Aurora attempted to blow her hair out of her face with what little breath she had left. It didn't budge. The sweat that was dripping down her had plastered it to her head. Her lungs burned. Her legs were on fire. She was going to die. My god this is torture, she thought to herself as she kept her death grip on the inclined treadmill. She let go long enough to reach a hand over and hit the "stop" button. She wanted to collapse on the ground as she heaved heavy breaths, but the judging glance of a nearby slim ponytailed blonde in perfect, sweat free workout attire stopped her. On unsteady legs she walked over, grabbed a bottle of spray off the rack that the gym kept for wiping down the machines after use, and quickly swiped a towel over the hand grips.
As soon as she'd made her way into the empty (thank god!) locker room she sat down heavily on a bench. This was her second week attempting to work out at the local gym and it hadn't gotten any easier. Putting her hands on her thighs, she push herself up and stepped in front of one of the full length mirrors that lined the room's walls. Letting out a heavy sigh, she studied her reflection. What she saw didn't make her smile. The extra weight she carried on her hips, thighs and waist made for a chubby look, even on her 5'10'' frame. Her long hair, pulled back into a pony tail -- except for those chunks that had fallen into her face during the workout -- was a dull medium shade of brown. Her face was puffy and thanks to the treadmill time -- a bright shade of red. Her normally perky 38C breasts -- one of her only redeeming features in her mind -- were currently contained in a tight sports bra. Her ankles, though muscled, were far too thick and ended in pair of far too big size 11 feet.
The self-consciousness over her weight had galled her into joining the gym. She had been overweight and unhappy about it as long as she could remember. In her twenty six years she had learned that being the fat girl in the group was never fun and had missed out on a lot because of it. When other girls were out on dates with cute boys in high school, she had been home playing cards with her parents and their friends. She had been on dates with a couple boys in college, even losing her virginity to one after getting drunk at a party her roommate had dragged her to, but had spent far more time in the library. Since she had graduated with her business degree 4 years earlier, no guy had even shown enough of an interest to ask her out. She had thought about trying online dating, but frankly couldn't find a picture of herself that she though would compel any guy, even an internet guy, to want to date her.
The door swung open and another gym patron walked in. Aurora quickly retrieved her bag from a nearby locker and walked out of the gym. The hunger pangs struck before she had even made it out of the parking lot with her 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Along with her new gym membership she had tried to pick up a new diet. The diet message boards and blogs she had read online said that the cravings went away after the first couple weeks, but so far she wasn't seeing that happen. She wanted something sweet -- bad. The internal battle in her head waged until she finally gave in to the bad side and pulled into the new coffee shop which had gone up down the street from the gym.
She swore at her weakness as she locked up her jeep and headed through the shop's red-framed glass door. The shop smelled heavenly -- like strong coffee and fresh pastries. She was eyeing up a row of muffins in the glass case thinking about how she was about to undo all that treadmill torture in about 2 minutes flat when she saw him. He was tall -- at least 6'6'' with short jet black hair streaked with flecks of red, brown and blonde. His black t-shirt molded to his extremely broad shoulders and exposed tanned arms corded with muscle. His jeans stretched over long, strong legs. His eyes were an odd shade of coppery gold which sparkled as they bore into her. She felt her face flush with the intensity of his gaze.
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He scented her before he saw her. The heady smell of her ...musky floral and spice....hit him like a ton of bricks. It was a scent that he had never smelled before, but that he instantly knew. Seeing her only confirmed what was already obvious. Her hair, a rich shade of coffee brown¸ was pulled back with little wisps escaping and framing her face. Her face shone with a slight shimmer of what appeared to be perspiration - her high cheekbones flushed a pretty shade of pink. Her eyes were a striking emerald green. Her curves....well...wow did she have curves....and her long legs looked like they went on for miles. She was the most gorgeous women he had ever seen and she was hot for him. That was a good thing he thought...since she was destined to be his for the rest of their lives. She was his mate.
"How can I help you?" the golden eyed man asked in a deep sultry voice.
She opened her mouth to respond, but found no words. "I...uhh...." She could swear he smirked a little, but couldn't tell for sure. She searched the bakery case frantically, trying to form an intelligent thought. "Um...uh....muffin?"
He raised an eyebrow at her and gave her a cocky grin, as if he knew what effect he was having on her. He looked like he was going to say something about her stuttering state, but surprised her instead. "Yes...a muffin. I'd say pistachio -- right? Green like those beautiful eyes of yours." Then he winked at her.
Those green eyes of hers nearly popped out of her head. It was almost as if he was flirting with her. She blushed an even deeper shade of red.
"Yes. You are a good guesser. Pistachio is my favorite."
"Perfect then." He turned to the counter behind him and pulled out 2 small plates. On one he placed her pistachio muffin. He reached back into the case picking out Red Velvet muffin and placed it on the other plate. Then, turning behind him again he selected 2 large coffee mugs and filled them from a nearby carafe.
He turned around, setting the mugs on the counter next to the plates. What was he doing? She looked around her to see if another customer was waiting behind her, but other than a few of the shop's employees on the other end of the counter, and a few teens sitting at a table in the corner, the shop was empty. She turned back to him, giving him a curious look.
He smiled at her. Damn was he hot. "Well I have good news and bad news for you."
"Oh?" She asked....unsure where this was going.
"Yes." He responded. "The good news is that your order today is on the house. The bad news is, you have to share it with me."
She stared at him stunned. He was definitely flirting with her ....actually this was almost a date he seemed to be asking her on. Are you on drugs? She wanted to ask, but instead she flirted back. "Well that sounds like a fair trade." She said...flashing him what she hoped was an engaging smile. She had no idea what affliction had struck him and caused him to propose the almost-date, but she wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth.
Mr. Golden eyes' smile broadened. "If you can take those plates, I'll bring the coffee."
She picked up the two plates and still barely able to believe what was happening, made her way towards a round table near the counter. It was a smallish table, but there were four chairs squeeze around it. She put the plates on opposite sites -- thinking he would sit across from her, and took the seat further from the counter.
Not skipping a beat, he put the mug in front of a chair right next to her, pulling the plate with the chocolate muffin over as he sat down.
The man carefully began pulling the wrapper from his muffin as Aurora watched him closely. He placed a small piece in his mouth. A bit of the chocolate stuck to the corner of his mouth. He raised his eyes to hers and sensually ran his tongue across the outside of his mouth, licking off the chocolate. This is the sexiest man I've ever seen she thought to herself. He oozed so much sensuality, he made her want to melt into a little puddle on the floor. She felt herself starting to get wet between her legs. She need to pull herself together or she'd embarrass herself her in front of this incredible man.
