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Ironman down one bit… And he’s off!”
    “Oh my,” Archie says, watching the finale.
    Imogene plops down next to me and Lauren sits next to Archie as we continue laughing until Archie’s disapproving sigh shuts us up.
    “Where does he run to?” I ask.
    “He takes the county road as far as he can and then doubles back,” Lauren replies.
    “He needs it. It helps take the edge off all of his… edginess,” Imogene explains as she scrunches up her face and shakes her shoulders to demonstrate.
    They both leave to serve their customers, and I notice Archie’s stoic face regarding me with a questioning seriousness.
    “How are you and Dylan getting along at work?”
    “Well, he seems to be very good at his job, and I’m doing pretty well with my new projects and clients, if I do say so myself. But, truthfully, we don’t talk much. He’s good at working with other people in the company, but he also seems like a loner.”
    “That’s interesting,” Archie responds, and I wonder if my comment made him slightly sad because of his tone. “I think he’s trying to get used to his new situation. He’s had to overcome some difficult issues.”
    “I know. This town talks.”
    “Yes, it does. Dylan happens to be one of my favorite people. I don’t think I’ve ever told him that, though. But as an old man, I have always envied Dylan’s perseverance and enthusiasm, despite some of his poor choices.”
    “You wish you could run like the Tasmanian Devil?” I smile.
    “That, and I wish I could go back and grab the second chances I stupidly dismissed. It’s merely an old man’s musings.” He has a kind smile that reaches the wrinkles around his eyes. “I’m glad you’re working with Dylan. It’s good that he has someone to contend with besides Carson.” Archie chuckles.
    “You make it sound like we’re opponents. We work together. Sort of.”
    “Yes. I meant it’s nice that he gets to have you in his office, sharing the workload. I saw you two having lunch here together the other day, you seem to have hit it off.”
    I bark a laugh so suddenly that I surprise myself. “You’re kidding, right? He took me out for lunch on my first day, and that was more than a little tense. This whole week, we’ve worked pretty much independently of each other. We’re working around one another, but I wouldn’t say we’re hitting it off.”
    “It’s just my observation.” Archie winks with amusement.
    “Maybe you need glasses,” I tease him.
    “I don’t think so.” He chuckles. “Don’t let those young women lead you to believe that Dylan is worse off than anyone else. He’s a good person.”
    “All right.” I say nothing more about Dylan Blackard because it’s clear that Archie wants the last word on this man who is very dear to him.
    Naturally, I am not going to let on that I like these lunchtime festivities. I can’t wait to see Dylan in his element, whether it’s running through town or meandering through the factory at work. I have caught myself at the big, glass partition that separates the offices from the factory, watching him stroll around to different workstations, talking to the designers and craftsman, while I stand there stupidly with paperwork in my hand, gaping at him.
    However, it is those images of Dylan running that I find extremely distracting. I can be talking on the phone with a customer when I’ll start daydreaming about his incredibly muscled chest and abs and his powerful, corded legs, pumping fast as he runs. He is breathtaking when he moves like that. Though, at the same time, I have to wonder how lonely it must be to run so far away, out in the middle of nowhere, with no one for company.
    Despite the rocky start to our first day, and the tension that leaves me wondering if it’s attraction or friction, I would like it if he spoke to me more. I want to get to know him.
    One morning I can’t resist taking things further. We both finish calls to clients and there is an awkward