Trust in Me (5 page)

Rich couldn’t help but become enthused along
with her.

“That sounds great, Roni.”

“Can you show me the space you were thinking
of? I’d be interested in including a resale section, where I can
sell dance attire and accessories, if possible.”

Rich led her towards the largest studio
space, which he’d had finished with the dance studio in mind.

“Well, there is a small room off the back of
the studio, which I figured could be used as an office, it’s not
really big enough for resale. However, we will have a resale
section here at the Center. We will offer attire, equipment, and
accessories for the different classes we have here. I planned to
get with each instructor and see what items they wanted to have
available for resale to start. As time goes on, we can add or
takeaway items as needed. You would have a say in what is sold, if
that works.”

Roni grinned up at him, “You’ve thought of
everything.”

Rich smiled back at her, pleased that she
seemed to share his enthusiasm. “I really hope so.”

They stood there, smiling at each other for a
moment, until Rich realized that he was still conducting an
interview.

“Let me show you to the locker room. You can
change and meet me back in the studio.”

Roni nodded and followed him to the women’s
locker room, which was on the other side of the room he was staying
in.

“Did you pick a room next to the locker room
on purpose?”

That made Rich chuckle, but he just shook his
head and walked away, giving her time to get ready.

Rich moved the chairs back out of the way,
placing his in the back corner, in order to give her access to the
entire space.

When she walked in, his breath caught and his
entire body seemed to stiffen.

Her hair was piled on top of her head, black
boy shorts showcased her long, lean legs, and a small black tank
molded to her slender form. Her feet were bare. For some reason
that last bit of bare skin made Rich feel like he was going to lose
his mind.

She padded softly across the wood floor to
the radio and hooked her iPod in. She stretched languidly in front
of the mirror, seeming to have forgotten Rich’s presence.
With each stretch, Roni became more limber, and Rich became harder.
He was starting to think this audition was a terrible idea.

Terribly awesome.

When she was finished stretching, she pressed
play on her iPod and positioned herself in the center of the room.
As Christina Perri’s voice filled the room, Roni began to move.

Rich couldn’t have uttered a sound if he
wanted to. He was completely, and utterly mesmerized.

Her body seemed to be made for this. The
movement was so natural, so sensual, Rich had to focus on keeping
himself in the chair… his entire body seemed to scream at him to
get up and go to her.

As the music stopped, Roni turned to him, her
chest heaving as she fought to catch her breath.

“That’s the contemporary. It’ll be for the
advanced classes. I can show you the basic ballet and tap steps for
the younger classes if you’d like.”

Rich tried to speak, but squeaked
instead.

He felt his face grow warm as he cleared his
throat and tried again, “Um, no. That won’t be necessary.”

Roni stretched a bit as she walked towards
him, a puzzled smile on her face.

“You okay?”

Rich stood, willing his legs to hold him as
he tried to look cool and unaffected. “Yeah, I’m great.”

Roni stopped in front of him, looked shyly at
her foot, then back into his eyes. “Did you like it? Can I rent the
space and work here?”

A stray piece of hair fell from her bun, down
the side of her face. Without thinking, Rich reached over and
tucked it behind her ear, his hand stopping as it touched the side
of her face. He watched as Roni’s pupils dilated and her tongue
darted out to moisten her lips.

Shit, he thought, this was going to be harder
than he’d anticipated if the state of the throbbing in his pants
was any indication.

“I loved it. You’re an amazing dancer,” Rich
said, his hand gently caressing her cheek. “You can rent the
space.”

She surprised him by launching into his arms
and throwing hers around his neck. She hugged him hard, then pulled
back with a laugh. “Sorry, I’m all sweaty.”

He may have whimpered at that, but he’d sure
as hell never admit it. Instead he smiled back at her and nodded,
then pulled away from her until he could no longer feel the
glorious slippery heat of her skin.

Roni gathered up her stuff and bounded out of
the studio with a shout of joy. She said she’d see him later as she
walked out the door, leaving him hot and hard, as he turned and
headed towards the men’s locker room.

He was going to need a cold shower. Glacier
cold.

Chapter Eight

Roni still felt the adrenaline pumping when
she walked into the Bar & Grill to meet her friends. She’d felt
great during the audition, although the thought of Rich watching
her did make her self-conscience, it had also been
invigorating.

She walked up to the table where Nicole,
Briana, and Kara were already sitting, and was greeted by a chorus
of “Hello’s”.

Nicole was showing off her engagement ring
when Roni scooted in next to Briana. She gave the other woman a hug
and said, “It’s good to see you again Bree.”

“You too,” Briana said as she brushed her
dark hair out of her face. “I’m so happy we could come home for the
holidays.”

Briana looked up and smiled when the door
opened again, she waved at Rich as he walked in. Roni watched as he
walked over to where Pete was tending bar. As he said something to
Pete, the new bartender, Claire sauntered over to him.

She was a beautiful, bawdy redhead that had
been on the job for about two weeks. She seemed intent on showing
Rich all of her assets. Roni could hear the deep tenor of Rich’s
voice as he said, “Howdy, darlin’.”

Roni rolled her eyes and turned her focus
back to the girls.

Rich was nothing but a flirt.

Briana, Nicole, and Kara were all watching
her, then looked pointedly at Rich.

“Whatchya lookin’ at?” Kara said with a saucy
grin.

“Just Rich, doin’ what Rich does best,” Roni
replied dryly.

“Oh… He’s pretty good at that, but I wouldn’t
say that’s what he does best,” Kara said with a big laugh as she
nudged Briana.

Roni narrowed her eyes at the two of them.
“What do you mean?” She asked.

“Let’s just say, there is a very good reason
that the ladies love Rich,” Kara replied. “He knows how to treat
women.”

“You’ve slept with him?” Roni asked in a
whisper as she leaned over the table towards Kara.

“Sure,” Kara shrugged. “Before Pete, of
course. You can always count on Rich for a good time.”

“Kara,” Briana warned in a low voice, “You
know that’s not all Rich is… A ladies man.” She looked over at Roni
and smiled. “I mean, it’s the truth, he does know his way around
the female form, but he’s so much more than that.”

Roni choked on the water she’d just sipped,
“Wait a minute… You too?” She looked around at her friends. “Is
there anyone he hasn’t slept with?”

Nicole raised her hand, causing them all to
laugh.

“Roni, Rich has been single for as long as
I’ve known him. He makes sure that the girls he’s with know that he
isn’t looking for anything serious. He’s not a heartbreaker or a
dog
, he’s just a man that loves being with women,” Briana
explained.

“Hey, whatever he wants to do is his
business, not mine,” Roni said, all of her suspicions about Rich
had just been confirmed by her friends.

“He’s a great guy, Roni,” Kara said.

“The best,” Nicole agreed.

“Don’t hold his past against him,” Briana
added.

“Guys, there’s nothing going on between Rich
and I,” Roni said.

Just then, Rich turned to see them all
staring at him. He grinned broadly and Briana waved her fingers at
him. He gave them a wink, said something to Pete and Claire, then
walked over to their table.

“This must be my lucky day,” Rich drawled as
he got closer. “Such a beautiful group of women.”

“Hi, Rich,” Nicole, Kara, and Briana said in
unison, causing them to giggle and Rich to raise an eyebrow.

He looked over at Roni, “Hello again.”

Roni just said, “Hi.”

“You coming to the party at Kent’s on
Christmas?” Nicole asked him.

“Absolutely, what time are ya’ll
lookin’at?”“Around four. That will give everyone time with their
families, then we can have some drinks and apps before dinner.”

“Sounds perfect,” Rich said. “Do you need me
to bring anything?”

“Well, we figured we’d pull names for gifts,
so I’ll text you with the details. Other than that, just bring
yourself,” Nicole replied.

“Great,” Rich said. “Well, I gotta get back,
so I’ll leave you ladies to your meal. Oh, and Roni, thanks again
for the dance earlier. You were magnificent.”

That said he gave them each a smile, then
walked back out the door. Once he was gone, they all turned to look
at Roni.

“The dance?” Nicole asked with a big
grin.

“I had my interview and audition today,” Roni
replied. “I’m going to rent space at the Rec Center and open a
Dance Studio.”

“That’s wonderful,” Briana said. “This Rec
Center is really turning into something great. I’m so happy for
Rich, and for you. I can’t wait to see what they’ve done so far.
Especially in the kitchen.”

“What I saw today looked amazing,” Roni
admitted. “What’s this about Christmas?”

“That’s what we were talking about when you
walked in, before we were all distracted by Rich’s hotness,” Kara
said with a laugh.

“I just talked Kent into it last night,”
Nicole said. “I thought it would be fun for us to all get together
and spend Christmas with each other. Have a nice meal and exchange
gifts. You in?”

“Of course,” Roni said. She loved
Christmas.

They all started talking about the holidays
and the Rec Center. Roni couldn’t help but think about what
everyone had said about Rich. Lord knew he was hot. There was no
denying that. Nor could she deny the attraction she’d been having
to him lately. With everything she knew about him though, she
didn’t think she could ever act on it.

She just wasn’t interested in a guy that was
so obviously opposed to commitment, and who’d been with so many
women.

He was he exact opposite of what she needed,
wasn’t he?

Chapter Nine

Rich broke down the last box, grabbed the bag
of trash and the rest of the boxes, and headed out back to the
dumpster. He’d finally finished unpacking his room. There wasn’t a
lot to it, but it felt great knowing that it was all his.

The small space held his bed, his speed bag,
and had a flat screen mounted on the wall. With the small bathroom
attached, the amazing kitchen a few feet away, and his office in
the front of the warehouse, he figured he had everything he needed.
Add to that the access to his own fitness center and boxing ring,
and one might say he was living the dream.

After unloading his trash, he entered the
warehouse through the back by the boxing ring; he stopped in when
he noticed Jason using the equipment.

“Hey, man,” Rich said to his new friend and
manager of the boxing/fitness portion of the Rec Center. “How’s the
equipment?”

Jason kicked the heavy bag one more time,
then turned to Rich, “It’s great, Rich. I used the weights, tried
out the cardio equipment yesterday and today, and have been in here
for the past hour. Everyone’s gonna love it. I know I do.”

Rich went over to the mini fridge and pulled
out a water for himself and Jason. He held onto the water as Jason
ran a small towel over his face, and his short jet black hair, then
handed him the bottle.

“I’m getting really pumped for the grand
opening,” Rich said. “Everything is coming together and we are on
track for the opening on January 2
^nd
. I can’t believe
it’s only a couple weeks away. I have some friends coming in for a
tour in a bit, then a couple more interviews this afternoon. If you
wouldn’t mind taking a look at the web page I’ve been working on,
I’d appreciate it.”

“Sure thing,” Jason replied. He paused then
asked, “Hey, I was just wondering, did you hire that tiny
brunette?”

“Who, Alex?” Rich asked. “Yeah, I did.”

“What’s she gonna teach? Art or
something?”

Rich chuckled, “No, Karate.”

Jason looked surprised, then smiled, “No,
shit?”

“Why you askin’? Interested?”

Jason looked at Rich, then down at his own
arms, which were covered in tattoos. “Yeah, right. I’ve seen her
around town; she works for the Mayor’s office. I don’t think she’d
be interested in a guy like me.”

“What, you mean a smart, good-looking boxer,
with the pre-requisite “bad boy” tattoos and motorcycle? Yeah,
doubt she’d find that attractive,” Rich said dryly with a smirk.
Then he looked at his friend seriously, “Don’t sell yourself
short.”

Jason nodded at him and slapped him on the
back, then turned back towards the bag and started kicking.

Rich headed out towards the office and was
almost there when the door open and his friends came piling in. He
smiled at their ooohs and aaahs.

“It looks beautiful,” Briana said as she gave
him a hug.

“I can’t believe how great it looks,” Nicole
said as she waited her turn for a hug. He obliged, then turned to
give the hand-clasp, half-hug to his friends.

“I’m glad ya’ll could come by,” Rich said.
“There are still a few spots that are under construction, but
you’ll get the idea.”

Briana jumped up and down, “Can we see the
kitchen first?”

“Hold your horses, shorty,” Rich said with a
chuckle. “We’ll start here, then make our way around the
Center.”