“I bet she’d remember if I took it out of her check,” I muttered as I walked to the hand-towel fridge. After each barre or HIIT class, we placed a chilly towel with a hint of essential oils on our clients’ foreheads as they cooled down. If it was a slower yoga class, we’d give them a warm towel. It wasa pain making sure enough towels were always ready, but these small touches kept people coming back.
I moistened the cloths under running water and rolled them up one by one.
Voices in the doorway caught my ear. “Told you we’d find them on Find My Friends.”
I whirled at the noise and regretted it immediately. Everything went black, with the exception of some floating spots. I teetered and reached for the counter.
“Whoa.” Someone caught me by the waist and steadied me. I knew it was Silas even with my eyes closed. I recognized that “whoa.” I’d heard it hundreds of times growing up whenever we rode horses. “You okay?”
I forced an eye open and leaned against the counter. “Mhmm. Thanks.” I smiled to show him I was all right. He stepped away, but his hands were still out in case I wobbled again.
That’s when I noticed Holden was there, too.
“When’s the last time you ate something?” Holden asked.
I had to think for a second. “Breakfast?”
“Are you crazy? The sun is going down,” he pointed out, as if it wasn’t obvious by the fading daylight. I’d honestly forgotten to eat. I did that when I got stressed, and I’d had plenty to be stressed about lately.
“Here.” Silas led me to a folding chair someone had left out. “Do you have any food or?—?”
I pointed at the basket on the counter full of healthy snacks. Clients who needed something after a workout could get one for a dollar. I wasn’t making anything off of them, but they continued to snatch them up, so I continued to fill the basket. Anything to make my ladies happy.
Silas grabbed a banana, and I shook my head.
He put it back and picked up one of the Pink Lady apples Peyton had left. I crinkled my nose at that.
“But you love fruit,” he had the nerve to say, like we were still friends. Like I was exactly the same person as a decade ago. Like I didn’t have the right to change my mind when I became a full-fledged adult.
Okay. I did love fruit. Usually. Nature’s dessert. What’s not to love? But right then, I knew if I ate either of those, they might come back up. Was I getting a stomach bug?
He grabbed a peanut butter chocolate chip granola bar, and I nodded. “Thanks.”
Anna yelped from the back room. “Lemon!”
I laughed, chewing on my snack. “I think she needs help getting out of the inversion table.”
“What?” Holden’s eyes widened. “You have one of those?”
I nodded and pressed a hand over my mouth. “Ughhh.” I groaned. “I think this bar is expired.”
Holden reached, snatched it from my hand, broke off a piece, and chewed. “Tastes fine to me.” He ripped another hunk off with his teeth. Okay. I guess it was his now.
Anna squealed again, laughing maniacally. Holden tossed the granola bar back to me and bounded out of the room, following her pleas for help.
Silas leaned against the wall and glanced around the room, checking out the studio while I attempted to eat more of Holden’s granola bar. Sometime over the last hour, Silas had taken off his tie. His hair was mussed up too, like he’d been tugging on it or someone had put him in a headlock. I studied him, trying to figure out if he’d made a decision about Sophie’s proposition. His expression was on lockdown. His phone must’ve buzzed in his pocket because he slid it out for two seconds and shoved it back in.
He glanced back at me, but said nothing. Just watched me eat.
I couldn’t stand the silence. He always seemed so comfortable with it, but it made me twitchy.
“Crazy day, huh?” I said, my brows lifting.
“Yeah.” He nodded and continued to watch me chew what was left in my mouth. A few seconds later, his head tilted, and he narrowed his gaze, studying me. My face overheated at the attention.
Holden screamed from the other room and Anna burst out laughing.
“I think I’m going to see what they’re up to.” I stood up slowly.
