Jami was a force of nature.
At work, Alyson went through her usual routine. She got her requisite coffee and donut when she walked in, punched the clock, and pulled her files for the day. She slowly made her way through her clients, making phone calls, holding conferences, and heading to the courthouse once at mid-morning to report her findings on a custody issue she had been overseeing for months.
Victoria and Miles had their court hearing coming up soon, too. They were looking at custody hearings, divorce proceedings, harassment charges, and more. Although they had all sat down and decided that the most likely suspect for the calls, the flowers, and possibly the break-in at her office were all done by Anthony Michaels, there was no proof, but who else would have wanted access to her office and her files? It was no coincidence to her that right after was when she started getting the calls. But who would believe her? And if they did, it meant that she would have to reveal her personal relationship with Victoria and Miles. She would get pulled from the case, and worst case scenario, tossed from her job.
The whole thing had turned into a complicated mess, and she only had herself to blame.
“I’m heading to lunch,” Alyson informed Mallory, who stood at the fax machine positioned just outside her office door.
“Be back in thirty. We have a staff meeting at one o’clock.”
Damn. She’d been looking forward to a leisurely lunch, not another rushed, stuff-your-face deal again. Nodding, Alyson hopped the elevator to the first floor and rushed out the door. The traveling food vendor everyone downtown adored so much had set up shop on the corner just outside the building, and Alyson made a beeline for it. Already her stomach was chewing itself. The homemade subs sold there were to die for and judging by the line, she was in for a long wait.
“I can never choose what I want,” a deep male voice said from behind her.
Looking over her shoulder, Alyson looked up—way up—and recognized him instantly. And he looked even more incredible than he did before. His beard was freshly trimmed, and he looked impeccable in a pressed navy suit and tie that accentuated his tall, muscular frame. Once she had thought him handsome and rugged, now he was gorgeous and refined. “Oh, hey, I remember you. You’re the guy from the festival,” she crowed. His answering smile made her feel warm and a little giddy, like a school girl. “You come here often?”
“For subs? Anytime rumor spreads about the cart being in the vicinity, I make it my personal mission to track it down. Now,” he said, giving her a sly grin, “if you mean here, on this corner, not usually, but I plan to make it a daily habit now that I know you’re here.”
Oh, crap, was she blushing? She was blushing. Turning away from him, Alyson inched ahead as the line moved forward. The smells wafting from the window made her mouth water and her stomach cramp. “Have you had the veggie club?” she asked him.
“I’m more of a meat man,” he told her. Closing the foot of space between them, Alyson felt his chest brush against her back.
He was hard everywhere, but unlike Jami, it did nothing for her.
If Jami knew some guy was pushing up on her, he would blow a gasket. She took another step to put some distance between them.
“So you work around here?” she asked, switching subjects.
“Roundabouts,” he said vaguely. “I’m actually here, now, to grab a bite to eat before a meeting with my lawyer.”
“Oh? Nothing bad I hope.” Finally reaching the front of the line, Alyson placed an order for an Italian sub, extra cheese, no onion.
“Buy you lunch?” Pulling out his wallet, the man placed his order with hers.
“You don’t have to do that,” Alyson said demurely, although only because it was the socially acceptable thing to say. Of course she wasn’t going to turn down a free meal, especially when a cute guy was buying.
“Don’t be silly. It’s my pleasure.” They moved to the side so others could place their order while they waited for theirs to come up. “My wife and I separated recently. My lawyer and I are trying to work out the details.”
Alyson’s lips pursed. “I’m sorry to hear that. I hope it works out for you.” As a rule, she didn’t talk to men who were in a relationship. As a woman who worked in the system, she actively avoided men who were in the middle of a pending divorce. She’d seen the horrors of men who didn’t get their way, and while this man seemed nice enough his confession had raised her guard.
“Thanks.”
The cook flicked the silver bell and called out their order. Alyson quickly reached for her sandwich. With a cool smile, she looked up into his greenish brown eyes and said, “Thanks for lunch. As much as I would love to hang out and talk some more, I promised my boss I would be right back.”
Lips curving up, he gave her a look that made her feel totally transparent. “Not a problem. I know how demanding bosses can be. Can I walk you back to your office?”
Alyson jerked her thumb over her shoulder. “I’m right there.”
He looked past her. “Then it won’t be much of a hardship.” Turning with her, they walked slowly toward the tall gray building. “So what do you do here, Alyson?”
Picking at the foil wrapper keeping her sandwich warm, Alyson said, “I’m a caseworker. I help women and children who enter the system due to various kinds of abuse.”
His hardened gaze caught hers. “You don’t help men?”
Alyson frowned at the sharpness in his voice. “It’s not the men that usually need help.”
They stopped in front of the tinted double-pane doors and faced each other. “But if a man asked for your help?”
“Then he’d get it.”
His expression smoothing out, he gave her a soft, slow smile that made her belly flutter. This man was charming and oozed a gentleness she didn’t see often in the opposite sex. It stood out even more now that she had been spending so much time with testosterone laden men like Jamie.
Lifting his shirtsleeve, he checked his shiny silver watch. “I better go. I have to pick my son up from school soon.” Alyson frowned. She must have lost track of time. Was it really that late? “Guess I’ll see you around?”
Alyson shook away the momentary distraction and smiled. “See you around,” she said with a nod.
“Enjoy the rest of your day, Alyson.”
Alyson was halfway through the doors of her office building when she realized what he had said. He’d called her by name. Twice. Whirling around, she scanned the crowd grouped around the food cart, but she didn’t see the man anywhere.
“I never gave him my name,” she muttered to herself. Worry began to settle like a boulder on her chest. For that matter, he had never given her his. Who was that guy?
Alyson spent the last few hours of her day trying to shake her unease. The man. The guy. She didn’t know him by name, only nouns. But he knew hers. And she hadn’t given it to him. Jami would be pissed to know that she had left the office, even more so if he knew that she had almost had lunch with a man she didn’t know.
She’d thought the man was nice enough. A real gentleman with manners and everything. Apparently, as a woman, the effect of a nice business suit hadn’t lost its touch. She automatically grouped him in with the good guys, but was he really?
After work, the moment Alyson slipped into the passenger seat, she knew something was off.
Jami’s grip on the steering wheel was so tight, his knuckles had turned white. Studying the side of his face, she saw the muscle in his jaw flexing. He only did that when he was upset about something. Her stomach flipped, and not in a good way.
“Is something on your mind?” She bit her lip, praying that he didn’t know anything about the man she’d been obsessing over all day. As it turned out, her guilty conscience was getting the best of her.
Stretching his arm across the dashboard, Jami picked up something square and handed it to her. “Found that on my windshield today when I came out of the gym.”
Alyson felt her stomach perform a freefall. In her
hands, she held a grainy image of her with Miles and Victoria. She recognized the location immediately. “This was taken at the fair,” she muttered. The moment when Tori claimed to see Tony, then fled with Miles back to the apartment sent a fresh wave of fear rushing over her.
“Cell phone, had to be,” Jami grunted. “This guy has been keeping tabs on them since day one.” Alyson covered her mouth, feeling sick. “There’s more,” Jami said grimly. “Miles’ father showed up at the school today. He tried to get him to go home with him.”
Alyson’s stomach hollowed and her body grew rigid. “Oh, my God. He didn’t go, did he? Is he okay?”
“Luckily, Miles knew to go back inside the school. He told his teacher and they called Tori. I was just heading out when the call came in. That’s when I found the picture. I picked up Tori and drove her straight over to collect him.” At a red light, Jami glanced over at her with a pained expression. “Tori is a mess.”
And for good reason. “You didn’t show her this, did you?” Alyson asked, holding up the photo.
“No, I didn’t want to freak her out more than she already was.”
“Good, she doesn’t need to see this. One scare is enough for the day. I’ll talk to her when we get home.”
The light turned green and Alyson’s back pressed into the seat as the car began to pick up speed. “This is getting serious, Ally.”
Looking out the window, Alyson chewed her lip. “I know.”
“I want you to consider taking some time off work.”
That was easier said than done. Why did people who didn’t work a regular nine to five always assume it was so easy to just walk away? It wasn’t. There were steps involved. She had cases and cases didn’t have a pause button. “I don’t know if I can, but I’ll see what I can do,” she compromised.
“See that you do,” Jami said sternly, making Alyson grit her teeth. She hated when he talked to her like that, like she was a kid and he was her parent. “I can hear you steaming over there,” Jami commented with a touch of laughter in his voice. Reaching out, he took her hand and squeezed. “I’m not trying to tell you what to do, but I want you to seriously consider what I say.” Pulling into a parking spot in front of her apartment complex, he cut the engine and shifted in his seat to face her. His concerned eyes held her immobile. “Today was a warning, Ally. He’s getting closer. Assuming that it was him who ransacked your office, left the flowers, and has been calling? Then he knows where you work, where you live, and has access to your personal information. You’re a target, too, and I want you right where I can see you, so if this bastard tries something stupid, I’ll be there to pound his face into the pavement.”
Alyson took in a shuddering breath and blew it out slowly. Should she tell him about what happened today? About the mysterious man who she’d run into twice now? More and more, it didn’t seem like such a coincidence. But it would only give Jami reason to worry more. She couldn’t dump that on him too, not when he already had so much on his mind. It wouldn’t change things anyway. “I have some vacation time saved up. I’ll see what I can do.”
“Good, the sooner the better.” Jami’s hand tightened around hers before he released it and hooked the back of her neck, drawing her to him until their foreheads touched. “It’s driving me crazy not having you with me where I can keep my eye on you.” He held her gaze, drilling the message home. “I have a bad feeling about all of this.”
Needing to escape the intensity of his stare, Alyson closed her eyes. “Me, too,” she whispered. Me, too.
TWENTY-FIVE
Jami was tense as hell. He could see the whole thing with Alyson and the Michaels spinning out of control, and it was taking his control with it. He’d been pounding through his training sessions, working his body so hard that by the time he got back to the apartment, exhaustion swamped him and he was asleep the second he hit the couch.
Not even the lumpy ass material or the too short length was enough to make him lose sleep.
He’d assumed responsibility for just about everything over the last few weeks. He was driving them everywhere, making sure everyone got to where they needed to go safely. He spent every moment of every day out of his mind with worry, constantly keeping his eye out for hidden dangers. This must be what mothers go through.
Since the run-in with Miles’ father, Jami had been taking everyone with him to the gym in the evenings while he finished his workouts. Miles was fine with it. It gave him the opportunity to learn some moves and make him feel like a big shot. The other guys liked him, too. Miles was an easy kid to get along with.
The women, on the other hand, didn’t want to be there. It was clear by their petulance that they would rather be at home, painting their nails and catching up on their favorite shows, or whatever it was that they spent their time doing, than sitting in a sweaty, testosterone-filled gym, but to their credit, they hadn’t complained. Much.
They were humoring him. Taking advantage of the equipment. Using their time wisely. At the very least, they would be in the shape of their lives once this was all over. At the end of each session, Jami made sure to add a new move to their self-defense training and solidify the others they had been working on. He didn’t think any of it would prepare them for taking on a man his size, but it was something.
“Head in the game, Weston!”
Jami dodged a fist and countered it with a blow to his opponent’s gut. It knocked the wind out of him, and he dove, ramming his shoulder into the man as he drove him back into the ropes.
He didn’t stay there long. Worming his arm between their bodies, his opponent, Mike, shoved Jami in the chest. Jami staggered, losing his balance enough to lose the advantage. Mike came at him hard and fast. Jami blocked his left hook and, anticipating the right hook that followed, brought his arm up in time to block that, too. He didn’t anticipate the knee to the ribs, though.
With an oof, Jami folded over and Mike knocked him to the canvas with a vicious blow to the shoulder blade.
Damn, he missed Brad, but the ass was on vacation and who the hell knew when he’d be back.
Jami curled into a ball and took his beating. It only took a moment before Coach called it quits. “Enough! You sorry sonofabitch. Look at you. How do you expect to win against the Iron if you can’t focus?”
“I’m focused.” Jami rolled to his knees and got to his feet with a grunt. He rolled his stiff shoulder, grimacing at the knot of pain. Yeah, that was going to bruise.
“Oh, are you? Mind telling me where your eyes and your dick were just now?”
Jami slid Don a mischievous smirk. “You sure you want to ask me that?”
Shaking his head, Don zipped his duffle. “Don’t forget, you have a fight on Saturday. The fight. You’re head had better be in it or everything we’ve been working for will be for nothing.” His gaze cut to Alyson meaningfully.
Jami tipped his head in acknowledgement. Appeased for the moment, Don turned and walked away. The truth was Don was right. He’d been distracted. There was a reason they had clubs designed to keep men and women separated. Women were a distraction. It wasn’t their fault. Men’s brains just short-circuited the minute they detected tits and ass nearby. It just happened that Alyson had both.
Even now, his eyes strayed to find her.
Dressed in a matching set of Lycra running shorts and racer back tank top she was running on one of the treadmills, absorbed in the music and the steady pace she set for herself. But even as concentrated as she appeared to be, she kept catching his eye.
Beads of sweat trickled down her temples, and between her breasts. Her skin was flushed from the vigorous workout, her lips slightly parted. It spawned memories of him rising over her, her heavy breathing and flushed skin as they made love for the first time. His pants tightened as his dick swelled.
Feeling her eyes on him, she looked up and smiled bashfully. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but lately they seemed to be connecting more and more. He couldn’t stop thinking about her, and it
had only gotten worse since moving in with her.
He didn’t have time to finish his thought process. Stepping onto the sides of the treadmill, Alyson pressed the button to shut it down, and then stepped off. Swabbing her brow with a towel, she cut a straight path toward him.
The way she looked at him, her eyes round and set on his, as if he were the only man in the room, slayed him. “Are you ready to go?” she asked as she walked up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist.
Jami cringed. “I’m sweaty, and I stink.”
Smiling up at him, she pressed even closer. “So am I. Want to shower together?”
As much as he would like to… “I do, but not here.”
Her disappointment was poorly masked. Rubbing her arms vigorously, he bent to kiss the tip of her nose and told her, “Come on, let’s go clean up, and get out of here.”
Turning away, Jami took a moment to shake Mike’s hand and tell him and Don good night. Gathering his towel and empty water bottles from the floor, he was wiping the sweat from his chest when he caught Alyson eying his every move in open appreciation.
Her pupils were dilated, her rosy lips parted, causing his breath to catch in his throat. She inspired thoughts that would send him straight to hell. Do not pass Go. Do not collect two-hundred. “Come on, babe,” he said gruffly. “I’ll walk you back.” The locker rooms were situated directly across from each other, and with a quick kiss and a slap on her ass, Jami reluctantly parted ways.
***
Alyson entered the showers. Aside from the hiss of the steaming water and the low baseline of the music streamed through the rest of the gym, she was steeped in silence. There weren’t many women who frequented a place like Knockout. Not that she found that very surprising.
There was so much testosterone and ogling eyes, the air was thick with it. It was a wonder she could even catch her breath. Hell, it was a wonder that she even survived her first five minutes in the place without all hell breaking loose. That she’d made it this long without being fondled, groped, or spoken too in a derogatory manner was a testament to the quality of men there. They might look like a bunch of meathead ogres, but behind all that muscle and caveman grunting, she had captured a hint of respect—if not for her, then for Jami.
Knockout Page 23
