Chapter 39
ANNALISE
My inner thighs and biceps scream as I hoist myself off the ground.
Spreading my legs, bending them at the knee while I spin around the pole, I grit my teeth to keep from exploding into a cursing fit.
I’m stronger than I was when I attended my first pole class, more confident too, but it’s not gotten any easier.
I’m still miles behind all the other women in the class.
I drop from my hold after another second, too exhausted to keep going any longer. The rub marks on my inner thighs chafe as I grab my water bottle from the back wall and take a generous drink.
I’ve been sleeping like shit these past couple of days, and there’s no trying to pretend I don’t know why.
It’s a stage four clinger mindset, but I miss Brody enough to be kept up at night by my mind running circles around when and if he’ll actually come back home.
Common sense tells me there’s no reason why he won’t be back, but my fear has a mind of its own.
Today’s class was much needed, even if I’m not as present as I usually am.
Poppy and Bryce are anxiously awaiting an update from Christmas, and I think I’ve pushed indulging them as long as I can.
Plus, I want to scream about it to someone.
About his family and Banana and shit, the sex .
That deserves an entire moment of its own.
My cheeks flush as I set my bottle down and attempt to zone in to Poppy’s instructions for the rest of the class. It’s a task, one I fail miserably at, but at least I try. By the time everyone is leaving and Bryce is slipping a sweatshirt over her frame, I’m twiddling my thumbs with anticipation.
“My ass burns,” she groans.
Poppy starts wiping down the poles with a spray bottle of sanitizer and a cloth. “It looks good, though.”
“I know. Pain is beauty, I suppose,” Bryce tosses back.
My smile is instant, a strong sense of comfort filling me. These two are everything I could have asked for from two best friends.
“You’re getting good too, Anna,” Poppy praises.
“Good? More like I just don’t fall to my ass whenever I attempt a lift anymore.”
She waves the cloth at me. “Progress is progress. Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed the changes in your body, because I have.”
“It’s more than just a change in muscle tone, Pop,” Bryce teases.
I roll my lips. “Not sure what you’re talking about.”
“No? You don’t have anything to say about the glow on your cheeks or, I don’t know, the walk?
” Poppy shrieks, dropping the cleaning supplies before rushing to me.
She grabs my shoulders, shaking me lightly.
“I’ve been waiting so long for this. I’m even too excited to give you hell about not immediately calling me the moment you finished riding that cowboy!
Honestly, Anna, you made us wait an entire week, and that is just cruel. ”
I can’t help but laugh, my grin fifty shades of bold. “I wanted to tell you both in person, and in my defense, Bryce just had to go to visit her devilish extended family for Christmas.”
“Trust me, I’d have rather been here than in Montreal. But we’re both here now, so spill,” Bryce demands.
And I do. I tell them all about Christmas dinner with Brody’s grandparents and how at home they made me feel.
About Banana and her new home and everything Brody did to make me feel so damn special.
I grow hot and sweaty when I get to Christmas Eve and gush about the best sex I’ve ever had.
Our I love you’s and frantic round two on Christmas morning.
They’re both close to bursting by the time I finish. It’s Bryce who speaks first.
“I’m fucking jealous, Anna. I wasn’t expecting all of that.”
“I expected the sex. That man walks like he knows he’s hiding a third leg and knows exactly how to use it. But everything else? He got you a damn cow,” Poppy breathes, hand to her heart.
“He got me a mini fluffy cow just like I wanted.” My smile is dreamy, a visible representation of the feeling swimming through me.
I’m floating on my love for Brody. I’m a total cliché, and it might just be my new favourite personality trait.
“And more than that, he obviously wants you to have an excuse to go to the ranch often, even while he’s gone. It’s as good an invitation as any,” Bryce points out.
Something about my friends has me able to open up completely, and I let my deepest thoughts spill from my lips, knowing they won’t judge me for them.
“I’ve thought about that, too, but worried maybe I was reading too much into it.”
Poppy shakes her head instantly. “You’re absolutely not. If he didn’t want you to be around his family all the time, he wouldn’t have gotten you a pet that you had to go to their property to spend time with.”
I know she’s right. Eliza made that clear to me multiple times over the two days I spent there as well. But hearing it from an outside perspective settles that last wiggle of doubt.
“Thank you,” I say, flicking my eyes between the two of them.
Bryce shoulders Poppy away from me and bundles me in a warm hug. “You can thank us by introducing us to the fluffy baby sooner rather than later.”
“What about tomorrow?” I offer.
Poppy weasels her way back to me and tosses her arms over both Bryce and me. I exhale, soaking in this moment. Six months ago, I could have only dreamed of this, and now . . . now it’s my life.
“After work? I’m picking you up still, right?” Poppy asks as we break apart.
“Yes, please. I really need to get over this stupid fear and start driving myself. I’m too old to be so codependent.”
“It’s no different than having a fear of planes and refusing to fly. It just makes life a bit more complicated,” Bryce says.
“Complicated and annoying,” I mutter.
Poppy grabs her abandoned cleaning supplies and finishes wiping the remaining two poles while I slip my sweatpants on over my spandex shorts. “Brody doesn’t seem to mind driving you around. I think he rather likes it, actually.”
“It doesn’t matter if he likes it because he isn’t here,” I point out, my tone snippier than I meant it to be. “Sorry, that was . . .”
Poppy brushes over my tone. “It was honest. Don’t worry about it. I know you’re missing him.”
Not wanting to continue talking about how damn bad I miss Brody, I try and steer the conversation elsewhere. “Need any more help before we leave?”
“Nah, not today. I’ll come back tomorrow and finish up.
I’m still recovering my energy from Christmas, and today’s class was too much, even for me,” Poppy groans.
She puts the cleaning supplies back in their cupboard and starts making her way through the studio, shutting off lights and pulling blinds.
Bryce grabs our stuff from the floor while I shrug my jacket on.
It smells like me now, Brody’s cologne long since worn off.
The air has a sharp bite to it when we step outside, boots crunching in the snow speckled over the sidewalk.
It’s been shovelled recently, but it’s been snowing for days now, ever since the storm hit.
Luckily, it only took a couple of days for the town to plow the roads despite the continuous sprinkling of snow.
“Let me know about tomorrow. I’ll catch a ride with Poppy on the way to your place,” Bryce says, the three of us lingering outside Beautifully Bold. She starts her car with the remote in her hand, and Poppy does the same.
I nod. “I will. Drive home safe.”
Poppy and I turn around and head in the opposite direction toward her small red car.
The headlights beam at the studio windows, lighting up the dark street, and thank God for that.
If they weren’t, I wouldn’t be able to have seen the tall man rushing toward us, a black cowboy hat on his head and one gloved hand held slightly in front of his body.
I startle, eyes flaring wide as I glance at Poppy. She notices the man, too, and immediately swivels on her heels to stare him down. My brows tug together when he gets closer, nothing about him appearing familiar.
“Annalise Heights?” he asks in a rush, reaching the sidewalk and stopping only a few feet from us.
Poppy sets her hands on her hips and, despite the inches he has on her, attempts to look down her nose at him. “Who’s asking?”
“Spencer Sharp from Country Capital . Would you mind taking a minute to give me an exclusive?”
I stand frozen, anxiety buzzing beneath my skin. “An exclusive on what?”
He lifts his hand, and I notice the rectangular device in his hand. A recorder. My chest tightens.
“If you could just tell me a little about your relationship with Brody Steele, or a confirmation that you are indeed together, that would be fantastic. We’ve been tryin’ to reach his team for weeks but haven’t received an answer,” he explains.
“Is he cleared medically to come back? Will he finish Killian’s tour with ’im now? ”
The interest in his eyes makes my stomach turn. He’s a nosey reporter too far from home if the heavy twang in his voice is anything to go off. His smile isn’t a pleasant one. It’s greedy.
“You can get lost, Spencer Sharp from Country Capital ,” Poppy hisses, shifting in front of me. “Go back home before you get run out of town.”
He doesn’t heed her warning; instead, he keeps pushing. “I just need’a tiny statement. A yes or a no.”
“You’ll get my foot up your ass if you don’t get lost. Anna has nothing to say to you.”
I set a hand on her shoulder and move to her side. “She’s right. Please go. You’re not getting anything from me.”
His eyes narrow ever so slightly, and I take a step back, tugging at Poppy’s shoulder for her to do the same.
“It ain’t possible to hide from the public, Annalise. Brody and that team of his know that too damn well to be playin’ these games with the media. You tell ’im that, yeah?”
I stiffen, my back straight as a steel rod. “You can tell him that yourself, I’m sure. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’ll be leaving.”