She should have stayed home, or at least talked Darcy into going to the university gym.
“Just right up there.” Darcy pointed to a building at the end of the alley, where the two buildings boxing them in opened up and you could go right or left.
“Why couldn’t we just enter through the front entrance?”
“Mica said he could get us in for free if we went in through the back. He said something about the owner probably bitching if members invited a bunch of random people. This is a hole-in-the-wall gym, but they like to keep it closed off to a lot of the public.” She shrugged. “I don’t know, kind of makes it all exciting, right?”
“Only people asking for trouble go down shady back alleys,” Mary mumbled but kept following Darcy. “At least it’s the middle of the day.” Darcy laughed but otherwise didn’t respond.
They broke through the alley and stood right across the tiny street from the doors of what didn’t look like a training facility.
Mary felt her brows lower in confusion. “You sure this is a gym?”
Darcy looked both ways, then reached back and took Mary’s hand, tugging her along as they both jogged across the street. “Yeah. See the logo?” She pointed to the little barbell in the top right-hand side of the door.
The door opened a second later and the beefed-up, tattooed guy named Mica opened the door and grinned at Darcy. Okay, Mary couldn’t deny the guy looked like he had it really bad for her friend. He held the door open for them and as they entered Mary noted that Darcy had been right. It wasn’t one of those flash chain gyms with the douchebags flexing in front of the mirrors and shiny new equipment.
The machines in this gym looked like they’d seen better days and had taken on a hell of a workout in their lifetime. The men were focused on their training and not on what appeared to be the only two women in the place. The sounds of men grunting, curses ringing out, and the low, steady thumping of music playing overhead caused her head to pound with all the chaos.
She leaned in close and whispered into Darcy’s ear, “Are you sure women even come here?” She couldn’t see the entire workout room since there was a partial wall separating the small, front office, but her attention was drawn away when a beefy man wearing a tank top rounded the corner.
“Hey, Landon,” Mica said, and the two men clapped each other on the shoulder. “Don’t tell boss man, yeah?”
The man named Landon chuckled and eyed Mary and Darcy. “Sure, man. But even if he isn’t here, you know some asshole in there is gonna narc on your ass.”
Mica shrugged and chuckled. “I’ll deal with his surly ass.” Mica looked at Darcy and threw a thickly muscled arm over her shoulder, pulling her in close. “Come on, ladies, let’s work up a sweat.”
He led them out through the back room and into the main gym area, and Mary stopped, just taking in everything. In the center of the room was a boxing ring, and off to the right were several punching bags that hung from the ceiling. To the left was a line of the standard workout machines: treadmills, weights, and blue mats that had seen better days covering the ground.
The men were mostly shirtless, with sweat dripping down their hard bodies, and looks of steely determination on their faces. The men ranged in age from grandpa age to barely eighteen, but despite the difference in ages, they were all ripped. And the men who weren’t doing “normal workouts” were training in a very clear marital arts way.
These men were serious fighters, ones who were all about the art of the sport. It had Mary relaxing and some of her nerves fading.
“Darcy, although I think we are totally out of our element here,” she said and glanced at her friend, “I like this place.”
Darcy grinned and nodded. “Yup, I feel the same way.”
“You ladies can set your bags down over there, and the towels are on the rack on the other side,” Mica said and pointed to the two spots. He smiled down at Darcy and she blushed, which had Mary smile because she was glad to see her friend happy, which she clearly was. “Either one of you want to train in the ring?”
Mary shook her head right away, and Darcy followed suit.
“I’m gonna pass,” Darcy said and laughed. “Last time we didn’t get much training in.”
Oh, yeah… TMI.
Mary turned and headed toward where to set their bags to give them a moment of privacy. A moment later Darcy was beside her, all grins.
“Want to hit up the treadmills.”
Mary nodded, grabbed her water bottle, and followed Darcy to the row of beaten up treadmills. They walked past the ring where two guys were boxing. Their shirts were off, sweat coating their bodies, and their concentration was only on their opponent. The men moved with synchronized movements, seeming to know the other position before it was even revealed. They punched, jabbed, and blocked each other’s hits.