She looked at me suspiciously. “Change what?”
“Go get into some running clothes.” I clapped my hands together. “We’re going running.”
“What?” she squeaked. “No! I can barely manage walking.”
“Okay then, we’ll go for a walk,” I shrugged, making it clear I wasn’t giving up.
“I walk enough at work,” she grumbled, narrowing her eyes at me.
“Come on. Come for a walk with me,” I pleaded.
She sighed and shook her head. “Fine, but only to shut you up.” She stood up and marched off to her room. I got up and walked to my room to change into my running gear.
When I got back to the living room, she was standing there waiting, her arms crossed over her chest.
“Ready?” I asked brightly.
“Does it matter if I’m not?” she muttered, tying her hair back in a ponytail.
“You know,” I began as we walked to the elevator, “exercise can be fun. It makes you feel good. Releases endorphins.”
“I can get endorphins by eating a bar of chocolate,” she said dryly.
“Yeah, and five pounds,” I retorted.
She spun around, her mouth dropping open. “Liam Cooper, are you calling me fat?” she said accusingly.
I went red. Why in hell had I thought talking about weight to a woman was a smart move?
“No, I just meant…I didn’t mean…” My voice trailed off as she burst into laughter.
“Relax. I’m messing with you,” she said, hitting me on my side.
“Bitch,” I chuckled. We walked across the road and down Sixth, Mia doing more window-shopping than walking. “It works better if you don’t stop every two seconds,” I teased.
“There was a nice pair of shoes back there! So I’m easily distracted, sue me,” she shot back.
I shook my head and laughed. For the next ten minutes, she made a point of not looking anywhere but straight ahead. God, she was stubborn sometimes.
We went around the block, and by the time we reached the apartment, Mia was almost ready to pass out.
She looked at me accusingly. “You haven’t even broken a sweat!” she protested, reaching up to touch my face.
I laughed. “That’s only because I’m used to running. Trust me, after a decent jog, I sweat buckets.”
We made our way slowly up to the apartment, with Mia groaning about her aching muscles. As soon as we went inside, she went to take a shower. While she was gone I made us each a hot cocoa. I set down the steaming cups on the coffee table, and turned on some music.
“What’s this?” Mia asked, raising her eyebrows as she walked over to join me on the sofa.
My heart jumped as I looked up at her. She wore a baby pink silk robe, and not much underneath. Her damp, tousled hair hung around her shoulders, somehow making her eyes seem bigger.
“I thought you could use this,” I said, pointing to her cup.
“Mmm, you know me well, Coop.” She sat down next to me, the split in her robe riding up to expose almost all of her thigh.
I coughed, my throat feeling like it was closing over. “Feel better after your shower?” I asked.
“Yes. Much better.” She picked up her drink and took a sip. “It’s good.” She grinned.