“Hey, man. How’s it going?” Kiernan extended one hand toward Toby. He eyed it before standing and shaking his hand.
“I didn’t know you had a boyfriend, Caroline. Finally getting out of the office?” He smirked.
I rolled my eyes. “Yep, finally trying to have a life.”
“I’ll have this done shortly and leave them at the front for you. Want me to lock up when I’m done?” I’d given Toby a key, about a year ago, when he’d started coming in monthly to do backup maintenance.. “It was good to meet you.”
“Same here,” Kiernan said to Toby before speaking to me. “Ready? I’ve got a surprise for you.”
“Yes, let me grab my purse and I’m ready to go.” I turned back to Toby. “Thanks again. Lock up when you leave and send me an invoice for the cameras.”
“Will do,” he said.
Kiernan ran his fingers down my arm until he secured my hand in his and walked me to my office to grab my things. I didn’t know what he had in store for me that night, but as long as I was with him, it didn’t truly matter.
25 Kiernan
I propped open the back door to MarxMen and held it aloft for Caroline to walk through. The back hallway was dim until the automatic hallway light flipped on as she entered. The floors were a dark polished concrete, and the walls were black with a few doors lining the hallway. Each door had a security panel on the outside to gain entrance to the room. Normally, no one but the team was allowed down here, but every once in a while, we made an exception.
“Is your surprise that you’re going to kill me and then hide my body? I feel like I’m about to walk into an interrogation room or something.”
I chuckled and shook my head, placing one of my hands on her lower back, urging her toward the last door in the hallway. “Nothing like that.”
I tapped my index finger against the panel on the outside of the heavy black metal door and tapped in my security code. Caroline watched me, and I didn’t bother to hide any of my codes from her. “You’re turning off the cameras?” she asked. “What are we doing here?”
I finished turning off the cameras and locking the room for privacy. Caroline walked through the door and swiveled her head around, inspecting the cavernous space. Along the far wall was an indoor shooting range, and in the opposite corner was gym equipment, a boxing ring, and heavy bags hanging from the ceilings. In the center were large mats for practicing hand-to-hand combat. Caroline strolled toward the center and slowly turned in a circle, taking it all in. Half the walls were lined with mirrors, and the other half were painted black. The room was soundproofed and completely contained.
I put my hands on her shoulders and caressed her arms. “I want to start teaching you some self-defense moves and, if you’re up for it, maybe even practicing firing a weapon. I turned the cameras off. We have a team that monitors our security and that of our clients twenty-four-seven. In here, it’s just you and me for right now.”
Caroline pulled at her scrubs. “I’m not exactly dressed for a workout.”
“I’ve got that covered, sweetness. There’s a bag over there with some gear for you.”
Her gaze fell on the gym bag I’d left in here earlier. I’d outfitted her with everything I thought she could use for our training sessions. This wasn’t going to happen overnight or with one session. I wanted her to be able to defend herself, though, and feel confident doing it. Sometimes it’s a mental thing, knowing you have the capability to take on an attacker. She swallowed thickly and nodded. “Okay.”
I held her hand as we walked to the bag waiting on the bench. She bit her lip and looked around the room. “Are you sure the cameras are off?”
“Yeah, sweetness. It’s you and me.”
She took off her shirt and her bra. I couldn’t stop myself from reaching out and tweaking her nipple. She smiled. “We’re here for a reason.”
“I suddenly forgot that reason,” I said and stared at her naked chest. She was fucking gorgeous. And way too damn distracting.
She giggled and pulled a sports bra over her head, followed by a tank top. She shimmied the scrubs down her legs, kicking off her tennis shoes as she went. She pulled on the pair of leggings I’d bought for her, and I groaned when she bent over to slip her shoes back on her feet. She stood, placing her hands on her hips. “What’s first?”
“A few laps around the room to warm up.”
She scrunched her nose before sighing. “I hate running.”
“We’re doing a light jog to get your blood moving and body warmed up. Come on. I’ll keep at your pace.”
We jogged around the gym three times before I brought her to a space with cushioned mats. “If your attacker is a male, hitting any sensitive part as fast and as hard as you can is always what you should do first, and then run. It will at least give you time to put some space between you, and you can look for help. Eyes, nose, groin, feet, stomach. I’m going to come at you from the front. There are a few different options here.”
I slowly walked her through each, correcting her posture and the angle of her hands before changing my position and going through different moves. “Do you think you want to try shooting?”
She bit her lip, casting her gaze to the side. The line between her brows revealed that she was deep in thought. “Yes, but not today. My arms are already aching, and I’d like to
