Shifting Gears: The Complete Series (Sports Bad Boy Romance) (77 page)

“What? I was going to flip a U.”

“Right. Home Jessie, please take me home.”

“You just look like you’re in so much
pain…”

“It hurts…like a son of a bitch. But
everything’s moving like it’s supposed to be. I’m just going to be sore for a
while. All the hospital will do is give me some pain pills after they make us
wait for three hours. I already have some muscle relaxers I can take and I
think I have a few pain pills left from when I tweaked my back.”

“I have some pain pills left over too,
but…are you sure?”

“I’m sure,” he said. He wasn’t leaving me
any room for argument. I made the U turn and headed for his apartment. I
noticed Paul was holding his seatbelt out away from his body especially when I
slowed down or came to a stop. The seatbelt hurt mine really badly after Mitch
beat me up. I hoped that his aren’t broken.

“Are your ribs okay?”

“Yeah,” he said, sounding breathless.
“Just sore, nothing I can’t handle. I’ve been hurt worse than this after a cage
fight. Fucking Mitch though, chicken-shit bastard couldn’t fight with his hands
like a man…”

“Unless he’s fighting a woman,” I said.
Paul reached over and grabbed my hand. We drove the rest of the way in silence.
When we got to his apartment I tried to help him out of the car.

“I can do it, Jessie,” he said. He was
getting like the cops now, annoyed with me. It was so hard for me to watch him
move though. It had nearly killed me to watch Mitch beat on him with that tire
iron and now to watch him try and move around in pain was killing me all over
again.

Once inside I went to the refrigerator and
got out a bottle of water for him. I followed him into his room and sat down on
the bed as he dug out the pain pills and muscle relaxers. He took one of each
and gulped down half the bottle of water. He sat down too and after a few
seconds he put his arm around my waist and lay back. I lay back with him, careful
not to lean against his ribs.

“You think they arrested him?”

“Yeah, I’m sure they did,” Paul said.
“Hopefully they’ll get a clue and keep him this time.”

“In general population,” I said.

Paul chuckled and then winced. “Don’t say
anything funny for at least a week, okay?”

“I’ll try,” I told him, “But I’m naturally
a funny girl. It will be hard.” He smiled and pulled my head over onto his
shoulder.

Kissing me on top of it he said, “I hope a
week is all it takes. I don’t have much time before the fight with Trent. I
can’t be worried about protecting sore ribs. I have to win.”

I didn’t say anything. I was pretty sure
there was nothing I could say at this point to convince him to go to the
hospital and I doubted he was going to be pain free in time to fight. That
wasn’t what he wanted or needed to hear right now though, so I kept quiet.

CHAPTER
TWO

I was able to convince Paul to take it
easy for that one day. The day after I left him sleeping and went back to my
apartment to get ready for work. I was just about to leave when he called.

“Hey, why’d you leave without me?”

“You were sleeping. I didn’t want to wake
you. I have to go to work.”

“I know. I want to go with you.”

“To the gym? No way!”

“Really…Mom?”

“Come on, I laid next to you most of the
day yesterday and all night last night. Every time you move, you wince.
Breathing looks painful. The last thing you need to do is work out.”

“No it’s the first thing I need to do. You
think I can lie around for a week and then beat a champion? You’re a trainer,
you know better than that.”

“You can’t beat him if you don’t take care
of yourself…”

“I’ll just see you there…”

“Oh stop it! I’ll be right there, but I
want it on the record that I object.”

“Objection overruled,” he said. I hung up
shaking my head. He was hot, sexy, kind, gentle…and stubborn as hell.

He was waiting outside for me when I got
to his apartment. He got into the car without making a face or sucking air, but
I knew he was concentrating on being stoic just to get me off his back. As we
drove to the gym I said, “Did you take your pain pills?”

“Yeah. I didn’t take the muscle relaxants.
I don’t want to fall asleep in the ring.”

“Probably a good idea. Who are you working
out with today?”

“Sam…and you?”

I was afraid he was going to say that. I
usually didn’t mind helping him at all but I wasn’t sure how I was going to be
able to handle watching him in pain. I didn’t say that though, he knew how I
felt. “Okay,” I said. “What are you working on?”

“Kick-boxing,” he said.

“Seriously?”

“Yes,” he told me as we pulled into the
lot in front of the gym. “Trent’s game is all wrestling. He won National
division wrestling tournaments before he started cage fighting. I do not want
to take this fight to the ground until it’s because he’s unconscious.”

“Great,” I said, forcing a smile that we
both knew was fake. We walked in together and as he headed for the back I said,
“Go ahead and get started with Sam, I’m going to clock in and take care of some
paperwork I’m behind on first.” He winked at me and in spite of myself I felt
that twinge of lust in my nether regions. He was just so damned hot. I walked
over to the counter and said, “Hi Victoria.”

“Hey there,” she said. She glanced in
Paul’s direction and said, “You two look cozy.”

I could feel myself blush. “We’re doing
alright.” It killed them all that I wouldn’t talk about my personal stuff like
everyone else around here.

She made a face and said, “Greg told me
about that creep Mitch attacking Paul yesterday. I can’t believe what he did to
you wasn’t enough to keep him in jail. Paul looks okay though, that’s good.”

“Yeah, he looks good. He wouldn’t go to
the hospital though so who knows?
 
As far
as the cops go, I don’t know why they don’t want to admit there could be a bad
seed in their midst. I think they want to keep trying to give him the benefit
of the doubt because he’s a cop. It’s ridiculous. Hopefully they’ll keep him
this time.”

“I hope so too,” she said. I went into the
back office and took care of some billing I needed to do for my private
clients. I was really appreciative of my amazing bosses lately. The drama of my
life…or Mom’s and Paul’s lives had gotten in the way of work a lot. When I
finished, I left the invoices for Greg to sign and then I headed for the back
where Paul and Sam were. Sam had him on the bag instead of in the ring. That
made me feel better. The bag wasn’t going to fight back and accidentally kick
him in the sore ribs. I stood back and watched for a minute. As I walked in he
was moving his right leg around in a roundhouse. His form was off a little…I
thought it had to be because of the pain. When he connected with the bag I saw
him wince and heard a little “Oomph!”

I went over closer and said, “Hey, are you
doing okay?”

He was sweating more than usual for what
would normally be a light work-out for him, but he said, “Yep, I’m fine.” I
didn’t say anything; I just stood back and watched him and Sam for a few
minutes. After the kick he dropped to his feet with another strangled sound but
he kept moving. He moved in close to the bag and pulled back his right arm for
a roundhouse punch.

“Tuck your chin,” Sam told him. Paul did
and then he unleashed a flurry of roundhouse punches onto the bag. His form was
good, but every time his fist connected with the bag, he would suck in a breath
between his teeth. He was in a lot of pain whether he would admit it or not.
“Arc it!” Sam told him. “Fist to shoulder, make it hard for him to block.”

“Watch the other hand too,” I told
him.
 
“Use it to block your junk because
he’s coming in with a front kick after a few of those punches connect.”

He snorted and in a breathless voice he
said, “You weren’t supposed to be funny.”

“I was dead serious,” I told him.

“My junk?”

“We’re in mixed company, what should I
call it…your package?”

He laughed out loud that time and then
said, “Shit! Stop Jess, it hurts.”

“Why don’t you take a break,” I told him.

“I’m alright,” he said. “I want to
practice the spinning-back kick, Sam.”

“Okay, slow motion one the first time.
Step forward…you’re too far back; close in on your target. Now spin backwards
so you’re facing away from him. At the same time look over your shoulder at
your target, now lift your knee to your chest…yeah that’s it…higher….”

“Fuck,” I heard Paul breathe out almost
silently. Sweat was dripping off his forehead now. I started to tell him again
that he should take a break, but he gave me a look that said it was a moot
point. “Okay Sam, here it goes.”

He repeated the steps and after he lifted
his leg Sam told him, “Now drive the heel of your foot back into him. You want
to aim for his gut.”

Paul landed the kick in the center of the
bag. He was thrown forward slightly and this time his strangled cry was an
all-out cry. I winced and so did Sam.

“Damn it Paul, take a break.”

Through his still gritted teeth he said,
“No.”

I looked at Sam, rolled my eyes and said,
“Good luck, I can’t watch this.”

I grabbed my water and went out front. The
gym was crowded and I needed some air so I went outside. I paced back and
forth, frustrated. I wanted to kick Paul’s ass for being so damned stubborn. He
should have gone to the hospital and he shouldn’t be here today. But hell if
he’ll listen to me.

“Hey there, who pissed in your cheerios?”
It was Justin the marathon runner. I smiled at him and he said, “That’s better.
You okay?”

“I’m fine,” I told him. “I’m pissed and
frustrated, but fine.”

“What happened? That creep Mitch isn’t
bothering you again, is he?”

“Not me specifically,” I told him.
“Yesterday they let him out of jail though and in the morning he attacked Paul
with a crow bar. It was at a gas station and it was a whole big mess…the police
almost arrested Paul because he ended up kicking Mitch’s chicken-shit ass.
Luckily there was a video…”

“Damn, that sucks. I’m sorry. Is Paul
okay?”

“He’s in there,” I said, gesturing towards
the gym.

“Hmm, let me guess…you don’t think he
should be working out yet?”

“He got beat with a crowbar for crying out
loud. He’s as sore as hell and he refused to go to the hospital. He could have
broken bones for all we know. Yet he’s still in there going full-bore on a bag
because he has a big fight coming up. What if he permanently hurts something?”

“Athletes are a stubborn lot,” he said
with a grin.

“You think? Athletes…and men. The combination
is lethal. A woman would take care of herself.”

He smiled but he was smart enough to leave
that one alone. “I can try and talk to him if you want. I had to sit out on one
of the biggest marathons of my life because of a torn ACL once. It sucked,
hard.”

“Thanks,” I told him, “But he won’t listen
to me or Sam, I don’t think he’s going to listen to anyone. He’s going to do
what Paul wants to do, period.”

“Is that creep Mitch at least back in jail
where he needs to be?”

“Yeah…at least as far as I know, they took
him in after he got out of the hospital yesterday. The cop I talked to on the
phone last night said he doubted that they’d grant bail to him again after
committing assault the first time he was let out.”

“Well that’s good news anyways. When’s his
big fight?”

“A week from today,” I told him. “I
seriously doubt he’s going to be healed by then.”

“He’s not going to consider postponing
that, I assume.”

“I shudder to think of what he might do to
someone who even dared to suggest it,” I said, only half-joking.

“Hey Jessie!”
 
I looked over towards the voice. It was
Victor running towards me and Marie following along behind hi holding a big
Tupperware bowl.

“Hey Victor! How are you?”

“I’m good. Is Uncle Paul okay?”

“He’s a stubborn old…” Victor grinned and
I ruffled his hair. “He’s good. He’s too tough to be kept down. He’s in the
back with Sam, go tell him to take a break,” I told him. He ran in and I looked
over at Marie. As I did, I realized that she and Justin were looking at each
other appreciatively. “Hi Marie,” I said. She tore her eyes from Justin and
looked at me.

“Hi Jessie. How are you?”

“I’m good. Your brother on the other hand
is a stubborn ass.”

She laughed and said, “Do you have any new
information?” she glanced back towards Justin.

“Oh hey, I’m sorry. Justin, this is Marie
Delport. She’s Paul’s sister…but don’t hold that against her.”

Justin chuckled and then looked at Marie
and smiled. The smile she gave him back was dazzling. I could almost hear them
click. “It’s nice to meet you,” Justin told her, putting out his hand.