19. Lyrius
For the first time in a long time, I was happy.
Genuinely happy. Not surviving. Not figuring it out.
Just happy. The last four weeks had felt like a fairy tale.
KO and I were finally operating like a real family.
He’d drop off Dakoda at school, leave for training in the morning, and I’d head to work.
We’d pick Dakoda up from school together, eat dinner, play dinosaurs, and watch movies until Dakoda passed out.
Then it’d just be us, talking, laughing, and making love all night.
Somewhere between therapy, kindergarten drop-offs, and KO being stubborn as hell, we’d stopped feeling like three people trying to figure it out and started feeling like a family.
It was everything I’d wanted five years ago.
Everything I’d convinced myself I’d never have.
That was probably why sitting alone in a luxury hotel suite in Las Vegas felt so surreal.
Fight week had officially arrived, and KO had flown Dakoda and me to Vegas to support him.
He was downstairs handling media obligations for Saturday’s championship fight, and I was curled up on the bed, watching one of his press conferences replay across the television with a smile as wide as Texas on my face because instead of answering questions, KO was spending most of the interview trying to keep Dakoda from taking over the entire show.
“So, KO, what makes you confident going into Saturday’s fight?”
“’Cause my daddy is the strongest,” Dakoda interjected, and I laughed along with the reporter and the crowd.
“Y’all see what I gotta deal with?” KO dropped his head and shook it.
“Daddy, tell them about your muscles.”
“I’m not telling grown men about my muscles, Dakoda.”
“Why?”
“’Cause that’s weird.”
The reporter laughed again.
“So how come we’ve never seen your son before? A lot of fans didn’t even know you had a kid.”
I cringed a little at that question, but it was to be expected.
This was the first time the press was seeing Dakoda.
I suggested he stay back with me at the hotel, but KO insisted on having him right by his side.
He said this was the biggest moment of his life, and he wanted his son to be a part of it.
Before KO could answer, Dakoda grabbed the microphone.
“I was hiding.” The entire room exploded in laughter, and KO looked up at the reporter.
“I’ve never been on a stage this big before.” The crowd cheered, and he shrugged. “Never had this many cameras following me around either.” A few more laughs rolled through the room. “I been big on family. Y’all just finally paying attention.”
I smiled at the TV screen, surprised by his answer but not shocked, because at the end of the day, it was nobody’s business that he’d just met Dakoda a few weeks ago.
The interview cut to preview stats about the fight just as my phone started ringing on the bed.
I glanced at the screen, and the biggest smile crossed my face when I saw KO’s name flash across the screen.
“Hey!” I damn near sang into the phone.
“Come downstairs.”
“What?” I frowned. He and Dakoda weren’t supposed to be back for another two hours.
“Come downstairs.”
“I thought you and Dakoda were going to weigh in?”
“You coming too. Come on. I’m not asking.
” The line disconnected, and I stared at my phone for a second before tossing it onto the bed.
What did he mean, I was going to the weigh-in?
I wasn’t dressed for that. Well, my makeup, hair, and nails were done, but still.
My phone dinged again, and I rolled my eyes as soon as I looked down. That man loved reading my mind.
KO:
Now! Bad. You look beautiful!
I took a glance at myself in the mirror.
I guess the polka dot jumpsuit I was wearing was going to do.
I grabbed my purse off the counter, dropped my phone inside, and headed out the door.
A few minutes later, I stepped off the elevator, crossed the lobby, and made my way outside.
My mouth immediately hit the floor at the sight of KO and Dakoda leaning against a black G-Wagon parked at the curb.
“We bought you a truck!” Dae-Dae shouted, and my steps slowed.
“No.”
“Yes.” His grin widened.
“KO.”
“Mama, you like it?” Dae-Dae asked, bouncing toward me. I looked from my son, then back at KO, then back at the truck.
“What the hell am I supposed to do with this?” My voice cracked.
“Drive it.”
“KO, I live in an apartment.”
“Good thing you ain’t gonna be living there much longer then, huh?”
I stared at him for a minute in disbelief.
This week was supposed to be about him. His big fight.
His big moment, and somehow, he’d carved out the time to buy me a new car.
The insurance had already paid out for my old car.
I’d spent weeks comparing prices, looking at practical options, trying to figure out what made the most sense.
I had been eyeing a sensible SUV, something reliable for Dakoda and me.
At no point had I realized KO was pretending to help me shop while secretly planning to buy me a G-Wagon.
“Dakota!” My voice cracked.
“It’s yours, baby.” I looked back at the G-Wagon. “All the paperwork’s in your name. It’s paid for. No note. No payments. No nothing.”
“Dakota!” My hand flew to my mouth, and tears immediately burned my eyes.
“Oh my God.” The last five years, I had spent analyzing every major purchase.
Could I afford it? Did Dakoda need something first?
Could it wait another month? Now the man I loved was standing in front of me, handing me the keys to a vehicle that cost more than anything I’d ever owned in my entire life.
“How are we even getting this back to Shoreline?” I laughed through my tears.
“Don’t worry about that.” KO chuckled. “That’s on me.
” I shook my head and walked around the vehicle again, still trying to convince myself it was real.
The paint shimmered in the Vegas sun. The cream-colored interior looked like something out of a movie.
When I opened the driver’s door, I damn near started crying all over again.
“KO. You did not!”
“What?”
“You put my name in the interior.” My fingertips brushed across the custom embroidery on the steering wheel. “Oh my God.”
“Mom, get in!” Dakoda squeezed between us excitedly.
“You knew about this?”
“I picked the color.” Of course, he did.
“Get in, Bad,” KO said, tossing me the keys. “You gotta take me to the weigh-in.”
“You want me to drive it?” I stared at him.
“It’s your car.” A smile finally broke across my face, and Dakoda practically dove into the back seat while KO rounded the front of the truck and climbed into the passenger seat beside me.
I slid into the driver’s seat, still in shock, still trying to process what was happening.
Starting the car, I typed the destination into the navigation and immediately froze.
The address already saved under Home wasn’t my apartment in Shoreline.
It was a house in Azalea. I glanced over at KO, and he didn’t say a word.
He just sat there, looking entirely too pleased with himself as I pulled onto the Vegas strip.
The crazy part? I hadn’t told him yet, but I was entertaining the idea of moving back to Azalea.
I’d already caught myself looking at hotel manager job postings, anything that would let me build something of my own.
Not because I needed the money—KO had made it very clear I didn’t have to work if I didn’t want to—but because I wanted something that was mine.
Hell, I’d even looked at classes at Azalea University one night when I couldn’t sleep, just to see what was out there.
“Mom!” Dakoda pointed excitedly out the window as I pulled away from the curb and merged into traffic.
“Daddy owns all these buildings!” he shouted from the back seat, making me look up to see one of the many giant KO billboards stretched across the side of a casino.
“Okay, you’re definitely not an underground boxer anymore.” I laughed and shook my head.
“Nah.” KO smirked.
“After this weekend, our lives aren’t going back to regular, are they?”
“Not if I win.”
“When you win,” Dakoda corrected, and KO pointed at him.
“That’s my boy,” he said, and I smiled and kept driving, taking in the billboards as I drove. KO had really become a big-name boxer, and more than anything, I was grateful I got to see it. I was grateful that the universe had forced us back together just in time for me to witness it up close.
“Pull up front, baby.” KO pointed toward the entrance of the MGM Grand Hotel, which was covered with reporters and fans. Slowly, I eased the truck toward the curb. Before I could even put it in park, security was opening our doors, and staff appeared from every direction.
“KO!”
“KO!”
“Quick interview before we go in!”
“KO! You ready for tomorrow night?”
The press was yelling the second KO stepped out of the car. I barely had time to unbuckle my seatbelt before cameras started flashing.
“Daddy!” Dakoda hopped out behind him, and KO turned long enough to scoop him up and kiss the side of his head before setting him back down. Then his attention found me as I rounded the front of the vehicle.
“Shit about to get crazy.” He stepped forward and pulled me into his chest.
“I know.”
“I’ma have security take y’all to y’all seats,” he said softly. Then he looked over my shoulder at one of the security guards. “Make sure they get inside.”
“Got it!” The guard nodded, and KO kissed my forehead one last time.
“I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too,” I replied, and then, just like that, he was gone, pulled toward the entrance by reporters, his handlers, and the cameras.
“My daddy famous.” Dakoda grabbed my hand and pointed after him.
“Apparently.” I laughed.
“Come on, miss,” the security guard said.
“Let’s get you two inside.” I nodded, and just like that, Dakoda and I followed the crowd into the weigh-in.
The moment we stepped inside, my eyes ballooned.
The venue was packed with people. Music blasted through the speakers, fans filled the seats, and the huge screens flashed highlights from KO’s previous fights.
My eyes glanced down at Dakoda. He was loving every second of it.
“Daddy gonna win,” he said.
“I know,” I agreed as we found our seats near the front.
A few feet away, KO’s opponent, Hollywood Lou, was already on stage talking cash money shit, flexing his championship belt.
The crowd seemed to love it, but I wasn’t impressed.
There was no way that man was in the same weight class as KO. My man was gonna beat his ass.
“Lyrius.”
I looked in the direction I’d heard my name and was immediately annoyed to see Cherry taking the empty seat next to me with her perfect makeup and pantsuit that showed too much cleavage.
“Oh.” I smiled politely. “Hi.”
“Hi.” Her eyes drifted toward Dakoda. “He’s cute.”
“Thank you.”
For a second, neither of us said anything, just kept our eyes on the stage waiting for KO to come out.
“You know, Victoria is gonna be excited to hear you made it to Vegas.”
“What?” That name hit me like a punch to the chest. Every muscle in my body froze, and my smile slipped. Victoria. Cherry blinked at me like she’d said nothing strange at all.
“Oh, nothing.” She laughed softly.
“No, what did you just say?”
“I said, welcome to Vegas.”
I stared at her, knowing that she was playing in my face. She’d definitely said Victoria. I hadn’t heard that name in years, not since she’d left me on KO’s floor. Before I could ask another question, somebody called Cherry’s name from the floor, and she stood.
“Enjoy the weigh-in.” She looked in my direction before walking off and leaving me sitting there, staring after her, confused and uneasy.
There was only one Victoria I knew, and there was absolutely no reason KO’s publicist should know her.
The crowd exploded, and I looked up to see KO step onto the stage in all his nearly naked glory.
He was wearing nothing but trunks, tattoos, and baby oil. Lord. My man was fine.
“That’s my daddy!” Dakoda jumped to his feet, cheering, and I joined him, clapping with everyone else, smiling when KO pointed toward us, laughing when Dakoda waved both arms over his head, trying to get his attention.
From the outside, I probably looked like the perfect, supportive girlfriend.
But inside, I was unraveling because, while everybody else was focused on the weigh-in, I couldn’t stop thinking about how the hell Cherry knew Victoria, and for the first time in a long time, I felt afraid.