I rose from the bed and started my mobility routine. Bella had a pretty impressive home gym, and I was a bit lazy to run through an unfamiliar route right now, so treadmill it was then.

After a quick cold shower in the adjacent bathroom, I walked into Bella’s closet. Curious bit of trivia, her closet had more of my clothing than my place. Quickly finding a set of gym gear and running shoes, which I donned, I went to a room dedicated to the gym.

The first thing I saw after entering was Lyta, doing squats, wearing a pair of gym shorts and a sports bra. Her form was great, while the bar had a respectable weight on it. She caught my gaze in the wall mirror, and I nodded as a greeting.

Deciding to let the girl do her own workout without distractions, I put in my ear buds and went to a treadmill. After playing a bit with the control panel, I set myself a pace and started my run.

***

Finishing my daily mileage quota, I stepped down from the treadmill.

“Cardio only?” I heard a question.

“Already have a gym date scheduled,” I decided to answer.

“And Isabella knows about it?” Another question.

“And Bella knows about it.” Another answer.

“Why do you need other women when you already have someone like her?” She continued questioning me.

“For the same reason she needs someone else when she has someone like me.” I humored her with an answer. “Lust. Greed. Commitment issues. Shitty nature.”

“What about those women, then? Do they know about Isabella?” Should I cut this short?

“Yes,” I said. “Look, I don’t mind playing the twenty questions, but it’s time for a shower and breakfast. Later.”

Ignoring her protests, I left to do exactly that.

***

To my surprise, Bella’s fridge was actually stocked with actual food. I was certain that she was living on take-outs. Taking eggs, cheese, and some sort of ham, I started the cooking process. Now, if only Lyta stopped trying to kill me with her glare.

“Want some?” I asked.

“I can cook for myself,” she replied in a hostile tone.

“That’s not what I asked.” I shook my head.

“Why do you even ask?” Again with her questions.

“I wanted to be polite.” Trying not to let her get under my skin, I answered.

“I don’t need your politeness.” What is her problem?

“Then get the fuck out of here.” I stared into her eyes. “The only reason I didn’t throw you out yesterday is because you are one of Bella’s people. And she tends to be overprotective of her subordinates.”

“I don’t understand you.” She ignored my outburst.

“I don’t need your understanding,” I parroted her earlier words.

“Then what do you need from me?” Nothing.

“Nothing,” I repeated it aloud.

“Then why have you defended me back in the office?” I guess that’s the crux.

“I thought I was clear enough with my words back then.” I shrugged. “It’s a waste of talent to simply cut you off like that.”

Silence. I shrugged and went back to cooking. Cutting ham, mixing eggs, grating cheese.

“Can you make some for me as well, please?” Question.

“Sure.” Answer.

Silence.

“I think there were some vegetables in the fridge as well. Can you wash and cut them?” I asked.

“Sure,” she acknowledged.

Silence.

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“Hey, what do you think I should do now?” She sounded lost.

“With veggies?” I joked.

Silence. Deadpan stare.

“With my life,” Lyta clarified.

“Whatever you want,” I responded.

Sound of water.

“I don’t know what I want any longer.” Deep sigh.

“Then do whatever you can.” I finished mixing eggs.

I searched for a pan of suitable size. Found it. Hm, where is the control panel of this stove? A bit of experimentation later, and the pan started heating up.

“Scrambled or not?” I asked the most important question.

“Scrambled.” Lyta answered, while swiftly cutting the veggies.

Silence again. Sounds of cooking utensils. Rhythmic sounds of knife work.

“Done.” She finished cutting.

“Thanks,” I voiced my gratitude.

“Tea or coffee?” She asked.

“Coffee. No sugar. A bit of milk. Don’t stir,” I gave my instructions.

Hm, plates should be somewhere over there. Found them. Lyta operated a coffee machine. Soon after, I caught a scent of coffee. I served the table. She brought cups over.

“You are different from what I heard about you,” she stated in her observations.

“What did you hear?” I voiced my curiosity.

“Overly prideful, arrogant, aggressive,” she recounted.

“With a side of being a womanizer?” I added my five cents.

“Yep.” She nodded.

“Sounds about right,” I acknowledged.

Silence. Sounds of fork against the plate. Quiet sips of coffee.

“Do I have a chance to win?” A serious question out of nowhere.

“Not really.” A serious answer.

“Should I give up then?” Defeated tone.

“Up to you.” I didn’t really care.

“Shouldn’t you discourage me here?” A raised eyebrow.

“Whether you do or not, it won’t make any difference.” I was confident.

Silence. We both finished our food. I decided to rinse the plates. Lyta helped me by drying them.

“Is there really no way?” Why are you asking me this, girl?

“There is.” There actually was.

“What is it?” I could see hope in her eyes. I could hear hope in her voice.

“You can seduce me.” I dashed her hopes.

“Are you joking?” Disbelief, surprise, and anger.

“I am serious.” I was.

Silence. She was glaring at me. I simply looked back.

“How is that supposed to help?” Valid question.

“This is a long story.” I wasn’t in the mood to have a serious talk.

“We have time.” She argued.

I glanced over at the clock on the microwave. Ten twenty-seven.

“No. You have time. I have a date to get ready for.” I rejected her argument.

“But…” She tried again.

“There is no reason to have this talk without Bella present. She will be back this Sunday at the earliest. You have a week to think this through. If you think it’s a full-stop, then give up right now,” I explained. “Now, excuse me, I have a date to get ready for.”

***

After rummaging through Bella’s closet, I managed to improvise something casual yet in line with everything I wore previously to pick up Olivia. A short exchange with the girl in question later, I changed my shirt to another style, since it was more to her taste. My girlfriend also gave me the seal of approval, telling me that it would be good enough for a date with Claire as well.

Speaking of Claire, the Counter Girl sent me her address, and I checked traffic maps for the planned route. The result was full green, which wasn’t all that surprising. First half of Monday, and, except for a short distance around Bella’s place, the roads in question were far away from the busy ones.

Me: [still up?]

Counter Girl: [Yes.]

We chatted a bit more as I packed the work-out clothes. After that was done, I walked down the stairs to the first floor of the condo. Lyta was ready to leave as well. I offered to drop her off at the nearest train station, which she accepted. Her already thoughtful and quite sour expression darkened even more when she saw which car I was about to drive.

Me: [on my way]

Counter Girl: [Waiting.]

I dropped Lyta off at the place she asked me to and drove off to pick up my gym buddy. Absent-mindedly, I wondered if Claire would dress up for the occasion.

***

With traffic lines on the navigator screen still being green, the drive was surprisingly short. I looked at the time, eleven forty-two. Well, at least I was well on time.

As I was looking for a place to park for my wait, I saw a bit of an upsetting picture. Claire, to my disappointment, decided to wear the combo I’ve seen before. Light-gray hoodie, blue jeans and white sneakers. With her figure and overall sporty and energetic vibe, this outfit worked pretty well, but I would love to see her in something new.

The upsetting thing took the form of the familiar-looking, lanky dude with whom Counter Girl was currently talking. Hm, what should I do?

On the one hand, I was already quite attracted to her. On the other hand, I wasn’t all that interested in wasting my time with someone who plays games.

“What a drag,” I muttered under my breath.

Me: [I’m here]

Me: [do you want to reschedule?]

With a bit of dark delight, I looked at how the arrival of my messages startled Claire. To my surprise, she didn’t delay reading them, though. From what I could see, after the Counter Girl finished doing that, she started to look around, most likely, trying to find me. Failing to do so, she started typing a response.