you’ll grow to those numbers on a mid-morning session.’ Still not looking up, Ryan flicked through some paperwork, releasing an exasperated sigh.
Karen shook her head. ‘I’m not expecting to. I want it to remain small and friendly. I’m hoping that…’ Why was she even bothering? Ryan wasn’t listening and, even if he had been, he wasn’t going to change his mind about it. She was convinced there was a gap in the market for people who worked from home, those who had kids in part-time nursery or school, and those who perhaps felt intimidated by a large group. Danniella had joined for two of those reasons. Alison had voiced concerns about her lack of fitness and her weight, but said the idea of working out in a small group wasn’t quite as terrifying as a large one. Why couldn’t Ryan understand that?
He released another exasperated sigh and banged his fist on the table.
‘Anything I can help with?’ Karen asked.
‘A bit of peace and quiet would be nice,’ he snapped.
Fine. You struggle on your own, stupid arse. Did he need to be so rude? Her fist tightened around the apple. How tempting it was to hurl it at him. She stood up. ‘I need to head out for PT with Becky and Jayne in five anyway, so peace and quiet will be restored.’
‘Good.’
Not wanting to start another argument, her voice softened. ‘I don’t suppose you fancy Blue Savannah for drinks tonight? We haven’t been there in ages.’
Ryan’s head snapped up. ‘Did we have plans?’
‘No, but I thought it might be nice to go out for a drink and spend some quality time together.’ Karen sighed. ‘But you’ve already made plans with Steff, haven’t you?’
‘We need to talk about the Great North Run.’
There was always something, wasn’t there? ‘And you couldn’t have chatted about this after, say, Thursday’s bootcamp?’ Karen stamped on the bin pedal and tossed her half-eaten apple into it – better there than at Ryan’s head.
‘Steff has karate on a Thursday night,’ he said in an annoying sing-song voice. ‘You know that.’
Karen’s phone sounded with a reminder alarm. Time to go, which was just as well, because there’d definitely be an argument if she stuck around. ‘I guess I’ll see you when I see you, then.’ She didn’t wait for a response.
‘I knew something was up,’ Jayne said as the three of them sat on the promenade wall after an hour’s PT session, legs dangling over the edge, a foot above the sand. ‘I said so, didn’t I, Bex?’
Becky nodded. ‘Not that we’ve been gossiping about you, of course. We just had a sense that you weren’t yourself. Wondered if you wanted to talk.’
‘Looks like I did,’ Karen said. ‘Thanks for letting me offload.’
They sat in silence for a few moments, the gentle breeze from the sea cooling their faces.
‘You don’t think…?’ Becky began. ‘No. Forget I said it.’
Karen smiled. ‘You’re wondering if Ryan and Steff are seeing each other? No. They’re just good friends. Besides, Steff’s gay.’
‘Is she?’ Jayne frowned. ‘She’s always flirty with the men at bootcamp.’
‘It’s just her way. She’d be flirty with the women too if she was single, but she’s not. She lives with a lass called Mia. I haven’t met her but I’ve seen photos and she’s stunning. She’s like a brunette version of Steff.’
‘You haven’t met Steff’s girlfriend?’ Becky said. ‘I thought you and Steff were great mates.’
Karen sighed. ‘Not really. She’s always been Ryan’s friend rather than mine. There was some awkwardness at college when Ryan and I got together. We got past it but there’s always been this undercurrent.’
‘I’d never have guessed,’ Jayne said. ‘Shows what a professional you are.’
Karen smiled gratefully. ‘We don’t meet up outside of work but we’re fine when it comes to the business. Other than the Bay Runners thing, we’ve always been on the same page.’
‘I’m sure it’ll settle down soon,’ Becky said. ‘It sounds like this running club is still a novelty. I bet you put loads of time into planning bootcamps when you first set them up.’
‘About six months,’ Karen admitted.
‘There you go, then,’ Jayne said. ‘Once they’ve worked out a routine for the club, Ryan will be back to giving you the attention you deserve.’
‘And you’ll set the date,’ Becky added. ‘We expect invites to the wedding.’
Karen laughed. ‘Thanks, you two. I’m sure you had better things to do this evening than listen to me whinging.’
Becky shook her head. ‘The only place we needed to be was here with you. That’s what friends are for.’
As she drove home, Karen smiled to herself. How amazing were Jayne and Becky? It was easy to think of them, and others, as clients but they were so much more than that. These men and women who she trained, pushed, motivated and sweated buckets alongside had become like her family – her fitness family – and, no matter how dismissive Ryan was about it, she was excited about growing a new branch of her family with the mid-morning bootcamp.
Jayne and Becky were right, too. New initiatives took planning and organising and perhaps she’d been unfair in forgetting that Bay Runners needed that time if it was going to be successful. She’d apologise to Ryan and also to Steff next time she ran a bootcamp with her because, if she was honest, she’d been snippy with her recently, which hadn’t been fair.
Having the house to herself that evening was going to be no bad thing. She could have a glass of wine and run over the plans for the mid-morning bootcamp in peace. She’d make a success of it. She was determined to prove to Ryan that it was a good idea.
10
Alison
When Alison arrived home from Danniella’s, she started preparing a chilli for dinner. What an unexpected afternoon! She’d made a friend and she’d signed up to bootcamp. How would Dave react to that? Would he be proud of her? She sighed. No, he’d probably laugh.
And what about seeing Aidan again after all these years? He hadn’t changed at all. A few more laughter lines around his eyes and creases on his forehead perhaps, but still gorgeous.
While most of her classmates had continued their education at the local sixth-form college, Alison had taken a BTEC in Travel and Tourism at Whitsborough Bay TEC. Fed up of being a loner at school, she’d hoped to put the past behind her and finally make some new friends – ones who didn’t know what had happened. Waiting in the corridor before her very first class, though, everyone seemed to know each other and Alison felt sick with nerves as she pressed herself against the wall, fighting the urge to flee.
A tutor appeared and announced that the seat they chose would be theirs for the next two years so they should pick carefully. Alison sat down and watched with a sinking heart as the other seats filled and the one beside hers remained empty. And then it happened. The most attractive boy she’d ever seen stood over her and smiled. ‘I’m hoping that seat’s got my name on it,’ he said.
‘What’s your name?’ she asked, butterflies stirring in her stomach.
‘Aidan.’
She grabbed her pen, scribbled his name on her pad, ripped the page off and placed it on