Concealed Force

Chapter 10

When she woke up the next morning Reid wasn't there and she found her anger hadn't completely dissipated. Sitting waiting in the room wasn't helping her mood either, though she didn't think it was a good idea to walk aimlessly about the compound.

If only there was a way to get rid of some of her pent up energy, maybe she could settle a bit, get her mind to work. Find an appropriate way to respond to Reid, like with extreme caution, rather than lust.

Taking a leaf out of his book she put on her sports bra and ran on the spot for a minute, then dropped to do sit-ups and bridges, cycling through a half-remembered routine from school PE lessons. Her mood was just lifting when the door opened behind her.

"What are you doing?"

She startled at Reid's voice and let out a little yelp, panting as she held on to the dressing table. "Star jumps," she told him.

"You mean jumping jacks?"

"Okay."

"Why?" He was staring at her flushed skin, and suddenly doing exercise in her underwear didn't seem such a good idea.

"You exercise in here. And I feel antsy. Trapped in this room, not being able to walk about or get any exercise. I run a lot at home."

A twinge of pain shot through her, thinking of the hills on the outskirts of her hometown, the footpaths where she pounded along, listening to her music and sucking in the cold fresh air. She especially liked it there in winter, when the grass was crisp with frost under her feet, and there weren't too many people out. It couldn't be more different than this place, which surrounded you with its wet heat and the noise of people all crammed into one space.

"I'm kind of missing my full workout routine too," he said. "Crazy as it seems to miss anything about prison." He looked at her with that soft expression, laughing at himself. "You want to go to the gym?"

"Gym? There's one here? Can I?" She was ridiculously excited to think there was somewhere else she could go, that wasn't that horrible bar.

"Yeah. It's mostly weights, but there's a treadmill and a bike. And, I mean, you can't go alone, but we could both go."

"That would be great."

"Okay. Now?"

"Yes, please. I'll just change."

He changed too, putting on sweatpants and a tank top, and she pulled on her leggings, her socks and sneakers. She was reaching for her t-shirt in the bathroom when he stopped her.

"You're wearing enough clothes."

Yeah, she guessed an oversized t-shirt wasn't what the guys let their women wear around here. She looked in the mirror at herself, at her outfit. Now she had leggings and sneakers on she did look quite sporty and she was keen to get moving.

They grabbed some bottles of water from the vending machine on the way downstairs, and Reid led her back into the basement of the building, to a room next to the bar. The gym wasn't big, and there were a few men using the weights, but Reid nodded to them, and kept her close for the first few minutes.

She did a warm-up on the bike, tentative and self-conscious in the underground space. It was quiet, no TVs or music, only the low voices of the other men, their grunts and huffs as a soundtrack. Reid stretched and then started running on the treadmill. He did twenty minutes at a fast jog and then started alternating the speed, putting on bursts of super-fast running that made the treadmill shake. When he was completely drenched in sweat he stopped and went over to the weight stacks and she stepped up.