Tyler's Undoing (Gloves Off #1)(58)

“Have you been here the whole time?” he asked.

Nodding, I started the truck and slowly crept out of the parking lot. “Yep,” I replied. “I wasn’t going to just leave you there. Jake kept me company after a while, so it wasn’t that bad.”

“Well, I’m glad he could entertain you. Once everything is said and done, I’m going to need a good laugh as well. I came so damn close to not being able to compete.”

Licking my dry lips, my heart pounded so hard it hurt and my hands started to sweat. “Tyler, there’s something I want to talk to you about.”

He leaned his head against the seat and turned his attention to me. “What is it, beautiful?”

We pulled into his driveway and parked. I swallowed hard and turned off the ignition. My Toyota Camry sat vacant beside us and I knew that after I told him the truth, I would be getting in my car and driving away. The thought terrified me, but he had to know that my brother was going to come after him again.

“Tyler, I . . .”

That was as far as I’d gotten before his phone rang. When he looked down at it, he groaned and ran his hands down his face. “It’s my father,” he said, “I’m sure he just found out. I’m sorry, beautiful.” He got out of the truck and I followed suit, losing my nerve with each second that passed. I grabbed my purse out of his truck and pulled out the keys to my car, leaning against it as I waited on Tyler to get off of the phone.

When he did, he came over to me and wrapped his arms around my waist, holding me tight.

“Is he angry?” I asked.

“A little, but he needs me at the gym, so I have to go. He’s going to run my ass hard today.”

“But I need to talk to you. It’s kind of important.”

Pulling away, Tyler tilted my chin up with his fingers. “Are you okay? Are you mad about what happened?”

Gently, I shook my head and leaned into his touch. “No, I’m not mad.”

Visibly, he relaxed and kissed me, murmuring against my lips, “I tell you what. Why don’t you get some sleep and once you’ve rested up, come to the gym and you can talk to me all you want. Can you do that?”

I didn’t want to wait, but it was looking like I had no choice—he had to go. “Okay,” I agreed reluctantly. “I’m going to go home for a while and then I’ll see you as soon as I can.”

Before getting into my car, I kissed him quickly and watched him rush off inside his house. On the way home, I rode in silence trying to envision how I was going to tell Tyler the truth. Should I just come right out and say it? Or should I try to soften it up? Either way, it was going to be a messy disaster.

Ring, ring, ring.

Looking down at my phone, I figured it would be Tyler or Bree, but I couldn’t have been more wrong.

“What the hell do you want?” I snapped into the phone.

“We need to talk. It appears you’ve been a little busy behind my back. Care to tell me what that’s all about?”

“I don’t think it’s any of your business what I do now is it? Besides, you already know what’s going on. Or at least, I assume so, judging by what happened last night.”

He snorted. “Yeah, but it appears my plan didn’t exactly work. I must say, I don’t know whether to be disappointed or proud of you. I never thought the day would come when I’d see you f*cking one of my enemies.”

“Whatever, Kyle, it’s over. Why don’t you leave me the hell alone?”

“That’s not how this is going to work. Either you talk to me now, or I go straight to Tyler and tell him who you are. I’m waiting for you at the house.”

Could I not catch a break? After seeing Jordan last night, I knew Kyle had lied when he texted me saying he went home. But then again it made me wonder . . . “How long have you known about me and Tyler?” I asked.

Kyle chuckled. “Long enough to figure out my next move. Now hurry, sis. We have lots to talk about.”





ON THE WAY to the gym, I didn’t know what to expect. My father didn’t necessarily sound angry on the phone, but he didn’t sound happy either. I wasn’t sorry for kicking that guy’s ass, but I was sorry for doing it in front of Kacey. I didn’t want her ever looking at me with fear in her eyes ever again. When she said she needed to talk to me, the first thing that came to mind was that she was done; she’d made a mistake being with me.

I pushed her off for that reason alone. I didn’t want to hear it just yet.

Walking through the front doors of the gym, I found my father down by the ring, punching the bag as hard as he could. He was dressed in his black and gold fighting shorts, the same ones he wore when he competed. There was no one around . . . just me and him. I hadn’t seen him hit the bag in years.

“I hope you’re ready to work. We have lots to do before Saturday,” he called out.

Opening my bag, I pulled out my hand wraps and gloves and taped up my hands. “So you’re not going to bitch at me for getting arrested?”

Breathing hard, my father steadied the punching bag and turned to face me. “No, son, I’m not. Jake called and told me what happened. I’m actually proud of you. I probably would’ve killed the guy if he did the same thing to your mother.”

“Trust me, it was hard to control myself.” I’d wanted to keep going.