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First Date

Alysia reached the crest of the hill just as the sky was really starting to brighten. She looked out over the cliff toward the ocean and took a minute to catch her breath. As she regulated her inhales and exhales, her sounds were overcome by the still labored breathing coming from behind her.

"You are even fitter than you look. That last stretch was nearly vertical, and my trainer has been kicking my arse lately, and I'm dying. How have you already recovered?" Harry huffed indignantly.

She laughed over her shoulder at him and smiled wide, "I was out of breath, I had just caught it right as you came up, if you hadn't stopped to help me up that last set of boulders with your phone light, our positions would have been reversed."

"Doesn't matter, you kill me in all physical arenas," Harry said it like a compliment.

"I think we will have to test that theory," she said with a glint in her eye. "Let's be quiet a moment and watch the sun rise. Maureen says it magic here early in the morning."

It was their first official date. When they were brainstorming an activity that met all her criteria on the phone 3 days ago, (physical, outdoors, and not to interfere with her sister's schedule) and his (private, during the day time as his nights were in the studio, and romantic), a sunrise hike was pretty much the only option open. They settled on Charmlee Canyon in Malibu. It was convenient as he spent a good amount of time there cruising from one guest room to another and she was quite close being just inland in Simi Valley. They met up 30 minutes before sunrise and used their phones to navigate their way until the sun was peaking out to light their steps.

She smiled at him, and he reached out and took her hand in his. Her smile grew a fraction wider. This was the first time they had touched since she snuck out of his bed the other morning. They seemed to have some unspoken agreement. Their connection had been so fiery, so physical, that if they were going to make this work, they had to keep their hands to their selves for the time being.

Alysia was floored when he showed up at her class. He was dressed to work out, with a small newsboy cap on. With the newish short hair, most of the people in the room, primarily moms with elementary aged kids, didn't seem to catch on to the superstar in their mix. She was thankful that she had done this particular workout many times, muscle memory carried her through as she demonstrated moves and walked around correcting form and giving encouragement, or her distraction would have been painfully obvious. Harry kept his eyes on her, as did most of the other students, but his gaze was heavy, knowing and hot, and she avoided eye contact so she wouldn't light on fire right there. When she walked by him, he seemed to lean into her personal space unconsciously.

"Try to keep your elbows in," she commented.

"Like this," he asked with a mischievous smirk.

"No," She countered, she knew he was teasing her, so she took the bait, stepping into his space and pushing his elbows closer to his ears. She realized her mistake the minute she looked into his eyes, she was too close to him, and her panting now had little to do with the workout.

"Lo, Love," he whispered, forgetting himself and leaning in again.

Alysia started to lean closer as well, before the music changed and she realized she needed to give instruction on the next set. She dropped her hands from his slick skin and skittered to the front of the class. For the remainder of the morning, she avoided eye contact and gave him a wide berth. She clearly had some self-control issues when he was near her.

After class, the little huddle that always formed around her gave her the space she needed to prepare herself for him. He was hovering on the outside, clearly waiting to chat with her; hat still on, gaze still focused.