My boss and her mate were the definition of ‘opposites attract’. Where Lois was broad and super masc presenting, with a short crew cut and androgenous clothing, Monique was as femme as they come. She was a tall, willowy blonde wolf shifter with carefully styled locks, a face full of make-up, and a penchant for designer clothes. They’d met years ago while Lois was on an assignment and had been inseparable since then. After they found each other, Monique wanted her mate to leave New York and move to Seattle. She’d used some of her considerable fortune to fund this branch of Sapphic Security to make it happen.
“What are you doing here Martin?” Lois snapped.
Monique squeezed her hand and Lois added with forced politeness, “Hello Martin, Hazel.”
“We’re going to use the gym,” I explained. “We’ve been sitting all day and need to move.”
“Fine, Bella’s in her office finishing a report, but be sure whoever leaves last turns off the lights. I’m not trying to pay for summer houses for whoever the idiot is who owns the electric company.”
Seattle’s utility company was actually publicly owned but there was no way I was going to point that out. Lois hated corporate CEOs as much as she hated most people who weren’t her mate.
“Got it, boss. Thank you.” I smiled at her companion. “Nice to see you, Monique.”
Lois growled, pulling her mate away from me as if I’d just hit on her, which no one would ever do unless they had a death wish.
“Good night girls,” Monique trilled as they headed for the elevator. “Have fun.”
“They’re an… interesting couple,” Hazel noted as I led her down the hallway towards the in-house gym.
“You have no idea. Are you ready to sweat?”
Hazel
“What do you want to do, run on the treadmill?” Marilee asked. “Do some boxing? Run the obstacle course?”
“Let me do some stretching first,” I said, dropping to the mat and moving into a stretch. “Then I’d love to hit the bag for a while.”
I sat on a mat and moved my legs in front of me, leaning forward to grab my feet, stretching my back and hamstrings while I looked around the space. The Sapphic Security gym was pretty impressive. Taking up most of the floor, there was a boxing ring, punching bags, treadmills, rowing machines, weight benches, and an obstacle course. It smelled like leather and machine oil, which was better than most gyms I’d visited.
After I’d done a few stretches, I headed to the shelves where I could see boxing gloves, tape, and other supplies.
“Do you need…”
Marilee’s words broke off as she realized that I was taping my hands for boxing.
“You know boxing?” she said, looking surprised.
“My parents trained me to protect myself,” I said.
I’d done a piss poor job of it when those guys found us at Pike Place Market, but that was because I’d been caught off guard. I’d half convinced myself that I’d been wrong about someone following me in Ottawa, and I never imagined if it was real that they’d try to make a move in a crowded public market. Then again, at the time I thought it was only my parents coming for me, not every mercenary in the country. People got sloppy when large sums of money were on the line.
Finishing my preparations, I headed over to one of the bags and began punching it, feeling the familiar sensation of my muscles bunching and my hands connecting with the material of the bag. I struck with a steady precision, imagining that every punch was me pushing my parents out of my life. Periodically I’d land a kick to mix things up.
Marilee watched me for a few minutes before getting her own gloves and heading to the second bag that was hanging a few feet away. She had a great form, moving with a lethal easeand an inhuman speed that was no doubt a result of her being supernatural.
We did bag work in silence for at least twenty minutes until my muscles were burning and my heart rate was up, then I decided to take a break. I headed to the water fountain, taking several gulps of water before removing my gloves and taking off the tape.
“You wanna try the obstacle course?” Marilee suggested. “We can race. I’ll give you a head start.”
Like I could win against someone with shifter speed. I’d give it my best shot though. The course looked challenging but fun, two things I liked in a workout. Plus I had a competitive side.
“Sure.”
The obstacle course ran the entire length of the gym, set up for two people to race at the same time. Tires. A rope net to crawl underneath. Real logs to balance on. Monkey bars with mats underneath. And a wall to climb over.
“Ready. Set. Go…”
I took off running, my feet tapping in and out of the long row of tires that made up the first obstacle. Holding my arms out for balance, I skipped across the balance log, then dropped to the ground to crawl under the net. I was halfway across the monkey bars when Marilee caught up with me, swinging easily from bar to bar. We hit the ground at the same time and headed for thewall, my bodyguard easily making it up. She swung one leg over and straddled the top, waiting for me to catch up.
