Page 6 of Isolated (Harper Security Ops #21)

Landen

Punctual.

I’d always considered myself to be the kind of person who showed up wherever I was going on time, especially during the work week. I never made it a point to arrive substantially early anywhere without good reason. And arriving late simply wasn’t something I preferred to do.

So, like always, I’d been punctual today when I left my house this morning to come to the gym. And normally, I wouldn’t have given it a second thought, but that generally meant that everything was as it always was.

Unfortunately, things weren’t as I expected them to be when I arrived here.

Unlike me, Iris was always early. I couldn’t remember a single time when I’d arrived here before her.

That changed today. It was the first time it had ever happened, and it gave me reason for pause .

For a moment, I had to think about what day it was. Iris didn’t come to the gym on Wednesdays, so I thought I’d gotten my days all mixed up when I didn’t see her here.

But I confirmed that it was Tuesday, and it left me feeling alarmed. That feeling was likely amplified since this was all happening following our workout session yesterday morning.

I’d been meeting Iris here for quite some time now, easily more than a year, and not once had I ever left and not been able to stop thinking about her. Sure, I’d occasionally thought about her. It would have been impossible to pretend she didn’t exist.

Iris was undeniably beautiful, with that long, thick auburn hair, bright green eyes, and unbelievable curves in all the right places.

Beyond the physical beauty, she had such a sunny disposition.

She was the kind of woman who could make anyone smile, who’d lift anyone’s spirits.

She’d done it for me on many occasions without even trying or knowing she was doing it.

Iris had been on my mind ever since I left the gym yesterday morning.

I wasn’t quite sure the reason for it, though.

Was it the brief conversation I’d had with my mom before I went to the wedding?

Was it seeing all my friends with their significant others while I was there and wanting to find that same happiness for myself?

It was possible that the feeling that had washed over me during the ceremony still lingered in my bones.

Or perhaps it was what Iris herself had said to me roughly twenty-four hours ago.

The next time you need a date to a wedding, I’m your girl.

From the moment I heard those words, all I could think about was that I didn’t just want this woman as my girl for a wedding. My mind was assaulted by dozens of questions and thoughts and possibilities of what my life could be like if I had her in it outside of this gym.

I’d never given myself permission to even consider that before now.

Of course, it wasn’t because I hadn’t wanted to ask her out on a date. I did. There had been several instances for over more than a year when I’d needed to fight the overwhelming urge to ask her for precisely that.

But I didn’t want to ruin it.

I hadn’t wanted to be the guy who couldn’t control himself when he saw a beautiful woman in the gym.

All I could think was that if I succumbed to those primal instincts, I’d risk destroying everything about what we had now.

Not only did I not want Iris to think she couldn’t just go to the gym to exercise and not be hit on, but I didn’t want to make things awkward between us, either.

So, I’d sucked it up, told myself it’d never happen, and tried to pretend that there wasn’t anything she did that I liked.

But I’d been lying to myself.

Iris had been the one bright spot in my day.

No matter what case I might have been working on, no matter how awful things got, I knew that it would only take one look at her or a single conversation with her, and all the stress would fade away.

That was the kind of power Iris had, and I often wondered if she even realized just how brilliant she was.

And now that she’d said those words— the next time you need a date to a wedding, I’m your girl— I couldn’t stop thinking about the possibilities.

What if that had been her way of letting me know that she was interested in more than just our friendly relationship at the gym?

It was so difficult to know for sure, especially when Iris was such a bubbly woman.

She really could have just been offering to join me simply as a friend.

And with the way the blood rushed in my veins whenever she was around, I thought that might be the worst-case scenario.

I’d have to keep this thing between us confined to just the gym. Any attempt to go outside that, as a friend or otherwise, could end in disaster. And I liked what I already had with her too much to risk losing it.

Just as I was about to give up any hope of her showing up today, a movement in the mirror caught my eye. From where I’d been standing, there was a clear line of sight to the front entrance, and it was Iris who had stepped inside.

One look was all it took for the tension to slowly unravel.

But the longer I kept my eyes on her, the faster the worry I’d felt about her whereabouts turned to concern for her physical well-being.

Iris was moving cautiously, and though there was still quite a distance between us, I could have sworn it seemed as though she winced with every step she took.

Her eyes met mine, and a weak, helpless smile came my way.

Without hesitating, I stepped in her direction and gobbled up the remaining distance between us.

There was no concern about anyone taking over the equipment I intended to work on at this hour.

Iris and I were two of just a handful of guests at the gym this early in the morning.

“Are you okay?” The words spilled out of me before I could manage to even greet her properly .

She sighed. “I think my luck has turned.”

“What?”

“Do you remember all those good vibes that I mentioned had started on Friday with the promotion I received?”

I hadn’t forgotten a word of it. “Of course.”

“I think they’re gone now.”

My fingers itched to touch her, to reach for her hand and tug her close. Whatever was bothering her, I wanted nothing more than to be able to fix it, to make everything better for her. “What makes you say that? Did something bad happen?”

A look of such disappointment washed over her expression. “I didn’t wake up before my alarm went off this morning.”

I waited two or three beats, believing she was going to continue, but when nothing else came, I had to fight not to burst into a fit of laughter.

“Okay. I mean, I noticed you’re here a little later than usual, but I’m not sure I understand how this is a problem or even an indication of your luck turning. ”

She dropped her bag on the ground beside her. “I have never been this sore in my entire life. My legs are killing me. I’m not sure I know how I even got here today.”

Understanding dawned. “You got a good workout in yesterday.”

Iris nodded. “I guess so. And while I know I should be proud of myself, the fact that every single step I take hurts this badly makes it a bit difficult for me to do that.”

I offered a sympathetic smile while wishing I could have been the guy to wake up beside her this morning, so I could massage the soreness away. “The more you move, the better it will feel.”

“What?”

“You’ve got too much lactic acid built up in your muscles from pushing yourself yesterday. Despite how much it hurts, you need to get the blood flowing with some light cardio, followed by some stretching. And you need to drink tons of water.”

Her brows shot up. “Cardio?”

“It’ll help.”

“I hate cardio.”

I chuckled. “Me, too. Would it help motivate you if I suffered through it with you?”

She blinked in surprise. “You’d do that for me?”

Shrugging, not wanting to make it seem like a big deal, I replied, “Yeah, why not? It’ll be good for my cardiovascular health.”

The reality was that I looked forward to each morning I had here with her, and at the thought of not being able to spend this hour or so with her, particularly when she took Wednesdays off, there was little I wouldn’t do.

Iris considered my offer, a hint of that breathtaking smile playing at her lips. “Well, maybe I should take you up on this, make you suffer right alongside me. It’s kind of your fault I’m even in this position.”

I could hear the teasing in her tone, but that didn’t stop me from attempting to defend myself anyway. “My fault? What did I do?”

“You kept pushing me to do just one more rep, one more set, one more round…”

Her voice trailed off, and that’s when the thing that had been tugging at me since yesterday really started to embed itself inside me.

Whenever we worked out together, I always tried to motivate Iris, to help her push herself beyond what she thought she could do. Not once had it ever been a problem.

But she’d increased the weight substantially yesterday, and when I pushed her, she hadn’t backed down.

Was it purely determination and drive to get stronger, or was it something else?

Iris could have easily refused to do those extra sets if she was feeling so sore.

Had she pushed herself as a means to impress me?

There was no question I’d done the same in the past.

I squinted at her. “You’re really blaming me? What happened to all that determination and good vibes you were talking about?”

Iris huffed. “I’m here, aren’t I?”

She was, much to my delight.

My chin jerked down with a nod of approval. “I’m proud of you for showing up for yourself.”

Something warm flashed in her eyes as she puffed up her chest with pride. “So, now that I’ve got to do some cardio to fix my legs, am I unable to do my normal Tuesday workout?”

“There’s that determination.” I gave her a pat on the shoulder, my hand lingering there as I continued. “I wouldn’t recommend doing anything that involves your legs beyond the cardio, but I see no reason why you can’t do your typical Tuesday routine.”

In a move I hadn’t expected, Iris lifted her opposite hand and curled her fingers around my wrist. The touch sent jolts of electricity shooting down my arm. “Do we have to walk on the treadmill? ”

Ignoring how much I like the feel of her fingers against my skin like they were, I shook my head. “No. In fact, I’d recommend the elliptical. You’ll avoid the pounding and shock that your joints will absorb on the treadmill.”

“Alright, well, I guess it’s time to get started, if I don’t want to be late for work today, too.”

I bent at the waist, picked up her bag, and waved my hand out, palm up, in the direction of the cardio equipment. “Lead the way.”

Iris took the bag from me and moved in that direction.

Twenty-five minutes later, following some looks that lingered longer than usual as we exercised side by side, Iris and I finished on the ellipticals and did some light stretching.

Then we dove into our usual Tuesday routine.

While I continued to encourage her as I always did, I didn’t go overboard like I had yesterday.

Far too quickly, our time together was up. It always seemed to happen long before I was ready for it.

“So, how are you feeling now? Are the legs any better?”

Grinning broadly, Iris all but bounced on her toes as she answered, “Much better. I don’t suspect it’ll last all day, but having some heat in them has loosened things up, for sure. They just aren’t back to being perfect yet.”

That was debatable.

Her legs might have felt sore, but they looked phenomenal.

Ever since she’d mentioned being my girl if I had another wedding to attend, I thought about those very legs being wrapped around my waist or thrown over my shoulders.

And those thoughts easily led to more about what a woman like her would sound like in the throes of passion .

This was not the time to be thinking about her like this.

Shaking off the unsavory thoughts, I said, “Just remember to drink a lot of water. That’s going to be the best thing you can do to help with the recovery.”

“I’ll try to stay on top of that. Thanks for being willing to switch things up with me today. It certainly made things much easier to get through.”

One half of my mouth quirked. “Anytime, Iris. I’m glad it helped. More than that, I’m just relieved to know your luck hasn’t turned.”

Her head tipped back as laughter spilled out of her. “Oh, I guess you’re right. Fingers crossed it stays that way.”

Her laughter was infectious, and had I not been so captivated by the sight of her like that, I might have joined in. Then again, that was nothing new for me. I felt like I was constantly fighting against what I was really feeling when it came to her, if only for fear that I’d lose it all.

I didn’t know why. Even if I’d taken that risk, going out on a limb to ask her on a date, and she declined, Iris didn’t seem like the kind of woman who could hold a grudge.

She was so sweet and happy all the time.

But I was too worried that, at the very least, I’d make things awkward.

And if that happened, I’d regret losing this part of her.

“I’m sure you’ve got nothing to worry about. So, I’ll see you here on Thursday morning, then?”

“You will. Have a good day today, Landen.”

I loved hearing her say my name. “You, too, Iris.”

With that, we stepped off the curb and walked in opposite directions through the parking lot. I didn’t make it obvious, but I always watched to make sure she got to her car safely and pulled out ahead of me.

Today was no different.

Only this time, I sat there wondering about the possibilities.

If only I knew for sure how Iris would respond, then maybe I could have done what I really wanted to do to show her that her lucky streak was just beginning.