Total pages in book: 26
Estimated words: 23935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 120(@200wpm)___ 96(@250wpm)___ 80(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 120(@200wpm)___ 96(@250wpm)___ 80(@300wpm)
“Again?” I growl, feeling annoyed.
“Don’t shoot the messenger,” Cedric says and holds up his hands. “He said he thought he left it in his ex-girlfriend’s car and asked me not to cancel it yet.”
“He knows damn well he didn’t leave it in there,” I say, rolling my eyes. “He’s just trying to see if she’s fucking someone else yet.”
“My money is on Stephen’s brother Reece.” Cedric leans close and lowers his voice. “I saw Reece texting her the other day.”
“And they say women like to gossip.” I shake my head. “Give him twenty-four hours and then cancel the old one. Got it?”
“You got it, boss,” Cedric confirms, and I head back to the gym.
Making the rounds, I say hello to a few coaches and watch them work. Everyone calls me boss, including the guys training. Once that’s done, I check in with Albert, head of housekeeping, to make sure we’re all good on supplies before tomorrow night’s underground fight.
“I want first-aid set up by the back wall,” I say to Albert. “And I want someone stationed by the entrances to the locker rooms. Both men’s and women’s. I don’t want anyone sneaking in there while the fights are happening.”
“Are you sure the women’s too?” Albert asks, and I nod. “Probably not a bad idea. I’ve been seeing a lot more activity in there recently when I go to clean at night.”
I curse Lonnie under my breath. I didn’t go back and look at other footage of who went in and out of the locker room once I saw Lonnie and the smoothie girl. I guess I should have checked to see how many times they’ve been visiting the women’s locker room, but it’s not like it really matters. I’ll keep an eye on it going forward, and if I see him go in there again, it’s going to be a problem.
“Thanks, Albert. I appreciate you checking on it.”
As busy as this gym is, we don’t have a ton of women that work out here regularly. I’ve reached out to a few women about coaching here, but so far, nothing has panned out. I should be better about recruiting, but with how busy I’ve been, I haven’t made it a priority. Just then someone calls my name, and I’m pulled in another direction. Maybe one of these days things will settle down.
CHAPTER
THREE
JULIET
I jerk awake when a hand touches my shoulder, and a small scream leaves me before I can press my hand over my mouth. This is the last place to be screaming.
“It’s okay.” The librarian holds her hands up in surrender, but her expression is sympathetic. “We’re closing.”
“Sorry,” I respond and rub my eyes. I hadn’t meant to fall asleep.
“Do you have somewhere to go?”
“Yeah,” I mumble.
“All right, honey.” She steps away, going back to her desk at the front.
I’ve been coming here most afternoons. People don’t want paper job applications anymore, and without a phone or laptop, the library was my only choice. Now I’m spending almost all of my time here. I was hoping to get a response back from one of the millions of places I’ve put in a job application, but it’s been crickets. All that money spent on fancy prep schools for nothing.
Grabbing my coat, I put it on along with my gloves before grabbing my bag to head out. This area of town is nice, but I can’t linger for too long before a shop owner is hurrying me along. Luckily the library isn’t far from the gym, but it’s only a matter of time before I get busted there too.
Normally the girls’ locker room is empty, but last time there were two people going at it while I stood shamelessly on a toilet. Thankfully whoever the guy was went off quickly, and the girl didn’t sound real happy about it. Hopefully that means they won’t be back. It’s going to be below freezing tonight, and this is my only option.
Every time I use the key fob to get in, I hold my breath, praying that it works. When I scan it and the light turns green, I’m flooded with relief. Pulling up my hood, I let it fall partly over my eyes as I enter the gym.
The smell of fresh lemon lingers in the air. This place might have tons of men, but they make sure it doesn’t stink. The whole building is nice and clean, which makes it more bearable to sleep here. I can toss down a yoga mat and use a few towels for a pillow. It’s not ideal, but it feels safe when I’m in here at night. They lock the gym down tight, and I doubt I could even get out if I wanted to. Being locked in means I’ll have to wait for them to open in the morning before I can go, but it’s worth not having to sleep on the street.