When You're Mine - Layla Hagen Page 0,37

him to stop.

I gasped when I was out of breath and pulled a few inches away.

"No, no, no. You can't kiss me like this. It makes me want to jump you, and we’re at the gym."

"So what’s the problem?" he asked.

"Because I can’t jump you, and then that's what I'm going to think about for the rest of the day."

He touched my lips with a finger, looking me straight in the eyes.

"Good. That's exactly what I want you to think about for the rest of the day."

“You’re a bad man.”

I took another step back before turning around and heading to the private room I’d booked for Josie and Isabelle. The two of them were chatting but stopped abruptly when I walked in, looking at me curiously.

“Am I about to be scolded?” I asked, closing the door behind me.

“Scolded?” Josie asked, elbowing Isabelle. “What did you do to the poor girl that she thinks we’re gonna scold her?”

“Nothing,” Isabelle replied, looking miffed. They were each sitting on a Pilates mat cross-legged.

“Dylan said you sort of warned him against asking me out,” I explained while rolling out a mat for myself.

“There was no ‘sort of’ about it. I straight up told him not to do it. I see it worked well,” Isabelle said with a laugh. “Dylan’s a good guy, I promise. He’s just been hurt.”

“And now he’s got a super thick defensive wall around him,” Josie added.

“But you did convince him to take a puppy home, so maybe he’s starting to mellow. I love him, by the way. We named him Loki.”

I looked between them, shaking my head. “I see this session is going to be even less productive than usual, huh?”

Isabelle stood ramrod straight. “No, no. Let’s show Josie that Pilates kicks ass.”

To my surprise, the girls did focus on the exercises. They didn’t talk at all, and I wondered if they could coordinate their schedules to train at the same time. Josie was a good influence on Isabelle.

While we did crunches, I mulled over Josie’s words. Could I get through Dylan’s defensive wall? I wanted to, but I was afraid to try. No, it was better to enjoy what we had. It was easier at any rate.

The three of us were pretty sweaty by the time we were done. Half my hair fell from my bun, so I pulled it back in a ponytail as we went to the front desk. Josie wanted to sign up for one-on-one trainings too, but she and Isabelle had vastly different schedules, so there was no way they could come together.

We headed straight to the reception desk. Shauna stepped aside from the computer so I could look at the schedule.

“Brother, what are you still doing here?” I heard Isabelle ask. I looked up to find Dylan between his sisters. He was clearly done with his workout, rocking a suit again, holding the jacket over his shoulder with two fingers. He was way too sexy.

“I just finished,” he replied.

Isabelle narrowed her eyes. “A likely tale. You were waiting for us, weren’t you?”

“Mel, I forgot to warn you earlier: don’t listen to them.”

“Why? They’re only saying good things,” I said with a wink.

He looked from Isabelle to Josie, then back to me. “Then, by all means, listen.”

Chapter Fourteen

Mel

On Friday evening, Dylan was picking me up at six from home. After my last session, I stopped by the shelter, and Charlotte and I had a bit too much fun playing around with the pups. As was typical, I arrived home too late, so I threw on a black tank top and a short skirt that fit me like a glove. I put on gladiator-style sandals with golden straps and didn’t bother styling my hair. It was a humid evening, so it was pretty curly, and I knew better than to try to tame it. I called it my summer look. I glanced at myself in the huge mirror I’d glued to the bathroom door.

My phone pinged while I twirled once.

Charlotte: I want a picture.

Like a good friend, I took a selfie in the mirror and sent it to her. We’d done this since our NYU days: sending pics to one another before going out on a date. Charlotte had always been a rock in my life. When Dad got sick, she brought us home-cooked meals for months.

Charlotte: ROAR. Go knock that wall down.

I laughed, feeling a bit silly. I was looking forward to tonight so much. I’d told Charlotte about my conversation with Isabelle and Josie,