She tensed and darted a glance at the back of the room where the two smirking idiots were still watching her. Her face grew somber. “Um, no. I don’t think I should try it again. Seems a bit more dangerous than what I was aiming for.”

“I can help with that.” He offered his hand to keep her full attention on him and off the two guys who needed to leave her alone and mind their own business. “I’m Adam Caldwell, the owner of the gym.”

Her eyes widened. “Oh. Um, Preslee Owens,” she said, timidly sliding her soft hand into his. “I didn’t realize you were the owner. I just joined your gym today.”

“Good. Glad to hear it. We love having new members.” He gestured to the stair-climber. “If you’ll let me, I’d like to give you some pointers on how best to use this machine. It’s in my job description, after all. I’m not only the owner but also the gym’s only certified personal trainer. Even if you don’t want to use the machine right now, you might want to try it again in the future. I’d really like for you to know how to use it, just in case. It’ll only take a minute.”

“Okay.”

Adam motioned for her to climb the stairs and followed behind her until they reached the top and were standing in front of the machine’s console. Even with him standing one step lower than her, he was tall enough that he could still see the screen over her shoulder. Her ponytail dangled somewhat in his face, and the faint scent of fresh coconuts and sweet pineapple lingered in her hair. He couldn’t help but turn his nose toward it and take a deeper breath to capture the delicious scent in his lungs.

Don’t sniff the woman! What the hell is wrong with you?

He mentally slapped himself and then reached around her to lift a reddish-orange clip attached to the machine by a black cord. “This is a safety key,” he said, holding it up in front of her. “Most of the machines here have one, and you clip it onto yourself like this. Pardon me,” he said, wrapping his free hand around her waist and pulling the hem of her shirt slightly away from her body as he fastened the clip to the edge.

She stiffened at his slight touch. “Oh, okay.”

“That way, if you fall off a machine or it’s going too fast and you need to step off it, the clip will pull out and automatically shut it off. It’s a safety feature that can keep you from getting into a situation like you did a minute ago and possibly injuring yourself.”