Filed To Story: Chasing the Rejected Luna's Heart (Clara & Liam) Book PDF Free
I blinked. “Curious about what?”
His eyes glimmered, the clearest blue I’d ever seen. “I’ve run this place for the last ten years, and this is definitely the first time a she-wolf has ever walked through those doors. Something tells me there’s a story behind that, and that story probably involves some asshole male wolf shifter. Am I right?””A few,” I conceded with a small laugh.
If he had any idea.
* * *
Of course, the next day at work, Sam was dying to know how training had gone. I managed to keep a straight face as I recounted what I could of the night’s events. A lot of it was a blur, considering how little oxygen had been making its way to my brain, both because of the physical exertion and… well…
I resisted the urge to gush about how hot my new instructor was since something told me word getting around to Cole about my lessons wouldn’t win me any points with him. Sam thought it was better he didn’t know, and I was in eager agreement.
After those first few days following his unexpected appearance, he had been scarce anyway. I could see why Sam needed all the help she could get around the bar. To his credit, Cole did have another job, even if I could never get a straight answer out of anyone as to what it was.
Some things, I decided, were better left a mystery. He was one of them.
Work kept me busy, and training every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with Marcus sapped any energy I might have had left to worry about my old life, or the guys. I had finally set up a bank account and opted for sending Liam a check through the mail, with no return address, of course. Not that it was likely he would actually bother to come find me anyway. This was just about easing his conscience and he could say he had given it a valiant effort before moving on with his life.
I wished I could say the thought didn’t bother me, but until then, pretending would have to be good enough.
On training days, I had worked it out with Sam that I would show up a little later than usual for work and stay a little later in turn. That night would mark three whole weeks since I had started at the gym. If there was one benefit to the hectic pace of my new life, it was that it kept the days moving quickly, and the more days that passed, the easier it was to accept the reality that this was the new normal.
Well, easy might not have been the right word exactly. But close enough.
Unfortunately, the gap between my head and my heart proved to be larger than ever. At least, I assumed it was my heart that was the source of the dull, aching emptiness that had plagued me ever since the first part of the mating ceremony.
It wasn’t helping that I felt like I was coming down with something. I didn’t have a fever or anything, even though it felt like it, so there was no reason to call out of work. I wasn’t even sure I could pinpoint what it was that felt wrong exactly. I wanted to blame it on exhaustion, but the truth was, I was actually beginning to adapt to my new routine. Just like my physical training at the gym, each day it got a little easier. The changes seemed negligible in isolation, but Marcus was right. Looking back, the place where I had started seemed to be a million miles away now.
I wasn’t about to be set back, either. Even though I felt more like shit when I woke up at two in the afternoon than I had all week, I rolled out of bed, got dressed, popped a few Advil, and pushed my ass out the door. I still hadn’t found a permanent solution for the whole transportation thing, but at least now I didn’t feel like I had to watch my back every time I took the commuter train. That was a start.
* * *
The gym was slow that afternoon, so I had the privilege of Marcus’s full attention and it was a hell of a lot more painful than all my fantasies promised. I was pretty sure this human could go toe-to-toe with most shifters and vampires, and he seemed intent on making sure I could say the same.
In the beginning, that had seemed like an utterly lost cause, but I was actually starting to think he was right. Maybe I did have the potential to become a badass, or at least someone who didn’t have to be afraid of her own shadow.
I couldn’t help but smile when I thought about what Mom would say if she could see me now, in a ring sparring with a human even if he was using kid gloves. Thinking about what the guys would say was equally amusing if infuriating.
Hell, if I ever did get the chance, I might put my newfound punching skills to good use on their washboard abs.
By the time my private instruction let out, I wasn’t sure the wobbling sticks of Jell-O beneath me counted his legs anymore. I was barely even across the lot when I was starting to regret not taking Marcus up on his offer to drive me home, since I knew it was well out of his way. Not that I would mind the excuse to spend a little more one-on-one time with him.