Tyler's Undoing (17 page)

“What did he do?” I asked curiously.

Snickering, she moved in closer to make sure no one could hear her. “He’d kill me if I told anyone about this. Anyway, I made a comment about going to see the Disney on Ice show and then just last Friday he shows up at my place with tickets. It was the sweetest thing ever.”

Yes, it was, but I couldn’t imagine Tyler ever doing that.

“What are you two whispering about?” Tyler asked, jumping out of the ring. He put his arm around my waist and pulled me in to his side.

“Oh, just the usual,” Bree remarked, looking around at the other people in the gym.

Tyler furrowed his brows. “And what would that be?”

Bree chuckled and started off toward the treadmills, answering him over her shoulder. “Just talking about how hot some of these guys are in here. I think you need to hire me, so I can look at them all day.” She winked at me and burst out laughing.

Tyler didn’t think she was too funny.

“Lighten up,” I told him. “You know that’s not what we were talking about. I couldn’t take my eyes off of you to even look at someone else. You were amazing up there.” His body was slick with sweat and hot to the touch, but I didn’t care. I leaned into him and breathed him in. “It actually kind of turned me on,” I whispered in his ear.

“Now that’s what I like to hear. Let me go change clothes and then we can leave and get something to eat. Afterward, we can go to my place.”

Biting my lip, I glanced up at him and nodded. “Hurry.”

I didn’t want to wait any longer.

THE LOOK IN Kacey’s eyes when she told me to hurry had me so fucking hard. I couldn’t wait to get her to my house and lay her out on my bed. However, as soon as I changed and met her back in the gym, all hopes of getting out of their fast completely diminished. My mother had shown up with dinner, like she always did each night. I was about to pass on it, but then she put her clutches into Kacey. We weren’t going anywhere.

It was strange to see my parents so interested in Kacey. I didn’t know if it was because they felt sorry for the loss of her grandma, or if she just captivated them like she did with everyone. Then again, they’d never seen me interested in just
one
girl; it was always dozens, which pissed my mother off. She always made sure to tell me she raised me better than that.

My mother was an amazing cook and with Kacey being one as well, they had a lot in common. Especially when my mother told Kacey about my great-grandparents and how they owned a thriving restaurant in the nineteen-twenties. Even during the depression, they were able to stay afloat.

Kacey took notes as my mother went on and on about the do’s and don’ts of running a business. It was the happiest I’d seen Kacey since her grandmother died. She had that spark, a passion to succeed. It made me want to be better, to be the fighter I knew I could be.

Once dinner was over, Kacey and I bolted out of the gym to my truck.

“I was afraid we weren’t going to get the fuck out of there,” I muttered, opening the car door for her. She’d enjoyed the time spent with my mother, but I could tell she was just as impatient to leave as I was after a while. “I love my mother and everything, but she sure as hell can talk. She seemed to be pretty taken with you though.”

Kacey hopped in the truck and snickered. “Is she usually not like that?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve never introduced her to any of . . . you know . . . the girls I’ve been with,” I sputtered hesitantly. We hadn’t exactly talked about all of the women I’d been with, but I was sure she had a good idea.

“Not even, Gabriella?”

I stiffened. “How did you know about her? That’s not something many people know.” I had a good guess though . . . Cole.

Instead of answering, Kacey bit her lip and sat there, warring with herself on what to tell me. Obviously, she was told not to say anything.

“So it is true?” she asked. “You two were seeing each other?”

Releasing a heavy sigh, I shut her door and walked around to my side of the truck and got in. Through her tone, I couldn’t tell if she was worried about something or if she was angry.

Once I started down the road, I reached for the hand laying in her lap and squeezed it. “Did Cole tell you?” I asked, glancing over at her. “You can tell me if he did.”

“Actually, no,” she replied, shaking her head. “He didn’t tell me, but I kind of figured it out on my own.”

How the hell could she do that? She wasn’t even around me during that time. “How could you figure something like that out?”

“It was in the video that went viral,” she stated. “It was the one where you and that other fighter started battling it out and then Gabriella and the other female finished. The way you two looked at each other wasn’t just a ‘friends’ look . . . it was much deeper.”

It had to be a female thing to notice something like that because no one else ever made any comments about it. “It’s not like that anymore,” I admitted honestly, staring straight at her. “What we had is over. We’re just friends now.” I hadn’t even talked to Gabriella since I’d been with Kacey.

“That video was shot just over a month ago,” Kacey stated adamantly. “You’re trying to tell me feelings just disappear?”

“A lot has changed in a month, Kacey. Look how far you and I’ve come in just the last week. There’s nothing going on. Besides, we were never even exclusive.”

She nodded, clearly uncertain by the rigidity in her body.

“How did you know about that video anyway?”

“Google will give you everything,” she replied. “All I had to do was type in your name and voilà. My only concern is that she’ll be at the fights with you. I just want to make sure I don’t have to worry about something happening between you two when I’m not around.”

“Nothing’s going to happen,” I promised her, tapping her on the chin to get her attention. “She’s moved on and so have I. I’m happy where I’m at . . . with you. It was a mutual understanding to end things. What I need from you is to trust me. Can you do that?”

“I do,” she murmured wholeheartedly. “Nobody likes to get their heart broken. I guess I’ve spent a lot of my time guarding mine.”

Bringing her hand up to my lips, I kissed it gently and locked my gaze onto hers, hoping to erase the doubt on her face. “I don’t want to get hurt either, but it’s a risk you take when you let people in. I can’t promise I’m not going to do stupid shit and piss you off, but I
can
promise I will always be honest and straightforward. If there’s something you want to know, I’ll tell you the truth.”

Her face instantly lit up, a mischievous smirk splaying across her lips
.
“So if I ask you
anything
, you’ll tell me the truth?” she inquired curiously.

“Yes, but I’m warning you. Be mindful of the questions, because you might not want to hear the answers.”

Turning her body completely toward me, she grinned and rubbed her hands together. “I think I can handle that. All right, let’s see . . . were you in love with Gabriella?”

Of course it had to be about her.
In all seriousness, I looked her in the eyes and answered, “No, I was never in love with her. She’s a good friend and I care about her, but that’s as far as it goes.”

Furrowing her brows, she stared at me for a moment before nodding her head, hopefully satisfied with my response. I was beginning to think I should’ve given her a five question limit.

“Have you slept with anyone since you met me?” she asked.

“No. Have you?”

Deep down, I knew she hadn’t because she wasn’t like that—she wasn’t like me. Hell, I used to love fucking different women almost every night, or at least three times a week. I could get anyone I wanted, but I had yet to fully get the one I truly wanted.

“Hey, these aren’t my questions. I don’t have to answer that,” she teased. “But since you’re answering mine, I’ll at least be nice enough to answer one of yours. No, I haven’t slept with anyone since you met me. In fact, I haven’t had sex in almost two years.”

Two years?
Hot damn, that was a long time. “Why? Is it because you were taking care of your grandmother?”

“Yes, it was mostly that, and also I’ve never been the type of girl to give it up to just anyone. I don’t even want to know how many people you’ve been with.”

Ouch.
In her eyes I could see that dealing with my past wasn’t going to be easy. “So, I’m assuming that’s not your next question?” I asked hesitantly.

“Oh, God no,” she shrieked. “I prefer to be ignorant on those details. Besides, it’s not about our pasts, or the things we can’t change. We have to look forward, right? I mean, what if there was something about me you couldn’t change? What if I had a family member who was basically the spawn of evil?”

I laughed, I couldn’t help it. “The spawn of evil? That’s probably a little extreme don’t you think?”

“I wish it was, but unfortunately it’s true.” Nervously, she fiddled with her fingers. “I just wouldn’t want you to think badly of me because of my family. You wouldn’t would you?”

“No,” I exclaimed incredulously. Why would she even think that? “I don’t care what other people in your family do. It’s you I care about.” Turning into my driveway, I shut off my truck and reached for her hands.

Almost instantly, that seemed to appease her. She breathed a sigh of relief, her fingers relaxing in my grasp.

“I have one more question for you,” she murmured, leaning her head against the seat and biting her lip provocatively. Her skin tight green T-shirt hung so close to her skin I could see her nipples peeking through the fabric. I wanted to taste them, to roll my tongue around them and make them pucker more. I wanted to taste all of her.

“What’s the question?” I growled low, watching her tongue slide across her lips.

Slowly, she moved forward and stopped only an inch away from me, her mouth so achingly close. It killed me to keep my calm, to not pick her up, carry her into my house, throw her on my bed, and just fuck her like I’d been dying to do since the day I met her. I had never wanted someone so bad and not be able to have them.

“I’m ready for you, Tyler. Are you ready for me?”

Grasping the back of her neck, I brought her closer and gently nipped her bottom lip making her gasp. “You have no fucking idea.”