The workers moved to the other side, half of the sign now visible.
“I have never loved a place more than the home where my brother raised us,” she continued. “Until I walked through those doors.” Isabel turned to me, eyes soft and solemn. “I’m really proud to be a part of what you’re building here, Aiden. You’re taking something I love, and you’re treating it with the same care that I would if it were mine.”
My reaction to her words, her admission, wasn’t peaceful or soothing, and it took everything in me to hold still, not to reach for her hand, simply to find an anchor in the moment. “Thank you,” I said in a gruff voice.
Through the sound of the drills they used, the loud tinkering of metal on metal, Isabel and I fell into a comfortable silence.
I closed my eyes as the sun warmed my skin, and I imagined Beth seeing this. She’d be proud, in this home I’d found, this haven I was building.
The workers pulled the last of the protective coverings down, and as the cherry picker lowered, I finally saw the name in full.
“Looks good,” she said quietly.
The words were slow to crawl up my throat, past the hard-edges of emotion crowding the space. “It does.”
Somehow, it felt right that it was just her and I witnessing this moment, and I refused to dig into why.
“You didn’t want to have a big ribbon-cutting or anything?” she asked.
I shook my head.
“You know, you keep surprising me.”
Glancing at her, I found her attention still focused on the sign. “Yeah?”
“I’ve known a lot of athletes, current and former. Even if they don’t love the spotlight, they know how to use it to their advantage when necessary. I figured you’d do that here.”
I hummed, folding my arms over my chest. “A few years ago, I think I might’ve.”
Isabel gave me a quick look, then turned back to the front of the building.
“It might not be like this for everyone,” I continued, “but when my wife died, I hated the attention that came with it. With my decision to leave the sport. Being the center of everyone’s focus at the worst time in your life changed everything. Nothing about it appealed to me anymore.” I stared at the letters in blue. “I know it sounds crazy.”
“Not crazy.” She gave me a look, wisps of her almost-black hair slipping across her face in the breeze. “But you deserve to celebrate this. Your family and friends do too.”
My hands itched to slide the hair behind her ears. I left them where they were. “You think so?”
Her lips pulled at the edges, the start of a sly grin. “Well, if someone were to plan a party, they should have plenty of notice.”
“Ahh. If someone were to agree, I’ll let you know.” I raised an eyebrow. “Nothing big though, if we do. I’ve got someone I can reach out to for a little press though.”
“Okay.” She bit down on her bottom lip, sent a quick glance in my direction. “Hot chocolate?”
“Nope,” I murmured.
Isabel huffed quietly, and as she walked back into the gym, I found myself smiling.
Isabel
The next morning, Aiden looked tired and a little grumpy when he came in, but at the sight of an empty glass filled with ice on the front desk, his eyes warmed.
“So close.”
“Well, I’m running out of options.”
“Maybe you just need to try harder, Ward.”
I allowed a tiny eye roll and turned back to the computer screen, where an email popped up and had me smiling.
“Good news?” Aiden asked.
“Yeah.” I scrolled down the email. “It’s from the dean of student life at UDub. She’s going to work with us on spreading the news about our self-defense class. She thought it was a great idea, and if we get enough people to sign up, we could offer a few different sessions so we don’t overload the space.”
Aiden glanced at the gym, and I could tell he was trying to picture it.
I stood, gesturing beyond the ring. “We could push some of the equipment to the far side, and remove a few bags to temporarily open some space. But I think for the first class, we should cap the sign-ups at twenty to make sure we have enough room to move around.”
He nodded. “Sounds good.”
I sucked in a slow breath. “We charging for the class?”
His eyes were bright and clear when he moved his gaze back to me. “What do you think?”
My lips twitched at his perfectly even, perfectly annoyed that I’d even ask tone. “In general? Or about this?”
“Ward,” he growled.
I felt like I was poking a giant bear, but hell if I didn’t practically feel high being able to get just a little mouthy with him. We’d come far, I realized with no small amount of pride. “I assumed I knew the answer, but I didn’t want to do anything without your permission.”
His eyes flared. “You mean like when you tried to kick me in the head a couple of weeks ago?”
Heart hammering at the warmth in his tone, I was very proud of myself when I coolly, so coolly raised an eyebrow. “Not my fault you weren’t paying attention.”
He gave me a long look, and it stretched just long enough that my belly flipped dangerously. Sitting back down on the stool, I cursed the warmth in my cheeks.
Aiden was quiet for a few moments, and I found myself holding my breath for what he’d say next.
It was the first mention of that night, and he’d been the one to bring it up. That had to be significant, right?
“Electrician should be here in about thirty to start setting up the scanning system for the door,” he said. “Feel free to send him back to my office when he gets here.”
I kept my tone light. “You got it, boss.”
My hand had a slight tremble as I clicked on another email, and he was still behind me.
But when he walked away, I let out a slow breath and got back to work.
The rest of the day went smoothly. I taught a class and had a training session. The electrician installed our new system, and Emily and I worked for the next two days to figure out the distribution of the new card system to all members.
I set a carton of milk on Aiden’s desk when I returned after a day off, and his lips twitched.
“Oh, come on,” I said.
He leaned back in his chair, hands braced behind his head. “Eventually, you’ll get it because you’ll run out of options.”
I narrowed my eyes in a glare, and as I walked out of his office, I heard a low husky laugh that had goosebumps popping along my arms.
It was that sound that had me sliding into vivid imagery, Aiden kissing along the back of my neck, laughing when I turned and tried to capture his mouth.
Just as I contemplated how long it had been since I’d allowed myself into that headspace, the sound of someone swiping a key card at the door registered, and I blinked a few times to clear my face.
With my polite smile affixed, I looked up, only to see Anya smashing her face against the perfectly clean glass. She waved frantically, and I smiled. Behind her was a tall, handsome guy with Aiden’s eyes and jaw, but his hair was almost black.
I hated how immediately I cataloged all the ways he was less than Aiden.