Chapter 50
FIFTY
Devon
Reed racked the weights and lifted his shirt to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
Beside us James did the same thing with a loud sound that echoed through the gym. “I’m so out of shape,” he panted, leaning over with his hands on his knees.
Josh patted his back, and Luke shook his head. “That’s what you get for missing workouts for the past few weeks.”
James gave Luke the middle finger and reached for his water. We all tried to get together at least once a week, or once every other week, for a workout at Reed’s gym, RG Fitness. It often wasn’t all of us, especially with James and Ivy having just moved in together and Luke and Hazel spending most of their time getting to know their new daughter.
I’d also missed a week or two because I was more focused on Blakely than I was on almost anything else.
“How’s Josie?” James asked Luke who was replacing the weights.
Luke’s face immediately lit up, his smile taking up most of his face. “She’s fucking perfect. I never thought I’d be a dad, but I’m so glad I am. And watching Hazel become a mom…” He trailed off and ran a hand through his black hair. “I didn’t think I could love that woman more than I did, but watching her love our daughter, it’s incredible.”
“My brother, the sap,” Josh chimed in, patting Luke on the back.
“Shut the fuck up,” Luke quipped. He shrugged off Josh’s hand, but there wasn’t any bite to his words.
“Are either of you getting any sleep?” I asked, and he immediately shook my head.
“She’s sleeping a little bit better than she was a few weeks ago, but Hazel and I have come up with a decent system. We switch off every other feeding, which is good, but still…” He shrugged, and the dark circles under his eyes were prominent. “James, how’s it been since you moved in with Ivy? Is she ready to kick you out yet?”
James settled on the bench and wiped his face with a towel. Although he was still breathing heavily, his smile was cocky. “Pretty sure it crosses her mind every day, but she loves me, so I get a pass. Besides, I’m the best she’s ever had, so I’ve got that goin’ for me, too.”
“You going to propose?” Josh asked, and James whipped his head in his direction.
“Just because the three of you got married doesn’t mean the rest of us have to follow in your footsteps.”
“Oh, shut up,” Reed quipped. “We all know that it’s Ivy who doesn’t want to get married yet. If you could, you’d marry her tomorrow. Which is probably smart since she could change her mind at any time.”
Josh walked over and kissed his husband on the cheek, and it was on the tip of my tongue to say something about newlywed bliss when Luke straightened in front of me. His brow furrowed as he peered over my shoulder. “Blakely?” he asked.
At first, I thought he was asking me about her, but then I turned and saw her standing just inside the front door. Her dark, curly hair was pulled back in a bun on top of her head, and her eyes swept across the expansive space until they settled on me, on us, across the gym.
She strode toward us with purpose, the black canvas bag she carried with her slung over her shoulder and her arms crossed over her chest. The expression on her beautiful face was hard to read, but I could sense the anger in her slightly narrowed eyes and the straight, set line of her lips.
“Hey, sweetheart,” I said cautiously. Tossing my towel onto the bench, I took a step toward her, then another. Her eyes softened slightly as she tilted her head back.
“Hi,” she said softly and accepted the quick kiss I placed on her lips.
“What are you doing here?”
The hardness returned to her expression, and I was immediately on high alert. This wasn’t a surprise visit because she just couldn’t stand not seeing me. Something had happened since I’d left her that morning, orgasm-drunk and happy in my bed with both Tato and Stormy at her sides.
I opened my mouth to ask her, but she shook her head like she already knew what I intended to say.
“I’ll tell you about it later. I just—” She peeked around me until her eyes landed on Reed. “Do you have punching bags here?”
Reed’s eyebrows rose, but he nodded all the same. He quickly looked at me as he hiked his thumb over his shoulder. “Yeah, in the back. Want me to show you?”
She inclined her head and walked around me. “I’ll need gloves, too.”
“Sure,” he said. “I’ve got some you can use.”
The two of them walked farther into the gym while the rest of us stood there surprised by the entire interaction.
“Based on the look on your face,” James said, “I’m going to guess that you didn’t know she was coming.”
All I could do was shake my head as Blakely tossed her bag against the wall and held her fists up for Reed to help her fit the gloves over her hands. He was talking to her, but they were too far away for me to hear anything. And although she nodded along with whatever he said, I could tell her mind was elsewhere.
Something was wrong, and I hated not knowing what it was. I needed to fix it.
Reed said something else to her, and she shook her head. He stood next to her and began showing her how to throw a punch, which she intently watched for several seconds before nodding and motioning to the punching bag hanging from the ceiling.
With another quick, wary look in my direction, Reed poised behind the bag, holding it away from himself and in position for Blakely. She raised her hands and stepped up to the bag with one foot in front of the other.
She took a deep breath and punched. One punch turned into two, then three, then she was furiously pounding away at the bag in front of her. And I was striding across the gym before I realized my feet were moving.
I tapped Reed’s shoulder, and he stepped aside. I took up his spot behind the bag as he rejoined the rest of the guys where I’d left them.
But all my attention was on the woman in front of me. Each punch was solid against the bag, reverberating through the leather and vibrating up my arms. I held on tighter and watched her face contort in concentration.
Sweat began beading on her forehead, and her breath came in quick, sharp pants. She hadn’t noticed that Reed and I had swapped, her attention wholly focused on the bag and the movement of her arms.
Minutes passed with no sign of her lightening up. My arms grew sore just from holding the bag when she finally stepped away, her arms dropping limply to her sides as she struggled for air. Her eyes had grown distant, but I was happy to see that when she finally looked up, she registered me standing behind the bag.
“Dev, when did you—” she panted, motioning between the guys who’d resumed their workout and me just in front of her. “I didn’t realize you’d—” Her words cut off again as she sucked in a long breath through her nose.
“We switched about ten minutes ago. Do you feel better now?”
“A little.”
“Great,” I said, stepping around the bag until I was directly in front of her. “Now, tell me why you needed to do that.”
She closed her eyes and sighed before she turned and kneeled in front of her bag. When she stood back up and turned, her phone was in her hand. She handed it to me and began removing the boxing gloves from her hands.
The picture on her screen was of a bunch of black roses that appeared to be stuffed in a mailbox.
“Swipe, there’s more,” she instructed, not looking up from her task.
I swiped, and the next picture was more of the same as was the following one, but the fourth picture showed letters written on the inside of several petals. My initial shock had already begun to give way to anger before I flipped the phone to better read the word.
But when I registered what the letters spelled— broken— that anger morphed into outrage. I immediately understood her need to hit something. The desire welled up inside me just the same.
“You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me,” I muttered as I swiped through the rest of the pictures. She took her phone back and tossed it into her bag, and I ran a hand through my hair before dropping my hands and clenching them at my sides.
“I’m sure you get it now,” she muttered, motioning to the punching bag. Reed approached and took the gloves Blakely offered him with a cautious and curious smile.
“What’s up? I’m always happy to let you use the gym whenever you might need it, but I have a feeling there’s a reason this time.”
Blakely retrieved her phone once again and handed it to Reed.
While he looked at the photos I’d just seen and the other guys walked over to us, I opened my arms for Blakely, who stepped directly into my embrace. We were both covered in sweat, but neither of us cared. She pressed her cheek against my shoulder and wrapped her arms around my waist.
“You’re shaking,” she whispered against my neck. She was right, I was shaking, but I hadn’t realized it until she pointed it out.
Our friends, now gathered around Reed, who was still holding Blakely’s phone, looked up at me in unison.
“Because I’m furious,” I admitted. “And I’m so fucking sorry, sweetheart.”
“You already talked to the police?” James asked. I kissed her forehead and smoothed a hand down her back as she turned toward them. Having her in my arms, even for a moment, did more for my frayed nerves and palpable anger than anything else would have.
“Yeah, I called the local detective who updated the detective in Colorado Springs. They took the flowers as evidence and reiterated that they’re doing their best. And that I shouldn’t stay by myself, although they’d try to find the resources for a cop to watch my house twenty-four-seven if I wanted to.”
“Like Devon would let that happen.” Luke chuckled. Out of everyone, he knew better than most how I was feeling. He and Hazel had been stalked and made to feel terrified. At least they’d known who it was, though.
Blakely’s stalker remained nameless and faceless. It could have been anybody, and we wouldn’t have known.
It was no wonder Blakely had kept herself locked up in my house for the past two weeks. She only ventured out when I was with her, and whether she realized it or not, she also stayed away from doors and windows when she could.
This unknown person had radically changed her life in only a few calculated moves.
Blakely peered over her shoulder at me with a small, appreciative smile poised on her lips. “I know,” she said quietly.
“You know you can ask us if you need anything, right? We’re here for you, Blake,” Josh said. They all agreed immediately, and Reed handed Blakely back her phone.
“We’re doing Sunday dinner next week at our place,” James said. “Y’all are both coming, right?”
He’d mentioned earlier that they wanted to host, especially since we hadn’t found the time to get together again since they showed up unannounced at Blakely’s. But I hadn’t wanted to tell him yes or no until I talked to Blake. I wanted to leave it up to her.
“Yeah,” she answered immediately. “We’ll be there.” Then she turned to me. “Well, unless you have something else?—”
“Nope.”
She nodded. “Yeah, we’ll be there.”
“Good,” he said. “I’m gonna hit the showers and then head home.” The others agreed and said their goodbyes, promising to see us on Sunday.
“Do you need another round with the punching bag, or should we leave too?” I asked, and she cracked the smallest of smiles.
“My anger has dissipated for the moment. Now, I’m just fucking tired. Being angry really takes it out of you.”
I reached forward and tucked a hair that had fallen from her bun behind her ear and grazed her cheek with my thumb. More than I needed air, I needed to feel her lips against mine.