Because no matter how hard she tried to convince herself otherwise, she couldn't get Adrian Kael out of her head. Not his piercing blue eyes or the way he'd made her feel understood. Not the broad shoulders that had filled out his shirt like an invitation, or the controlled strength in every movement that had made her want to see what happened when that control finally snapped.
And definitely not the fact that he might be the only person who could save everything she'd worked to build.
The question was whether her pride could survive asking for his help after the way their last encounter had ended.
The sudden sharp pounding against the front door yanked her from her spiraling thoughts.
"Seriously?" she muttered to the empty gym.
This happened at least twice a week—someone spotting the lights through the windows and assuming she was open for business instead of stealing precious moments for her own training. The kind of interruption that fractured her focus and reminded her why she preferred the solitude of late-night sessions.
Riley stalked toward the front entrance, acutely aware of how she must look—her hair escaping its messy bun in damp tendrils, sports bra and leggings clinging to her sweat-slicked skin, and the flush of exertion painting her cheeks. Not exactly the professional image she projected during business hours.
But when she peered through the glass door, her breath caught in her throat.
Adrian Kael stood under the pale glow of the streetlight, and he looked nothing like the polished financial analyst who'd walked out of her life five days ago. Gone was the crisp button-down and tailored slacks. Instead, he wore athletic shorts that showcased his powerful legs and a fitted t-shirt that clung to the broad expanse of his chest. His dark auburn hair was slightly tousled, as if he'd run his hands through it, and those piercing blue eyes held an intensity that made something low in her belly clench with unwanted heat.
The absolute nerve of this man.
Riley's fingers tightened around the door handle as fury and something far more dangerous warred in her chest. After four days of silence—four days of wondering what she'd done wrong, of replaying that humiliating moment outside her apartment until it felt burned into her memory—he had the audacity to show up here looking like every fantasy she'd tried to banish.
She yanked the door open. "What do you want?" The words came out flat and hostile. "I'm busy."
Adrian's gaze swept over her, lingering for a heartbeat too long on the exposed skin of her midriff before meeting her eyeswith an expression she couldn't quite read. When he spoke, his voice carried that same controlled authority that had made her pulse quicken during their dinner, but underneath it she heard something rawer.
"I want to talk. I need to apologize for leaving so abruptly the other night."
Riley crossed her arms, acutely aware of how the movement pushed her breasts higher and the way Adrian's eyes flicked downward before snapping back to her face. "I'm not in the mood to talk to you. After four days of silence, I really have nothing left to say."
"Please." The word seemed to cost him something. "I really need to explain myself. And I still want to help your gym if you'll let me."
Every rational part of Riley's brain screamed at her to tell him exactly where he could shove his explanations and his help. To slam the door in his devastatingly handsome face and return to the simple, uncomplicated violence of her training.
But then that intoxicating scent reached her—warm and clean with an undertone of something wild that made her head spin. And despite every wall she'd built, despite the hurt and confusion of the past four days, she felt that same inexplicable pull drawing her toward him like gravity.
"You have ten minutes," she heard herself saying, stepping aside to let him pass.
"Thank you." Relief flickered across his features as he entered, and Riley locked the door behind him with hands that trembled slightly.
She immediately put distance between them, moving to the center of the training area and crossing her arms again. The defensive posture felt necessary when everything about his presence seemed designed to unravel her composure.
Adrian seemed to recognize this as his only chance because he started speaking fast, words tumbling out with an urgency that was completely at odds with his usual controlled demeanor.
"I left so fast the other night because I wanted you so badly. But I'm a tiger shifter and you're my fated mate and there's a mate bond between us. And if we'd had sex and I marked you with my mate mark then you would've been bound to me in ways you couldn't undo." He paused to catch his breath. "See, I'm the acting Alpha of the Kael pride and I need a mate to become the Alpha since my father died last year. But I don't want to rush you or force you into anything, but I can't deny how much I feel for you already. I respect your autonomy, so I left before I made a huge mistake."
Riley stood frozen, her mind struggling to process the torrent of impossible information. The words seemed to hang in the air between them, each revelation more fantastical than the last.
"Okay, back up," she said slowly, sinking onto a nearby bench before her legs could give out. "So, you're a tiger shifter? Like you can turn into a tiger?"
"Yes. I can show you right now, but maybe not inside the gym."
"No, that's not necessary right now." She believed him, though she couldn't say why. Something about the absolute certainty in his voice maybe, or the way those blue eyes seemed to flicker with golden light. "So let me get this straight. You're the acting Alpha of your pride and you need a mate—which is apparently me—to officially become the Alpha."
"Yes. Well, sort of. I can become the Alpha now, but an unmated Alpha is testable."
"And you want me, but you don't want to rush me into anything I don't understand or want."
"Yes, exactly that."