Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 132657 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 663(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 442(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132657 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 663(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 442(@300wpm)
Luke Taggart jogged up, carrying his leathers in a garment bag over his shoulder, his knife case in his other hand, and his kit dangling from there as well. It looked like he was coming straight from his job. Which was surprising since it was Friday night and he worked at his father’s restaurant as a chef and usually handled the dinner rush. On Fridays and Saturdays he tended to not show up until after midnight, but he often was in early on Thursdays. Luke was a big, muscular man with sandy hair and a smile guaranteed to knock the socks off every sub within a hundred feet.
He also had a bit of a reputation for sleeping with as many of them as he could.
Luke often played with Harlow, and though he knew damn well she wasn’t one of his bed buddies, it still made jealousy rise every time he saw them together. Which wasn’t a good thing since she was his best friend’s girl and he was supposed to watch over her. “What’s up?”
“You own the gym on Good Latimer, right?” Luke asked.
He bought the space right after moving to Dallas. He’d always intended to put down roots in a city but hadn’t made the decision before Jensen showed up on his doorsteps six months before, and he reluctantly agreed to watch over the woman he loved.
And a whole new world opened for him.
“That’s my gym. Why? You looking for a new place to work out?” Niall pushed open the door to the men’s locker room, holding it for Lucas. He had no doubt Luke Taggart had a gym. The guy was in excellent shape.
“Yeah, kind of. I’ve been going to this place close to Top, and it’s getting overcrowded, if you know what I mean,” Luke explained.
“He means he’s slept with too many women at the gym, and he needs a new hunting ground.” Gabriel Lodge sat on the sofa inside the locker room. The actual lockers were in the back along with the showers and pretty much anything a guy could need to be presentable for playtime. This space was more like a lounge, complete with a TV and a fridge stocked with soda and mineral water and beer—though they drank it sparingly. If a dude was playing, he better not over imbibe or he could find himself on the street and not welcome back.
It was one of the things he loved about this club. They deeply cared about safety and consent.
“That is not…” Luke sighed. “Okay, it might be a bit of the problem, but I’m not only asking for me.”
“But you are also asking for you.” Gabriel Lodge was in sweatpants and a T-shirt, a bottle of water in his hand and a bit of what looked like sawdust on his sneakers. So he’d likely been here for hours, working in the shop on the third floor. Niall thought his latest project was a complete redo of one of the play spaces. Despite the fact that the man came from a ridiculously wealthy family, he loved to work with his hands. “Tell me which one got too clingy.”
Luke’s blue eyes rolled. “No one got too…”
“It was Sally Eight Pack.” Seth Taggart, Luke’s cousin and roommate, threw the name out with a big grin on his face. “She showed up at our place three times last week. He slept with her once but made breakfast the next day. His crème brûlée French toast. I told him not to do it. I warned him that recipe is magic. Even I kind of want to hug him when I eat it.”
“She’s fine,” Luke argued and sighed again. “But the truth is it would be better if I get a fresh start, and there’s something else.”
“Is it the chick who can bench press you?” Seth asked.
“Fine. It’s all of them,” Luke shot back with a shake of his head as Gabriel laughed. “But beyond that, we have a couple of new guys working the line who are looking for a gym that can meet their somewhat unique needs.”
Oh, now he was interested. Top was known for hiring veterans and training them in the culinary and hospitality arts. And many of them were disabled. Niall was interested in physical therapy. After he left the Army, he got his four-year degree in kinesiology, with plans to work on his DPT. Some day. “I’m kind of spare right now, but I’m absolutely interested in working with vets if that’s what you’re talking about.”
Lucas nodded. “I am. There’s a physical therapist a couple of the guys have been seeing, and he recently lost his space. The building owner upped the rent on everyone. He’s looking for a place where he can work. He has some of his own stuff, but he relies on gyms for the big equipment.”