"No. I didn't know that."
"No public displays of affection. Hannah warned me in case I thought Jack was being weird today. But we'll be seeing Roman in Hanover when we go for the other wedding. See what your bear thinks after a month apart," Jools advised.
Winnie put an arm around her daughter's shoulders. "Sweetheart, you're young yet. You have all the time there is to find a mate."
Alone with Jools, Winnie Malcom explained. "Katrina was telling me that that young man has an understanding with a niece of hers."
Jools growled. "With his cousin!"
"I believe that this Vanessa is Katrina's niece but no relation to Roman."
"Oh. Well if he's already got a mate, what's he been up to sniffing around our girl?" Jools snarled.
CHAPTER SIX
Madeline put her phone back in her purse. "We have to stop by Glorious She on the way home."
"Okay. You'll have to give me directions." Doug swung Madeline's smoky grey rolling bag off the luggage carousel. He picked up his duffel in the other hand. "After you."
Maddie waited until they were buckling their seat belts before she explained. "Apparently Eric has phoned the gym non-stop since I blocked him on my phone. Then he started stopping by the last few days. With flowers. Leeann and Gayle told him I was out of town and they'd give me a message. This morning he showed up and is won't leave.
"Leeann has got him drinking lattes in reception. But she thinks he's lowering the tone." Maddie dialed her manager.
"I'm on the highway. We'll be there in half an hour. I guess you can tell him I'm on my way. Just keep him away from the members. Thanks. No, it's not your fault. Thanks for the heads up. Bye."
Doug kept his eyes on the traffic. "Tell me about Eric." His voice was cold and hard.
Maddie bristled and then settled down. What had she expected? She had gambled that becoming lovers would bring them closer together, but instead Doug had become more taciturn and distant. But she supposed he had a right to know something about her ex.
"He's a tomcat. I don't think he was faithful before we got married, and he certainly wasn't afterwards. He's a liar. But very charming." Maddie's voice sneered. "He doesn't have friends, just victims."
"Amicable divorce?"
"Nope. Eric made approximately thirty times as much as me. We didn't have a prenuptial and when we split I certainly didn't ask for support.
“But I expected to keep my half of the condo and all my savings. Eric came after half of my stash, including my 401K. He had managed to spend everything. And I mean everything."
"How much are we talking here?"
"Several million. Anyway, I got a forensic accountant and I asked for and received one hundred percent of the condo—which I had insisted we didn't carry a mortgage on—and all of my savings." Satisfaction rang in her voice.
"Surely, you could have got support and a larger settlement?"
"Yup. But I didn't want alimony, and he had spent the rest."
"But he wasn't grateful?"
"Not so you'd notice. I think this might have been when my replacement realized he wasn't a keeper. But once the papers were signed, I moved on. I used my savings and the money from the sale of the condo to start Glorious, and until about a month ago, I thought Eric was just the mistake of my youth."
"But you've kept up with his life?"
Maddie made a face. "People like to gossip. I can't tell you how many people want to share what they know. Apparently they think reminding me of my mistake, is a form of caring. So, yeah, I know all about how his bank imploded and they fired Eric—and a whole lot of other investment bankers.
"I imagine he blew through his severance. And I know about the job selling cars, because one of my ladies bought a Porsche from him. Used, but still a Porsche."
"Hmm." Doug took the turnoff to the street where Maddie's business operated. The parking lot of the strip mall was empty except right in front of Glorious She. Big signs on the other business fronts requested gym patrons to park in the rear if the Glorious She slots were taken. Eric complied.
The rear lot had two rows of unoccupied spaces at the back. The other four rows were almost full and it was only mid-afternoon. He reversed into a space and got out to open her door.
"Where's reception?"
"There's two. Front and back. But I think he'll be at the back."
"Then we'll go in the front." Doug herded Maddie toward the walkway.
Alpha males. Maddie sighed. Her brother was just such a take charge guy. But there was no point arguing when they were right. She picked up her pace to match Doug's long strides.
"I don't think I'm in any danger."
"Hmm."
He was fizzing with some emotion Maddie couldn't place. She began to worry. "I don't want a scene."
"Of course not." It had to be her imagination that Doug's chest had gotten wider, his shoulders more massive, and his voice deeper.
"We'll go to my office first." Maddie struggled to take the reins back.
Doug held the door for her, and Maddie led the way to her office. Behind her Doug took in the walls which were neither blue nor grey nor green but some pale color in between. The reception desk was made of blond wood, as were the doors that radiated off the space.
He inhaled. He could detect only a subtle trace of some floral scent and far below that female sweat. Not like his gym which reeked of equal parts stale sweat, testosterone and bleach. This looked like an upscale day spa.
A huge vase of red flowers surrounded by green leaves sat on the blonde counter. The deep red, heart-shaped flowers with their long thick yellow stamens didn't fit. They looked like little penises on heart shaped platters to him. Suggestive, but not seductive. But what did he know? He was just a primitive bear.
Maddie's office was the same color as the hallway. Her door was also blonde wood with a large frosted glass panel just like all the others. It was unmarked, unlike the others which had elegant numbers smack in the middle of the glass.
Her blonde wood desk was wide and bare. Her chair was upholstered in a deeper shade of the paint. The two matching leather chairs in front of the desk were broad and deep and their blonde wood frames matched the desk and door.
"Have a seat," Maddie went around to her chair. She opened the middle drawer with a key and took out a laptop and booted it up. She hooked it up to the tablet she removed from her bag. "I'll just get these puppies syncing and then I can go deal with Eric."
"Not by yourself." Doug was smiling but implacable.
"You can come, but I will deal with Eric myself." Maddie headed for the door and Doug got up and opened it. She preceded him down the hall.
Several full bodied women dressed in everything from shrink wrapped neon spandex to baggy white gi greeted Maddie with happy smiles. She nodded back agreeably and murmured hellos, but she only stopped to speak to an employee dressed in the same dark grey outfit he had seen Maddie in. Glorious She was discreetly stenciled on the shoulder of the tunic.
"Give me half an hour, Lydia," she told the other woman and kept going.
They entered another shorter hallway and came into a big bright space with half a dozen of the same chairs in Maddie's office. A tall vase with big angular orange flowers and a spill of dark green leaves was the single off note.
Another robust and ample woman dressed in the Glorious She tunic was sitting behind a high counter. A look of relief appeared on her pleasant face as soon as she caught sight of Madeline.
An aging Zack Efron look-alike stood up when he saw Madeline. He was attired to captain a yacht in khakis and a navy blazer. His artfully tousled blonde hair had been tossed by an imperceptible gale. There was a large, flat gift-wrapped package on the seat beside him.
Pretty Boy held out his hands to Madeline and tried to kiss her. She pivoted towards the counter and he was left foolishly kissing the air.
"Good afternoon, Gayle," Maddie said amiably. "Let me see the booking chart, please." She peered at it and smiled. "Than
k you." She turned to Eric.
"Where have you been?" he demanded.
"Let's talk in my office," she suggested. She did not introduce him to Doug. Nor did she lead the way to her office. She walked past a number of doors and opened the one labeled twenty-three.
Doug stood and let Eric precede him. He looked around interestedly. So far he had seen nothing that resembled any gym he had ever been in, and this small room was no exception. Three walls had tall blond doors of the same wood that had been used in the lobby. The floor was the same charcoal grey vinyl.
Hard to know what it was for. He sniffed. Eucalyptus and maybe female sweat. He took up a relaxed position in front of the door looked straight at Pretty Boy and kept his lips zipped.
Pretty Boy was looking around in disapproval, his blue eyes scornful. "What is this? It isn't your office," he complained.
"What do you want, Eric?" Maddie asked. "This is my place of business and I don't appreciate you harassing my employees."
"What's with him?" Eric jerked a petulant thumb toward Doug.
Maddie noticed that Doug's face didn't alter by so much as twitch and his relaxed posture didn't change. That was good, wasn't it? Why was she suddenly so nervous?
"He's a friend of my brother's."
Eric smirked. "Your brother's taste always did run to big bruisers." He held out his well-groomed hand. "Eric Parkhurst. I'm Maddie's husband."
Doug regarded Eric's hand unmoved and kept his own loosely by his side. He didn't volunteer his name. Eric put his hand down and tried not to look foolish. Maddie didn't think he succeeded.
"Ex-husband," Maddie said into the awkward silence.
Eric held out his gift wrapped package. "These are for you, babe," he tried to achieve a social tone.
Maddie didn't touch the package. "What do you want, Eric?"
"Can't we talk privately?"
"If I wanted to speak to you alone, we wouldn't be in here. I would have thought we had nothing to say to one another. So just spit it out. I have things to do."
"I want you to give me another chance," Eric said seductively, moving a little closer. "I've missed you." Eric tried to put his free arm around her shoulders. Doug didn't speak, but Eric found himself trying to embrace a brawny bicep. Eric took a swing at Doug and found himself flat on his back.
"Stop it, both of you," Maddie hissed. "I will not have a scene here. I want you to go, Eric. I'm not interested in anything you're peddling."
Doug loomed over the younger man, he itched to help him to his feet and escort him from the building. Or something more violent. That bastard had tried to touch Madeline.
Eric scrambled to his feet. "I never thought you'd be bitter," he said reproachfully. He gave Madeline his most charming smile. Once it had made her feel like a queen. But those days were long done. "I just want a chance to make amends. You owe me that."
"I owe you exactly nothing."
"You know that if it wasn't for me, you'd never have been able to open this place. It's my money that bankrolled you."
Madeline narrowed her eyes and compressed her lips.
"Is it so difficult to believe that I've realized my mistake?" Eric gave her another winsome look and ran his eyes over her in a parody of lust.
That did it. This clown had used up his time. Doug moved to the door and opened it. "This way, Parkhurst," he said.
The hallway was crowded with large muscular women all staring at the doorway. "Do you need this room?" Madeline asked in a semblance of normality. A particularly tall woman in the Glorious She tunic smiled. "I was expecting to use twenty-three. My three-thirty is here," she indicated a voluptuous woman wearing a robe.
"It's all yours, Stephanie. Enjoy your massage, Stella." Madeline led the way back to reception.
Eric tried again. "You could at least hear me out. I could give you some advice on your expansion."
Ding. Madeline kept going. She turned to Doug. "Eric is going to go now. Gayle," she said pleasantly. "See that this arrangement, and the one at the front, go in Room sixty-six."
"Right away."
"Let's go," Doug said to Eric. He pushed the door open and Eric found himself in the parking lot. Madeline peered through the doors anxiously. Doug was not touching Eric but she was nervous anyway. Maybe letting Doug escort Eric off the premises was not such a good idea.
Doug waited until the other man unlocked his BMW before he spoke. "I don't want to see you around Madeline again, Parkhurst," he said. "Are we clear here?"
"You have no right."
"Are we clear?"
"Madeline is my wife."
"Not any more. You made her unhappy. You dishonored your marriage vows. You will leave her in peace from now on. Are we clear, Parkhurst?"
"You can't threaten me."
"I'm not threatening you, Parkhurst," Doug explained patiently, "I'm insulting you."
Pretty boy got into his car and peeled out of the lot. Doug watched him go with an impassive face.
"What did you say to him?" Madeline asked when he returned.
Doug looked at the counter. The ugly orange flowers were gone. "What's room sixty-six?" Please, not her office.
"Dumpster."
Doug smiled and waved her ahead. "This doesn't look like any gym I was ever in. Where's the weight room, the equipment?"
"We have those too. But my clientele wants a place that makes them feel feminine and acknowledges their right to luxurious surroundings."
"So no sweat, just massages?" Doug sounded baffled.
Maddie gurgled. "Lots and lots of sweat. And lots and lots of HVAC and really great change rooms and showers. My typical member comes twice a week to sweat, and twice a month for a sauna or a massage or a mud pack.
"In fact," she lowered her voice confidentially, "I've had to restrict the spa extras to members because I had such a backlog. I'm looking for a larger space for my next place." She opened her office door.
"I noticed that Eric seemed to know about your expansion?"
"Probably wormed it out of my realtor. Steve was a friend of his before me."
"But you still use him?"
"Steve didn't cheat on me. He's done a good job for me with locating this space and negotiating the lease. And he found me my house. So, yeah, I kinda let his friendship with Eric be. But if he's going to start blabbing my business?" she shrugged.
"I have some stuff to deal with, before I can leave. How about I spend twenty minutes putting out fires and then I give you the nickel tour?"
* * *
The mystery of the walls of cupboards was explained when Madeline opened them one at a time. One contained a flip down massage table, towels, music, and a little pot that diffused essential oils.
"It's a massage studio, or if I open this one, a private training space."
Door number two revealed thick mats that would cover the floor, and a small rack of barbells ranging from one to twenty pounds. Door number three held yoga equipment.
Maddie made a face. "The only problem I have, is that it is so much more profitable to use these rooms as massage studios, that I don't have anywhere for private sessions anymore. I need to expand, but the restaurant next door isn't willing to go. Paul’s restaurant was pretty marginal when I opened up. But he gets a lot of business from my members now."
"Hence your plan to find new premises?"
"I thought that since so many of my ladies are driving across town to work out here, that opening another branch in Mill Park would get some of my existing members to switch and this place would be less crowded, and we could go back to offering everybody the same thing.
"Non-members actually pay higher rates, so it's crazy that we can't offer them the spa treatments. But can you imagine if I told members that they had to get in line behind non-members? Talk about a deal breaker."
"Have you lined up financing?"
"Uh huh. Bank likes my numbers and my business plan. I pretty much just need a good location. And some more staff. If I am going to run two gy
ms, I will have to stop teaching classes myself, and I will need some more managers.
"But my time line is to open in fifteen months, so I have time to find the right place, or wait for something to come up."
"And figure out why Pretty Boy thinks he can get a piece of the action."
Her hazel eyes crinkled and she chuckled and shook her head. "Eric still living in dreamland, poor baby."
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