Half to Death by Robin Alexander Page B

was a turning point for me. I had been avoiding touch, but I wanted to touch this woman. I was fairly certain what she had on her mind, but I wouldn’t be satisfied until I had her number completely. I contemplated offering my hand for her to shake but thought better of it because that would poke holes in my germaphobe lie. The latter idea was more plausible. I would trip and fall on her. I did just that as I strolled toward the locker room. The collision was a sound one. I acted as though I tripped on my own feet and launched my body into hers.
    Her feelings were the first thing that assaulted me—lust, desire, the need to possess. I let the images come with no resistance. She was sitting idly at a table on a sun porch. I felt the coolness of the spoon that she toyed with and finally laid next to a cup of tea. Her gaze settled on an older man who looked familiar as he read The Washington Post. “I’m working with a personal trainer. She has an amazing body.”
    The man turned down one corner of the paper and smiled. She was pleased, then I realized this was a game between them. It was like digging through a file cabinet in her mind, I went through everything I could find. She wasn’t a lesbian, not even bisexual really. But it turned her on incredibly that he was aroused by her exploits. She’d brought many a woman to their bed while he watched unbeknownst to the new lover.
    “She’s playing hard to get, but I’ll bend her to my will.” The paper didn’t move, and she continued. “You’re gonna like seeing me in her arms. Watch her sexy mouth move across my body.” The paper did move then, and I realized I knew this man from somewhere. I dug deeper into her mind until I found his name. Robert Priest was a high-powered lawyer who had recently been elected as senator in Florida. She was his toy, and he kept her tucked away in a beach house in the obscure area of Alligator Point.
    No one knew Jacquelyn Marlow, but that would change, she thought. She’d played the game well for a few years and earned his trust. And soon she’d let word and pictures of their affair leak to the press, and everyone and his brother would want her story as mistress to the man who had his eye on the presidency. That it would ruin his career was of no consequence to her. He was a liar and a cheat, and it would feel good to step on his neck to elevate herself to fame. Jade was only a toy in the back of her mind.
    She pushed at me roughly and broke the connection. “What’s wrong with you?” she asked angrily.
    “I tripped.” I stayed on my hands and knees. “It knocked the breath out of me.”
    Not one ounce of compassion showed in her eyes, rather a disgust for coming in physical contact with the likes of me.
    Strong hands gripped my arms, and I felt myself rise up like a feather-light rag doll. I didn’t have to look to know it was Jade. I fought to keep a mental hold on the feel of her hands and marvel at her strength, but my newly acquired skill was no match for the strong feelings and images her touch evoked.
    “My client list is booked,” Jade argued. “I’m actually carrying more than the usual.”
    “She’s paying double to be trained by you,” her boss said. “Doesn’t it stroke your ego to know that someone wants to work with you that badly?”
    “We both know it’s not because she wants to get in shape. She doesn’t do half of what I tell her. Whatever her reasons are it’s not because of my reputation as a trainer,” Jade said hotly.
    “She’s yours, accommodate her.”
    Jade released me when I was firmly on my feet. My gaze was locked with Jacquelyn’s. “Are you okay?” Jade asked, making me look at her. I glanced back at Jacquelyn, and I could see the fury on her face at being the one ignored.
    “I’m fine, thanks.” I walked away without another word. I left the gym without going to the locker room to get my bag. Rage surged through me, and I was afraid of it. The hostility I felt for Jacquelyn