****
The following morning, Maddie was prepared for the knock at her door. She wore a pair of sweatpants and a large sweater. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail.
Jase was dressed similarly, only he had a hat on.
“Ah, you’re ready. This is what I like to see from my clients.”
“I haven’t run in a long time,” she said.
“Do not worry about it. We’re going to start slowly and build it up.”
Maddie nodded. She stepped out into the cold, pocketed her keys, and followed him down the steps.
“Now, I want you to start doing some stretches.”
He began to show her how to warm up her body, and she attempted to copy him, but he eventually moved behind her, putting his hands on her hips and moving her left, to right, holding her stomach and showing her how to bend and stretch without risking pulling a muscle or tearing anything.
She did as he instructed, and at one point, he stared at her, and she was a little nervous about it.
“What’s the matter?” she asked.
“Oh, nothing. Just … you’ve got good strength. Okay, let’s go,” he said.
He started out at a slow jog, and Maddie was able to keep up with him. She hated that it wasn’t long before she was out of breath, but she didn’t stop.
She wasn’t going to fall down at the first hurdle. She kept on moving, trying to keep up with him. When they came near a park that had some climbing frames, swings, and other apparatuses for the kids to play on, along with a huge-ass field, Maddie thought he would take it easy, but he didn’t. They ran the lap around the field. She had no choice but to stop as there was a stitch at her side.
A groan left her, but she kept on moving, determined to not give up.
Jase had already finished as she caught up to him. He wasn’t out of breath, and she ended up on the ground, panting, making some very distressing noises as she did.
This wasn’t fun. This wasn’t easy.
“You’re trying to kill me,” she said.
“Actually, I’m trying to train your body to be ready for everything.”
“You’re still standing, and I’m on the ground, struggling to breathe. This is not preparing for everything.” She put her hands on her chest, trying to calm herself.
He chuckled and stood over her.
She groaned. “You’re liking this way too much.”
“I’ve been very impressed with how you’ve handled everything so far. Not many people can take on a run their first day in.”
“So this was just for me?”
“The first couple of weeks, I’ve got to get a sense of what you can take.”
Maddie lifted her hands to her face, feeling the beads of sweat. “It’s freezing cold and I’m sweating.”
“That’s good news.”
He moved her thigh, and he suddenly stood between her legs, his large palms on her thighs. “How are you feeling?” he asked.
“Fine. What are you doing?” She tried to pull away, but he placed a palm on her stomach.
“I don’t want you to pull a muscle or to do any damage. I’m simply checking you over.”
“Oh, okay.” She didn’t like his touch.
Since Bull, she had sworn off all men. It wasn’t just Bull, it was the missed dates, the shitty ones. She wanted nothing to do with any one of them.
“You’re very tense,” he said.
“I’m not used to men touching me.” She closed her eyes and lifted her head. “Please, don’t take that personally or anything.”
“Nothing personal taken. You do need to learn to relax though.”
“To relax? How? I feel like I’m dying.”
“Well, you’re not.” He gave her thigh a slight tap. “There you go. You’re good to go.”
Maddie got to her feet, feeling tired, but good. It was an odd sensation.
“Are you ready to head back?”
“Walk or run?” She tried not to flinch at the thought of running again.
“We’ll walk.”
“Walking. Good. I can walk.” She matched his steps as they headed back toward her place.
“Even though we’re only having three classes a week, there’s nothing to stop you from coming to the gym whenever you need it.”
“Thanks. I don’t know if I want to step inside a gym right now.” She smiled at him.
Jase chuckled. “It can be a body adjustment, but it’s all for a good cause.”
“Thank you.”
She hadn’t noticed on the way to the park that they’d passed Chaos and Carnage Mechanics. The gates were open, and with one quick glance inside, she saw Bull and Pat. They stood next to a vehicle, talking.
Maddie quickly averted her gaze.
“You know them?” Jase asked.
“Er, the … owner, we, I mean, I, it’s complicated.”
“Ah, bad breakup.”
“I guess we would’ve had to be going together for it to be a breakup. I don’t know what we were, but he made it perfectly clear I’m not what he wanted.” She picked up her speed, wanting to get back to her apartment and then to work.