The drive over to the gym is peaceful, and when I walk into the building, my hope that no one will be there is confirmed: the gym is empty. I throw on my headphones, grab my favorite treadmill, and start my audiobook.
It’s an absolute smutty, filthy, and downright disgusting audiobook for a public space, but I need to be out of my head and somewhere else. Take me to DickMeDownville, and drop me off at the corners of Good and Girl. Anywhere but my head right now.
I’m about to start my treadmill when I notice someone walking up to me in my peripheral vision. I turn to see Dante’s bright smile, and I scramble to pause my audiobook. “Hi,” I say nervously, like I’ve just been caught doing something I shouldn’t.
“Good morning, Luna. You’re here early this morning.” He leans against the arm of the treadmill, and the way his tattooed neck muscles flex catches my attention.
“I had a crappy night’s sleep. Figured I would run it off.” I shrug. “What are you doing here so early?”
“I’m always here early on Sundays and Saturdays. I don’t like the crowds on the weekends.” I nod, understandably. “Don’t let me keep you from running. I just wanted to say hi. Oh–Did you find out if you’re a best-selling author yet?”
I bite my bottom lip, trying to hide my smile. Dante keeps surprising me. “Not yet. Probably later today, whenever the article comes out.”
Dante nods, backing away. “I’ll keep an eye out for the article. Before you leave, come find me?” I nod, and he turns, heading for the weight section.
I hit start on the treadmill and resumed my audiobook. I take notice almost immediately that the male narrator for this book has a voice a lot like Dante’s; a deep, strong voice, with this conviction about it that gives you a sense of trust. The scene I hear unfolding in my ears isspicy. The male main character is speaking to the female main character, and I can’t help but envision Dante talking to me. “You’re such a good girl, swallowing my cock so deep, choking on it. I love hearing your gasps for air as you take me deep in your throat.” I imagine Dante stripping his hoodie off, and he’s bare underneath. His muscles and all of his tattoos are on display, and I know he’s doing it for me. I try to blink the naughty thoughts away, but the narrator in my ears keeps saying things I wish Dante was whispering in mine. “Good girl, baby. Swallow me down just like that. Choke. On. It. I want to see you gag on it, baby. That’s it, just like that, baby.” The male narrator whimpers, and I trip over my own feet on my treadmill, catching myself before I fall. I recover quickly and look around to see that only a few people have filtered into the gym, but no one's paying attention to me, and most importantly, I don’t see Dante, so that means he didn’t see me almost eat shit.
Nope, no more audiobooks. Music. I need music.
I laugh at myself while shuffling through my playlist. Why was that a good idea in the first place? A gym full of hot, sweaty men? Luna, you fool.
An hour later, the gym is crawling with people. I end my workout and look around the gym, spotting Dante at the pull-up bar. I traverse the gym and walk up behind him, admiring his shoulder muscles as he pulls himself up effortlessly. I tap on his side, and he looks to me, dropping down immediately. “Hi. I’m about to head out.”
“Do you want to get breakfast with me?” Dante asks, sweating, pebbling at his temple
I meet his eager gaze. “Uhh, yeah. I didn’t have breakfast this morning, so I’m starving.” My eyes catch something red on his neck. “Dante, I think you’re bleeding?” I reach out to touch the spot on his neck, but he moves out of my reach, and I pull my hand back.
He reaches up, wiping his hand across the spot I was reaching for, and sure enough, a small amount of blood was smearedacross his fingers. He laughs nervously, wiping the blood off on his pants. “Oh, right, I was meal prepping this morning for the week, and I was cutting up meat. Must have wiped some blood on myself and didn’t notice. Give me five minutes to rinse off in the shower and change, and I’ll meet you in the front.” I nod, and he grabs his stuff, heading for the locker room.
I walk into the lobby, where there's a small seating area. I sit down, pulling out my phone to scroll through it while I wait. I’m only a few seconds into my phone when I see someone coming up to me. I look up to see a tall, blonde, arrogant-looking gym rat standing in front of me with a big smile on his face. I smile back, trying not to be rude, and return to my phone. The man coughs, and I look up again, annoyed this time, only to see the man holding his phone out to me. “I want you. Put your number in, and I’ll be sure to rock your world.”
I scoff, rolling my eyes, disgusted that he thinks he even has a chance with me with that pathetic excuse of a pick-up line. “Yeah, no. I don’t wantyou. I won’t be doing that. Have a nice day.”
The smile on the man's smug face is wiped clean. His expression turns cold, and I fear what’s coming next. “All youslutsare the same. Coming to the gym in your slutty little outfits, parading yourself all over the gym, and when a guy like me takes the bait, you all act like you don’t know what you’re doing. I thought giving the fat bitch at the gym a chance would land me an easy lay, but you’re all the fucking same.”
A hand slams down on his shoulder from behind, and out steps Dante. “You’re going to apologize to my girlfriend.Now,” Dante says, and I watch as his grip tightens on this asshole's shoulder, and I can tell he’s holding himself back. Dante has a murderous fire behind his eyes, and I have to admit, I enjoy seeing him protective like this, and calling me his girlfriend? I have to squeeze my thighs together to keep the flood back.
The asshole looks visibly angry, with his teeth gritted and his faceall flushed. “I’m sorry,” He says, looking anywhere but at me.
Dante gives the asshole a heavy smack to the back of the neck, holding his head up, and making the man look at me. Dante leans close to his ear and speaks loudly enough for me to hear him. “If I hear you speak to another woman like that here, I’ll materialize at the foot of your bed like a demon and rip out your throat so you can’t speak toanyoneever again. Got it?” The man swallows hard and nods. Dante lets go of him, giving him a little shove. The asshole gives me a look of pure hatred as he passes by me on his way out that reminds me of Greg. “Are you okay, Luna?” Dante asks, coming up next to me.
I turn to face him, shaking off the interaction. “Yeah. I’m okay. Thank you.” I give him a half smile, trying to save face, but if I’m being honest, the words do hurt. Not that I care what the piece of shit thinks about me, but calling me the ‘fat bitch of the gym’ and insinuating I’m easy because of it? Yeah, that fucking hurts. Just because some women are bigger than others doesn’t mean you can treat the ones you find less desirable like subhuman creatures that have no thoughts or feelings. He’s definitely the type of guy I would have been forced to dance for at Dollies, and that thought makes me want scream.
“Are you ready for breakfast?” Dante asks, his expression soft, and his smile returns, but I can see there’s still a storm of anger behind his eyes.
“Are you sure? We can go another time if you’re not up for it,” I say, unsure of how to handle this situation.
“I’m sure, Luna. Come on,” Dante holds out his arm for me to take. “I want to take mygirlfriendto breakfast.”
I look up at him, and I can’t stop the smile that spreads across my face. “Okay. Let’s go.” I will discuss the whole ‘girlfriend’ situation at breakfast after I’ve calmed myself down.
Dante and I walk down the street to a cafe not too far from the gym, called Abby’s Place. I like Abby’s a lot, as it’s locally owned and not a big chain. It's always a quiet atmosphere, even on busy mornings like today.
We’re seated and order our drinks. I opt for a large tomato juice instead of coffee. Dante gives me a weird look when the server walks away. “Tomato juice? I don’t think I’ve ever known anyone who asked for tomato juice before.”
I laugh because it is unusual around here. “It’s something my dad and I used to order when we went out to breakfast. He loved tomato juice, and I guess I inherited his taste buds for it.”
“Interesting,” Dante says, crossing his arms and leaning on the table. “What else do you like?”
