Page 4 of Isolated (Harper Security Ops #21)

Iris

The start of the week was always exciting.

I’d never been the kind of person who dreaded a Monday morning.

And after such a great weekend, I wasn’t surprised that I woke up fifteen minutes before my alarm this morning, feeling energized and ready to get my day started.

So, that’s what I did.

I hopped out of bed and went through my usual Monday morning routine. Before I knew it, I was out the door and on my way to the gym.

Four days a week, barring any unexpected circumstances, I woke early enough to be able to go to the gym and get a workout in. I loved lifting weights. I loved the way it made me feel. That was why I didn’t mind getting up and making it happen before I had to head to work for the day .

Maybe that made me crazy—Kasey and Steph had indicated as much—but I liked my routine.

And today was no different.

In fact, today felt like a great day to kick things up a notch.

But perhaps the reason my friends couldn’t grasp just how much I enjoyed my time at the gym was because I hadn’t been completely honest with them.

It had started off being purely about the physical benefits for me. At some point, it became about something else.

Going to the gym gave me the opportunity to see Landen, my gym buddy.

While there was no question that I loved having the hour or so to look at and talk to him, I could admit that it stung he was nothing more than just my gym buddy.

Sometimes, I even hated thinking of him like that.

But in an effort not to give myself any false hope, I refused to call him what I really wanted—my crush.

He was… Gosh, he was perfect. He was beyond handsome, with his buzzed black hair, dark brown eyes, and muscular physique. His shoulders were broad, his hips were narrow, and his arms were like three of mine combined, only far more defined in comparison.

Though he was always friendly toward me, there was something about him that was so serious.

I’d witnessed the occasional quirk of his lips—small, friendly smiles that didn’t even show his teeth—but not genuine amusement and laughter.

Sometimes, it seemed as though he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Then again, considering he was a private investigator, it wasn’t completely unreasonable to assume he dealt with cases that took a toll on him.

Maybe that seriousness was simply a side effect of the job.

I’d never once asked him to tell me any specific details about his job—I didn’t think he could reveal that kind of information anyway—but I’d certainly had moments when I wished I could have offered myself up as a sounding board for him.

Or even just someone to help distract him from whatever cases might be bringing him down.

Unfortunately, Landen didn’t seem even remotely interested in ever making that happen. In fact, he appeared to be completely content with our arrangement, which had been nothing more than friendly gym buddies who offered the occasional spot during the heavier, riskier lifting sessions.

“This looks ambitious today.”

Hearing that smooth, seductive voice, I spun around and saw Landen making his approach. There was that hint of a smile playing at his lips as he came to a stop a couple of feet away and shifted his attention from the weights that I’d just put on the squat rack to me.

I beamed at him. Landen’s semi-serious nature didn’t impact my ability to be myself. And if ever there was a day to feel genuinely excited, today was it.

“Is it the amount of weight that’s got you saying that, or is it because I’m here early enough to have it already on the bar?”

“Well, I was referring to the increased weight, but I guess, now that you mention it, it’s not the only thing. Was it extra coffee that put a bit of a bounce in your step this morning?”

Standing too far away from him to be able to shove him playfully like I wanted, I could only roll my eyes in response. “How many times do I have to tell you that I’m not a coffee drinker?”

“Until I can believe that it’s possible anyone can wake up and be as bubbly and motivated as you without drinking it.”

“I’m not sure how I can convince you that’s the case, if you’re in need of physical proof,” I lied.

Yes, I lied.

Because I’d had the thought in the back of my mind for a long time that if Landen truly didn’t believe I could wake up like this, he could certainly find a way to spend the night at my place and wake up next to me.

The number of times I’d fantasized about the man in front of me was unreasonable. But I was rather traditional when it came to dating, so no matter how ambitious I was in other areas of my life, I couldn’t bring myself to be the one to ask him out.

Seemingly without any ideas of how to make that happen either—or merely unwilling to take the bait—Landen jerked his chin toward the squat rack behind me. “Is this about you feeling genuinely stronger today, or is this simply utter determination?”

I glanced at the weight on the bar before returning my attention to him. “It is a touch more than usual, isn’t it?”

“Yes. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I’m merely curious about what prompted it.”

He’d taken two steps closer to me, but still maintained enough distance between us that I could only just barely take in a hint of his scent.

But that trace amount was just enough for me to recall the refreshing and robust scent of him.

There was a richness and warmth in the musky and woodsy fragrance.

Nothing light or citrusy. Just enough to complement the self-assured and masculine man that Landen was.

“Well, I’ve been at my previous weight for a while, so part of this is about it really being time to try for a bit more.”

Curious, Landen pressed, “And the other part of it?”

“I’m just trying to keep the good vibes going,” I confessed.

Landen was even more intrigued, his head tipping slightly to the side. “Good vibes?”

I nodded. “It all started Friday with a job promotion at work. I’ll officially start my new position at the beginning of the year, assuming the next four months go accordingly.”

“That’s great news. Didn’t you just recently get a promotion to your current role as… What was it? Marketing manager?”

“Marketing director,” I corrected him. “And yes, I did. But apparently, I’ve been doing such a great job that my boss is prepared to promote me to the vice president of marketing.”

“It sounds like a great accomplishment. Congratulations, Iris.”

The smile hadn’t left my face. “Thank you, Landen. Honestly, it was the perfect way to start my birthday weekend.”

His brows shot up. “It was your birthday?”

“Yes. On Saturday.”

A hint of a brighter smile formed, but he still didn’t show any of his teeth. “Happy birthday. I hope you had a fun weekend.”

“Thank you. I did. ”

Waving his hand toward the squat rack, he said, “Well, are you ready to see if you can keep this good streak going?

“I am.”

Without hesitating, I positioned myself beneath the bar. In the mirror directly in front of me, I watched as Landen moved in behind me. I wouldn’t have needed to see him there to know he’d come closer. He had such a dominating presence, and the scent of him wrapped around me like a warm blanket.

But this wasn’t the time to get cozy. Determined as ever, I hoisted the bar onto my shoulders, took a few steps back, and squatted.

I wasn’t one to cut corners when it came to anything I did, so I went as low as I always did, fully convinced that even if this wound up being more than I could handle on my own, Landen wouldn’t falter. He’d step in to help if I needed him.

As I moved to stand up, Landen didn’t hold back his usual words of encouragement. “You’ve got it, Iris. Push… push… Good. Four more.”

“Four?” I grunted, disbelief in my tone. He was crazy if he thought I could do that.

“You can do it. I’m right here.”

He was.

He always was.

I should have expected nothing less than more words of motivation from him after succeeding with the first squat at the new, heavier weight.

It was slow and controlled, but I managed four more reps. Sometimes, I told myself I could do just about anything when I refused to fail in front of someone like Landen.

“One more. Let’s go for a total of six. ”

The man was crazy, but he always knew just what to say to push me. I went for one more. At the very tail end of it, my legs protested, and I struggled. Landen placed his hands on my upper ribs and gave me that added bit of support to finish out the rep.

He remained vigilant in that support as I stepped forward and put the bar back on the rack. When I turned around to face him, I said, “I was so close.”

“Are you kidding? Six reps at a new weight? That was excellent.”

“Yeah, but you had to help me on the last one,” I reasoned.

“Barely,” he reassured me. “And that’s why I’m here, anyway. You should be proud of yourself for what you just accomplished, Iris. I am. It seems like this was the perfect time to try for more. Those good vibes are carrying through to all aspects of your life.”

Not necessarily all . I wished I could have summoned the courage to tell him where I was still struggling, but I was far too much of a chicken. Instead, I smiled at him. “Thanks, Landen.”

“You’re going to do a couple more sets, right?”

Nodding, I confirmed, “Yes. Probably three more. But I need just a minute to recover. Do you want to get a warm-up set in?”

He shook his head. “Not yet. I’ll wait until just before your last one.”

“Okay. That works. So, did you have a good weekend?”

Landen shrugged. “It was okay, I guess.”

“Do anything fun?”

“I went to a wedding on Saturday.”

My eyes widened. “Oh, that had to be so much fun. Unless, of course, you aren’t much of a dancer or social butterfly.”

A soft chuckle escaped. It was the most I ever really got from Landen when it came to him demonstrating any level of amusement.

“I’m certainly nowhere near being the social butterfly that you are, but it was one of my buddies from work who got married, so I had plenty of people there to socialize with. ”

“And what about the dancing?”

He shook his head, looking away. “I didn’t… I didn’t take anyone with me, so I steered clear of the dance floor.”

Landen hadn’t taken a date to the wedding? Surely, he could have easily gotten someone to join him if he’d attempted to ask. Had he not been allowed to invite a guest, or did he purposely not ask anyone for some reason?

“That’s a shame,” I murmured, turning to position myself under the bar for my next set. Meeting his eyes in the mirror, I said, “It sounds like you missed out on enjoying the best part of any wedding.”

“You’re crazy, you know that?” Lips twitching, he shook his head. “Come on. Let’s not give these legs too much of a break.”

Doing as he’d suggested, I lifted the bar off the rack again and went about completing my second set. I’d managed six reps again, but Landen needed to offer some support on the last two the second time.

I took a shorter break after the second set, wanting to get some cardiovascular benefits by keeping my heart rate up in between them. After the third set, Landen swapped in with me to get a warm-up set in before I did my final one.

“I’m not sure I’m going to be able to walk straight tomorrow after this workout,” I told him as we added more weight to the bar for his workout.

“Ah, you’ll be alright. That’s the best feeling, don’t you think?”

“Being unable to walk?”

“Not necessarily that. I was thinking more along the lines of just feeling that soreness because you got in a good workout.”

I shrugged. “I guess. I mean, I love working out, but I’d have much rather preferred feeling sore because I spent my Saturday dancing the night away at a wedding.”

He studied me for a few beats. “If I had known you were so interested in dancing at a wedding, I would have asked you to come along as my guest.”

If only…

That would have been the greatest birthday present ever.

Perhaps even better than the promotion. I loved my job, and I was excited about any success I saw in my career, but the reality was that I would have been happy to go without the promotion if it meant that I might see some success in my romantic life.

I was thirty-one now. I was hoping to meet the one sometime soon.

Feeling a bit emboldened by his statement, I asked, “So, why didn’t you ask me?”

Something shifted in his expression, something I hadn’t ever seen before now. “Honestly, it never crossed my mind. Besides, I had no idea you’d want to do something like that, anyway.”

It never crossed his mind.

Right.

That’s because Landen wasn’t anything more than my gym buddy. Or perhaps it was that he saw me as nothing more than that to him.

Even if we got along great and had some fun when we were working out together, it was clear that I was looking far too much into things. Landen was so friendly, playful, at times, but that’s where it ended.

No matter how great things seemed to be on my end, he hadn’t ever asked to see me outside of the gym. I could only take that to mean he wasn’t interested in me like that. So, I had no choice but to accept that this was all that I’d have.

But on the off chance that there was some interest on his part, and he was hesitant to take things to the next level, I thought it was worth putting the thought in his head. “Well, the next time you need a date to a wedding, I’m your girl.”

A look of surprise followed a short chuckle. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

I should have been happy with that response. I guess it was the knowledge that wedding season had ended, and it was unlikely that Landen would be executing that plan any time soon.

On that thought, I figured it was best to shift the conversation away from talk of weddings, dancing, and a date with Landen.

“Alright, so I’ll warn you now. I hope you’re feeling strong today, because although I’m prepared to offer some help if you get stuck on these squats, my legs are already feeling like jelly. I might not be very effective.”

“Thanks for the warning. I’ll plan accordingly.”

I took that to mean that if he thought he might struggle with getting that one last rep, he’d likely not go for it .

Sure enough, that’s precisely what happened.

Landen was concerned about my ability to spot him, so he held himself back. And that left me feeling completely bummed about my decision to switch topics. Because in doing that, I made it so Landen didn’t need me to put my hands on him even once during his workout.

It was always my favorite part of my time at the gym, and today, I’d taken it away from myself.

Tomorrow would have to be different.