Read Body By Night for Free Online Page B

look now, and in six months or so we’ll shoot the new you. The posters will be used in marketing—”
    “I don’t know,” D’Andra interrupted. She hadn’t liked being photographed ever since she’d worn the navy blue sailor dress. “I’m not too good with photo shoots.”
    Night stopped his treadmill and signaled her to come down. She looked at the clock and was surprised to see that ten minutes had gone by. She’d walked for almost fifteen minutes! Still, she didn’t let her excitement overrule her common sense.
    “I’ll help you with your program,” she continued. “And I have a friend, Elaine, who’d be perfect as your spokesperson. She’s had two kids and is losing weight…”
    Night placed a gentle hand on her skin and the heat traveled up her arm, down her chest and settled in a slow burn just below her navel. She forced herself not to squirm under his intense gaze.
    “I’ve found the perfect person,” he declared softly. “From what I’ve seen so far you’re a beautiful woman inside and out. That’s important for anyone representing my establishment.”
    “I’ll think about it,” she said.
    “Why don’t you think about it while we ride bikes?”
    She fudged on the pedaling a little bit and even stopped for a minute or so but when all was said and done she completed almost ten minutes of cycling and another ten lifting free weights. In between instructions on lifting techniques and which muscles were being benefited by which weight machine, Night regaled her with his grandiose plans about his gym, including plans to have it operate almost twenty-four hours a day, with a special, party-like atmosphere happening during the late night hours. She was impressed with how much attention he paid to details and in spite of her resolve to be cautious, found herself getting caught up in his excitement.
    “I’ve developed your program and can email it to you today. That way you can get the green light from the doc and we can get started. Any questions, just give me a call. You do still have my card, right?”
    “Yes,” D’Andra said, glad she hadn’t followed her impulse to throw it away.
    “So, I’ll see you on Tuesday?” he asked as she headed for the women’s locker room.
    The only thing D’Andra didn’t like about his plans was using her for the photo shoot. She thought it would be easier to pedal one of those stationary bikes uphill. But he stood there looking so hopeful, so joyous at his plans coming together. How could she tell him no?
    “I’ll think about it,” was as close as she could come to an answer before she ran for the showers.
     
     
    D’Andra stepped from the confines of the gym into a picture-perfect day. The air held the slightest hint of a chill off the Pacific Ocean, tempered by a bright mid-January sun beaming directly overhead. For just a moment she missed Charles. On a day like today, when times were good between them, they would have gone for a walk on the beach or to see a movie. But that was before she’d seen his ass bouncing between a pair of legs that weren’t hers.
    She shook her head, hoping to rid it of these painful memories. Knowing that nothing could help her feel better than a trip to the mall, she went shopping. After a pantsuit, three tops, a new pair of tennis shoes, and a chef salad, she felt better and decided to keep the mood going by swinging through Wal-Mart, her favorite one-stop shop.
    D’Andra stood in the middle of the aisle in this massive superstore, looking at a dozen different bathroom scales. She knew she wanted a digital one, the most accurate she was told, but had no idea that outside of that there was a plethora of other choices: lithium or no, body fat analyzer, body fat and body water tracking scale, weight tracker, scale with memory, daily calorie counter and more. She finally settled on a heavy duty, lithium scale with none of the extras. The mirror could track her weight just fine and if she wasn’t counting calories