Fighting Solitude (On The Ropes #3)(70)

“I can’t just sit around and let this go. He touched you, Liv.” His voice was harsh, but his fingers gently sifted through my hair.

“And I slapped him for it,” I answered matter-of-factly.

He groaned. “And that’s another thing. What the f*ck were you thinking?”

“Oh, shut up. I’m fine.” I waved him off.

“I’m serious. If anything like that happens again: You don’t speak to him. You don’t acknowledge him. You sure as f*ck don’t challenge him. You walk away. And, if you can’t, you scream for help at the top of your lungs.”

In hindsight, that would have been the best thing to do. But it had felt amazing to fight back instead of cowering. I didn’t tell Q that thought. I could hardly give him a keep-your-head-together lecture if I couldn’t do the same.

I opted for a sheepish nod.

He was still staring at me sternly when a pounding on the door made us both jump.

“Liv! Get out here.” It was Slate.

Shit, when did he get here?

“The cops are here.”

Fantastic.

“Also, your mom and dad are on the way down.”

God help me. “I’ll be right out!” I let out a long-suffering sigh. “I should probably get dressed. Is your head all sorted now?”

“Not even close.” He smiled tightly, shifting off me.

While redressing, I was careful not to let him see my back. We could save the naked inspections for a week from now when my back had healed.

I was finger-combing my hair in the mirror on the door when Quarry’s strong chest pressed against my back.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

It was a sweet thing to say, but the meaning behind his words was transferred with his mouth when he brushed my hair away and kissed my neck.

“You’d be okay.”

I wouldn’t be though. I knew that to the pits of my soul. I also knew I’d eventually have to face that reality.

“I’m not so sure about that. So let’s not test the theory.” He kissed my neck again.

No. Let’s not test the theory at all.

At least, not yet.





“I WANT IT ALL. ARM it like the f*cking Pentagon!”

Leo shook his head. “I cannot arm a community center, son. I’ll make it secure though. I’ll get some guys in there in the morning. We’ll do it up right.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and glanced over at Liv. She was talking to her mom and Erica. Leo and Sarah had rushed down from Chicago, having made it to Till’s in record time. They’d arrived just in time for Leo to pull one of the officers aside before they’d left. As a former DEA agent and the owner of one of the biggest security firms in the country, he had a little more pull than I did in gathering information about what the hell was going on. So, as much as it had ticked me off, I had sat back and let him handle it.

Over the last four hours, we’d learned that Davenport had an alibi and claimed he hadn’t been in Indianapolis, but rather in Kentucky over three hours away. Lying piece of shit. Don Blake had issued a verbal statement, corroborating Liv’s story. But, in the end, the case was nothing more than a he-said-she-said. I wasn’t surprised in the least.

Davenport was despicable, but he wasn’t stupid. He never threw the first punch, but he always had the last word. He was cold, calculated, and, I was quickly learning, demented too. It was almost as if the bullshit outside the ring were more exhilarating for him than the fight itself.

Liv caught my eye and tried to smile, but a yawn overtook her. She wanted to go home, and I couldn’t blame her. It had been one long-ass night.

Eliza was flittering around, filling coffee cups, and cleaning up plates from our family dinner that had turned into a buffet line; Ash was upstairs, helping Blakely get the little kids in pajamas; Slate, Flint, and Till were huddled in the corner, discussing what actions needed to be taken with the boxing administration; and Leo and I were arguing over how to prevent this shit from happening again by beefing up security at the community center.

Let’s go, I silently signed to Liv before turning my attention back to her father. “Spare no expense, Leo. Cameras inside and out. Also cover every inch of that parking lot. Motion sensors on all the lights. New security system on the entire building, not just the ASL program. And I want a guard at the door twenty-four-seven.”

“Quarry. Chill. I said I’d do it up right.”

“I swear to Christ, you hire a senior citizen for the door—”

“I said”—he lowered his voice and menacingly tilted his head—“I’d do it up right.”

I stoically held his eyes. “Send me a bill.”

“She’s my daughter. It’s on me.”

I lowered my voice to match his. “And I said send me a bill.” I paused before adding, “Itemized.”

His jaw twitched at the hinges. “You think I’m going to cut corners when it comes to her safety?”

I shrugged. “Probably not, but I do know, when it comes to her, I’m not going to wait around to find out.”

Leo laughed, and if I wasn’t mistaken, it was genuine. “You’ve been together a few weeks, Q. Slow down.”

“No disrespect, Leo. But you of all people know that’s a load of shit. Liv and I have been together our entire lives, and despite the fact that I now plan to father your grandchildren, I would have insisted on this being done correctly no matter when it had happened.”