Liz laughed in disbelief. “Wow. You don’t even remember her name? You are an egotistical…”
“Whose name?”
“The girl you slept with.”
“I didn’t sleep with anyone.”
Liz bared her teeth and pointed to the door. “Get your lying mouth out of this hospital before I call security.”
Max flopped back into the chair. “Liz, please. Go back and take care of your daughter. I’ll stay here. I won’t come near either of you. But I need to know she’s better. I’m staying.”
Liz huffed angrily before she spun on her toe and stormed out. The icy glare Al left Max with created a pit in his stomach. Max exhaled slowly as he buried his face in his hands.
»»•««
Chloe stared at the bare wall. Her eyes hurt from all the tears she had cried. She didn’t want to look at her mom. She just made her feel worse. Her righteous, maternal anger reminded her of why her heart was shattered.
I wish I could stop loving him.
She heard an odd shuffle at the door. When someone entered her room, she usually closed her eyes. Pretending to sleep was easier to explain than her never-ending tears. The strange cadence caught her attention. When she saw who it was, she felt the last few pieces of her heart crumble to dust. She heard a low growl from her mother.
“Rico,” she murmured.
“Chloe girl. How’re you feeling?” he crooned.
Chloe studied his leg restrained in a brace and the crutches he leaned on. “It looks like I’m doing better than you. What happened?”
He slightly lifted his leg. “This? I tore my ACL apart at the fight in Vegas. Which is why I’m here. I need to talk to you.” He turned toward Liz. “Liz, you know I love you. But I need to ask you to do two very difficult things. First, I need to talk to Chloe alone.”
Liz half rose from her seat, snarling. “What else do you want from me?”
“Send Max here.”
Chloe whimpered at Rico’s request. Liz shook her head vehemently. “No, I won’t let him near my daughter. I should throw you out. You’re his friend.”
“I’m friends with both of them. And between the two of them, I protect Chloe. I promise you, I won’t hurt her.”
“Like I trust you, either. Fine.” Without another word, Liz stormed from the room with Al close on her heels.
Rico hobbled to the chair Liz had vacated and sat down. Chloe frowned at him. “What do you want, Rico?”
“To correct the record. If you still want things over between you and Max, so be it. But you deserve the truth.”
“Which is?”
“When you called the night of the fight and Phoebe answered, she was sort of telling the truth. Max was in the shower. With me and my screwed up leg. I have a phobia about paramedics and ambulances. Have since I was little. Max was helping me clean up so I could go to the hospital. Mark can corroborate. He’s still furious with me I didn’t let the paramedics take me.”
“Phoebe made it sound like…”
“He was sleeping with her? Never. She tried her hardest. He made it clear as crystal he wanted nothing to do with her. He loves you and only you.”
Chloe glanced around the room, flustered. How could she have doubted Max after all he had done? She turned her head toward the shuffling footsteps at the door. She nearly started crying again.
Max stood in the doorway, his hands jammed in his pockets. His eyes were swollen. He was exhausted. She wondered how long it had been since he had slept. His clothes were dirty and wrinkled. And his heart was clearly in pieces. She had broken it. Max Thomas is that much in love…with me?
“What are you doing here, Rico?” Max muttered. “You’re supposed to be having surgery.”
“My leg can wait. This can’t.” Rico rose to his feet and limped on his crutches across the sterile hospital room. He placed a small, red box in Max’s hand.
“You found it,” Max breathed.
“It was never lost. Phoebe took it.”
Rage coursed across Max’s tired face for several moments. Then, he cradled the box to himself tenderly.
“Maybe Chloe would like to see it,” Rico suggested with a wink.
“Rico, now isn’t the time.”
“Why isn’t it?”
“Because we’re not together anymore. There’s no point in it.”
Chloe bit her lip. Max wouldn’t look at her. He would only look at Rico. I hurt him that badly.
“Chloe knows the truth,” Rico informed him.
“Funny thing is, I don’t.”
“Phoebe answered your phone. She pretty much told Chloe you were in the shower after sleeping with her. When you told me that Chloe had called after the fight, but there was no missed call, it made sense. Phoebe was the only other one in the locker room.”
Max closed his eyes, clearly infuriated. “Well, now it all makes sense.” He stared at the box in his hand for a moment or two before turning toward the door. “I’ve been driving from hospital to hospital for two days straight. I need sleep. Rico, go home and get off your leg before you make it worse.”
“Not until you stop being a stubborn ass,” Rico countered. Max spun back to glare at him. Rico continued, “You haven’t looked at Chloe once since you stepped foot in this room. What would you have done if you were told she was in bed with another guy?”
“Kill him,” Max growled.
“Well, what did you expect of her?”
Max pressed his lips into an angry, thin line. Chloe knotted her fingers in her lap as she fought to find her voice. “Max, I’m sorry. I should have trusted you. I was scared of losing you. I guess because of my lack of faith, I did.” She choked on a sob caught in her throat.
Max’s shoulders softened. Slowly, he looked at her. He stood still for only a moment before he crossed the room to her bedside, wrapping his arms tight around her. “Chloe, I love you more than anything.”
“I love you too, Max.”
He held her for several, silent moments. Then, Rico cleared his throat. “So, now can she see what’s in the box?”
“Rico,” Max began.
Chloe gazed at him. “I want to see what’s in the box.”
She felt his arms tense around her. She looked at him, puzzled. He was no longer angry. Now, he seemed nervous.
“Chloe, I promise. I’ll show you later. Not here.”
“Why not here?”
“Chloe, sweetheart, please.”
“Max, just show me.”
“You need to show her, Max,” Rico chimed in.
Max shot a glare at Rico. Then, he slowly exhaled as he gently opened the red-wrapped box and turned it toward Chloe. Inside, nestled in a seat of velvet, was the most beautiful diamond Chloe had ever seen.
“Max, it’s beautiful!” she glowed.
“I’m glad you like it. I wanted to take you to dinner then to our bridge originally, but then I was going to do it at the airport when I got back from Vegas…”
“Do what?” Butterflies swarmed in Chloe’s stomach. If the IV stuck in the back of her hand hadn’t been pumping anti-nausea drugs through her veins, she knew she would be sick to her stomach right now.
Max slowly dropped his knee to the tile floor as he held the ring out to her. “Marry me, Chloe. I love you with all I am. I love you just the way you are. Be my wife.”
Chloe felt her heart jump into her throat. Max? Proposing? “Are you sure, Max?” Her voice was shaky.
“I’m on the floor, on my knee, with a ring in my hand. I’m pretty sure.”
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to have sex with you.”
“I don’t care. I’m marrying all of you, not just the sexual part of you.”
“But isn’t that essential in a marriage? Intimacy?”
“There are other forms of intimacy, Chloe. Not just sex.”
“But what about children, Max? What if we can’t have children? You’re going to be a great dad. What if I can’t give you children?”
“Chloe, I want to marry you. I’m not worried about sex. I’m not worried about children. I want you. If in fifty years, we never have sex, I’ll treasure every second I’ve had with you. So, please. Answer my question. Yes. Or no.”
Chloe gazed at him as her vision blurred again. “I never thought this would happen to me. I never thought a man would want to make me his wife. Not with all the stuff that’s wrong with me.” A smile crept across her lips as she nodded ecstatically. “Yes, Max. Yes. I will marry you.”
Max rose to his feet, his triumphant grin near lighting the room. He sat on the bed next to her and pulled the ring free from the box. He held it up so Chloe could see the inside of the band. The faint inscription read Chloe + Max = Love Eternal.
Taking her left hand in his, he gently pushed the ring on her finger. She held it up so she could admire it closer. Then, she sighed as Max wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer to his body.
Suddenly, Chloe let go a nervous laugh. “Now, how do I explain this to my Mom? You’re in tight competition with Satan in her book.”
Rico snickered as he leaned on his crutches. “I’ll go explain everything to Liz, Chloe. You two just sit and enjoy this moment together. And by the way, congratulations.”
Both Max and Chloe smiled at Rico. “Thank you for everything,” Max offered. “You’re an incredible friend. More like a brother. I don’t know what we’d do without you. But I stand by what I said earlier. Get home and get off your knee before Mark comes and gets you.”
“Will do, boss. And I love both of you like you’re my family. I’ll make sure I say goodbye before I head out.” Rico wobbled his way into the hall.
Chloe twisted so she could gaze into her fiancé’s eyes. “My ring is so beautiful, Max. Thank you.”
He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Thank you for saying yes.”
“Max, will you do something for me?”
He met her brown eyes with his. “Anything, baby. What is it?”
She paused for a moment. “Get back into the octagon for one more fight.”
He slowly shook his head. “Chloe, it’s not a good idea.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’ve already had one near-career-ending injury. I won’t make much of a husband if I have one that does end it. Plus, I’m getting too old.”
“You’re the same age as Rico.”
“Chloe…”
She cradled his face in her hands. “Max, I see the look on your face when you’re sparring with Rico. I watched you during the event in Minneapolis. You look so alive. You look happy. You’re at home.”
He gently touched her cheek. “You’re my home. My home is right here.”
“Then, the octagon is your second home. Am I wrong? You really do want to have one more fight, don’t you?’
Max hung his head low. “I’m not sure, Chloe. I’m afraid if I step foot in there, I’ll never stop.”
She smiled at him. “Would that be bad if you love it?”
“It will be if I don’t come out in one piece.”
She searched his face. “Max, you’re far better than you think. I believe you can do this. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have brought it up.”
“You really think I can do this?”
“Yep.”
A grin bloomed on his face. “All right. I’ll talk to Jack when he gets back. I’ll have him schedule me a fight.”
Chloe snuggled contently against his chest. He gently smoothed her hair. She was going to marry Max Thomas. She had never imagined something so wonderful could happen to her. All her wildest dreams she had never dared to entertain were coming true.
Chapter Twelve
Max settled into the couch as he picked up the remote and flipped on the television. He watched as Chloe shuffled into the living room from the kitchen dressed in a baby doll T-shirt and a pair of pajama pants. She had just been released from the hospital. He had finally gotten a good night’s sleep.
It took a couple days for Liz to warm up to him. However, Max had been a part of the family long enough that Liz couldn’t stay mad. She was elated about the engagement and gushed over the couple. She was excited enough to start shopping for condos for herself on the Internet while at the hospital with Chloe. Once she moved, she planned to give Chloe and Max the house to start their lives together.
Chloe cuddled against him as they watched a movie. Max took a breath before he spoke. “So, we haven’t set a date yet.”
Chloe looked up to him from where she had pillowed her head. “We haven’t. What do you think?”
“I had a crazy idea. Your birthday is October first. Mine is the thirtieth.”
“Yeah.”
“Halloween is my favorite holiday. Instead of candy, I got presents. A benefit of being born the day before. Let’s have a Halloween wedding.”
Chloe sat up excitedly. “That would be wonderful! It would give us a little over a year to plan.”
“I wasn’t thinking next year, Chloe. I was thinking this year. Maybe the Saturday before. In six weeks.”
Her eyes grew wide. “Six weeks?”
“Yes. We already live in the same house. Nothing would change from the way it is now, except your last name. I don’t want to wait. I want to be your husband. I want you for my wife.”
Chloe stared at him, dumbfounded, for several long seconds. Then, she smiled. “I love that idea. Let’s do it. Let’s get married in six weeks.”
Max slanted his mouth over hers, nudging her lips apart in a victorious kiss.
The rest of the day was spent cuddled on the couch, making lists of things to do and guests to invite, and placing phone calls to solidify a place to be married in and a venue for the reception. Max’s family lined up their church for the ceremony. The New Ulm Country Club would host the reception. They were thrilled. Everything was falling into place.
The next morning, Max slowly dressed for work. He didn’t want to leave Chloe home by herself, but he needed to talk to Jack and soon. And they needed to devise a new training plan while Rico recovered from his surgery.
He started in the hallway when he found Chloe waiting outside his door, dressed in a tight-fitting tank and lycra capris. “Where are you going?” he demanded.
“Work,” Chloe answered.
“You need to rest, baby.”
“I need to be with you. I feel fine. Please?”
He sighed and smiled. “All right. Let’s go.”
Chloe chattered the entire ride to the gym. Max loved hearing the sound of her voice. It meant two things. She was feeling much better. And she was soon to be his bride. He held the door to Hard Drive open for her, kissing her softly as she passed through.
They both stopped at the base of the mats, and in unison, looked up to the offices that lined the metal walkway on the second floor. She pressed her lips to his cheek for encouragement then hurried off to the locker room to get ready for the day. Max took a deep breath then jogged up the stairs. He rapped his knuckles against the door of Jack’s office.
“Enter!” Jack shouted from within. Max turned the knob and stepped inside.
Jack was seated at his desk, his email up on the screen and the ledger book open. He was dressed in his customary suit with his slicked-back, black hair. He still looked more like a used car salesman than the owner of a MMA gym. “Max,” he greeted. “You’re back. And I understand congratulations are in order.”
“Yeah. Thanks. I want you to get me a fight.”
Jack smirked as a sly grin crossed his face. “It took you long enough to realize it.”
“I’m sorry?” Max demanded, dumbfounded.
“I didn’t hire you for your personal training skills. Granted, the fact that you’re the best MMA trainer in Minnesota is not a lie. I would wager you’re the best in the nation. I hired you so that you would see where you truly belonged. In the octagon. Did you know there are still thousands of people who want to see you fight? Who still believe in you? I guess it took more than me to conv
ince you of that. It took that little girl you’re about to make your wife.”
Max stared coldly at him. “I’m agreeing to one.”
“One is all it’ll take to bring you back in. I’m glad you came in to talk to me. I have something else to talk to you about. I’ve been offered a lucrative partnership in Tampa. I’ll be making far more money than a gym in Minneapolis. I’m taking it. I want you to take Hard Drive.”
Max frowned at him. “Wait. You want to sell me the gym?”
“Yes. It’s either that or put it on the market. If I do that, it won’t be Hard Drive for long. I came to you about this because I know how much you love this place. There’s no one else that would give it the attention and devotion you would.”
Max shook his head. “I can’t give you an answer right now. I have to think about more than just me. I have to think about Chloe too. I’ll have to talk to her about it.”
“I understand. Talk to her and let me know in the next couple days. This place would thrive with you and Chloe. You could start the Thomas legacy with her here.”
Max opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by the door slamming open. He growled in response, as Phoebe clung to the doorknob breathless and wild-eyed.
“Good,” she whimpered. “You’re both here. I need to talk to both of you. I need to know why you, Jack, took my job and you, Max, took my heart.”
“Took your heart?” Max barked. “We would have to be a couple first. We never were. We weren’t even friends. You almost cost me everything, Phoebe. If Rico weren’t so on top of things, I would have lost Chloe. She’s who I love. Not you.”
“Phoebe,” Jack interjected. “You know you’re breaking two restraining orders simultaneously, right? I filed for you to stay five-hundred feet away from both this gym and from Rico and Max. One call to the police will slam your little psycho butt in jail. You know that, right?”
Phoebe turned her back to Jack, choosing to ignore what he had said. She didn’t even flinch when he picked up the phone receiver and started to dial. Instead, she straightened herself and sashayed to Max. “Max, baby. You can’t be serious that you love that sick little thing down there. You need a real woman to take care of you. You need me.”
Hard Drive Boxed Set Page 22