“So I gathered.”
“I had a terrible day.”
“I’m sorry,” Chloe said, meaning it, even if the timing was spectacularly bad.
Danica studied her, eyes narrowing.“You look stressed.”
Chloe huffed out a quiet, humorless laugh.“Wow.Observant.”
There was a brief pause, the tension heavy enough to feel sticky.Then Danica sighed and leaned back.“Fine.I won’t be awful.Much.”
“How magnanimous,” Chloe murmured.
Danica’s gaze sharpened.“So what happens if she really doesn’t come back?”
Chloe swallowed.“I figure it out.I always do.”
Danica tilted her head.“Are you going to hire that Oliver guy after all?”
The fact that Danica knew his name irritated Chloe more than it should have.She filed that reaction away for later.“Maybe,” she said reluctantly.“If I have to.”
Danica grimaced.“Yikes.”
Chloe managed a tired smile.“That’s exactly the word I used.”
The door opened again, and Chloe’s heart jumped before she could stop it.She turned, hope flaring and collapsing when it wasn’t Robin.
Danica followed her gaze, then sighed.“You’re really worried.”
“Yes,” Chloe admitted quietly.“I am.”
For once, Danica didn’t immediately make it about herself.She just nodded, expression shifting into something less arrogant and performative.
“Well,” she said, standing.“If she ditched you, that sucks.And if she didn’t, then I hope she’s okay.”
Chloe looked at her in surprise.“Thank you.”
Danica shrugged, already reaching for her bag again.“Don’t get used to it.And remember, I can do that job.”
Yeah.Not going to happen.
#
Kayne had learned totrust the quiet moments even less than the loud ones.
The gym was closing down for the night; the lights dimmed to that softer end-of-day glow that made everything look calmer than it ever was.The construction crew was gone, tools locked up, the clang and drill replaced by the low hum of the HVAC system.Chloe stood near the door, pulling on her jacket and talking through tomorrow’s schedule with Leo.
She’d handled the news about Robin remarkably well.Kayne wasn’t sure if it was shock or a refusal to think the worst, but she was hopeful that Robin would turn up tomorrow.He didn’t bother correcting her.
Now, Kayne listened to them talking with half an ear.The other half tracked shadows, reflections, and the way sound carried when a building thought it was empty.
That was when he saw movement.
A figure lingered near the locker room entrance, hood pulled low, posture drawn inward as if he was trying to disappear into the wall.Kayne’s instincts snapped tight.
“Chloe,” he said quietly, already moving.
The figure startled and turned when Kayne closed the distance in three strides.He grabbed the man’s arm and spun him into the wall before he could decide whether to bolt.
