and he would never act like that. This guy was a different kind of hot. Not bulky with muscles, but lean with pent-up power. His over confidence, the very thing that rubbed her the wrong way, also created a magnet that even Syd could feel pulling at her.
“Some women think I’m attractive.”
Granny floated behind the guy. “Who does he think he is, James Bond?”
Sydney hid a smile. “Your momma doesn’t count.”
“My momma?” He chuckled. “She thinks I’m perfect, but what about you?”
“Sorry, no.” Sydney turned her gaze, if not her concentration, back to the cable machine.
“Whoa, whoa, I thought you might be hard to get, but this is ridiculous.”
“I’m more than hard to get.” She tugged on the cable for a tricep pulldown and risked another glance in his direction. She couldn’t help but enjoy the view and almost found herself smiling at the conversation. Crew was the only one she flirted with. She’d always felt awkward around other boys who paid her attention. This was kind of fun. Then the guilt hit, she almost let go of the rope and touched her stomach. She was pregnant with Crew’s baby. She shouldn’t allow this guy to flirt with her.
“That’s right, love, tell him off,” Granny encouraged.
“Why?” he asked.
“I’m engaged.” That ought to get him to leave her alone.
“Engaged.” His eyebrows shot up in surprise.
“Exactly.”
“Engaged?”
“Yes.”
“Engaged?”
“He is slow,” Granny said.
Sydney shook her head, biting back a laugh. “E-n-g-a-g-e-d,” she spelled out for him. “Maybe you should ease up on the roids, they’re impairing your thought process.”
“Ha, good one!” Granny waved goodbye. “I’m off, love, way to put him in his place.”
Sydney smiled, careful not to say anything so people didn’t think she was crazy. Granny didn’t usually show up when other people were around. She let go of the rope and headed for the free weight section.
“Engaged, huh?”
Snot, he followed her.
“What part of those two syllables are difficult for you?” she asked.
“You’re too young to be engaged. Are you even out of high school?”
“Marching in the cap and gown next week.”
He shook his head. “Where’s your ring? I checked. There’s no ring.” He picked up her left hand, looking suspiciously at her empty third finger. “That isn’t really fair, you know, not wearing a ring.”
Sydney stole her hand back, not wanting to admit to him that she didn’t have a ring. Could Crew even afford one? Maybe he’d get her a band for the wedding.
“It’s harmful to a guy’s self-esteem,” he continued. “A beautiful woman turning him down cold for no apparent reason. Then to discover that she’s engaged! That’s harsh.”
“I’m sure you’ll recover. You seem to have an abundance of self-esteem.”
Sydney hurried to the entrance, grabbed her keys, and left. She needed to get away from that guy. He was too good-looking and too interested. She had no right to even think about another man. She was committed to Crew and that was exactly what she wanted.
Chapter Four
Sydney studied the road outside her bedroom window. She waited for Crew to come as she had so often in the past eight months, but for the first time in their courtship she felt dread instead of anticipation. Her hands pressed against her stomach.
“So, tonight’s the night?” Granny floated close by, calming Sydney with her presence.
Sydney gulped and nodded. It had been almost two months since the fateful day they took the pregnancy test. Sydney begged Crew to wait to tell her parents, but they could wait no longer. Oh, help. If she didn’t love her dad so much she’d run away with Crew and never look back.
“I love this.” Granny pointed to a ceramics statue of a mother holding an infant. Sydney had made it a few days ago and just fired it today. She usually made bowls, pottery, and statues of dancers. Odd how quickly one’s interests could