The End Game (Thron series Book 1)

by S. Tron

  ‏"Do you that every week‏?"

  ‏"Well, most of the weekends. Sometimes I need my peace and quiet. A big family is not always easy and fun‏."

  I wouldn't know. Sadness creeps inside me, and I block it out‏.

  ‏"I wanted to take you out, show you London, but if you want to go home, it's fine‏."

  ‏"Is it in your work description? Or you just thought of it this morning.‏"

  She sounds confused, I did act like an asshole this morning, but I just asked her to move into my home‏.

  I already planned it in the schedule before we met, but even then my though were not entirely pure‏.

  ‏"Andrew if you are taking me only because you need to, then I would rather be at home with my family‏"

  I think of it; she's affected by me. Do I want her? She is very attractive, smart and funny. Confusing her will make it hard to work together, and I don't even know what I want, I want to be a great trainer, and she has a man back home, fucking is off-limits, especially in her emotional state, playing with her emotions will lead to heartache, or worse, she will not come back, and I need her. I need her for my career‏.

  I opened my mouth to answer when Angela comes in "ready to go‏?"

  Jude jump from her chair "more than ready‏".

  On the way in the Uber Jude apologize to us, she is going to text her brothers. I don't know why she's apologizing. Jude sends one message, and from there, it doesn't stop beeping. She Laughs, nodded her head, curse, and smile that genuine beautiful smile of hers, and I see a dimple in her left cheek, I can't take my eyes off of her‏.

  We arrive at Camden and Jude put her phone in her jeans; I can still hear it beeping‏.

  Angela chuckle "is all Those text from your brothers‏?"

  Jude smile and that dimple shows again, how did I not notice it before. "Yeah," Jude says "they're the best, a bit overprotective, and foul-mouthed but I'm the same with them, we like to give each other a hard time. now they gave me shit because of a photo I sent, see?" Taking out the phone, Jude shows Angela something, and they both Lough, Angela lift her gaze and says in a surprised voice "oh my god! You have a dimple! I want to hate you.‏"

  Jude smile grows "I was thinking the same thing when you came to my mum's house! You're so gorgeous I wanted to hate you.‏"

  Jude and Angela continue their chatting on the way to the pub; my thoughts are on Jude's dimple; it disappeared again. Angela tells us to pick a spot, and she will go bring the first round, as soon as we are seated I tell Jude "that dimple only shows when your smile is genuine" Jude blushes, saying nothing‏.

  ‏13. Jude

  I'm relieved when Angela comes back so quickly, we're sitting outside, beside the canal, the place is beautiful, there are two big willow trees and some plants in pots, the weather is excellent, a guy is playing his guitar inside which makes me miss my piano at home. I ordered a paint of Weston's cider, Angela drinks white wine and Andrew some craft beer‏.

  ‏"I invited Liam and Mark to join us," Angela says‏.

  Andrew starts asking me questions about my parents, brothers, different jobs I had; he doesn't let me say a lot, jumps to the next question. It's like a first date, but the one you can't wait to be finished.

  Mark and Liam join us, and Angela tells them "Oh thank god I feel like the third wheel‏"

  I laugh ", and I feel like I'm in the interrogation room" Andrew glares at me and I smile back‏.

  Mark and Liam go to get drinks, I ask Andrew if it's ok I'll have another, Angela chuckle "he's not the boss of you, you know" I know that but considering all the notes, he wrote on the schedule about food. I think it's better to see if it's affecting my runs. Andrew says I can do what I want. So I order a second. Angela goes with the guys, and we are left alone‏.

  I lean closer to Andrew and speak quietly "are you hesitant to tell me what to do because of my outburst this morning‏?"

  Andrew whispers in my ear, it feels so intimate, a shiver runs through me, "we will speak about that when we get home‏".

  I can feel my body tense at those words, every time Daniel and I went out if he did not approve of my behaviour, he says that. Like I'm a child, I'm going to get punished, and I did, silent treatment, we never spoke about it when we got home, it was another resentment that stayed between us. I feel myself shutting down; I want to go home, not to Andrew house; it is not my home‏.

  The others come back; I try to put my happy face on, I ask them about their lives and work. Angela was Marcus assistant; she is so organized and helpful, he decided she should do it for their clients. Liam is gay lives with his husband a few houses from the office at Soho, he like Andrew, used to be a runner and broke his leg in a silly ski accident, he has four runners in training at the moment. I ask Andrew how many he has "one." he says in a clipped tone‏.

  Mark is the outsider of the group, he came to London because of me, his here to monitor my progress, also to watch a kid that Liam is training, they say he is only six-teen but shows a lot of promise, he is going to make trails to get in the GB Team, I will probably meet him soon on the track‏.

  ‏"Where is the running track?" asking no one in particular, Angela answer with a smile "Olympic stadium.‏"

  My jaw drops to the floor, "holy mother of dragons!!!" everybody chuckle‏.

  Liam asks me about my occupation. They all know a lot about me from Marcus, excluding Andrew, who seems surprised and ask a lot of questions about my life. Telling them the short story I start, "I finished the military and came back home, work in a factory while doing a bartenders course, than worked two jobs in a small bar and the factory, made enough money to go to the big city, Haifa, worked a month as a barista, got fired, went to work at a friends pub, as a waitress, ended up the manager of that pub for three years, studied Confectionery, I think you call it pastry chef, worked at that for a year or more. came back home, worked there as an event planner, wedding, shows, music festivals, you name it, and now I'm a secretary in the garage, which I suck in, I'm the worst secretary in the universe, but my boss is great, so that's that‏"

  Nobody says a thing, I say with a smile ", and that was the abridged version because I know you couldn't handle more‏"

  Angela recovers first "I'm handling it perfectly, I'm mad because we are here spending money while all along you could make us drinks at home". We all share a laugh‏.

  It was a great evening. I enjoyed it, feeling I belong and making friends. I haven't done that in years. I noticed a few times people take phones out or glancing to our table, one guy came to speak to Liam and Andrew, I guess for them it is just another day, but for me, it feels intrusive‏.

  I feel the exhaustion of the day and the flight now and yawn, apologize to everyone. Andrew gets up "I think this is our cue than, thank you, everyone, for a nice evening, I haven't done that in ages" Liam nods his head in agreement, so it does bother them a little bit‏.

  We say our goodbyes, and I hug Angela, I knew we would be friends‏.

  We seat in the black cub, and I ask if we are going to get my stuff from the hotel or am I moving tomorrow, thinking Andrew is going to answer me, he catches me completely unguarded "Why do you close yourself from the world?" Deciding not to respond, we sit in silence, I had about three ciders, and they have gone to my head, I drift to sleep, I wake up feeling someone lifting me, Andrew's voice comes to focus, "shhh, we will sleep here tonight, you are too exhausted for anything‏."

  So I snuggle closer to him, loving the way he carries me like I weigh nothing, he smells delicious, citrusy. Andrew lays me on the bed and comes to put next to me, "no, Andrew that's a bad idea, go home" I say in a sleepy voice‏.

  ‏"I'm not leaving you alone‏".

  That's the last thing I remember‏.

  ‏

  I can hear my phone rings, sounding very distant, a heavy arm on my waist prevents me from moving. "It's my phone" is all I'm capable of saying, I'm hot, Andrew is hot, and he has his arm around my waist and a leg o
ver main. I feel hot and bothered and need to get away before something stupid happens. "It's probably Sam or Matty; I need my phone" he is of me in a second. So, does not like children, that cooled me down, going through my bag I search for my phone. Finding it, I see it is Sam and answer "hi baby" I have no interest in someone that does not like children. I go to the bathroom angry, for privacy, in my room‏!

  We speak a lot, he gives Matty the phone and takes it back, we laugh, they tell me stories about their day, how Eddy got loosen from my brother and came to Sam's daycare. It's six in the morning in Israel, and they are getting ready for daycare, I speak to my mum for a few minutes, and we end the call. I feel tears streaming down my face; I miss them so much. I will go back to sleep; its four am in London. I walk out to see Andrew angry gaze sitting on the bed, I have no strength left for his hot and cold moods, I pass him and face plant the bed, I say to my pillow "I'm tired, I'm sad, I'm going to sleep till six-thirty and then you can start your business and attitude, till then, sleep" I hear him chuckle and feel his weight on the mattress but he's not holding me, I miss his warmth‏.

  ‏14. Andrew

  Jude went to sleep as she said, I found it very hard to do, my cock is pressing my jeans painfully, Jude is so beautiful, and her body made me hard as a rock, lying next to her all night and keeping my distance was torture. Jude has fire in her; the problem was someone took it away, it wasn't her husband's death, it runs deeper, every time I tell her what to do she snaps at me or shut down. Last night was the hardest, as soon as the words left my mouth I saw her tense, I thought she would appreciate it, I tried to make the point that we are going together to our home, I maybe wanted to be seductive as well. Instead, I was a douche again‏.

  I decided since there is still more than an hour before we start the day I should do something for her, boyfriend or not I want that fire, I want that dimple to come out for me. Just for me. In a twenty-four-hour city, I can find whatever I want. A quick google search leads me to where I need. I wash my face and slide-out quietly‏.

  I'm back in forty minutes, everything is ready for the day, and I went home also to pick my training bag and clothes, Jude still sound asleep, I lay on the bed looking at her, Jude's curls still as beautiful as yesterday, I wonder if Jude's hair as soft as it seems, I let my fingers go through it, she moans, the sound goes straight to my cock, I would love to hear this moan when I'm eating her pussy, my cock is completely awake, straining my jeans, maybe I should stop playing with her hair. Trying to move off the bed Jude wrap one long leg over main, I imagine do long legs wrapped around me in the shower, I feel precome wetting my boxer briefs, I never slept in jeans before, but now I'm grateful for their existence‏.

  Jude wakes up, flustered, apologizing, she peels herself away from me‏.

  ‏"That's fine", I want you close, "go to the shower than pack, we need to be at the track at eight sharp‏."

  Jude rush to the suitcase takes a few items out, and in the shower, after a long shower she comes out, the smell of lavender fills the room, with that towel around her head and fully clothed in running leggings and a torn t-shirt that looks like someone deliberately cut the collar off, Jude has on glasses today, thin black frame that makes her eyes shone like emeralds. This is the first time I see her arms and notice a small delicate tattoo on her right arm, that surprises me. She packs her suitcase in two minutes, freeing her hair from the towel and grabbing her handbag, "let's go, or we'll be late". I chuckle, Jude knows she spends to much time in the shower‏.

  She walks out with her suitcase, and I reach for it, "let me, please." It takes her a few seconds to let go, in the end. She nods, and we're on our way‏.

  The look on Jude's face when we reach the track is priceless, people whos been training and competing all their lives are used to teach in places like this, Jude is used to running through fields or a treadmill‏.

  On the way to the stadium she pulled her hair up, asking a million questions about the track, I find it hard to answer, my eyes fixed on her soft hair, the way she tries to tame it‏.

  Suddenly I recognize my name, "Andrew!" she huffs, "how many laps do I need to do‏?"

  From her annoyance I guess she's been asking it a few times, I smile. "Twenty-five‏".

  ‏"I can't, I will die from boredom" she huffs again, Jude is fidgety and uneasy, which makes me anxious. I ask her if she's stressed if she wants to go through some pointers before we start. Jude asks me to do it over a coffee and a cigarette; I don't mind smoking, in this case, I think it will be better for her to stop, Jude doesn't smoke a lot, yesterday I saw her having one in the morning and another two while we sat in the pub. I would say something but knowing her; she will snap at me. I agree if that will take the edge off, I'm on board with that‏.

  We get coffee, sit outside, and she rolls her cigarette, I go through some things, she asks a few questions, and when she finishes, we go back in‏.

  ‏"Jude love, I want you to run with my running smartwatch, it will give us a lot of information later. Remember this is just a training run, feel the track, loosen a little, clear your head.‏"

  Jude looks hesitant, open her mouth to say something, closes it and glares the ground‏.

  ‏"Love, tell me" I lifted her chin "don't let that beautiful head of yours take you down", she nods. Still no words "Jude", I say in a warning tone, "tell me what's on your mind‏".

  Jude's eyes start to well up, "when I run without music, my head goes to all the bad places, insecurities, anger, disappointments. And it became worse after my husband died. I get so mad; I forget to breathe.‏"

  The only thought in my mind is why is she mad about her husband, she speaks of him with so much love. An idea strikes me "Tell me about the military". She looks confused; I go on "just tell me what you did, I will explain later". She tells me about the medic course and how the military train you to not think but act in the situation. Her service on the border police, green line, the 1949 Armistice border, explaining her day to day work as a medic. A little bit about the second Lebanon war and the work she did there‏.

  ‏"But how does it feel? Holding a weapon, taking care of wounded soldiers" I urge her to let some of herself out, to confide in me‏.

  ‏"It is what it is; you finish school you go to the military, you don't think about it, you do what you're told, this is the military way. It is both the best time of your life and worse, the people you meet there are your friend for life. a few years after you feel the effects it had on you, the toll of it." Jude summers

  I finally tell her my point "going on a run is just like that, do and don't think, it is what it is. Let your muscle memory take hold of you" Jude gives me a small grin, now I feel better, though the dimple did not show, it's a warm smile, she feels better. "And I also have a small gift before you start" I ran to the bleachers and took out my training bag I brought before, taking out a brand new pair of Nike zoom D, Unisex Distance Spike. Jude whispers her thank you; it sounds emotional, so I tell her to put them on and get going‏.

  Jude replaces her shoes with the new I bought her, stretching her neck, arms and legs, she shakes herself a little, takes off her t-shirt, throws it to the side, inhaling a few deep breaths and starts running‏.

  Shocked, I almost forgot to start my stopwatch. Jude is curvy, but her muscles are tight and toned. She has a neon green sports bra and black leggings they fit like a second skin. I hope our training would not take away her curves; I would not be able to live with myself if I'd taken away that sweet ass. I wait for her to round the corner so I can gawk at that beautiful ass, I discovered two more tattoos, one between the shoulder blade and one just above her ass, I would not figure Jude for a tramp stamp kind of lady so I wait for her to come closer so I can have a better look. When she passes me, I see a Celtic tribe that fits beautiful between the shoulder blades. And a tree growing out of a bubble in her lower back, definitely not a tramp stamp, both delicate but with attitude, suites her. I should ask her the meaning of them‏.
<
br />   Jude finishes her run in 47:11:08 minutes, it's a good pace for an exercise, being the perfectionist I am, I want her to go under forty minutes every time she runs 10,000m. She walks another lap to cool off‏.

  We stretch together while going over some pointers, the watch was heavy on her wrist, and I noticed she wears it on her right hand. We decide to go to breakfast and after the office to go through the data from the watch. I contemplate maybe to go home, eat there, go through data at my home office, our next exercise in the afternoon we'll be in my home gym anyway. I ask Jude for her preference, and to my surprise, she answers "I don't mind, as long as your taking me to a big English breakfast before" I know just the place for us‏.

  ‏"Andrew" I hear a familiar voice purring‏.

  ‏15. Jude

  A beautiful blond with sky blue eyes coming our way, I'm a mess, my curls frizzle from the run, I'm sweating like a pig, and I have no shirt on, I can feel my stodgy mommy stomach when I see her perfect six-pack‏.

  Andrew looks at me then to her. She comes to us and gives Andrew a hug, her hands rooming his shoulders to intimate; I feel my blood boiling. "I leave you to it, off to the showers," I say with a big fake smile‏.

  ‏"Jude!" I here Andrew calls that woman and me saying loudly "oh, you have a new toy, Andrew‏?"

  I grab my bag flighting inside, my ears ringing in anger, I don't know where the showers are, I will not go back to ask, no way‏.

  Of course, a guy as handsome as Andrew has different women to keep him warm at night. I have no right to be jealous or mad‏.