Page 4 of Just One Silver Fox

It wasn’t just that she finally had someplace to go after three months of working remotely from her apartment. It wasn’t just that she was happy for Pierce and Jacquie, or that she was glad to head back to the fitness club that was essentially her second home.

It was time. On the tenth anniversary of taking her life back, she’d picked up the framed copy of her license as a registered therapist. It hung on the wall of her apartment, right below the diploma for her Bachelors in Psychology from Columbia. She’d completed it all part-time while working at the fitness club and was ready to celebrate. She was ready to take a chance and excited about the possibilities.

Sonia had bought a new dress and shoes online, and had been more extravagant than usual. It had been worth every penny. Her new swingy, flirty, floral dress was both feminine and flattering. The shoes had been irresistible—they were caramel in color, made in Italy, and had sky-high heels. They were the most beautiful shoes she’d ever owned—she refused to care that they cost half her monthly rent.

They were statement shoes and she knew exactly what message they were sending.

She’d pay off her student loan later.

Sonia walked uptown to Flatiron Five Fitness where the wedding ceremony would be celebrated, feeling like she had the world on a string. Even though she was early, Sonia wasn’t the first to arrive. Just one door to the street was unlocked and an Asian guy she didn’t know was checking invitations at the door. He was wearing a tux, so she assumed he was in the wedding party and a friend of the groom. He also wore a gold wedding band.

“Sonia, right?” he asked, obviously guessing. She could tell he was smiling, even though he was wearing a mask. “Jacquie said you had long blond hair.”

“That’s me.”

He gestured and Sonia put on the mask she’d brought. “I’m Jimmy Wong,” he said and they bumped elbows. “Pierce and I go way back.”

“All the way to Greater Alghenia?” Sonia knew that Pierce Aston had been responsible for the security of the royal family of Greater Alghenia for years, before he had moved to New York and started coming to F5F. The little she’d heard about that phase of his life sounded glamorous and dangerous.

“All that way,” Jimmy agreed easily. “Let me just review the rules that the partners of the club have put in place for today and ask you a couple of questions.”

“No problem,” Sonia said, already used to the pandemic drill. She knew that Tyler, one of the five partners, would want every T crossed and every I dotted.

When Sonia crossed the lobby, all cleared, her heels clicked loudly on the tiles. It was a bit sad to look up at the rock-climbing wall and not see club members working their way to the top, never mind the inevitable crowd of onlookers. She’d missed the view of that wall. The shop was closed, of course, and there was no one at the reception desk. The big screens mounted on the wall above reception were dark.

Sonia couldn’t wait to see Flatiron Five Fitness bustling again. A few guests had arrived and she headed toward them.

“Hi Sonia!” Tyler, the partner who managed the finances of the club, was standing on the far side of the lobby with his wife, Shannyn. He was, as ever, dressed like a model for an Ermenegildo Zegna ad, and Sonia took an appreciative survey of his dark suit, white shirt and tie. She knew he was totally buff, like all the partners, and he rocked a suit well. The fact that he was cradling their young son, Michael, didn’t hurt the view one bit. Michael was almost two and Sonia knew he was usually a whirlwind of activity on his own, but he was evidently worn out from earlier action.

Shannyn was tiny compared to Ty and dressed in her signature black with some funky silver jewelry. She was pregnant again and her bump looked big enough to topple her over.

“Great shoes, Sonia,” she said. She was wearing flats and spared them a glance. “I can’t risk being in Ty’s zip code until this baby arrives,” she joked, obviously feeling that her balance was unsteady.

“Are you going to interrupt the festivities again?” Sonia teased. Michael had been born in the middle of Cassie and Reid’s wedding.

“Never again,” Shannyn said with a laugh, then spared a sizzling glance at Ty. “We’re hoping for a little more privacy this time.”

Sonia admired Michael from a distance, who had grown since she had seen him last but was just as handsome as ever. Theo and Lyssa were standing closest to Ty and Shannyn, and Lyssa—a former supermodel—looked effortlessly glamorous in a flowing dress that was probably from a Paris designer. Their son, Logan, was taller and a little more awkward than Sonia remembered and had to be entering the teenage years. Theo managed the publicity and celebrity appearances for the club. He looked like he went to the same tailor as Ty and it was possible that he did—the two of them were the most photogenic of all the partners in Sonia’s opinion. His suit was dark, too, but his tie was deep purple.

Lyssa caught Sonia looking and laughed. “Nothing like a sharp-dressed man,” she said, sliding her hand through Theo’s elbow.

“Mom!” Logan protested.

“Nothing like a wedding to have everyone turned out in their best,” Sonia agreed. “I miss the club.”

“Me, too,” Theo said.

“And the view,” Lyssa added in a wicked whisper, sharing a smile with Sonia. “This place is all about the eye candy.”

“Aren’t I eye candy enough for you?” Theo demanded as if insulted.

“You know you are,” Lyssa said while Logan rolled his eyes. Lyssa tweaked his lapel. “What do you think of the first serious suit?” she asked Sonia.

Logan put on his sunglasses and struck a pose and Sonia checked him out then gave him a thumbs-up. “Obviously, good taste runs in the family.”

“You look great, too,” he said politely.

Lyssa looked over Sonia’s shoulder and shook her head at someone’s arrival. “Who knew that being a new mom could look so good?” she asked and Sonia turned.

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