Parker winces at my words. I look at Trinity, who is now on the edge of the crowd, Mollie’s arms are around her. She looks like she’s about to puke everywhere. Parker hurries to her side and looks back at me. He nods before taking her to the back of the bar where the bathrooms are located.
I spin around when I realize I forgot about Red for a minute. A reluctant look has returned to her face. I cross the room to grab her hand. She lets me lead her out the door. When the cool night air hits my face I turn to her, only inches separating us, and apologize. “I’m so sorry, Mollie. My sister and her fiancé. It’s a mess.”
She pulls her hand from mine and takes a step back. Her eyes seem to cloud in fear. She shakes her head. “Why do you always have to be so good?”
I’m surprised. Isn’t that something she would want me to be?
She takes a step toward me again. “Did you know that I have a list, things that you do that I love. That right there, it just made the top of the list. You care so much and you’ll do anything you can to protect those that you love.”
I raise my brows, “You have a list?”
“Is that all you heard?”
Gently I brush her cheek with the tips of my fingers. “No, Red, I heard you loud and clear. Five years ago, I didn’t know it at the time, but I do protect everything I love and I would go back and do it all over again.”
She flinches at my words. I wasn’t expecting that reaction but it makes me want to prove to her that I do care. I lean in, kissing her deeply and she opens up for me. My hands move slowly over her sides and down to her hips. My dick gets hard remembering how wonderful this woman is and how she causes me to feel things I’ve never felt before. Her hands move around my neck, pulling me closer. A low growl sounds from deep in my throat. I’m not sure if we’re going to make it back to the hotel or not. I’m afraid that if we break the connection, she’ll have regrets. And I want no regrets.
***
The next morning Red is still in bed when I wake up. I didn’t wake up one time and it was dreamless as far as I can tell. My breathing slows as I watch her chest move up and down with her own breathing. I listen for the soft air moving her delicate skin. My hand moves to her face and I trace her pert little nose and oval face. Her velvety skin feels wonderful under my rough fingers. My hand trails down her arm to her fingers, where I lace them together with mine. I know the feelings and thoughts swirling around are chick thoughts but I don’t care. She does something to me and I don’t want to give it up. Her body stirs, rolling into my side. She nuzzles her face into the side of my chest. Her muffled voice asks, “Grey, what are you doing?”
“I’m adding to my list of all the things that I love about you.”
Her breathing stops. I can feel her erratic beats against my skin. Mine mirrors hers and I hold my breath, afraid she’ll run again. Instead, she looks up at me, placing her hand on my chest. She looks at her fingers as she swirls them around on my tanned skin.
“You have a list? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I do, and you didn’t ask.”
She chuckles. “What exactly is on this list?”
“It’s pretty long. It’ll probably take all day for me to tell you everything that’s on it.”
Her playful side rears its head. “Well, I have pretty much all day. I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.”
“Okay, fair enough. I love all the sides to you, the shy Red, the playful Red…” I kiss her deeply as my hand runs along her arm. “And my favorite, the feisty Red. I think the day you tried to punch me turned me on the most.”
She smiles. “Really? That’s good to know.” She moves above me, straddling my stomach with her naked body.
“Um, maybe not as turned on as I am right now, but close.”
She laughs, throwing her head back. I move my hand to touch the hollow of her throat.
“I love your skin, Mollie, every luscious part of it.”
My hand comes around her neck, pulling her forward. I kiss up her neck, tasting every space, leaving my searing touch all over her. She moans in response, causing me to stiffen further. I reach over for my wallet as she moves down over me, teasing with her warm core. I moan, causing a smile to reach her lips. As soon as I fit a condom over my cock, she lowers onto me and moves up and down, causing our breathing to speed up.
I reach up to her cheek. “Red, I love everything about you.”
A moment later we both come together in pure bliss. This woman in my arms is something I never want to let go. I’ll do everything I can to hold on to her, no matter what.
Chapter 29
After finding Mollie again and winning my first pro fight, I had some decisions to make. The first was something I vowed I would never do but I did it anyway, I moved for a woman. Convincing myself that it was for my fighting career was my reasoning, but in reality it was because I didn’t want to let her out of my sight again.
I moved into Meyer’s house on the outskirts of town with a few possessions from home, leaving my apartment in Jersey intact, just in case. Trinity and Parker went back home to pack up the brownstone. They decided to officially make the move to Vegas later in the month. I think my own move helped make the decision easier for her. Although I’m still not happy that she decided to take Parker back, having her near is all that matters.
I spend most of my time with Mollie in bed and exploring the city that is her home or training at a facility that Jackson found nearby. Unfortunately Jackson had to go back but Jimmy stayed to keep an eye on me. Vegas seems to be made for Jimmy, or vice versa, he’s in his element all the way.
Tonight I have dinner with a sponsor that Jimmy and Meyer set up. I’m a little nervous about it because those two when separate are trouble, together, it could be a disaster. I’m counting on the fact that they’ve already booked me three other fights, all of which I’ve won. Tonight I’m going into the meeting with a record of four/zero. I’m pretty confident with things.
I asked Red to go with me but she had something else planned. As I try to pull on my pants to get ready, she won’t stop kissing me.
“Hey, if you keep that up, I’ll have to strip you and miss my meeting.”
She bats her eyelashes, throwing herself back on the bed and sprawling out her arms. “Would that be so bad?”
“Oh hell.” I move to the bed, my pants half on, and crawl up her lithe body. I climb over her, resting my weight on my knees and knuckles. My lips lower, teasing her mouth. She moans, and I know if I don’t stop I’ll either need a cold shower or I’ll strip her down and do all the things to her that are rolling through my mind. I shake my head and crawl back off the bed.
“Aw, Grey, it’s cold over here now.”
I shake my head. “Won’t work. It’s like ninety degrees out there right now. Just so you know, I hate summers here.” Changing the subject will make my evident excitement go away, I hope. The cold shower is starting to sound like a better option.
“Ah, Grey, I love that about you. You’ll move to a place that you don’t like, just for me.”
I smirk. That’s our game, we have yet to actually say the words, but for now, this is enough. I suspect she’s been through some tough stuff in her past just like me and the time just isn’t right.
A limo pulls up to the curb right on time and I slide in to find Jimmy and Meyer already in the back. Meyer has a crappy grin on his face and Jimmy looks like he’s up to something. Always. I look from one to the other and ask, “What’s up with you two?”
They have suddenly become extremely close, which is odd to me. When I was on the amateur circuit before with Jimmy as my manager, Meyer practically whined like a chick at the ridiculousness of having a manager at that level. He didn’t seem to care for Jimmy. Now though, they seem pretty tight.
Jimmy looks at Meyer, exchanging an understanding, and sits up. He’s serious as if he’s conducting a business meeting. This is why I stuck with him. He knows how serious this is to me and he’s also serious about it.<
br />
“Okay, Champ, the man you’re going to meet tonight is a serious player as a sponsor. He knows you’re in a unique situation and I think that’s what intrigues him. His name is Vincent Luciano. If he likes you and feels you have potential, we’re a shoe in.”
I nod.
“Let me do the talking.” Jimmy adds.
I smile. Are my communication skills that bad? I remember Jackson doing the talking with my parole officer to let us come here to fight and then again for me to stay, making it my permanent residence. She still doubts me but Jackson has the talking abilities with her.
I nod again, relenting. As long as I can get more fights. I’m itching for more. Unfortunately after the night in the bar a couple of months ago, Parker has been on his best behavior with my sister, so the urge to kill him has left, at least momentarily. I would like to get in the cage with him and see what he can do.
The restaurant is packed, but a hostess leads us to a table in the corner obscured from the rest of the room. A greying man that I recognize stands as we approach. He holds his hand out and smiles, revealing perfectly straight, white teeth. I saw this man at my first fight here in Vegas. He sat with Jimmy and Meyer that night.
“A pleasure to finally meet you, Greylan Pace.”
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Luciano.”
“You can call me Vince; we are going to be business partners, after all.”
A fist of doubt, or call it uneasiness, forms in my chest at his words. I look at Jimmy, who seems like the world is perfect. My stare moves to Meyer. He’s fidgety but that isn’t unusual. My nerves must be a mess.
We sit and order drinks. I look at the older man. His hair is slicked back and when he glances over, I notice light green eyes, almost a hazel color. His suit looks like it could be Armani or some top end brand. I’m not sure. Mollie has been trying to teach me about fashion but it’s lost on me. Jeans and a t-shirt and I’m happy.
Dinner rolls on, Jimmy is on his game. I keep looking at Meyer. He seems a little down lately. His eyes have purple under them, telling of a lack of sleep and his hair is longer than I have ever seen it. He’s been drinking heavily but I decided a while ago that I can’t save Meyer. I’ve tried so many times to get through. It’s pointless.
The day I told Meyer I was going to move to Vegas, he was fully supportive and offered to share his house. It became his when his mom passed the year before from liver disease. I’ve tried talking to him about her but he’s closed up about it. I’m sure that’s a contributing factor in his depression lately. When I told him how serious I am about Mollie, I was sure he would take back the offer to live at the house. But to my surprise, he didn’t. Now he mopes around or doesn’t come home most nights when I’m there.
“So Greylan, Meyer here tells me you are going for the top.” Mr. Luciano’s tone is amused.
“Of course I’d like to win it all, who wouldn’t?”
“True, very true.” He picks up his drink and swirls the vodka around before taking a long sip.
He looks at Meyer who gives him a nod.
“Okay, I think we might be able to work out a deal. I’ll set things up with Jimmy here and we’ll see what kind of fights we can get you.”
My lips turn up slightly. Not much can bring me down right now. It’s been a while but at that moment, everyone I care about is okay and I’m okay. Finally.
Chapter 30
When I get back to Mollie’s apartment and crawl into bed, she shifts, moving her arm over my chest. She mumbles, “Did you get it?”
A smile spreads in the darkened room.
“Yep, I think I now have a sponsor and it feels good.”
Her tone changes but I barely notice. “That’s great, Grey. I’m happy for you.”
I kiss her forehead and whisper, “Go back to sleep, angel. See you in the morning.”
***
The next day Jimmy shows up with news. He has a fight scheduled with Mario Cortez the next week. He’s got a pretty long streak of wins. This both excites and worries me. Jimmy is beyond ecstatic with the accomplishment. He keeps saying we’re on the up and up, especially with Vincent Luciano behind us.
I dial Jackson when I get back to Meyer’s house.
He picks up on the second ring. “Hey, Pace, how’s it going?”
“Great, I have a fight next week with Mario Cortez. Do you think you can make it?”
A long whistle sounds over the line. “What the hell did you do to land a fight with that killer?”
I shake my head, still not believing it myself. I knew Jax would call it like it is.
“I signed with a sponsor. Jimmy is planning it.”
“You can say that again. It’s doable but you’re gonna have to train hard this week. He’s one solid motherfucker.”
“Message received. When are you coming?”
“Give me a few days and I’ll be over.”
“Sounds good.”
Meyer comes into the kitchen as I end the call. He seems apprehensive and skirts around, avoiding me. I consider attempting a conversation to find out what the problem is but I’m sure it’s still the Mollie thing and I don’t feel like dealing with that shit right now.
I head to the gym and put in a hard workout, just as Jackson told me to.
When I get to Mollie’s, she’s already there with a celebratory candlelight dinner. But as I spot the table, I find four place settings instead of two.
“Hey, who’s coming over?”
“You’ll see. Go and get cleaned up.”
I smile and kiss her, lingering longer than I had intended. She pushes me away and wrinkles her nose. “Ew, you stink, go away.”
I laugh the whole way to the shower, thinking nothing could bring me down right now. When I’m dressed, I stride out to find Trinity and Parker. This is a nice surprise. I gather her into my arms and squash her nose. She laughs, pulling away.
“Hey kid, it’s so good to see you.”
“You too, big brother; I heard you got a sponsor.”
“I did.”
“I’m so proud of you.”
She looks quickly at Parker and smiles. Taking a deep breath and grabbing his hand, she turns back to me and says, “Hey, I need to tell you something and I don’t want you to freak out.”
My eyes narrow, taking in her uneasiness.
“Starting a conversation like that, Trin, is probably not going to get your desired effect.”
My body is relaxed with all of the things going well lately. I’m not ready for the news Trinity announces. “Um, Parker and I got married yesterday.” My heart stops. I move unintentionally, causing the chair to topple over. My blood starts to heat up as the full meaning of her words hits me.
“What the fuck were you thinking, Trinity?”
I run my hands through my hair, wanting to hit something so badly.
Mollie stands and picks up the chair. She looks at me and back at Trinity.
“Maybe we should go.” Trinity states, unsure.
I spin around, glaring at Parker. “And you. I’ve about had it with your junk. How can you say that you’re protecting and caring for my sister when you go and do shit like this?” I lunge forward, pushing Parker into the wall, pinning him with my arms.
Parker winces at the pressure on his throat but doesn’t fight back.
Trinity screams and pulls on my arm. “What the hell, Grey? Get off of him.”
I move away from Parker, clenching my fists.
Parker walks toward the door, taking Trinity’s hand, but turns his voice is firm and steady. “Grey, we’ll let you deal with this on your own, or with Mollie. I’m sure Trinity will want to talk in a couple of days.”
Trinity pulls her hand from Parker’s grasp and surges toward me, her finger poking me in the chest. “Greylan, we had this conversation when you got out and so many times since. I fucking chose Parker. It has nothing to do with you and there’s nothing you can do about it. I don’t care if you don’t like him, because I love him, and I
have no regrets.”
The words cause me to wince. My mouth opens to argue but it quickly closes as she turns to walk away. I shake my head, pulling at my hair as Mollie slides her arm around my back. She whispers, “Grey, let them go.”
Trinity takes another step but spins back. “When you can grow up, you can call me and talk about this like an adult. Until then, I don’t want to hear from you.”
I watch the door close behind them and sink into the closest chair. Somehow I failed my sister and now she’s made one of the biggest mistakes she could have made.
***
After a while Mollie asks, “Will you come and sit with me?”
I’ve been in the chair staring at nothing for an hour. At her request I move to the living room and ruffle the long red locks I love so much. She moves into my arms, nuzzling my chest.
She hesitates a moment before asking, her voice muffled by my shirt, “Will you tell me about your family? I mean, you’re so protective over Trinity, and I’d like to know about it.”
I take a deep breath, considering her request. There’s still very little that I know about her and she’s often extremely guarded with the past, so I offer, “I’ll tell you about them if you tell me something about you, maybe about your parents?” My request is half -hearted. All the energy I seemed to have when Trinity and Parker were here has seeped away.
Her breathing speeds up a moment under my touch but she relents. “Okay, I’ll start.” Her voice wavers. “My mom left my dad when I was a baby. I never got a chance to know her, so my dad raised me. It’s always been the two of us. Well, not exactly. I mean, he had help from my two aunts, but for most of my life it was just us. I learned how to fend for myself because he was busy a lot. But I was fine with that. It worked for us. I learned a lot about myself and other people.” She pauses, taking a deep breath. “He did the best he could and I love him for it.”
I lean my head in to kiss her forehead. Her words weren’t much but it was the most she has revealed about herself. I’ll take it. I remember two months ago I asked what she did to earn money and pay bills. The apartment where she lives is top dollar, it must be. Besides the location, so close to the strip, everything is done for her. She told me that her dad foots the bill. He’s some sort of businessman. I was good with that. Now, hearing about her past, I understand some of it. I know how it is losing a parent, whether by death or just not being there.
No Regrets (No Regrets #1) Page 21