“Yeah, you’re right,” he said. “Maybe that’s why we’re both so crazy.”
“Speak for yourself,” I said and chuckled.
His hand reached for my breast, and I let out a slight groan. I was just about to lean in and kiss him when I heard my phone go off downstairs. I moaned.
“Don’t go,” he said.
“It’s probably Katie. She said she was going to call,” I said and quickly grabbed my robe and rushed downstairs.
“Hello,” I said breathlessly when I answered the phone.
Silence. Then the sound of someone breathing. This was definitely not Katie.
“Hello? Who is this? Please just tell me who you are and what you want.”
“Hello, Blaire.”
I jumped up in fright at the sound of the voice. So far, nobody had ever spoken when these calls happened, and the voice took me completely by surprise. It was a male voice, and slightly muffled. It was raspy and hard to understand.
“Who is this?” I asked. It was not a voice that I recognized.
“I can’t believe you got married,” said the voice.
“What? What do—”
I didn’t get a chance to answer as the voice cut in again.
“How dare you? You disgust me. You and your husband disgust me.” His voice went even deeper on the word husband.
“I don’t understand what’s going on,” I said.
“You don’t have to understand. But hear me now: you’re in danger.”
“I . . . what?” I could barely hear him over the sound of my beating heart.
“You’re in danger. I know you’re not at home anymore. I’ve been there. You don’t answer anymore. So I assume you’re with him. Well, I’m going to find you. And I’m going to kill both you and your husband. You can’t hide from me any longer, Blaire. You can’t ignore me anymore.”
He hung up before I had a chance to ask him anything more. What was going on? Who was this man and why did he want to kill me? My hands were trembling. I thought of calling back but knew that I wouldn’t get through. I stood there, staring at the phone and wondering what was going on. And then, I heard a noise from upstairs, and I was suddenly all too aware of the danger that I had put Ryan in. He was already going through so much in his life, and the last thing he needed was to deal with this.
I went upstairs and forced myself to smile.
“Was it Katie?” He asked.
“Yeah, it was Katie. Girl talk,” I said and smiled my false smile again.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Ryan
Blaire had been in a strange mood the night before, and when we woke up this morning she still didn’t seem like herself. I had a feeling that she was starting to feel overwhelmed by everything, and I couldn’t blame her. Even though she felt safe staying with me, we both knew that this wasn’t a solution. It was like taking a pill when you weren’t feeling well: it only masked the pain. She wasn’t going to want to stay with me forever, even though I was starting to wonder how it was going to feel when she eventually went back home. I’d never had a girl live with me before, and I’d always thought that it would be something that I wouldn’t enjoy. I’d lived alone for so long that the thought of sharing my life with anyone hadn’t ever appealed to me. But Blaire just fit in so well. It didn’t feel strange with her being there. In fact, if anything, it felt better.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” I asked her as I was getting ready to go to the training facility. I wasn’t sure if I should leave her if she was in this state.
She nodded and smiled. “I’m fine. I promise. I’m just tired.” I noticed that her smile didn’t reach her eyes. She pulled me toward me and kissed me gently on the mouth. “You’re amazing,” she whispered.
“Wow, what was that for?” I asked her.
She shrugged. “Just telling it like it is.”
“You’re amazing too. Listen, my phone will be on but I don’t always hear it when I’m training. So if you need to get hold of me, then just keep trying. Or phone Nick,” I said and scribbled his number on a piece of paper for her.
She took it and smiled. “Thanks, Ryan. I’ll be fine, though. Honestly. Don’t worry about me. Good luck with your training today.”
I kissed her goodbye and made my way to the training facility. I’d organized for one of the other members to train with me that day, because there was only so much training that I could do alone. I could strength train, box, up my running and my gym work, and all that would serve a great purpose. But the only way for me to truly get better was to have someone to train in person with. Tyron had the potential to be a great fighter and I knew that he would be the right person to train with.
“Morning, Tryon. You ready for today?” I asked him.
“Hey, Ryan. I sure am. How come you’re not training with Nick today?”
“Oh, Nick is training one of the other guys. Also, I thought it would be nice to change it up again. It’s always better to train with more than one person.”
It wasn’t entirely true. Nick was training someone else that day, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t have made the time for me. The truth was he didn’t want to make the time to train me. And I was going to have to respect his decision as much as he was going to have to respect mine. I knew that we would be able to put this all past us once the fight was over. For now, I was just going to have to concentrate on the fight and nothing else. Afterward, things could go back to normal. Or at least as normal as I could expect them to be. I wasn’t sure that anything would feel normal again.
Nick walked in just as I was about to start my training with Tyron.
“Hi, Nick,” I called out and smiled at him. I wanted him to know that there were no hard feelings. If he wanted to help me, I would accept that. If he didn’t, I would accept that too. No matter what though, I was going to fight Ron, and I was going to beat him. With or without Nick’s help.
“Hey, Ryan,” he said. “Fighting with Tyron today I see.”
“Yeah, you were too easy for me,” I teased.
Nick smiled sadly and then looked at Tyron. “Go easy on him.”
I laughed. “Don’t listen to him,” I said to Tyron. So far I hadn’t told anyone about my head trauma. I didn’t want anyone to know about it until the fight was over. I’d asked Nick not to tell anyone, and I knew that he would keep his word. The last thing I wanted was for people to feel sorry for me.
My first hour of training with Tyron went well. He was better than he had been the last time that I’d seen him fight and he offered up some good techniques for me to work with. I told him to channel his inner “Prowl” so that I knew what I’d be up against, and the prompt seemed to be working. In many ways he was emulating exactly what I thought was going to happen on the day.
Then, just as we moved into the second hour of training, I received a blow to the head that left me shaken and confused.
“Are you okay?” Tryon asked.
I nodded. “I’m fine. But I think I’m done for today. I totally forgot that I had a conference with Ron after this. That’s why I was confused for a minute. I suddenly remembered that I had my times wrong.”
It wasn’t true. I had planned it so that I had just enough time to shower before the conference began, but I didn’t want to tell Tryon why I had stopped. The hit to my head had caused my headache to return. My head was hurting the way it used to, and the worst part was that I had no Advil on me at all.
“Thanks for coming to train with me today. That was awesome. I’m sorry I had to cut it so short.”
“It’s no problem at all. I’m actually a little bit relieved. I haven’t trained that hard in a long time. I knew you were good, Ryan, but I didn’t realize you were that good.”
That was just the boost that I needed. “Thanks, Tyron. Appreciate it. Oh, you don’t happen to have some Advil on you, do you? I’ve got a bit of a headache today. Too much caffeine probably.”
“Or not enough,” Tyron said and laughed. “Of cour
se, I always have some on me. Give me a second and I’ll get it for you.”
I breathed a sigh of relief but tried not to show him how happy I was. “Thanks, Tryon.”
While I was waiting for Ryan, Nick walked past, and we talked briefly about anything other than the upcoming fight. It was clear that neither one of us wanted to talk about what was happening. We both knew that keeping things neutral was a good idea. I could see that Nick had given up on trying to convince me not to fight. It was nice talking to him again though, and just as we were laughing about something that had happened ages ago, Tyron walked in.
“I found them. Here, keep the bottle. There’s hardly any in there, anyway. Thanks for the session, Ryan, and good luck with the conference.”
“Oh, uh, thanks, Tryon,” I said. I saw Nick looking at the bottle of Advil. He didn’t say anything, and neither did I, but I could clearly see the look of disappointment on his face.
“Well, I better go. See you soon, Ryan.”
“Sure,” I said and watched him leave.
I sighed. I walked to the bathroom, took three pills at once, and hopped into the shower. Afterward I slowly made my way over to where the conference was happening. It was Ron that had organized it, and as much as I didn’t want to go, I knew that I had to. Thankfully, by the time I arrived, and by the time Ron arrived, my headache had dissipated. I would never have been able to hold a decent conversation with that headache.
I heard Ron before I saw him. I had never met anyone with a louder voice than him, and it didn’t take a genius to discover that he was already talking shit about me. I sighed. Let’s get this over with, I said to myself.
“Ah, look who we have here. It’s none other than Ryan Maxwell. So, you’ve finally decided to face up to me? I must say, I didn’t think you’d have the guts to be here. Although, this is just a press conference. It’s nothing like the real fight. I doubt you’ll be there.
I took my seat at the table and smiled at the press around me. There was no chance to even settle in. With Ron, there was no such thing as easing into the conversation. The conference had already begun.
“What? You scared to talk to me?” Ron said after I still hadn’t even acknowledged that he was there.
“What’s there to say, Ron?”
“My name is The Prowl,” he said.
I laughed. “No, your name is Ron. And I’m not scared to talk to you. I’m not even scared to fight you. In fact, I’m more than happy to do it. I’d like to shut you up once and for all.”
I thought about Nick telling me that I was only making things worse by talking back to Ron. That I was just playing into his hands. But I couldn’t help myself. How could I let this idiot get away with all the things he was saying to me? Was I supposed to just sit back and take it? That just wasn’t the kind of person I was. I stood up for what I believed in, in and right then the thing that I believed in most was myself.
“Who do you think you are?” Ron said. Then he turned to the media and laughed. “Do you see what I have to put up with? Do you understand now why I want to fight him?”
It didn’t take long for the conference to get heated. Ron refused to talk to me like a normal human being. The more he ran his mouth, the more I wanted to punch him in the face. And, despite the three Advil, my headache was slowly starting to return.
“Okay, should we wrap this up?” someone said. “Anything you’d like to add?” he asked Ron.
“I’d like to set a date for the fight, that’s what I’d like to do.”
I smiled. “I’m ready whenever you are.”
“Three weeks from Saturday,” Ron said.
“Three weeks from Saturday it is.”
And before anyone could say anything more, I stood up and left. I made my way straight to the car, ignoring the camera flashes and the people who were calling my name. I’d said what I had to say and now I just wanted to go home. I looked at the time and realized that I had been away from home for a very long time. I quickly checked my phone but saw that there had been no messages or calls from Blaire. It was definitely time to go back, and frankly, the only thing I wanted to see at that moment was her smiling face.
But the moment I walked into the house, I knew that something was wrong. Blaire was nowhere to be found, and when I walked into the bedroom, I felt my heart sink when I saw a letter waiting for me on the bed with my name on it.
Dear Ryan,
Things are just too dangerous right now. I don’t want you to get caught up in this. You mean too much to me. Thank you for everything that you have done to keep me safe. I’ll never forget how you made me feel.
Blaire.
I stared at the letter. I couldn’t believe what I was reading. Blaire was gone? If she had left, it could only be for one reason: she was in more danger than I realized. I had to find her.
Chapter Thirty
Blaire
It took me a long time to decide what to do. When Ryan left for training, I sat for ages just trying to find the courage. I didn’t want to leave. I felt safer being around him. But it wasn’t me that I was thinking about anymore. I might feel safer being around Ryan, but I didn’t feel safe for him anymore. I knew that Ryan was going to take a long time to come home. He’d told me that not only was he doing training but that he was going to be involved in some press conference with Ron. I kept flipping channels until the press conference started, and I watched the entire thing with a hint of sadness. This was Ryan’s big moment. Winning a fight with Ron meant so much to him, and the last thing he needed was some guy after him. I was almost certain that if I went my own way that I wouldn’t have to worry about Ryan anymore. This guy, whoever he was, was much more interested in me. The moment the press conference was finished, I knew what I had to do.
I went to grab my bag, which I had already packed that morning, and headed out. I took one final look at the house and then quickly ran back in to leave a note for Ryan. I couldn’t just leave without first saying something to him. I tried not to picture the look of hurt on his face when he read it. One day he would understand that I only did it to protect him. He’d always put me before him in everything he did. It was now time for me to do the same for him.
I closed the door and climbed into the car. Then I drove off not knowing where I was going. I didn’t want to go home just yet, and I didn’t feel like seeing anyone. So I drove around for the next few hours, just thinking about my life. I’d always enjoyed driving. It had always calmed me down. It was my father who had taught me how to drive. I’d been scared and tearful, but he’d had enough patience to see me through it. Maybe driving simply reminded me of a time when he was still alive. What I would do to have him back in my life. He would know exactly what I should do.
After about two or three hours, I stopped the car in front of a restaurant that I had never seen before and called Katie. I was starving, but I didn’t feel like eating alone.
“Hey, Blaire, what’s up?”
“Hey, Katie.”
“I feel like I haven’t seen you for ages. Everything okay?”
“Are you free for dinner?”
“Dinner? Now?”
“Yeah. I know it’s a bit early, but I just really want to see you.”
“Of course I’m free. Are you sure you’re okay? Where’s Ryan?”
“Not really. I just want to see you. Ryan . . . ah, I’ll tell you when I see you.”
“Okay, where do you want to go?”
“Uh, I’m sitting in front of a restaurant now. Café Lisa, it’s on Restar Street.”
“Restar Street?”
“I’ve been driving around for a while. Sorry, I know it’s far. Actually, what am I saying? I can come back toward your side.”
“No, stay there. I’ll leave right now. I’ll look up the place.”
Relief washed over me. I didn’t feel like driving anymore. “Thanks, Katie.”
I sat there, just staring out into the distance, for the next half hour. I hoped Katie was trying to call me
because I’d switched my phone off to avoid getting any phone calls from the stalker. Also, to avoid getting phone calls from Ryan. Eventually, I decided to go inside the café and get a table.
The place was nice. It was small and had a bit of a romantic feel to it, which made me a little sad. But it was nice. And it was better than being in my car. The waiter came by to ask if I needed anything and I ordered a glass of water. I had a feeling that alcohol wouldn’t be a good idea.
I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw Katie walk in. She rushed over when she saw me and gave me a hug.
“What’s going on?” she said and sat down.
I sighed. “Thanks so much for coming. I . . . I left Ryan.”
“What do you mean? Why?”
“I got another phone call.”
“From the weirdo?”
I nodded. “He told me that he was going to kill me and Ryan.”
“What?” Katie shouted so loud that everyone turned to look at her. “Sorry,” she whispered. “Are you serious? Did you recognize his voice?”
“No. It was all muffled, but even still, it didn’t sound at all familiar to me. He didn’t say much. He just seemed really angry at me, especially now that I’m with Ryan. He said he would find me and kill me.”
“Did he sound serious?”
“I have no idea. It could just be a threat so that I would leave Ryan. But I couldn’t take the chance. I had to get away.”
“Did you tell Ryan?”
“No. I told him that I was speaking to you on the phone. He’s got so much going on at the moment with that fight, and he’s obviously still very upset about the head trauma. I can’t pile this on top of him too. I just can’t. I left him a note.”
Katie sighed. “Oh, Blaire, I’m so sorry. This is awful. Did you go to the police?”
“No. You know what they were like the last time. They won’t do anything without any sort of evidence. And I don’t have any. As far as they’re concerned, this could all just be a prank.”
Dirty Boss_The Maxwell Family Page 86
