Chapter Four
Chloe was still amazedthat the gym was now hers.It had sat empty since her former bosses were arrested, like a mausoleum waiting for someone brave—or stupid—enough to breathe life back into it.
She had just stepped out of her car when she spotted Leo and Kayne heading inside.Good Lord, the man was a physical specimen.He was slightly taller than Leo’s six-foot-four and solidly muscled.The cargo pants he wore molded to one truly exceptional behind.His shoulders were the broad, sculpted kind romance novelists got paid obscene amounts of money to describe.He moved with the lethal grace of someone who knew exactly how dangerous he could be.And that ridiculous hint of swagger in his gait ...it shouldn’t have been attractive, but it absolutely was.
Her pulse fluttered.Traitor.
Chloe grabbed her bag and followed them in, weaving around drop cloths and paint trays.The building had good bones, better bones now that she was ripping out every trace of the monsters who used to run it.Even now, thinking about what they’d done made her stomach twist.They’d stolen childhoods, destroyed trust, and died before facing a courtroom.They’d killed themselves, or it was murder-suicide.She had no idea which, nor did it matter.Their victims were left with deep, lasting wounds and no path to justice.
The equipment had needed replacing.She’d donated the old machines to organizations around town that could use them without knowledge of the stain attached, including the Boys and Girls Club and community centers.The new machines hadn’t arrived yet, which worked out since she was installing a luxurious, high-performance rubber floor and repainting the walls.She’d bring many of her plants here to decorate the space, along with new ones.Not only did she love them, but they looked beautiful and provided oxygen.They made spaces feel alive.She’d be spending most of her time here anyway.
That made her think about where she was going to live.Chloe needed to get on the ball and hire a realtor.She could crash in her office since she’d have a sofa and her own bathroom, but that wasn’t a long-term solution.With everything happening, she didn’t have time to house-hunt.
The club was two stories with an open middle.The second level featured a track that surrounded the opening and rooms for yoga, Pilates, and other classes.She was having four rooms converted into offices.She and Leo would have large ones with bathrooms, and two smaller offices would go to Danica and the future manager.
The only thing the club didn’t have was a pool.She was considering purchasing the property next to the building to install one once the club was operational.
Chloe glanced around.Still no sign of Danica.She’d asked Chloe for a job, so she’d tasked her with running the charity she’d been thinking about starting once she began making money.Chloe wanted it to focus on nutrition and health for kids and teens.She’d asked Danica to draft an implementation plan.So far, she’d produced exactly nothing, despite drawing a more-than-generous salary.
Leo thought Chloe was a sucker for hiring her half-sister, and maybe she was.But when it came down to it, they were related.Blood complicated things, but family was family.
Danica held a degree in marketing, which she’d received online.Chloe didn’t know whether she hadn’t wanted to leave home or whether her mother hadn’t allowed it.Chloe had never met the woman who had stolen her father away.Truthfully, she hadn’t even thought about her for years.Her aunt and uncle had become her parents in every way that mattered.Her childhood had been full and happy, and she’d been loved.Chloe’s aunt made sure they visited her mom’s grave on Mother’s Day, her birthday, and Christmas.Her mom was never forgotten.
Her aunt and uncle had moved to California a couple of years ago, and she missed them terribly.
When Danica had shown up on her doorstep, Chloe had nearly shut the door in her face.But it hadn’t been Danica’s fault that their father hadn’t wanted to be a parent to Chloe.Someone needed to break the cycle.
Chloe shook herself back to the present.Her afternoon task was to hire a manager to handle staffing.Danica wasn’t ready for that responsibility, no matter how much she wanted it.This place was too important to gamble on hope alone.It was a significant investment, and she needed to ensure it was successful.
Her concentration imploded the second Kayne turned around.
He and Leo stood near the gutted front desk, reviewing a clipboard as if they were preparing to breach a cartel compound.Leo looked as he always did: focused, a little bossy, slightly frazzled from trying to manage her life.Kayne looked like trouble wrapped in a package of steely muscle.Good grief.Even his shoulders had shoulders.
Kayne was steady, solid, and perceptive enough to make her feel both safe and scrutinized.
It was annoying how much she valued that combination.
Dragging her focus back to her bag, she pretended she hadn’t just ogled him as if she had been raised in the wilderness and encountered her first man.She hefted the bag toward her temporary office and tried to give herself a pep talk.See?You’re calm.Mature.Not at all bothered by the dangerously handsome man pretending to date you for “security reasons.”
Her pulse didn’t get the memo.
“Chloe,” Leo called.“Good.You’re here.”
Where else would I be?Screaming into a pillow?
She swallowed the sarcasm and pasted on a smile.“So, you wanted to talk?”
Kayne’s gaze swept over her in one slow, assessing pass.It wasn’t the sleazy kind; it was deliberate, professional, and yet somehow intimate enough to nudge heat up her neck.He took her in as if she were a puzzle and he could see where she was strong ...and exactly where she felt fragile.
It was unsettling and infuriating.But it was also hard to look away from.
And those eyes.Greener than they had any right to be.Light sea-glass green.Stop noticing that.
She folded her arms, pretending she wasn’t lightheaded.“I don’t need a babysitter.”
“No one said babysitter,” Leo replied, which was exactly what someone who’d hired one would say.
