Parker (Rich & Single #2)
Page 13
“Whatever did happen,” Jennifer said before Parker could speak. “Neither of us have anything to be ashamed of, so why don’t you just get to the part we’re actually here to talk about before I decide this is a waste of my time.”
Damn, she was hot when she was angry. Especially when she was angry in tight blue spandex. Parker found himself wishing for a room with a locked door. He pulled his gaze away.
“Well,” Pam said, her voice a little less steady than it had been. “Why don’t we cut right to the chase, huh?” She looked out over the audience. “Everybody ready?”
Parker took the answering cheer as a yes. Triumphant music started playing in the background.
“And the winner,” Pam said, pulling an envelope out of a drawer in her podium, “According to doctor’s results and fitness tests, is…”
Lydia’s hand squeezed Parker’s tight enough to almost hurt.
“Parker!” Pam shouted, and the audience screamed.
Lydia threw her arms around him, and Parker hugged her tight. In the hubbub, he looked across at Jennifer, who was shaking her head, a smile on her lips. She glanced his way, and for a moment their eyes met. Parker shrugged. She rolled her eyes, but the smile didn’t leave her mouth. He looked away again.
Someone was shoving a microphone into his face.
“What do you have to say about the win, Parker? Are you happy?”
Parker disentangled himself from Lydia and held up a hand. The room fell almost silent.
“My slogan is ‘I can make anyone fit.’ And this contest was designed to prove that true. But I’ll tell you something. Even I can’t work with someone who doesn’t want to take the necessary steps. Lydia has more motivation and heart than anyone else I’ve ever worked with, and she’s the one you should be celebrating tonight.” He grinned and nodded respectfully at Lydia. “She has worked through more than some people handle in a lifetime. This is her victory. I just cheered her on.” He took a step back.
The man with the microphone hesitated, but Lydia was already moving forward to take it.
“Don’t let him be that modest,” she said. “He’s the reason I have the courage to stand here today. I used to be so scared. Of not being enough. Of not looking the way everyone thought I should look.” She straightened and smiled at the cameras. “I’m not perfect now. I still have bad days. And it’s still a work in progress. This isn’t a road that’s going to end any time soon. Without Parker, I wouldn’t have even known where to start. He’s been my guide all the way through the last twelve weeks, and I honestly couldn’t have picked a better one.” She punched a fist pump into the air. “Parker can get anyone fit, and I’m the walking proof of that.”
The audience was screaming again, and Jackson was probably doing a happy dance in the green room. They couldn’t have come up with better answers if they’d been scripted. The microphone moved on to Jennifer and Tom. They took the time to ask them a few questions, but the audience didn’t care. They had their winner.
As the show was wrapping up, Parker smiled.
Finally, the fucking contest was over.
Chapter 15
“So,” Jackson said, pulling his laptop out of his bag and setting it on Parker’s desk. “What now? You’re out of the spotlight and back to your everyday routine. Any big plans?”
Parker laughed. “You know better than that, Jackson.”
“Ready to be out of the spotlight for a while?” Jackson asked, even though Parker knew he already had the answer to his question.
“More than,” Parker answered. “What happens now is that I go on with work. I keep moving forward with Lydia; she’s still got a while to go, really. And she’s actually thinking about being a personal trainer.”
“Somehow I’m not surprised,” Jackson said dryly.
“And I’ve got that new client,” Parker said, ignoring his tone. “That underwear model. I’ve got to finish working out his schedule and look at the diet plan he sent me. He’s supposed to come in tomorrow afternoon for a more in-depth consult.”
Jackson nodded. “On the business front, we’re doing great. That contest was all the publicity that I hoped it would be, and the fact that you won is just icing on the cake—and I knew all along you would win. We’re set for years on that alone. The rate of new client acquisitions may not stay as high once the news has become a little less fresh, but I’m not concerned about that. We’re straining the limits of our staff as it is. We’re probably going to have to make a couple new hires.”
“I’m not opposed. Let me know when I need to interview.” He grinned. Jackson knew all along? Bull- shit!
“Will do.” Jackson closed his laptop again, and slid it away as he spoke.
Parker raised an eyebrow. “Packing up so soon?”
“Hey, I do occasionally have places to be. And that’s really all there is to say this time. We’re doing great. Keep doing what you’re doing.” He glanced down at his watch, back up at Parker. “And now it’s time for dinner. So I’m out.”
Jackson almost never left for dinner.
“You have a hot date to make?” Parker asked.
“Something like that,” Jackson answered, throwing a smile back over his shoulder and disappearing out the door.
Parker laughed, and opened Sebastian’s schedule.
***
The morning air was crisp, fall truly settling in. It was still too early for most of the tourists to be out and about and the bridge was nearly empty. Parker breathed in and then out again, listening to the thump of his feet against the wood of the walkway. It was good to get away from it all for a while.
At least, it was until the sound of lighter footsteps than his own pulled him out of his contemplation of the Hudson.
“Well,” a voice that was now familiar said just behind his shoulder, “fancy meeting you here.”
Parker turned his head to look at Jennifer. “Are you stalking me?”
“Maybe great minds just think alike,” she answered, a little breathless from running in a way that made him think of that night at the party. He couldn’t afford to think about that while he was on a run. Not if he wanted to keep being able to move at his usual pace. “What do you want, sunshine?”
“Why do I have to want anything?” She was keeping pace with him easily, despite his longer stride. “Maybe I’m just out for an early morning run, same as you.”
“I don’t believe in that kind of coincidence.
Jennifer laughed. “Fair enough. I just wanted to talk to you, after everything that happened.”
“You’re not mad about losing the contest?” Parker asked. This firecracker had the habit of going off when he least expected it. He should probably be prepared for… something. He just had no idea what.
“Mad? Why would I be?” She shook her head. “No. I got the publicity I wanted. My company is growing almost faster than I can keep up with it. There’s nothing to be mad about.”
“And all that mocking and trying to drive me crazy during the competition?”
“I really did just want to get in your pants,” she said, the smile audible in her voice.
“There are easier ways to get there,” Parker pointed out.
“The easiest way is almost never the most fun way,” Jennifer teased. “Besides, tell me that wasn’t hot. All that tension, when you finally let go it’s just… explosive.”
“You have a problem,” Parker said. Definitely a damn firecracker. He grinned despite himself and tried to hide it.
“Probably,” she agreed. “But it’s a fun problem.”
“Only if you enjoy being tormented.” He paused. “Or tormenting, in your case.”
“Oh, but I do.” She turned her head to grin at him. “And lucky for me, you enjoy the torment just enough to keep coming back for more.”
Parker scoffed. “You’re the one stalking me, the last I checked.”
“And you’re the one letting me do it,” she countered.
That was kind of true,
Parker had to admit. If he really didn’t want to see her, he would have told her to go away. But he hadn’t. They were still running side by side, at a companionably relaxed pace, and the argument hadn’t escalated to wanting to push her off the bridge, even if she was back at the teasing.
Back at the teasing that had apparently meant she was trying to get in his pants. Oh. He should have picked up on that faster. “Are you telling me that it’s my fault you won’t go away?”
“Do you really want me to go away?” she asked.
It wasn’t really a question. He could tell from her tone that she already knew the answer.
“What I want, actually,” Parker growled, “is to get off this bridge and bend you over the nearest available bed.” He’d have settled for a bush, but that wouldn’t be good for either of their businesses.
“I thought so,” she said.
Suddenly she was darting ahead, sprinting up the walkway with the early morning sun painting her hair gold. The sound of laughter floated back to him. “Catch me if you can!”
Parker grinned, and took off after her. “You wait till I do!”
The End
SEBASTIAN – Coming Soon
Sebastian COMING June/July 2016
… If you enjoyed Parker and would love to see a series on him… contact Lexy Timms and let her know!
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R&S Series
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Knox Township, August 1863.
Little Love Affair, Book 1 in the Southern Romance series, by bestselling author Lexy Timms
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Aspiring college athlete Aileen Nessa is finding the recruiting process beyond daunting. Being ranked #10 in the world for the 100m hurdles at the age of eighteen is not a fluke, even though she believes that one race, where everything clinked magically together, might be. American universities don’t seem to think so. Letters are pouring in from all over the country.
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