The Elite: The Complete Series of Boomer and Player (With Bonus) by KB Winters

the crowd of people sitting outside, it was almost impossible to see if she was there.
    Princess hadn’t slowed down, and was racing farther and farther ahead of me. I tore my eyes from the patio and kicked into the next gear, easily catching up to her with a hundred-yard sprint that left my leg muscles screaming and my lungs heaving. I trotted to a stop and caught my breath, walking to the edge of the water.
    What was I expecting? Even if Holly had been sitting outside, what difference would it have made? It was fairly obvious from her body language and actions that she wasn’t interested in me. Hell, for all I knew, she could have been married.
    Why did it matter?
    I sucked in the brisk, salty air as my pulse and breathing returned to normal, before starting back towards the bluff. I took it easy on the run home, and shifted my attention away from the mysterious woman that had captivated my interest, and forced myself to focus on my plan for the day instead.
    After grabbing a shower and a change of clothes, I checked in with Aaron to see if he needed anything from the local market. He was busy with a group of tourists who had a slippery grasp on the English language, and waved me off. I loaded Princess into the car and drove down the road, dipping back into the small town, and parked on the street half a block from the market.
    “Stay here, girl.” The top was still down on the car, leaving Princess free to jump out if she wanted, but I trusted her not to.
    I grabbed a few things from the market, and after checking out, peeled back the wrapper of a protein bar on my way back to the car and started snacking. When I got to the car, it was empty.
    “What the…” I spun in a circle, frantically scanning the street for any sign of Princess. I lowered the bag of groceries onto the passenger seat before starting back down the sidewalk, towards the front of the store, when I heard a familiar bark that flooded me with relief.
    Princess was sitting on a wooden bench in front of the shop next door.
    “Oh boy…” I muttered, noticing her companion.
    A six month old, chubby, chocolate lab puppy that belonged to a certain mystery woman.
    “Hunter!”
    I turned at the frantic cry, and smiled widely at Holly’s approach. Her eyes were trained on Hunter, but when they slid from her rascal of a pup and met mine, they went wide with alarm, before darting back to Hunter and Princess, as though she’d only just realizing her dog had found mine.
    “Hey there,” I greeted her. She was panting and windblown again, just like the first time we’d met. My eyes wandered down her body, admiring the way her pink tank top was sticking to her skin that glistened with a thin layer of perspiration after her run.
    “Hi,” she replied, her voice clipped. She pushed back her thick, blonde hair and twirled the strands together into a side ponytail, keeping it grasped between her fingertips. “Jack? Right?”
    “That’s right, Holly.” Her eyes drifted back to the dogs, who were sitting side by side, like old friends. “I don’t get it. You have some kind of magical spell on him or something. He’s never this calm.”
    I laughed and walked over to the dogs. Princess didn’t make a move to come over to me, she was perfectly content to sit with Hunter. “It’s not me. It’s all Princess.”
    “Whew,” Holly blew out a puff of air, still catching her breath. She looked up and down the street. It wasn’t busy, but there were cars coming and going every few minutes. “God, he could have gotten hurt…You probably think I’m like the worst dog owner ever.”
    I tore my eyes away from admiring her toned arms and perky tits and shook my head. “No, not at all.”
    She gave me a skeptical look.
    I held up my hands, palms facing her and laughed. “I swear. Trust me, Princess wasn’t always this well behaved. In fact, she was supposed to be waiting for me in the car. Not over here. So, believe me, I get it. I’m just glad they’re both