“Why did I let you go out by yourself? If I hadn’t come out…” Max buried his face in her hair as he rubbed the tears from her cheek with his thumb. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“Yes. I started to episode, but I think you scared it out of me.”
“I love you.”
Chloe collapsed against him, smothering herself in his warmth. She sighed as he cradled her tight in his arms and pressed his lips against hers. She surrendered to his kisses, wondering with each how she was so lucky to find him.
»»•««
Max slipped out of the house before Liz and Chloe woke up. He couldn’t sleep. Never in his life had he snapped like he had the night before. He needed to get away and think.
He blared the radio the entire hour and a half it took to get from Minneapolis to New Ulm. But he had no intention to stop at his parents. He routed his car toward the state park…and his bridge.
He slumped against the wood rail, clenching his eyes shut. He rubbed his eyelids, exhausted. What had he done? He had nearly dismantled a man. His heart twisted in his chest. Leo deserved it. For the unspeakable things he had done to Chloe, he deserved it.
Max shook his head. He should have never let her go out on her own. Leo was bad enough. What if she had been mugged for her purse? What if she had been hurt?
Max cringed as he remembered the day he had found her lying on the bathroom floor unable to breathe. The day she had almost died. He woke up every day wondering if she would slip through his fingers. Could he live without her?
The answer was simple. No. And there was only one way to solve it. He was only twenty-six. Was he ready for this step? He thought about his mom and dad. They had married young. Of course, they had their problems, but after so many years, three kids, and one grandchild, they were still together and very much in love.
But did Chloe feel the same as he did? He frowned. There was only one way to find out. Ask her. On his knee.
Max slipped his wallet from his back pocket and cracked it open with a smile. He tugged his emergency credit card from its place. Liz had returned his money, and he had deposited it into his new savings account. But he couldn’t wait for Monday to transfer the money out. He wanted to act now. He didn’t know when the time would be right. If the moment presented itself, he wanted to be ready.
He jogged from the bridge toward his car. He had a ring to buy.
»»•««
The next two weeks at Hard Drive were total chaos. Max spent every moment of every day with Rico preparing him for Vegas. Chloe spent those same moments locked in Jack’s office learning the ins and outs of operating the gym. They were going to be gone for four days, and Chloe needed to know about things like accounts payable and payroll.
Every so often, he would glance up at Jack’s office, finding Chloe leaning over the railing watching them. Her escape was always momentary before Jack called her back for more work.
It was late before Max got home at night. All he had the energy to do was find something to eat, collapse on the couch, and hold Chloe tight. They didn’t talk much. They just wrapped their arms around each other, refusing to let go.
Finally, at eight o’clock the night before their flight to Las Vegas, Max threw in the towel. “We’re as ready as we’re going to get. It’s time to call it a night. I want to spend some time with Chloe before we leave.”
The murmurs around the room agreed with him. The men packed up their things. Max shut off the lights as the men made their way to the door then locked up the facility behind them.
He breathed a sigh of relief as he stepped in the house. Liz was nowhere to be found. Probably out with Al again. The coffee table was cleared, except for one red, burning candle enclosed in a glass holder.
Chloe popped her head from the kitchen. “You’re home,” she greeted happily.
“Yeah. I wanted to see you,” Max admitted.
“I’ve just finished dinner. Sit and I’ll bring it out to you.”
Max settled on the couch. He looked up and smiled as she handed him a plate of baked chicken with vegetables. He watched the flicker of the flame as she sank into the cushions beside him with her own food. “I’ve never seen you burn a candle before. It’s beautiful.”
She chewed a mouthful of vegetables and swallowed. “It is.”
“Where were you hiding it?”
She was silent for several long moments. “The pink bag.”
Max nearly dropped his plate. How could he have missed it? “Did you get it out for ambiance? Or are you trying to tell me something?”
Again, the room fell silent. Then, she whispered, “I’m trying to tell you something. I can’t tell you how far I can go. But I think I’m ready to take our relationship a step further.”
Max felt his heart race at the thought. He knew they wouldn’t be ending the night in the bedroom. But knowing Chloe more intimately, no matter how much more, drove him wild. He set his dinner on the table and sat back.
“You’re not hungry?” Chloe asked with concern.
“Not anymore.” Max tossed her near empty plate next to his then wrapped his fingers around her wrist. He tugged her onto his lap until she was straddling him, her knees on either side on his hips. He gazed up at her as he cupped her face in his hands. “Chloe, you are the most incredible woman in the world.”
“I am not.”
“You are to me.” He drew her face down, prying her lips apart with his. He traced her teeth gently with his tongue before he tangled his with hers, groaning at the taste of her.
His hands wandered from her chin down her back to her rear. He grasped it and tugged her even closer. She gasped through their kiss.
Chloe knotted her fingers in his dark hair as she returned his kisses, bravely seeking out his tongue with hers. Then he broke apart, trailing a line of kisses across her chin and down her neck. He smiled as he heard her whimper, felt her shudder. His mouth roamed the soft curve of her neck as his fingers whispered over her hips and beneath the hem of her shirt. He moaned as he stroked her back.
Stopping at the clasp of her bra, he set it free with a flick of his fingers.
She stiffened beneath his touch. He looked up into the panic of her wide eyes. “Max, I can’t. I’m so sorry.”
Max cradled her face in his hands again. “Chloe, it’s all right. Really, it is. I understand.”
He could see the tears brim her eyes. “But I wouldn’t…”
“It doesn’t matter to me. You matter to me. And if you’re still too scared to sleep with anyone, I’m excited we got this far.”
She slipped off his lap and buried herself in the couch again, crossing her arm over herself defensively to keep her bra in place. “But you leave tomorrow. For Las Vegas. All those women.”
“No. Jack, Rico, Mark, and Dan. None of which I find remotely attractive.” Max caressed her hair. “You’re the only woman I want.”
She let go a hopeless laugh. “A woman who can’t have sex with you?”
“Guess so.”
She stood, still wrapping a protective arm around herself. She picked up her plate. “I’m tired. I’m going to go to bed.” She fled into the kitchen.
Max exhaled slowly as he ran a hand through his hair. For what was supposed to be an incredible moment, it had gone disastrously wrong.
The next morning, Max and Chloe walked silently hand in hand down the concourse of the airport. He half expected to drive himself after the blow-up the night before. He had to admit he had been overjoyed to find her waiting at the door for him. Even if the time with her was quiet, he needed more of it. More than the air he breathed.
She waited patiently for him to check in for his flight. When they reached the gates, they found Mark, Dan, and Jack waiting for them.
“I wish you were coming with us, Chloe girl,” Mark sighed.
“No more than I do,” Max grumbled.
“Chloe is going to keep everything rolling smoothly at Hard Drive, right Chloe?” Jack patted her gentl
y on the shoulder.
“Of course, sir,” she answered quietly.
“Now, if we could just find Rico.”
“He’s right there,” Dan pointed through the crowd. “And he’s not alone.”
Together, they all turned to find Rico. Clinging on the fighter’s arm was a platinum blonde dressed scantily in a tight-fitting, low cut dress. A carry on dangled from her free arm. A ticket was clenched firmly in her hand.
Max spun at Jack. “Phoebe can come, but Chloe can’t?”
Jack looked dumbfounded. “She told me she was visiting her parents in Texas. I thought I would do Chloe a favor. I know what a pain Phoebe is to her. I never thought she would coerce her way to Vegas.”
Max looked at Chloe. He could see the worry in her eyes. They reminded him of her words the night before. “Chloe, there’s nothing to be concerned about. I love you. I’ll see you in a few days.”
Chloe stared at Phoebe for several long moments. Then, she pulled free from Max. “See you when you get home.”
Max balled his fists at his side, frustrated, as he watched her weave her way to the exit.
»»•««
The crowd overhead shook the arena. Max used all his strength to support Rico as they hobbled through the catacombs. It was slow going. Every few steps brought a hiss of pain from Rico.
He sighed as the door of the locker room came into view. “Seriously, Rico. Why didn’t you go with the paramedics? You jacked up your knee. I’m guessing it’s your ACL.”
“Paramedics give me the creeps.” Rico gasped in pain, his face contorting in agony. “Besides, I have the best trainer in the MMA and a doctor to boot.”
“And both of us told you to get in the ambulance, if you remember.”
“Let me clean up, and we can go to the hospital.”
Max helped Rico onto the trainer’s table then stretched his cramped shoulders. He quickly examined his friend’s leg. It was destroyed. Rico’s knee was the size of a softball. Max shook his head. It looked exactly like his did in college. “Now what?”
“Help me shower,” Rico answered. “I’m full of sweat and my opponent’s blood.”
“In my clothes?”
The click of high heels indicated that they weren’t alone. “You can get undressed, Max. I won’t mind,” Phoebe cooed.
Max glared at her. Phoebe had spent the past couple days in Vegas trying to seduce him. She showed absolutely no interest in her boyfriend. She would brush her fingers against him when she was close, finding any excuse under the sun to touch him. She showed up at his hotel room every night, in only a bathrobe, with some flimsy plea for help. He wasn’t about to let her inside, but called the front desk from his cell phone to have her escorted away. They knew his voice well.
“I’ll shower with my clothes on. Thanks though, Phoebe,” he snarled.
He cast a sideways glance at his duffle bag sitting on the bench. He couldn’t wait to call Chloe. They talked every night, but her voice was so weak and wounded. He should have told Jack to shove it. Tomorrow though, he would see her again.
And he wasn’t going to wait any more. In the middle of the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport, among all the crowds of travelers, he would drop to one knee and ask her to be his wife. And pray she would say yes. Every piece was ready. The ring was tucked safely in his duffle next to his phone.
“Come on. Let’s get you washed up, so we can get you to the hospital.” Max helped Rico to his good leg and supported him as they stumbled into the shower, leaving Phoebe in the locker room to wait for them.
Showering fully clothed was one of the most uncomfortable things Max had ever done. He clung to Rico with all his strength as his friend slipped from his grip. Rico hissed several times from the extreme pain. Admittedly, the whole awkward experience had them both chuckling. Soon, the sweat and caked-on blood was streaming down Rico’s skin, across the pale blue, tile floor, and down the drain.
When the two men hobbled out of the shower area, they found themselves alone. Max breathed a sigh of relief. The very last thing he wanted to do was drive to the hospital soaked to the bone. However, if Phoebe had been still waiting for them, he would have done it without thinking twice.
Max carefully wrapped an elastic wrap the best he could around Rico’s leg then helped him get out of his shorts and into a pair of athletic pants and a T-shirt. He held on as Rico lowered himself to the bench. Max exhaled slowly then turned and crossed the locker room to his bag. He stopped short as he stared at it, puzzled. It was unzipped. Did he leave it open? In the chaos around Rico’s leg, he couldn’t remember. He looked inside. Something didn’t seem right. Things weren’t in the right place.
He ruffled through his things, silently taking an account of his belongings. Then, he heard Rico’s voice from behind him. “Max, the pain.”
“I’m on it,” Max acknowledged. He scooped up his phone and sent a text to Mark. Then he grabbed some clothes from his duffle and peeled his wet clothes from his body. He dressed in his dry clothes, zipped his bag closed, and threw it over his shoulder before striding back to Rico and helping him up.
Mark stepped into the room. “Ready now? You stubborn ass.”
“No arguments there,” Rico muttered.
Mark wrapped an arm around Rico’s waist to help Max support him. The three men shuffled from the locker room toward the dock door.
»»•««
Chloe paced the living room anxiously. She stopped to stare at the time on the DVR. Ten o’clock. No call. The fight should have been over by now. She started pacing again.
She knew she shouldn’t worry. Max was in Las Vegas on Hard Drive business. He was there to help Rico get one step closer to winning a belt. She also knew that he had Mark, Dan, and Rico to hang around with.
But Chloe just couldn’t shake the thought that the man she loved was in the City of Sin. He was there with countless, beautiful women willing to go to bed with him. That included Phoebe, who Chloe was positive had gone on the trip specifically to do just that. She couldn’t push the idea of Max with another woman out of her mind. And every moment he didn’t call made it worse.
Finally, after another hour of wearing the carpet thin, she picked up her cell and dialed. She listened to it ring over and over. Right before it went to voicemail, it was answered.
“Hello?” a soft, feminine voice spoke.
Chloe couldn’t swallow past the lump in her throat. Her blood turned to ice. “Sorry, Phoebe,” she choked out. “I thought I called Max.”
“You did.”
“Why are you answering his phone?”
Phoebe’s laughter was light. “It’s been quite a long night, Chloe. He was such a mess. All hot and sweaty. He’s in the shower now. Don’t worry. I’m taking such good care of him. Do you want me to have him call you?”
Chloe felt the world fall out from under her. “No. Thanks.” She hung up the phone and set it on the coffee table. Max and Phoebe. Together. In bed. She had known he couldn’t be without intimacy. Why did he have to lie to her? Especially after she had fallen in love with him?
She glanced around the room as her tears blinded her. Pieces of him were everywhere. There was a baseball hat sitting on the back of the chair. His favorite magazine rested on the coffee table. His sandals sat beside the door. The house even smelled like him. She couldn’t stay here anymore. She grabbed her keys, tugged on her shoes, and ran out the door, slamming it behind her.
She wandered down the streets aimlessly as she sobbed. She had known from the beginning that she couldn’t be with the great Max Thomas. She should have just listened to herself. How could she have been so stupid?
She didn’t know how long she walked. Her legs started to ache. Her body shook. Her mind wouldn’t stop. Home right now wasn’t an option. There was too many reminders of Max.
Suddenly she stopped. A familiar sensation grew in her pit of her stomach. Her eyes flew open in alarm as she turned back toward home. She looked around confused. She
didn’t pay attention to where she was walking and had no idea where she was. The pain in her belly grew. She dropped to her knees as she started to heave. She stopped for just a few moments before she started again.
“Miss, are you all right?”
Chloe felt her body collapse onto the grass, unable to answer. There was activity around her but she couldn’t comprehend it. The agony was too much. She couldn’t stop vomiting. The blare of sirens echoed around her. She felt hands tug at her and a needle pierce her skin. She couldn’t tell them what was wrong. They lifted her up and laid her limp body on the gurney. She didn’t know where she was going. Max was no longer important. Ending this blinding pain was.
Chapter Eleven
Max dumped the contents of his duffle bag on the hospital floor for the fifth time. He picked up each and every item carefully, shaking it, examining it. Once he was done, he set it back in the bag. The nurses gave him dirty looks as they passed his manic sorting.
“Max, you’re scaring me,” Mark informed him. “What are you looking for?”
Max sighed as he set the last item back in the duffle. “I bought Chloe an engagement ring. It was in my duffle when I left the hotel. Now, it’s gone.”
“Are you certain you put it in there?”
“Yes. Next to my phone. It’s stolen.” He ran his hands through his hair, exasperated. Then, he picked up his phone and dialed. He would figure out the ring later. Right now, he needed to hear Chloe’s voice.
He waited as the line rang. It went to voicemail. Max hung up and re-dialed the house landline. It rang and rang with no response. He hung up again then dialed Liz.
“Hey, Max,” she greeted.
“Liz, are you home?” Max begged, his voice laced with worry.
“No, I’m with Al. Why?”
“Is Chloe home?”
“Yes, Max. Why?”
“I called her cell phone and the landline. There’s no answer.”
There was a pause. “I’m on my way. I’ll call you, Max.”
Max dropped his phone in his bag and buried his face in his hands. His life was starting to unravel. And he was too far away to stop it. He sat back and watched each minute tick away slowly on the clock.
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