Traitorous Heart 5 (Traitorous Heart #5) Read Online Free Page B

her…
    I punched my pillow and forced myself to stop thinking like that. It was a dream. A stupid fucking dream. I didn’t deserve Katie.

 
     
     
    CHAPTER 5
    Griffin
     
     
    The next morning I pickup up a couple of coffees and had my driver take me to Katie’s. I knocked several times, but she didn’t come to the door.
    I left and walked down Fifth Avenue toward the gym. It was the one across the street from Dorvey’s, a total meat market, but the facility was clean and I got a lot of attention.
    After an hour on the treadmill I started feeling differently about Katie going on tour with the band and me. It wasn’t a good idea. She’d be better off here, and I’d be able to focus more fully on what was most important: My music. And who the fuck knew? Maybe nothing would come of our meeting with the record label.
    I took a towel from one of the workers and wiped the sweat from my face and hair, then moved over to the weights.
    I planted my feet shoulders width apart and faced the full-length mirror, then began lifting two thirty-pound free weights. When weightlifting I liked to do three reps: The first set with moderate weights, each arm twelve times; the second with lower weight and higher repetition; and the final set with heavier weight and lower reps. The system really created definition at a quick pace.
    “Nice guns.” A blond female came over, admiring the flexing of my biceps.
    “Thanks.” I blew out as I released the bicep curl. Sucked in as I lifted my other arm.
    “You’re Griffin, right?”
    I finished with the thirty-pound weights and went over to pick up a couple of twenties. “Yeah.” I started bicep curls again.
    “I remember you from high school.” She got five pound weights and started her own bicep curls.
    I studied her reflection in the mirror as I counted my reps internally. Her face didn’t seem familiar. It was fake tanned, along with the rest of her scantily clad body. She had bright blue eyes and pouty lips. Her breasts were nearly popping from the bra top she wore. She had on short workout shorts that cupped her toned ass and came to just below her belly button, which was pierced.
    I finished my reps. “Were we the same year?” I asked, putting the twenties back and picking up two forties.
    She smiled. “Yeah, but I looked different in high school.”
    “Oh, how so?” I figured, since she wasn’t leaving, maybe an open-ended question would give her lots of room to talk.
    She set down the weights and faced me. “I was forgettable. Obviously.”
    I slowly perused her body. “Your body is unforgettable.” I smiled, hoping she’d appreciate the compliment.
    She blushed.
    “What’s your name?”
    Her blush deepened. “Chloe Morrell. My dad is the president of Morrell Banking.”
    “Holy shit.”
    She laughed. “Yeah, I guess.”
    “Were we in any classes together?” I blew out, trying not to show any strain as I lifted.
    “No. And I didn’t hang in the same crowd you, Reid, and Pamela did. I was kind of a bookworm, really.”
    That surprised me. Not the bookworm part, but that she knew Reid and Birdy. “Did we ever speak to each other in high school?”
    Her smile faded and she looked away.
    “What? Oh, God, was I an asshole? I swear I’ve grown up.”
    She turned back. “You spoke to me once.”
    “What did I say?”
    “What you said doesn’t matter. It was a long time ago.” She picked up heavier weights. “But your words stuck with me.” Her perfectly composed features wavered slightly, and I realized that whatever I said, it wasn’t nice. It was hurtful.
    “I’m sorry.”
    “For what?” Her face returned to its former serene composure.
    “I was such a complete prick in high school. Whatever I said probably hurt.”
    She seemed surprised. “Don’t be. Your words inspired me to become who I am today.” She set the weights down.
    I put mine back, too, then walked over to the machines and adjusted the weight on the overhead press, sat, and pulled.