17. Miles
Miles
I walked into the gym, the smell of sweat, mixed with the sharp, almost medicinal tang of disinfectant, hitting me first.
It wasn’t the high-stakes poker game I thought it would be.
Slayer’s Gym was a total dive compared to my usual spots.
Expensive workout equipment gleamed under the bright lights, a stark contrast to the rough texture of the bare brick walls.
A couple of fighters were going at it in the ring, their sharp, practiced moves punctuated by the thud of fists and the squeak of shoes.
I saw Reese by the ring. He gave me a sly grin. “You made it!” he shouted above the gym din.
“This ain’t poker.” I went to give Reese a fist bump. “I didn’t know this place was even around.”
Growing up, the Ashbournes and the Kings were basically mortal enemies.
I didn’t hate the guy, but I stayed away from him out of out of respect for loyalty to Erik and the Kings.
Now that everything was cool, we would hang out if we ran into each other in town, we both knew what it was like to be an outcast in Lush.
“My buddy Ronin owns the place. I think you’ll like him.” Reese gestured toward a burly guy in the ring with dreads down his back engaged in an intense sparring match.
“Ronin, huh?” I scanned the gym, taking in the raw energy and grit of the place. “The heavyweight boxer who killed a guy?”
“He didn’t kill him. Those are just false allegations.” Reese laughed. “Laurie’s been nesting so hard, I’m scared to even breathe wrong in her space, let alone sneak in my poker table. After the wedding, though, well, I thought I’ll check in with you. How’s it going?”
“Oh, it’s going,” I muttered, my voice more tired than I intended.
Reese raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing on his lips. “Is it going…well?”
“What did Laurene tell you to find out from me?”
“What?” He had the nerve to try to look innocent. “I’m getting to know my new brother-in-law.”
Reese stood up, grabbing a pair of gloves and tossing them to me. “Alright, we can talk later. Let’s see if you’ve still got some fight in you.”
I caught the gloves, slipping them on.
He jabbed lightly. “You know,” he said between punches, “I can tell you love her. Did you say it yet?”
“Please tell me Laurene put you up to this.” I dodged his punch and countered, landing a hit on his arm. “Y’all don’t have anything else to do?”
He smirked, but it faded as his gaze sharpened.
“Serena, the Kings, your family’s company…
it’s a lot to handle. I had my own shit with my father and brother.
At least I had Laurie there with me for most of the mess.
Serena… Well, she’s interesting, but I think it’s great if you both love each other. ”
“That’s a big assumption that I love her at all.”
Liar, you did at one point.
Reese stopped and looked at me. “I can tell. You had the same look in your eyes, the way I used to look at Laurie.”
That made me a bit uncomfortable. Didn’t Laurene say something similar?
I laughed, ducking under his next swing. “Did Erik give you this speech too?”
“Nah. Erik threatened to beat my ass.”
“Sounds about right.”
We’d been at it for a good twenty minutes, and I was starting to feel the burn in my muscles, the kind that reminded me I was alive. But just as I was about to throw another jab, Reese stopped moving.
He lowered his hands, his grin fading into something unreadable.
“What’s up? You getting tired already?” I asked, wiping the sweat off my brow.
Reese didn’t answer. He just nodded behind me.
I slowly turned. Erik.
His expression was guarded, his jaw tight.
I wondered if Reese had dragged me to the gym just to arrange this meeting.
“You did this?”
Reese held his hands up. “Laurene insisted I invite him. Thought it might be good for you two to hash things out. You’re family now.”
Family. That didn’t seem to be any fucking help, now did it?
Erik walked closer to us, and his gaze flickered over to Reese. He gave him a quick nod before frowning at me. “Reese. You didn’t tell me he was going to be here.”
“I’m not exactly doing cartwheels to see you either,” I shot back.
“Anything happens to my sister, it’s your ass I’m coming after.” Erik took a step toward me. “You should have taken the money and left.”
“You can’t get rid of me.” I laughed. “You’re the one who ended our friendship. I didn’t want to.”
“It wasn’t an easy choice, Miles. But sometimes you have to make the hard decisions. You should understand that by now.”
Erik was the whistleblower. He told everyone and was responsible for the downfall that came after.
Betrayal choked me, my voice trembling. “I thought we were brothers, Erik.”
Erik’s face hardened again. “And I thought you’d understand why I had to do it. It’s not something that I wanted to do.”
“You didn’t have to do it at all.”
“Omar was going to hurt a lot of people, but most of all, you and Audrey. If you weren’t going to save yourself, you should have been protecting your mother.”
My stomach twisted. “Don’t bring her into this.”
“You know I’m telling the truth, and that part of you that’s ashamed knows it. You bitched out on your own mama.”
Reese intervened firmly. “Enough. This isn’t helping either of you.”
Erik nodded and took a step back, eyeing me up and down. Then he looked at Reese. “Hand over those gloves.”
Reese glanced at me and Erik. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“Give him the gloves,” I said.
He sighed, then passed them over. “Fine.”
Erik grabbed them, his eyes blazing into mine. I saw his old rage, a fire waiting to explode. He stepped into the ring, and I followed him. All the gym noise was gone.
We circled each other, feet lightly shuffling. His stance was solid, but I knew the way he fought.
I couldn’t forget our hurtful words from all those years ago.
We didn’t have to be this way.
My breath was steady, but my mind was spinning. How did we end up here? Best friends once. We were practically like wolves, ready to tear each other apart.
His quick jab caught me off guard. I blocked it, the shock going right through my gloves. I instinctively punched him in the ribs. But instead of backing off, Erik grinned—a piercing, feral thing that made the anger in me surge.
“This didn’t need to happen,” he mumbled.
“No, it didn’t,” I said, my fists going wild.
With every heavier blow, the sounds of our fists colliding echoed through the space, an erratic rhythm punctuated by grunts and strained breaths.
Erik’s hits became harder and his jaw clenched as he sent jabs aimed at my face.
I ducked, but his next punch hit my temple, sending a white-hot flash of pain through my skull.
I drove my fist toward his midsection, and this time, he stumbled back, the mat giving a low squeak under his shoes. His chest heaved, a ragged, painful breath catching in his throat, as he wiped the blood from his lip with a gloved hand, never breaking eye contact.
“That all you’ve got?” he sneered angrily.
That’s when I lost it. My vision tunneled, and I closed the distance between us, landing punches wherever I could—his arms, his torso, his jaw.
Each strike was filled with all the things I wanted to yell at him.
How we’d thrown away years of friendship, how he’d betrayed me, how I’d turned my back on him, how I’d lost the one person I could trust.
Erik’s final blow connected hard with my jaw, and I staggered, the world tilting sideways as I fought to stay upright. Blood filled my mouth, the coppery taste on my tongue. But I couldn’t fall. Not in front of him.
I steadied myself, eyes locking on Erik.
I took off my gloves, throwing them to the ground. Without a word, Erik did the same. If this was how it was going to end, I wasn’t going to hold back.
He lunged first, fists flying. No technique, no rhythm—just raw, unfiltered aggression. My hands were everywhere, my knuckles burning as I landed hit after hit. He shoved me hard, and I crashed into the ropes.
Before I could recover, he was on me again, I shoved him back, my fist slamming into his gut, and he doubled over, falling to his knees. My legs felt like they were giving out, every muscle burning, but I couldn’t stop.
“Miles!” Reese’s voice pierced through the haze of violence, but I barely registered it.
Shouts erupted around us, arms wrapped around my chest, pulling me back.
Reese was yelling, and others were scrambling into the ring to separate us.
Erik was dragged back too, fists still raised, panting heavily, his eyes wild with fury.
My chest heaved, every breath burning, my body numb from the adrenaline and pain coursing through me.
“Get him off!” I heard someone shout, their voice distant as I tried to focus. But all I could feel was the sharp throb in my face, a brutal ache blooming around my eye.
Reese stood in front of me, hands gripping my shoulders. “Miles! You good?”
My eyes were still on Erik, who was being held back by two guys, his chest heaving, his face a mess of blood and sweat.
He stared at me, his eyes dark, full of something I couldn’t even begin to unravel. He didn’t say a word. He just brushed off the guys holding him, and stormed out of the gym without another look.