Raw Deal (Larson Brothers #1)(56)

“It seems sleazy to me, man.”

“What’s sleazy about vouching for you? Her problem is she doesn’t know you.”

“She doesn’t want to know me, Z. That’s her decision to make. We can’t force her to just accept the guy who killed her husband into the family.”

“Into the family?” Damien recoiled as if he’d been burned. “Jesus. I thought you were only trying to get into Savannah’s pants, not the family portrait.”

“I suspect that particular mission was already accomplished,” Zane said wryly.

“It’s also not up for discussion,” Mike ground out, sending warning glances to both of them.

“I’m not even kidding, though,” Zane said. “We hit it off pretty well. Give me Rowan’s number. I’m on it.”

“I don’t have it,” Mike said.

“You can get it.”

“I specifically told Savannah she didn’t have anything to worry about with you. Siccing you on her sister-in-law would be going back on that word.”

“I’ll be good, dude. I wouldn’t do anything but persuade her to give you a break.”

“Persuade her,” Damien scoffed.

“And she would probably tell you to f*ck off.” Mike couldn’t even bring himself to inform them that Rowan had all but forced Savannah to watch the fight again. The mere thought made his hands twitch. There were breakables around, and he might start breaking them. Some angel of mercy set the beer Damien had demanded in front of him, and he took a long drink.

“I’m gonna do it,” Zane said, slapping the table.

Mike almost choked as he swallowed. “Don’t,” he warned, wiping his mouth.

“What do you have to lose? Nothing. Hell, I’ll fly to New Orleans and give her a night out on the town she’s never imagined—as friends,” he added quickly when he noticed Mike’s deepening glower. “She can’t say no to that.”

“It’s shady.”

Zane shrugged. “It’s not like it’s a pity date; I liked her. Nothing shady about that.”

“It’s shady because you have an ulterior motive and she’s vulnerable to you.”

“There are worse motives to have, and I told you: I’ll be on my best behavior. She needs cheering, so I’ll cheer her.”

“You might as well let him do it,” Damien said. “If she’s still grieving that much, she’ll be impervious to whatever charms he thinks he has, anyway.”

“No.”

“Not as if you can stop me,” Zane pointed out gleefully. “And don’t even try to threaten to kick my ass, because I know you, and you won’t.”

“Don’t be too sure of that,” Mike grumbled, and downed his beer.





Chapter Seventeen


Savannah was glad she’d had the foresight to take off the day after returning from Houston, but she wished she’d taken off the entire week.

Work droned by, day after day. The only highlights were having a few laughs with Tasha and the rest of her coworkers, and with the clients she considered friends. And of course, eagerly checking her cell phone at the end of every massage session to see if Mike had texted. Usually, he had. They spoke every night, sometimes for hours.

Things weren’t as great with Rowan. When Savannah broke down and texted her sister-in-law in the middle of the week, asking if she was okay, Rowan’s terse “no” told her all she needed to know.

They had argued pettily in the past, making up as quickly as they had come to words. But never, ever anything like this, and Savannah cried herself to sleep more than once over it.

Was she being completely selfish? It didn’t feel that way. It felt like she’d discovered something precious, something that brought her sheer, unmitigated joy in the middle of a very dark time, and everyone was trying to take it away from her.

“I don’t know what to do,” she confided to Tasha, after the entire sorry story had poured out of her during one of their breaks the following week. They’d both stopped for an afternoon caffeine fix in the on-site café and sat at a little table removed from most of the other patrons.

“I’ll try to give you advice once I get over the fact that you’ve been keeping this from me all this time.” Tasha stirred her coffee, set her spoon aside, and glowered comically at her.

“I’m sorry. It isn’t something you run around telling everyone. I only wonder if Rowan has told my parents yet. I haven’t heard a word from them. It’s radio silence.”

“You have to find out, hon. You have to face them eventually. Have it out.”

“They’ve always been able to back me down, you know? For most of my life. Tommy was better at going after what he wanted despite them. And this time . . . I can’t let them do it.”

“Well, good for you. Only you know what this guy makes you feel, but if it’s strong enough to do what you’re doing . . . I think it’s worth fighting for. Don’t you?”

“So far it is.”

“So do it. You want to be with a fighter, you gotta learn how to fight.”

Savannah snickered. “I can, you know. When I have to.”

“You gotta learn to love it, girl. Speaking of, how is that going to work? Are you going to be ringside for all of his fights? Are you prepared for whatever the press is going to throw at you? You have to admit, they’re going to eat it up.”