Witch to Choose (Heart of a Witch #1)

  ***

  I got up and made myself a bowl of Special K. It instantly became my favorite cereal once I decided to buy into Kellogg’s advertising campaign that their version of a chocolate-layered version of Special K cereal could be good for you.

  After breakfast, I rinsed my dish in the sink.

  As soon as I was done taking a shower, I decided I’d just wear my work clothes to the gym. I couldn’t find my workout clothes, and made the decision that if I did decided to work out, it’d be the lightest workout in the history of workouts. Like a couple of leg lifts and a walking chat on the treadmill at level 1.

  I drank my five-hour energy drink, scurried out of the house, and got in my car.

  I pulled into the gym’s parking lot. I couldn’t believe how many cars were parked in the spots at this horrid hour. Other people loved their exercise. Boy, did that make me feel like a slug.

  As I entered the parking lot, I made eye contact and nodded at Paris who was standing at the gym entrance.

  Since the lot was full, I had to park in the back.

  As I walked past the ocean of parked cars, so I could meet Paris, my eyes and neck zipped toward the physical specimen that quickly approached Paris from the other side of the lot. It was Donovan. Paris smiled at him as he entered the gym, and turned to me, flashing me the heartiest of grins after seeing my reaction.

  “I’m pretty sure your guy just showed up,” Paris said.

  “My guy?” I asked. “Are you talking about that guy I mentioned to you?”

  “Yes,” Paris said, “And by the way. Gorgeous doesn’t even define that man. That was just about the most beautiful man I had ever seen. And oh my God, he was wearing a tank top with the cutest pair of shorts on. Nice and tight.”

  Donovan was the only known element for me at the gym that morning, the reason for Paris meeting me there was the ultimate unknown.

  “Sahara, can you walk by him when he’s benching his serious weights? When he’s by himself, of course, and give him your best smile and sexiest strut.”

  “I can’t do that,” I said. “How embarrassing.”

  “Just got to trust me on this,” Paris said.

  I was pretty positive Paris was planning on doing some magic to get this guy to notice me. Once he noticed me, then what?

  “You want me to just walk in there and act like some sort of bimbo in front of Donovan?” I asked.

  “Not a bimbo. I want you do your most elegant, classiest, sexiest strut.”

  “A sexy and classy strut.”

  “That’s all you have to do, sweetheart.”

  I took out the gym I.D. from my bra as I never bothered to pay for a locker.

  “Crap, how am I gonna get you in?” I asked Paris. “You got a membership too?”

  “No, why would I have a membership?”

  “Yeah, you’re right.”

  “I’ll just wait go around back and watch you through the window.”

  I stepped inside the gym and walked to the front counter and showed my card to the young lady who almost looked like she was asleep.

  I headed back to where they kept the free weights and the machines, as it was the only area of the gym where I had ever seen Donovan.

  I turned the corner and walked into the free weight section of the gym. The worst part about this section was the three-wall mirror. I saw Donovan lying on the bench and boy, did he look fantastic. His tan glistened, even at this hour of the morning. His long gorgeous dark brown hair just draped over his shoulders like a Greek god. He was wearing bright red sneakers. They were off-putting, but cute.

  Paris quickly came into the view on the other side of the window that faced the main street away from the parking lot.

  Donovan’s piercing blue eyes stared straight ahead, stilled and showing off the fierce concentration it took to finish his next set of reps on the bench. I turned around and saw Paris mouthing something through the window. “Walk past him,” she pantomimed. I turned around and Donovan hadn’t looked anywhere in my direction. I then held my breath and walked past Donovan just as Paris had instructed me.

  I flashed him my best coquettish look and was shocked that I had the nerve to even do that. Our eyes eventually connected and he gave me the cutest, sweetest smile. Oh my God! I nearly tripped over one of the dumbbells.

  I had to commit to an awkward bunny hop. I stopped right in front of the dumbbell free weight racks and gathered myself, thinking he thought that I was just another chick that was trying way too hard. I then glanced up at Donovan, through the mirror. He stared at me with narrowed eyes, but I couldn’t tell if he was interested in me, or was confused by my goofball flirtations.

  Did I have toilet paper stuck to my shoe?

  I looked down and that wasn’t it. He continued to stare. I had to do something. I couldn’t just stand here and not do anything. I was wearing high heels, for goodness sake.

  I looked at the free weights and tried to act like I knew what I was doing. I was at the heavy end of the rack. Are you kidding me? Someone could lift a 200-pound dumbbell with one arm? That was insane.

  I decided to mosey over and walk down the rack. I got to where they had the smallest weight; the 20 pound bells were the lightest weight. I wasn’t exactly a workout girl, but I had always been a bit strong compared to my friends growing up. I grabbed the 20-pound dumbbell and decided to put both my hands over it and raise the dumbbell over my head and do a triceps exercise that a trainer had once showed me.

  The second I lifted the dumbbell over my head, I felt someone behind me. I was looking at the floor. I could see his feet. He was wearing red shoes. It was Donovan.

  “I got you,” he said.

  He got me. What does that mean? I think it meant he was going to spot me. I had gone to this gym for three years and nobody had ever offered to spot me.

  Okay, what was Paris up to? Can love spells really work?

  I did five reps, and he helped me with the last one. I was so embarrassed. I was dressed for a work meeting and I was over here trying to get a triceps workout in before work. I must have looked like an idiot.

  I put down the weight in front of me and slowly turned around and looked at Donovan in the eyes. He was a lot shorter than I thought he was. He was only 5’7” or 5’8”. But it was 5’8” of luscious man.

  “Thank you,” I said.

  “No problem, I thought you might need a hand.” He smiled at me in a super sexy way.

  What was going on?

  “That was very courteous of you,” I said. I had no idea how to talk to him.

  “I’m always up to help a beautiful woman.” He smiled at me and it felt so genuine and honest. If this was a love spell, it was a good one. Because he was acting the way I would have only dreamed of a man this hot would act toward me.

  “I’ve seen you before,” Donovan said. “You work out on the machines and run the treadmill.”

  He was exactly right. He had seen me before. I didn’t know why he took stock and remembered me, but it made me feel good to hear it. I just hoped it was for good reasons.

  What the hell am I saying? I’m talking to Donovan, the gym god.

  “I like your dress. I think frills are sexy. I’m not sure how effective a workout outfit it is. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a sexy outfit.”

  I nodded my head at Donovan, hypnotized at the fact that he thought what I had on was sexy.

  “I’ll be done with my workout in thirty minutes. Do you want to hit a juice bar and have some breakfast?” Donovan asked me just out of the blue.

  “A juice bar to have breakfast.” That was officially the first time I had ever heard that phrase, but I needed to stop being such a smart-ass. This gorgeous man had just asked me to breakfast. “Okay, I have work at 8:30. It’s about a half hour away from here. So, I will need to leave around 7:30.”

  “No problem,” he said winking at me. “I’ll meet you up front in about a half hour. I’ll take a quick shower.”

  ??
?Take your time,” I said. I wanted to think about Donovan’s hot steamy shower where he was lathering up his beautiful abs and chest.

  Donovan shook my hand and said, “My name is Donovan, by the way.”

  “I...my name is Sahara,” I said like a fifteen year old meeting a teen idol. “It’s very nice to meet you, Donovan,” I said, trying to sound as grown up as I could.

  “I’ll see you in a bit,” Donovan said as he walked back to the bench press he was working out on.

  I turned and walked completely out of the gym. I took a moment and just had to laugh at what just happened. I had just talked to Mr. Gym Hottie like we were old friends. And meeting for breakfast? What the hell?

  I walked over to my car and found Paris sitting in it. “Did I not lock my door?” I asked.

  “No, it was locked. Really securely, I might add,” she said. “It took a couple of spells, until I got it right. So, hats off to you, young grasshopper.”

  “What happened inside the gym?” I asked Paris.

  “It looked like he asked you out.”

  “Was that your spell? That he would ask me out?”

  “What spell?” Paris said.

  “Oh, shut up. You can’t expect me to believe that you didn’t do a spell.”

  Paris laughed and completely dropped the subject. “Where is he taking you?”

  “He wants to go to a juice bar for breakfast.”

  “Oh, what a beautiful meathead he is,” Paris said fondly.

  “He actually seemed extremely nice. So, whatever you did, Paris, you made him a gentleman.”

  Paris smiled and made a funny show of dusting off her hands. “My work is done.”

  “You did do a spell? I mean, of course you did a spell. But what kind of spell?”

  “Look, real early in a mentor’s relationship, she or he is supposed to put a spell on the person they are mentoring and see how they deal with it. Dealing with spells that have been thrown at you either by the dark side, or even by a friend, in this case, is something you need to deal with right off the bat. I’ll come over to your house after work if you like. We could go through some of the Magic spells.”

  “Sounds like a full day. But okay, come over,” I said.

  “I’ll bring fast food,” Paris said. “What do you like?”

  “Fast food?”

  “Yeah.”

  I thought about it and said, “Everything.”

  Paris laughed and said, “I’ll see what I can do for dinner.”

  “That’s very sweet of you.”

  Paris walked off. She was done talking to me and making my morning go haywire by throwing a spell on Donovan.

  She literally just walked away from the area and disappeared into the sea of parked cars.

  I guessed I was on my own again, but felt it was temporary.

  Chapter Fifteen