Chapter 15
I almost stayed in instead of going with Javier for a six-mile run. All I can think about is Ari in my guest bedroom. Her lips are as soft as they look.
I wanted to drag her to my bedroom and keep her warm. I told her she was safe with me. There was more that I wanted to do than hold her. So I took a cold shower.
Smoke swirls in the air with each breath I take. Javier matches my pace. He won’t last in the ring if he can’t keep up.
We pass the midway point and are soon at the end of the trail. The cool, thin air burns my lungs as I take deep breaths. It feels like my lungs are on fire. I’m pushing myself. The cold freezes my skin from my sweat. I want to go back home and see if she is up. If she slept comfortably enough. Who knows how long she has been sleeping in her car.
Javier stops. He places his palms on his bent knees, out of breath. It looks like he’s cooking barbecue from all the smoke from his nose and mouth.
“I can’t believe you followed her, and she was sleeping in her car,” Javier says, shaking his head between breaths.
I nod, telling him I understood what he said. I didn’t tell him about the shower incident because he would give me shit about it. Plus, I don’t feel comfortable discussing Aria. She looked defeated. Broken .
In the gym, she always looks cheerful and bright. Waving when she sees me. A pretense to what she is going through. A way to hide the truth. She’s homeless. It makes me feel like shit for ignoring her when I first met her.
Javier opens the front door. I slide my damp hoodie over my head and freeze. If I weren’t deaf, I would hear my stomach growl in protest. The most delicious smell of French toast causes my stomach to scream.
“Oh my God. It smells like heaven in here,” Javier signs to me with a smile.
When we get closer to the kitchen, Ari is bent over, reaching into the refrigerator, wearing the shortest pajama shorts I have ever seen. She hasn’t noticed us.
Javier angles his head to the side, admiring the view. He turns to look at me with a smile on his face. He makes a motion with his hands in a mocking gesture about her ass while biting his bottom lip.
Her ass is very nice, more than nice, but I try not to look at her perfect ass cheeks that peek out the bottom of her shorts.
Javier keeps his eyes trained on her ass. I slap him upside the head.
“What?” he signs.
I shake my head and sign back, “She works for us. Stop it.”
“Come on, Rey. I know that, but you cannot deny that I made the right choice.” He smiles. “Ari is hot. I think we need to just let her live here permanently. Maybe she will just walk around dressed like that all day.”
I slap him playfully upside the head again. This is what happens when you’re training for a fight. No woman. No sex. It has him stupid.
He rubs the side of his head with a laugh, which gets Ari’s attention. I watch her lips move as she says, “ Hi ,” but her eyes are glued to mine .
Javier gives her a big smile, then removes his hoodie so we are both bare-chested. Asshole. I didn’t do it to show off. It was so I wouldn’t get sick. He doesn’t seem to care that she works for us.
I smile and then turn to Javier. “Stop showing off,” I sign.
He rolls his eyes. “Stop being a grouch. You were checking out her ass, too. I saw you. Don’t act like you don’t think she is hot. You keep riding me about her. I think she is fine. The guys in the gym think she is fine.”
My nostrils flare. “Make sure you tell all the guys in the gym that Ari is a no-fly zone. That goes for you, too. No chatting her up while training or flirting in the gym. We train fighters to be champions, not set them up on dates.”
“Fine. I’ll let her know that she can’t flirt with the guys in the gym, and she isn’t there to pick up guys. Got it.”
When I look at Ari, her smile is replaced by a disap‐ pointed look. I realize what Javier signed, he also spoke out loud.
She says something to Javier, but I’m focused on how I want to punch Javier for telling her what I said so I don’t catch it.
He turns to me and signs, “She said for you not to worry about her trying to pick up guys at the gym. She isn’t interested in being involved with anyone. Especially athletes. In her experience, they don’t know how to treat women.”
“Tell her thank you for understanding. I’m sorry her experience with athletes didn’t work out for her, but we cannot afford distractions at the gym,” I sign as Javier speaks, relaying the message.
She ignores me and begins to plate our breakfast, placing it on the table. Each plate has fluffy scrambled eggs, French toast with butter and syrup, napkins, and utensils. Javier glares at me, not caring that he is breaking his meal plan as he sits down and begins to eat .
I feel like shit for saying what I said. It is none of my business. I shouldn’t care who she talks to, but I do. I hate the way I made her feel. I hate that she doesn’t look at me like I want her to. I hate that I took away her smile, but what I hate the most is that I can’t tell her I’m sorry.