And after all she’d been through, she didn’t just blame the douchey ex the way I did. She took responsibility and told me she was the one who had done everything wrong.
I’ve buried myself in my business the past seven years and didn’t let a woman get close. It wasn’t just because my ex ripped my heart out. It was more because I let it happen. I just hadn’t been willing to admit it to myself for seven years.
That truth crashes through me.
I’ve prided myself on being able to adjust to the curve balls life throws at me, then move on. Turns out, I’m not as good at dodging the curve balls as I thought. I’ve been pissed at myself. Didn’t want to acknowledge that I alone was responsible for letting the wrong woman in so I shut myself down completely. Vowed to never let anyone else in again.
And when I finally did let the right woman in, I still thought more of my professional goals than of her.
Regret bubbles up and lumps in my throat.
Pouring myself into my business has been enough for seven years, but suddenly, I realize how empty life will be if work is all I have to occupy my time in the future. The irony of how unfulfilling one-night fucks will be isn’t lost on me either. Red is the only woman I want.
My skin tingles all over thinking about the incredible sex we’ve had. It was never just a fuck with Red. It ran the gamut from wild passion to sweet tenderness and everything in between. She was just as fiery in bed as she was out, and I fell for her a little more every time we were together.
I push out of my chair so hard the chair tips backward. I don’t even bother to straighten it. Instead, I grab my gloves and head to the back of the gym to kill a punching bag. Hell, maybe I’ll kill two.
I put the gloves on and lay into a bag like it’s my enemy. I pummel it with a series of kicks and one-two punches. It swings back toward me, and I spin and give it another ass kicking.
Sweat is flowing off me when Grace says, “Hey. Thought you were at the park?”
I didn’t even see her walk up to me. I don’t stop, though. Instead, I land a right hook that sends the bag swinging wildly. “I was at the park.”
“What’s wrong? Where’s Adeline?” Grace asks like her gut instinct tells her Red’s absence and my mood are connected. She knows me pretty well.
“Gone.” That one word says so much. She’s gone from the gym, possibly gone from the Weekend Warrior event. Definitely gone from my life.
I fucking crush the bag with a left upper cut.
“Then go get her, lunkhead.” Grace taps a knuckle against my head. “What’s wrong with you? Did your brain fall out?”
I shake my head. “Not that it’s any of your business, but she doesn’t want to see me anymore, and I don’t blame her. She can do better than me.”
Grace snorts. “Definitely,” she teases. Then sadness seeps into her expression. “But you don’t just let a girl like that walk away without giving it everything you’ve got to keep her.”
Sounds like the voice of experience. No doubt because of the douche who broke her heart at Georgetown. If I ever discover his identity, he better change his name and move to a secret, deserted island where I can never find him.
“We’re not having this conversation,” I say as I land a series of blows to the bag.
“Look,” Grace says, completely ignoring me. “When a guy acts like a lunkhead, us ladies say we want to end things because we’re hurt. Trust me, if she cares about you as much as I think she does, she wants you to go after her. So, go pitch a tent under her apartment window and sing love songs until she gives in and agrees to talk to you.”
“I can’t carry a tune,” I say.
Grace deadpans, “I know. That’s the point. The fact that you’re willing to embarrass yourself for her will melt her heart. Or she’ll hear you out just to get you to stop singing.” She steps between me and the bag. “Your shower still works. Go use it, get dressed up instead of schlepping around in the usual gym clothes, buy her flowers…” Grace waves a hand in the air dramatically. “…or have a star named after her or something, but go get your woman.”
I rest my gloved hands on my hips and drop my head to chuckle. “I hate to admit it, but you’re pretty smart for a kid.”
She hisses at me, and I laugh again.
She walks to the door. “Let me know what happens. You know I’m here for you.”
I blow out a breath. “Well, if the flowers and the star thing don’t work, I’ll be at 7th Inning Stretch tonight getting drunk. Want to buy me a drink?”
Grace’s look turns dark, and her gaze flits away. “No, thanks. I try to avoid that place.”
“What’s wrong with it? It’s a great bar.”
She chews her lip. “It’s not the bar per se. It’s more the people who hang out there.”
I hang out there. This confuses me even more because the three owners are my buddies. They’re good guys, and she knows them, too. I even asked her to show Jacob Rush around DC last year when he was there scouting new bar locations. In the end, they decided it wasn’t time to expand beyond New York City.
“Go fix your mistake.” She walks through the doorway, but turns back to me. “And don’t give up until you win her back.”
Easier said than done.
Grace leaves, and I’m alone again. I’m torn between wanting to lick my wounds in private and being afraid that I’ll be alone forever.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
I shower, and get out a razor to shave the scruff I’ve let accumulate the last several days. Just as I’m leaning over the sink to take the first swipe up my neck, I stop and stare in the mirror. Run a hand over the long stubble.
The first time I went down on Red right here on the bathroom counter, she loved the stubble against her thighs. After that, I let it grow. Now it’s filling in and almost a full-grown beard. I rub my chin between my thumb and forefinger. Then I lather up my neck, and clean up the edges instead of shaving it off.
When I’m done, I put on the black dress pants and dress shirt I keep at the gym in case I don’t have time to go home to get cleaned up. Before I button the shirt, I even slap on one of Checkmate’s super-charged pheromone colognes, because hey, I need all the help I can get when I find Red and try to convince her I’m worth a second chance.
We’re worth a second chance.
I open my bathroom door and look down to start buttoning my shirt from the bottom up as I stride through the doorway.
“Ooof,” I say as I plow into…
“Red.” I say, not fully believing she’s right here in my office close enough for me to touch.
She teeters off balance from the impact, so I slide my arms around her waist and steady her just like I did that first time I walked in on her in my bathroom.
She’s holding her gym bag in one hand—the one she forgot in my office earlier. In the other hand, she’s holding the deposit slip. Yes, that deposit slip. The one she was never supposed to know about.
“Grace said it was okay to come look for my bag,” Red says. Her words flow out slowly, like she’s choosing them with the utmost care.
Of course Grace did. Thank you, baby sister.
“This was on the floor next to my bag.” She lifts the piece of paper in her hand. “You put the money in my account.” Her voice is almost a whisper. Her eyes are wide.
I get lost in them. “Yeah,” I whisper, too, and it’s all I can think to say as I stare into the deep emeralds that shimmer back at me with so much emotion that a pang of hope springs up and makes my heart drum against my chest.
“Why?” she asks.
“Because I care.” I graze the back of an index finger over her cheek.
“You barely knew me then.” She shakes her head like she can’t believe what I’m saying. “We still haven’t known each other that long.”
“I started falling for you the first night I met you. The way you barreled up to me so bold and fearless.” I chuckle. “Then called me Dick to put me in my place. How could I not fal
l for you?”
“Why didn’t you tell me about the money?” She rests the hand clasping the deposit slip against my bare chest.
Her touch sends a prickle of lust up my spine. “I don’t know.” I shrug. “It was just something I wanted to do for you. No ulterior motive. Not because I wanted brownie points, or credit, and especially not because I wanted you in my bed. I was behind you in line that day at the bank. I overheard your conversation with the teller, and I just wanted to help…just because.”
She pushes at my chest. “You eavesdropped on my conversation again!” A smile turns up her lush lips and her eyes dance.
“Not intentionally,” I say. “But I’m glad I did.
“This is a lot of money, Ethan.” She gently waves the slip of paper. “I don’t know when I’ll be able to pay you back.”
“I don’t want the money. I want you, Red.” I keep stroking her cheek. “I was wrong for going along with the plan to let you win the coaches’ challenge. Honestly, Zach and Sean’s hearts were in the right place, but they went about trying to salvage the Weekend Warriors event the wrong way. They were in a tough spot when the last coach had to drop out, but that’s no excuse. It wasn’t an ideal situation for any of us. Zach, Sean, you, me, the teams—it sucked for everyone, but we should’ve kept you in the loop from the moment they brought you on as the new coach.” My fingers smooth down her neck, and her breath hitches.
Nice.
She glances at my computer screen, the fall that ended her run for Olympic gold still frozen on the screen. “You watched the video of my accident.”
I nod. “You were incredible back then, but you’re even more incredible now.”
She shakes her head. “I suspected I had a stress fracture, but I wouldn’t tell my coaches. Competing with injuries is part of the life we sign up for, and I didn’t want to be benched right before the Olympic trials. I blew it. Blew it for myself, my coaches, my team, and most heartbreaking of all, my parents. They had given up so much for me, and I thought taking time off to heal would disappoint everyone. My decision to keep quiet ended my career completely the second I landed on the mat. Obviously, I have a long illustrious history of poor judgment.”
“No.” My words are an urgent whisper. “You showed how strong you are by letting it go instead of wallowing in self-pity.”
She chuckles. “Oh, there was plenty of self-pity and wallowing.”
“It was grief, Red. You had every right to grieve, but you didn’t stay there. Didn’t shut your emotions down.” I brush a strand of hair off her forehead. “You found another purpose. You’re amazing, you know that?”
She snorts lightly. “Right. So amazing that all of my money is paying for Andre’s new tropical shirts, margaritas, and cabana massages on a beach in the Caymans.”
I shake my head adamantly. “He’s an asshole and a pussy for stealing money that didn’t belong to him. That’s the coward’s way. You didn’t let him defeat you. You were knocked down again, but got right back up and agreed to join the Weekend Warrior event as the underdog. That takes guts and bigger balls than any man I’ve ever met.” My thumb finds her bottom lip and caresses it. “I promise you didn’t trust the wrong person again.” I tap my chest. “I’d changed my mind about the coaches’ challenge. You winning might entertain the crowd, but I knew it would insult you if we fixed the outcome. It just took me too long to get my head screwed on straight about it. And I swear, the team competition wasn’t rigged so I could win the prize money. I would never have agreed to that.”
“I know.” She blinks back the water filling her eyes. “If it was, you wouldn’t have given me this.” She holds up the deposit slip. “A guy willing to rig a competition for money, wouldn’t have done this.” The painful tone she had earlier at the park is gone, and I close my arms a little tighter around her slender waist.
She drops her gym bag and the deposit slip and flattens her palms against my chest. Both hands disappear under my unbuttoned shirt.
Her soft searching touch causes me to hiss in a breath. “I missed you,” I say.
“We’ve only been apart a few hours.” Her warm breath coasts over my neck as she feathers sweet kisses up to my ear.
“I don’t care.” I find her mouth with mine and kiss her long and lovingly. “I never want to be without you again.”
“Never?” she asks like she’s teasing me.
“Never,” I murmur against her lips, and place another smokin’ hot kiss on that sassy mouth of hers. “I always want to know we’re together, even when we’re apart. Know what I mean?” I brush her nose with mine.
“I don’t think I do.” Her eyes scan the ceiling, lit with laughter because she’s toying with me. Taunting me.
I deserve that. She deserves to hear me say it.
“Be my partner in everything. In life, in business. Live with me. Move your yoga studio here. I’ll have the space once the competition is over and we can tear down the obstacle course. We’ll make a great team at everything we do.” A minute ago I couldn’t speak. Now I can’t seem to shut up.
But I’m so glad because my words make a beautiful smile spread across her face and I can’t help but mirror it. My pulse kicks up a notch seeing the joy on her face.
She nods. “Yes, to all of it. I’m falling for you, too.”
I can’t believe I almost let her slip through my fingers. Even more surprising, I’m lucky enough to get a second chance with her.
I sink both hands into her hair and angle her head to kiss her again. Her taste is sweet but her touch is passionate as she slides both arms around my neck and kisses me deeply. I return it with just as much passion until the tenderness is gone and we’re hot and hungry for each other.
I peel off her clothes one piece at a time, and she does the same to mine.
“Hold on a sec,” I say and dart over to lock the office door. I’m back in front of her, and lift her onto my desk, wishing I could turn up the music from my office and put on some AC/DC.
A music system I can control from my office will be next on my list of maintenance upgrades.
I’m not in the least bit sorry I knocked all of my papers and files to the floor now. A clean desk is exactly the ticket.
“Don’t get a condom this time,” Red says as I step between her legs. “I’m on the pill, and I want you bare.”
I’m down for that. I know I’m clean, and Red’s the type of girl who wouldn’t suggest going bare if she wasn’t clean, too. If I get my way, we’re going to be together for the rest of our lives so losing the condoms sooner, rather than later, is fine by me.
I rub the tip of my cock against her, and her flesh is already hot and wet. I love the way she responds to me. With one fluid stroke, I enter her, and we both moan. That first stroke is always the sweetest with her, and I take a moment so we can revel in it. She’s tight and fits me like a glove, and I fucking never want to go a day without making love to her.
Her strong legs wrap around my hips and clamp to my ass.
Our gazes lock, and it burns with passion and the promise of forever.
I start moving, thrusting, plunging. Fucking her harder and faster until we’re both a blistering inferno of need.
I palm her lovely breast and drag my mouth from her collarbone, all the way up her neck, so I can whisper in her ear. “You’re mine, Adeline.” It’s the first time I’ve used her real name with this tone of admiration and awe.
She replies with another moan of ecstasy. A few more strokes and she’s worked up into a frenzied rush of cries and begs me to never stop fucking her like this.
I won’t. That’s a request I’ll never have a hard time fulfilling.
She rakes fingernails along my back and cries out my name as a harsh orgasm racks through her. I’ve never heard anything so sweet, and it pulls me over the edge with her.
Life is fucking great again. I’ve maneuvered the obstacle course that has had my heart on lockdown for seven long years. And no matter what, I win because I�
�ve got the only prize I need right here wrapped in my arms.
Epilogue
New York City’s 1st Annual Weekend Warrior Event
Madison Square Garden is packed and the crowd whistles and cheers as the Master of Ceremonies hands us the giant cardboard check for one million dollars. You see, our teams’ combined final scores were dead even, which resulted in a tie.
Really, Red’s team should’ve won, since she’s short a team member and still scored as high as my team.
And the coaches’ challenge…
Let’s just say Red kicked my ass fair and square. Looks like I’ll be twisting myself into a pretzel at my gym for all of my members to see that straight guys do yoga after all. Plus, if it gives me more flexibility when I’m in bed with her, it’s a win-win. I’m just glad Red will be the instructor leading the class. Watching her twist into a pretzel will take away some of the sting.
“Congratulations!” the MC says and the crowd roars. “Will you two be back to coach next year’s warriors?”
I shake my head and speak into the microphone. “Not me, but I think the event would be lucky to have Adeline return.”
She smiles up at me, and I give her a playful wink.
“Tell us, what’s next for our illustrious coaches, Adeline McAllister and Ethan Wilde?” The MC puts the microphone in front of Red.
She clears her throat. “Well, A Pound of Flesh Fitness has asked La Vida Yoga to partner with them.” She flashes a dazzling smile that’s worth far more than the million bucks we’re holding in our hands. “Over the next year, I’ll be opening a yoga studio in each of Mr. Wilde’s four gym locations in Manhattan.” She taps the check. “My half of the prize money will fund the merger.”
More whistles and shouts from the crowd. Our two teams are standing around the podium. They’re clapping and whistling too because hey, they’re all winners. Reality TV producers have already approached most of them for auditions.
Get Wilde (A Checkmate Inc. Novel Book 3) Page 17
