Cadence switched off the treadmill and wiped sweat from her dripping forehead on a towel. She’d missed a few days, but now that Aaron was back to his normal self, she was determined not to let another day go by without finding herself in the gym, leaving her frustration on the black, looping track. Since she had put in her thirty-five miles now, she would be able to concentrate better, which was a good thing because there was a lot to be done. And to think, today she’d gone that far in half her usual time.
She headed for the locker room , noticing the complex was eerily quiet. She knew Aurora had taken her new recruits outside, but it was odd that no one else was there, and she wondered if she’d missed a memo or something. There was a lot to be done, but Aaron had assured her that morning, when she’d woken up in bed still in his arms, that she should go run and not worry about anything else until she was finished.
Grabbing her stuff out of her locker, she headed for the shower when the locker room door swung open. “Oh, good. Someone else is here. I thought I was missing something. It’s so quiet out there.”
Ashley Stone. Cadence smiled at her but had no true answer. “Yeah, I thought the same thing.” She only paused for a second before continuing on her way. While Cadence liked Ashley a lot more now that she was dating Jamie and no longer seemed interested in Aaron, it was hard for Cadence to forget the fact that the beautiful blonde had been after her fiancé not that long ago.
She was halfway through lathering up when she heard the shower next to hers turn on and hoped she could un-soap herself and get out of the locker room before she’d be forced to talk to Ashley anymore. She could handle the other Hunter much better in a crowd where there was little chance of their discussion turning to anything personal, but Cadence wasn’t in the mood to explore her feelings as to whether or not she’d forgiven Ashley, and any intimate details the other girl may care to share about her relationship with Cadence’s good friend Jamie would be enough to make her gag.
Cadence flipped the water off and rushed to her locker, her towel wound around her still dripping frame. She managed to get dressed and was running a brush through her hair when Ashley came over, drying off as she went. “So… I saw something interesting the other day.”
So close…. Cadence thought. “Oh, yeah? What’s that?”
“Well, I was walking past Aurora’s office on my way to the pool, and….” Ashley paused and glanced around, like she wasn’t sure she should say what she’d discovered, but since Cadence already had a hunch she knew, she stared at the other woman expectantly. “And Elliott was in there with her. They were standing a little close to just be chatting about the weather.” Ashley’s voice was a harsh whisper as she finished the statement.
“Oh, yeah. I know. But don’t tell anyone else.” Cadence finished putting her hair in a ponytail and grabbed her sneakers.
“You know?” Ashley asked, sliding a pair of jeans over her narrow hips. “So something is going on?”
Cadence shrugged. It wasn’t her place to discuss it, and she didn’t even like it when the thought randomly popped into her head, especially if there were unwanted graphics. “Yeah, I guess. But I don’t really feel like it’s my business, so I haven’t asked any questions.”
Ashley was dressed now and sat down next to Cadence, whose shoes were on, and she reminded herself if she bolted off Ashley could never catch her. “Who told you? Or did you see something, too?”
“Both—someone told me because I saw something.” She didn’t really feel like it was Ashley’s concern. “But literally no one else knows. So don’t say anything.” It crossed her mind that Aurora might want to invest in a curtain for her door. She stood and moved back to her locker, readying her bag to take back to the apartment before she headed to the office.
“Well, I was a little surprised,” Ashley continued. “I mean, they seem to get along just fine, but I wouldn’t have thought he was her type.”
“What do you mean?” Cadence asked before she could remind herself that she didn’t care what Ashley thought.
“I mean, Aurora usually seems to comment on how gorgeous some of the more muscular, more attractive guys are, that’s all.”
Cadence’s forehead puckered. “Elliott’s super strong. And he’s not unattractive.” She had no idea what had caused her to say that last part. It sounded weird coming out of her mouth since she’d always thought of him like a brother.
“Oh, no. I didn’t mean….I guess I should keep my mouth shut.”
Cadence considered recommending she do just that. “Listen, Elliott’s a great guy. If Aurora likes him, I can see plenty of reasons for it. You wouldn’t want someone trying to decipher what you’re doing with Jamie, would you?”
Ashley’s forehead crinkled, and Cadence realized she’d been misunderstood. “What do you mean? I thought it was your idea that I should give Jamie a chance in the first place.”
“Who told you that?” It was true—Cadence had suggested it, but she didn’t realize that was common knowledge.
“He did,” she replied, quickly. “On our first date. He said you pointed out how much I look like his ex-girlfriend or something, and it made him start thinking about asking me out.”
“Not ex-girlfriend. Deceased girlfriend.” She grabbed her bag and headed toward the door, thinking nothing good could come of this.
“Whatever.”
Cadence turned and looked at the other Hunter in disbelief. “There’s a huge difference. Do you know anything about Ellie?”
She shrugged. “Only that he hasn’t dated anyone else since she passed away. And apparently she looked a little like me.”
