Bachelor Swap by Lacey Black (best fiction novels .TXT) 📕

toward the shelter. “Take a left at the next light,” I instruct as we near our destination. I take it he didn’t mention a specific spot for breakfast, he was leaving it up to me to choose, since I know the area well. “Turn into the alley after the jewelry store on the right,” I add.

Matthew follows my directions, pulling between the small family-owned jewelry store and the abandoned building which used to house a furniture business. When we reach the back of the building, we pull into the large parking lot, which is already half full. He parks in an available spot close to the small, nondescript building at the back of the lot and shuts off the car. “This looks promising.”

“Really?” I ask, glance from the small diner to the man sitting beside me. Matthew Wilder definitely doesn’t seem like the type to choose this style of establishment over a five-star restaurant with paparazzi stationed on the sidewalk, but if there’s anything I’ve learned in the last week, it’s that Matthew Wilder isn’t who I thought he was.

He shrugs. “You haven’t led me astray yet.”

I give him a grin and reach for my door handle.

“Let me,” he proclaims, jumping out and running around to my door to help me out.

With my hand tucked into the crook of his arm, we walk side by side into the run-down diner without a care in the world. Just him and me against the world.

There’s no place I’d rather be.

Chapter Thirteen

Mason

As Wednesday finally hits, a sense of dread falls heavy on my chest. My brother’s assistant added the details of my dinner meeting with Jerald to my calendar, and even though I’ve come up with a thousand excuses to cancel, I haven’t actually done the deed. Mostly because this meeting is important to my brother and the deal he’s made to purchase the company.

I check my watch, having just an hour before I need to get ready for dinner. I consider sending Kyla a quick text, but since I did that before lunch, I should probably lay off. She’s volunteering this afternoon at the shelter and is spending time out with Dolly. I’m actually a little jealous. After riding her again this past weekend, I’d welcome any further opportunity to saddle up.

Instead, I grab my keys and the gym bag Matthew keeps in his closet and head downstairs to the gym. Since it’s the middle of the afternoon, the large space is practically empty. A man who looks familiar runs on a treadmill off to the side of the room, and after a brief eye contact, he throws me a head nod. Otherwise, he pays me no attention, which is how I like it.

I slip inside the locker room and change into the T-shirt and shorts inside. Fortunately, Matthew and I wear the same size shoes too, and he’s got a pair of new Nikes in the bag. I change quickly, using one of the empty lockers to hold my clothes, and return to the gym. The man from earlier is now using the free weights, so I head over to one of the treadmills to keep my distance.

I warm up with a quick two-mile run, something I haven’t done in a while. Hell, when was the last time I went for a run? Months. Probably eight or nine of them, actually. When I finish, I’m breathing a little harder than I should be, which is slightly embarrassing, and even though I’m fatigued, the endorphins are coursing through my blood.

I head for the leg press machine next and pick a weight a little too aggressively. The first ten reps aren’t too bad, but by the time I’m halfway through the second set, I can definitely feel the burn. My calves and thighs are crying, and when I finally hit ten a second time, I’m more than ready to move on to another machine. Unfortunately, the guy is still lingering by the weights.

“Wilder, haven’t seen you in the lounge much lately,” he says casually, flexing a bit for the large mirror along the wall.

I slip two forty-pound weights onto the barbell. “Haven’t been around much,” I confirm, not elaborating any further.

The slightly familiar man moves around the gym for a few more minutes before grabbing a hand towel. “I think I heard Manchester was headed for the sauna. Wasn’t he one of the other bidders on that company you’re buying?”

I don’t respond, mostly because I don’t know if this Manchester guy was bidding on the company or not. Instead, I take my own hand towel to mop up the sweat on my face before I wipe down the machines I used with a disinfecting cleaner. But I can’t help but wonder what this Manchester guy knows. He wasn’t mentioned in the information on the business deal Matthew left me, but I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to see what he knows, right?

Tossing the hand towel in the bin, I return to the locker room and strip down naked. I hear the door open behind me, and as I throw a towel around my waist, I see the guy from the gym behind me. “I heard he secured investors to put in a better offer, one Jerald is considering,” the mouth says as he strips down to the buff and turns around reaching for a towel to cover his sad little dick.

I’m not sure if this guy is spewing the truth or just trying to get under my skin, but I’m not letting him get to me. I head for the sauna door, leaving the mouth with the tiny dick behind.

Inside the sauna, I’m pleased to only see one man. He’s sitting in the corner with his head back against the wall and his eyes closed. I take a seat across from him and just off to the side, not wanting to catch a glimpse at anything peeking from beneath his towel. I’ve already seen one too many today, that’s for damn sure.

Just