“He what?” Kendra’s gasp was audible.
“Uh-huh.” Colby lifted the cover of the pot on my stove and stirred the pasta. My face burned as I hoped Kendra could see the apology in my eyes. “He asked if it was too late for him to get out of the friend zone. So is it?”
Kendra squirmed in her seat and nervously sipped her wine.
“Well, no, it’s not. But I guess I’m confused. I couldn’t exactly tell whether Hawk was that interested in me.”
“Jonathan, are you playing hard to get?” Colby looked back and forth between us, and Kendra smirked as she nodded.
“Cole, please,” I said, dying inside.
“He got hurt, Kendra. He probably told the story about how that nightmare of a woman tried to trap him in the relationship. But he got hurt because she used him. He never knows if people are genuinely interested in him or trying to latch on to our family for money or clout.”
Thank Christ the oven timer went off. But if Colby was spilling all my details this quickly, she liked Kendra.