Like a child called out in front of the class, Blake squirmed in his seat, his mind racing to think. “Uh, I don’t know, a few. I’m sure of it.”
“One.” Scott braced his elbows on the desk, his brows pinching together, his lips set in a tight, grim line. “Some small business that ended up folding a year later.”
“The economy is tough.” He remembered now. It was a start-up food-delivery company he thought would take off, but instead it got lost in the shuffle of all the others and fizzled out.
“See? Instead of making plans, you make excuses. I’m going to be late for another meeting.” The impatience evident on his face, Scott stood and waited by Blake’s chair. “Consider this a first warning.”
“Warning?” Knowing he sounded stupid, Blake couldn’t help repeating what Scott said. “You mean you’re giving me a performance warning?”
“I thought I made myself obvious. Now I suggest you get started on those financials.” Without anything further, he strode across the room, opened the door, and walked out, leaving Blake sitting shell-shocked in the chair.
Fucking hell.What was happening? He’d always thought his work was solid, but now…miserable and with his head hung low, Blake walked back to his office. His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he pulled it out to see a text from Jeremy.
Hope it’s going ok. I know they’re happy to have their #1 worker back, but remember you’re my #1 guy.
Instead of making him feel better, Blake’s heart sank and his stomach burned with bile. The signs were there. He was failing at his job, and it was only a matter of time before he failed Jeremy too.
Chapter Nine
The moment Jeremywoke up, he knew he was alone. His hand groped at the empty sheets, and he sat up so quickly, his head spun, the sheets sliding down his naked chest to pool at his waist. It was barely seven a.m. The fuzzy memory of a soft kiss on his mouth and the smell of Blake’s subtle aftershave teased at his memory. Did he dream it or had Blake left already?
“Blake?”
No answer. With a grunt, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and got up, then padded to the bathroom to peer through the open door.
Empty.
“Damn.” He scrubbed his face with his hands, willing the grit of sleep from his eyes, then turned around, heading out to the kitchen. A note sat on the countertop, under his favorite mug, and relief flooded him at the sight of Blake’s precise handwriting. Despite his annoyance, Jeremy couldn’t help but smile.
Went to the office early. Didn’t want to wake you. I’ll try not to be too late.
His smile grew broader, and he whistled as he prepared his coffee and got dressed. He couldn’t even be upset at missing some early morning sexy because he knew how wiped out Blake was every night when he came home. It proved something to him about himself as a boyfriend that this relationship was more than physical. Simply holding Blake at night was enough.
Without Blake there to keep him company, Jeremy had little reason to linger at home. He drained his mug of coffee, showered and bundling up against the cold, decided to leave his car at home and take the subway to the gym instead. Twenty-five minutes later, he walked out of the stifling-hot train to the fresh air and stood at the corner for a moment, surveying his pride and joy, Hard Core Fitness.
Damn, he loved his job.
Hard Core buzzed with activity that morning, putting Jeremy in an exceptionally good mood. Before tax season had spoiled his good time, waking up with Blake had become the perfect way to start his day, and seeing his business thriving and filled with customers only added to his satisfaction.
The large, gray-tinted windows gave passersby a nice view of the section of the interior of the gym where the cardio equipment was stationed. At only eight a.m. he could already count ten of the twelve treadmills in use. Instead of focusing on the positive, he worried about membership and keeping up with the big gyms city-wide. With Blake so busy, Jeremy’d been able to concentrate on fresh new plans to keep competitive in the cutthroat fitness world.
For weeks he’d been bouncing around the idea of expanding the gym to include a juice bar and had been in talks with several companies who seemed eager to have his gym promote their product. It wasn’t anything that had been on his radar, but seeing these new places pop up everywhere lately—the craze in the city with fresh and bottled cold-pressed juice was strong—he thought to capitalize on it.
He walked into the gym and felt his pulse quicken.
“Hey, boss. How’s it going?” Gino cocked a dark brow and put up a hand. “No. No need to answer. From that smile you’ve been wearing for the past few weeks, it’s obvious something’s pretty damn good.” Gino’s smile broadened. “Or someone.”
Ignoring the innuendo, Jeremy set his coffee on the counter. “Busy this morning, huh? Anything I should know?”
“You always ask that. We’d tell you if you needed to know. Besides, it’s so early in the morning. What could have happened already?”
Thinking back to the sweet, early morning kiss Blake left him with, Jeremy tried to hold back a grin and failed.
“Apparently you’ve had a better morning than we did, right, Benny?”
Benny flushed a fiery red that almost matched the waves peeking out from under his wool beanie. “I dunno.”
Jeremy scowled. “Knock it off, Gino.”
