Fighting for Love (Second Chances #4)(43)
“What makes it even more different, angel, is that I love you. I always have.”
I REGRETTED EVER PROMISING SHELBY that I wouldn’t go after Kyle. Instead of staying at her house, I got her to pack a bag and she came back home with me. Kyle wouldn’t dare try to stalk us at my home, and if he did show up on my property I had every right to beat the f*ck out of him.
Shelby fell asleep in the car, never once waking up when I picked her up and laid her in my bed. I couldn’t imagine what she felt when she saw those pictures, believing they were of me. If I saw pictures of her like that with a bunch of guys, I’d be beyond livid and ready to kill someone.
Finally, Saturday arrived and tonight’s fight would be me against Jeremy Bender at the Oracle Arena in Oakland. In two more weeks I’d have my fight with Kyle, and I couldn’t wait to feel the bones in his face crack. When I got in the ring, the thought of breaking someone in half never crossed my mind, except with Kyle. He hated me for taking away his title, and he would keep hating me because I was going to make sure he never got it back.
“What’s that look for, son?” Carter asked, putting on his gloves. “You look like you’re wound up a little too tight. Are you having girl trouble again?”
Early this morning, I called Carter to see if he would come to my house and help me work out in my own private gym instead of going to his. That way, I could stay with both Shelby and Gabriella while they were here.
My punching bag, however, probably wished otherwise.
“No, not exactly,” I said, answering Carter’s question. “It’s more like Kyle trouble. He’s trying to f*ck things up with Shelby so I’ll fight like shit. Not going to happen, though.”
Carter came up behind the bag and held it in place for me. “Good, but make sure you keep your head on straight, son. Don’t let him ruin things for you. You’ve worked too hard and too long to give up everything for that boy.”
“I know,” I said, “but it’s easier said than done.”
WE TRAINED FOR THE REST of the morning until Carter thought I was prepped and conditioned enough for the fight. Shelby wasn’t in my bedroom and Gabriella wasn’t in hers when I tried to find them, and neither one of them were in the pool. There was only one other place they could be, and sure enough when I opened the door to the theater there they were, watching the same movie they used to watch together all those years ago. Thankfully, it was at the end. The room had theater lighting on both sides of the wall, a fully stocked snack bar, and eight extra-large seats that reclined. I didn’t use it much, but Gabriella loved it.
“Do you not get tired of watching that over and over?” I asked incredulously.
Tears streaming down their cheeks, they both glared at me. “Do you not get tired of beating people up every weekend?” Gabriella countered sarcastically.
Grinning, I shook my head. “Nope. It’s what keeps me sane.”
My sister scoffed and rolled her eyes. “All right, then. Steel Magnolias keeps me sane, so how about that? You enjoy your thing and we enjoy ours. Simple as that.”
Shelby chuckled and bumped shoulders with Gabriella. It was good to see them getting along. I knew with time Gabriella would open up to her again.
“Matt, you know you’re not going to win against her, right? I always gave up when she’d do the same thing to me,” Shelby chimed.
Gabriella smiled and looked down at her phone. “That’s right. Now if you don’t mind, I have an appointment with Mom to get my hair done. You know how she gets when people are late.”
She turned and gave Shelby a hug before kissing my cheek and rushing out of the theater. “I see you two are finally getting along. Did you seek her out?” I asked.
Shelby nodded and wrapped her arms around my waist. “I did. Since you were working out I thought it would be a good time to talk to her. All it took was mentioning Steel Magnolias and I had her.”
Running my fingers through her long, brown hair, I tilted her head to the side and kissed the spot behind her ear. Last night with her lying in bed beside me, all I could think about was making love to her, and for the majority of the night I spent it hard as a f*cking rock.
“What do you want to do?” I whispered in her ear. “We have a few hours before we need to leave for Oakland.”
Her breathy giggle was so damn sexy. “I actually thought it would be fun to take a swim. Besides, you’re kind of sweaty so it might be good for you to cool off,” she teased. “Not to mention you have to fight tonight. You might want to conserve that pent up aggression for the ring.”
“We’ll see about that,” I told her. “Go get your bathing suit on and meet me out at the pool. Are you hungry?”
She nodded, rubbing her stomach. “Yes, I’m starved.”
“So am I,” I said, but it wasn’t for food.
I MADE HAM AND TURKEY deli sandwiches, and grabbed waters and two bags of chips before heading out to the pool. Shelby was already out there, laying on her back in one of the lounge chairs, in a white bikini that contrasted with her naturally golden skin. There had never been another girl that could get me so hard just being around her.
When she saw me approaching, she sat up and swung her legs over the chair. “Wow, those look good! And you have cheddar and sour cream potato chips, too,” she squealed, reaching for one of the sandwiches and a pack of chips. “I hadn’t had potato chips in so long. Jace and I never buy them, so it’s been years since I’ve eaten these. Plus, you know that my parents never bought them, so the only time I ever ate them was at school out of the snack machines.”