Read Online The Underground City by H. P. Mallory - Free Book Online
Authors: H. P. Mallory
Ads: Link
Tallis said as I turned to face him. He nodded to me and Ael before his attention fell back on me again. At hearing he planned to leave me here, by myself, I suddenly felt horribly nervous like a scared kid on her first day of school. ’Course, instead of a matronly, sweet kindergarten teacher, I was assigned to Ael, who appeared possibly homicidal.
“Okay,” I said, trying to smile confidently as I watched Tallis turn around and abandon me to my fate. At least I still had Bill. Speaking of whom, after giving up any chance of conversing with the large-breasted blond, he was now making his rounds to the various machines and mats, pausing here and there to assess whether any of the remaining women might be interested in celebrating the end of his mastabbatical. His gall was inexhaustible.
“It’s too quiet in here!” a handsome man called out from the corner of the room where he’d been jumping rope. “Ael, how about some tunes?” Dropping the jump rope on the floor, he approached a bench where two fifty-pound free weights sat.
“Demands, demands, demands,” Ael responded, shaking his head with a frown.
That only made the man’s smile broader. “And none of that Luther Vandross, easy-listening shit either!”
Ael glanced at the man and shook his head again while crossing his enormous arms over his chest. “Don’t be talkin’ no smack ’bout Luther!” he retorted, appearing even more rankled than previously. He went to the opposite side of the room, where a lone CD player stood on a shelf made from cinder blocks and some two-by-fours. I glanced at Ael, then back to the man who made the Luther Vandross comment and noticed he was making his way over to me, smiling all the while.
“I’m Saxon,” he introduced himself with a large grin, extending his hand. Then, as if thinking better of it, he wiped the sweat from his palm onto his pants before offering his hand to me again, with a slightly embarrassed chuckle.
“Hi,” I said, grateful to find at least someone in the place who appeared to be friendly. “I’m Lily Harper,” I added with a smile as I shook his hand, noticing how my much smaller mine was and how it disappeared into his.
Saxon was tall, maybe as tall as Ael, but not as buff, and nowhere near as enormous as Tallis. Saxon had more of a swimmer’s physique—broad shoulders that tapered down to a narrow waist and a pair of very long, lean legs. Facially, he had a boyish sort of charm that came from the combination of his dark brown hair (in need of a haircut), his wide brown eyes, and his contagious smile. The firm, square jaw, perfectly straight nose, and plump, full lips collaborated to result in a handsome, boy-next-door friendly appearance. I would have guessed him to be in his late twenties or early thirties, but no older than thirty-two.
“You’re new here,” Saxon pointed out with another big grin as his unkempt hair fell into his face and he pushed it out of the way again.
“Yeah,” I said, before frowning with concern. A man, who was previously going full bore on the elliptical machine, while also practicing overhead shoulder presses with two large free weights, suddenly tripped. He instantly fell off the elliptical and dropped both of the weights. One banged into the elliptical, while the other landed right next to the man. He just collapsed into a large heap on the floor. I looked for Ael who was still fiddling with the CD player. Sparing the man a furtive glance, which lasted all of three seconds, Ael returned his attention to the CD player. And everyone else in the room? Not one person seemed even slightly concerned. “I don’t think he’s getting up,” I said to Saxon.
Saxon just shrugged. “Yeah, I’m sure he’ll be fine. People pass out in here all the time.” Then he added, “Just another day of training with Ael.” I couldn’t hide the shock on my face as I wondered what awaited me at Ael’s instruction. But I didn’t get to ponder that subject for
“Okay,” I said, trying to smile confidently as I watched Tallis turn around and abandon me to my fate. At least I still had Bill. Speaking of whom, after giving up any chance of conversing with the large-breasted blond, he was now making his rounds to the various machines and mats, pausing here and there to assess whether any of the remaining women might be interested in celebrating the end of his mastabbatical. His gall was inexhaustible.
“It’s too quiet in here!” a handsome man called out from the corner of the room where he’d been jumping rope. “Ael, how about some tunes?” Dropping the jump rope on the floor, he approached a bench where two fifty-pound free weights sat.
“Demands, demands, demands,” Ael responded, shaking his head with a frown.
That only made the man’s smile broader. “And none of that Luther Vandross, easy-listening shit either!”
Ael glanced at the man and shook his head again while crossing his enormous arms over his chest. “Don’t be talkin’ no smack ’bout Luther!” he retorted, appearing even more rankled than previously. He went to the opposite side of the room, where a lone CD player stood on a shelf made from cinder blocks and some two-by-fours. I glanced at Ael, then back to the man who made the Luther Vandross comment and noticed he was making his way over to me, smiling all the while.
“I’m Saxon,” he introduced himself with a large grin, extending his hand. Then, as if thinking better of it, he wiped the sweat from his palm onto his pants before offering his hand to me again, with a slightly embarrassed chuckle.
“Hi,” I said, grateful to find at least someone in the place who appeared to be friendly. “I’m Lily Harper,” I added with a smile as I shook his hand, noticing how my much smaller mine was and how it disappeared into his.
Saxon was tall, maybe as tall as Ael, but not as buff, and nowhere near as enormous as Tallis. Saxon had more of a swimmer’s physique—broad shoulders that tapered down to a narrow waist and a pair of very long, lean legs. Facially, he had a boyish sort of charm that came from the combination of his dark brown hair (in need of a haircut), his wide brown eyes, and his contagious smile. The firm, square jaw, perfectly straight nose, and plump, full lips collaborated to result in a handsome, boy-next-door friendly appearance. I would have guessed him to be in his late twenties or early thirties, but no older than thirty-two.
“You’re new here,” Saxon pointed out with another big grin as his unkempt hair fell into his face and he pushed it out of the way again.
“Yeah,” I said, before frowning with concern. A man, who was previously going full bore on the elliptical machine, while also practicing overhead shoulder presses with two large free weights, suddenly tripped. He instantly fell off the elliptical and dropped both of the weights. One banged into the elliptical, while the other landed right next to the man. He just collapsed into a large heap on the floor. I looked for Ael who was still fiddling with the CD player. Sparing the man a furtive glance, which lasted all of three seconds, Ael returned his attention to the CD player. And everyone else in the room? Not one person seemed even slightly concerned. “I don’t think he’s getting up,” I said to Saxon.
Saxon just shrugged. “Yeah, I’m sure he’ll be fine. People pass out in here all the time.” Then he added, “Just another day of training with Ael.” I couldn’t hide the shock on my face as I wondered what awaited me at Ael’s instruction. But I didn’t get to ponder that subject for
Similar Books
