Chapter 121: Slick Deal

"I want to be your personal gym trainer," Jade said.

Xavier looked at her.

Your personal gym trainer, he thought. That’s what she came here with underneath everything else. He held her gaze for a moment. Of all the things I expected her to ask when she said there’s something I want to ask you about. This was not on the list.

"Trainer," he said.

"Trainer," she confirmed. Expression completely steady. The brown eyes held him without flinching.

Hmm, Xavier thought. Is this really what she wanted to ask?. He studied her properly for the first time since she’d said it. She’s watching me process it and carefully not showing whether she cares what I do with the information.

"What were you thinking," she said.

He looked at her.

What was I thinking, he thought. That nobody comes to a hostel at 3PM on a Thursday in a caramel dress and pitches themselves as a gym trainer. That there’s something underneath this that she’s not saying yet. That I underestimated how many moves ahead she was playing.

"Nothing," he replied.

She stared at him for a brief moment with the expression of someone who didn’t entirely believe that answer but had decided not to push it.

Suspicious, he thought. She knows I know she’s hiding something. And she’s comfortable with that. He looked at the ceiling. Which means whatever she’s hiding she’s confident enough in the surface arrangement to let the underneath sit for now.

Interesting, he thought. Very interesting.

"I thought female trainers usually trained women," he said.

She smiled. Not the flirtatious version. Something more specific. The smile of someone who had anticipated that exact objection before they walked through the door.

"I’m an exception," she said. Her finger found his chest and started drawing slow circles with the particular ease of someone who had decided they were comfortable here and wasn’t going to apologise for that decision. "I work better with male clients. Always have."

Male clients, Xavier thought. In a caramel dress. At 5PM.

Sure, he thought. Absolutely.

"So what’s the arrangement," he said. "I’m assuming this comes with compensation."

"Monthly," she said. Still the finger. Still the eyes. "I was thinking $15,000."

Xavier looked at her.

$15,000 a month, he thought. For her to train me at a gym I’m already going to twice a week regardless. He thought about it properly. Not dismissively, actually thought about it. She’s smart. Actually smart. She’s created a legitimate professional arrangement that gives her recurring access to my time and my environment with a financial component that makes it feel structured rather than personal. He looked at the ceiling. That’s a well constructed play.

And honestly, he thought. For twice weekly sessions with someone who clearly knows what she’s doing in a gym. $15,000 isn’t unreasonable. The Apex membership alone is $800 a month.

I like how direct she is, he thought. About all of it. From the first approach at the cable machine to the texts to coming here to this. Everything visible. Everything on the table.

Whatever she’s hiding underneath. She’s been honest about everything else. That counts for something.

She shifted slightly beside him. The particular shift of someone who had put something out there and was waiting with more patience than most people would manage.

"I really enjoy having you around," she said. The finger still moving on his chest. The brown eyes still doing their particular work. "So what do you say?"

He looked at her for a long moment.

Personal trainer, he thought. $15,000 a month. Tuesday and Thursday mornings at Apex. He thought about his current Thursday and Tuesday schedule. Already going those days. She already goes those days. She pitched something that costs me nothing logistically and $15,000 monthly that the system returns doubled before the end of the day.

The math works, he thought. The company works. And whatever she’s actually after. I’ll find out eventually.

"Deal," he said.

She pecked him on the cheek. Light. Quick. The ease of someone who had gotten exactly what they came for and was genuinely pleased about it without making a performance of the pleasure.

These Asian eyes, Xavier thought, looking at her up close in the quiet of the afternoon. Genuinely seductive. The kind that did their work without announcing it.

He checked his phone.

5:34PM.

Selene’s restaurant, he thought. I need to be there before she arrives.

"I have somewhere to be," he said.

"Okay," she said. Already sitting up. Already practical about it in the way she was practical about everything. No drama, no lingering, just adjusting to the new information and moving accordingly.

"There’s a guest bathroom," he said. "Down the hall, you would’ve used mine but I am for sure in a hurry."

"It’s alright" she replied and picked up her dress from wherever it had ended up during the afternoon and walked to the bathroom with the complete ease of someone who had decided they were comfortable in this space and had stopped thinking about whether that was appropriate.

Xavier watched her as she unlocked his door and left for the guest bathroom .

Personal trainer, he thought. Showing up at 3PM on a Thursday to pitch herself as my gym instructor. He shook his head slowly. She’s really something. Whatever she’s actually hiding. She’s earned the benefit of the doubt for now.

He got up. Showered in his own bathroom quickly. Dressed. Wore his navy suit. Checked himself in the mirror.

Selene said the navy works better, he thought. Might just use the fit for the occasion.

Jade came out of the guest bathroom at 6:05PM. Hair dried properly. Dress back on. Looking exactly as she had when she’d arrived except for the particular settled quality that came after a Thursday afternoon that had gone the way it went.

She picked up her bag from the chair. Looked at him in the suit.

"You clean up fast," she said.

"Just have somewhere urgent to be," he replied.

"You mentioned," she said. A brief moment. "Tuesday then. Apex. 8AM. First official session, don’t be late."

"Tuesday," he confirmed.

She walked to the door. Stopped. Looked back.

"Xavier," she said.

"Jade."

"Today was good," she said. Simply. Without the smile or the eyes doing extra work. Just the plain statement of someone being honest in the one moment they’d dropped the performance entirely.

"See you Tuesday," he said.

She turned and left.

The door closed.

Xavier stood in the middle of the apartment for a moment in the navy suit with the Panamera keys on the desk and the city outside the window doing its Thursday evening thing.

Personal trainer, he thought. He let out a minute smirk.. He picked up his phone. But today was good. She said it herself.

He opened his banking app.

Let me wire her the first month upfront, he thought. And a little extra. She drove here. She made my afternoon what it was. He transferred $20,000 without deliberating.

[ REBATE SYSTEM ]

Transaction Detected: $20,000 spent on trainer salary — first month

Base Multiplier (Tier 2): 2x

Total Return: $40,000

[ Net Balance: $15,826,088.00 → $15,846,088.00 ]

Keep the change, he thought.

He picked up the Panamera keys.

Selene’s restaurant, he thought. 6:30PM. She will probably arrives at her usual time.

I need to be there first.