hence, kissing Livi, and still coming back to this gym once everyone knew about it.”
“I’m not afraid of a few overprotective family members,” I tell her. “I was one of those too. I have a sister, which means I’m not even mad at Ben for being a dick.”
“You’ve been besotted with Olivia since before you knew her, William. Which means you want her body, and nothing more. That doesn’t sit well with me or anyone else that loves her.”
It’s like we’re dueling – or, since we’re in a fight gym, sparring might be the appropriate metaphor.
“Maybe I like her body, Mrs. Franks. Maybe that’s what caught my attention back when we first met, but I know her better than people think. Olivia’s personality takes three-point-two seconds to shine through. She shuts me down, but she does it in a way I have no clue I’ve been shit on until after the fact. She’s a badass in those classes you teach, which means she’s tough and smart. She started writing a book, which means she’s adventurous and not afraid to fail. She was raised under the rule of big-brother-Ben and that cop husband of yours that we won’t even talk about, because he gets off on arresting me, which means she knows how to be a diva when it suits her. She knows how to wear heels and fits in at a dance club, just as seamlessly as she knows how to look good in yoga pants and run a class. And every single time I hit on her, she shows no fear in telling me to screw off.”
“So if she’s telling you to screw off, then perhaps you should listen, and leave her alone.”
“Perhaps,” I concede. “But there are other factors in play. So if you don’t mind, maybe you could trust her to have her own shit under control. She’s a grown woman, and she was raised by a man-killer.”
I smile when Lindsi’s brows wing up high. “I say that with love, Mrs. Franks. I’m not saying he didn’t deserve it. And honestly, I love that you had those cajones when you needed them. In a sick way, you and I have something totally gruesome and horrible in common.”
“Yeah,” she places a hand on her popped hip. “We do. We’ve both killed someone. That’s not something I’m proud of, so why are you?”
“Didn’t say I was. Just that we had it in common.”
“What makes you think I’m going to agree to my daughter dating a killer, Will? I know everyone gives Brenten Pierce shit because he’s not quite as outgoing or sporty as the men we’re so accustomed to around here, but that doesn’t mean he’s not good for her. It doesn’t mean that he’s not the safe option.”
“Your first husband, Mrs. Franks… what was he like? What was his job?”
She swallows, and lets her eyes swing between mine.
Check. Fucking. Mate.
“He was a college professor,” she admits hesitantly. “He was quiet, unassuming,” then she clears her throat, “abusive behind closed doors.”
I nod and take a step back. “The quiet guys aren’t always the better guys. And the smaller guy isn’t always the safest option. Sometimes, the admin guy with narrow shoulders and fidgety eyes is the true monster, so please don’t write me off just because I’m big. If you’ll excuse me.” I tip my chin, and leave the woman standing in the hallway with something to think about, then I move through the gym and into the sunlit parking lot outside.
Olivia says she has a date tonight… but last night, she gave me her all.
Either tonight is purely about appearances and how she feels guilty – thus, a pot roast and red wine – or tonight will be about payback, a statement, and fucking a scrawny prick just so she can say she’s with him.
The first, I’ll tolerate if it makes her feel better and eases the guilt that sits in her heart because, for the first time in her life, she broke the rules. But the second; unacceptable. I’ll be dead before she gives herself to another man to spite me.
I grab the keys from my pocket and slide into my truck without so much as a goodbye for Jamie, who’s training me today, or Evie, who said she wanted to spar to see how I do under pressure.
Good thing I’m not looking to become a pro fighter.
Pulling out of the parking lot in shorts, sneakers, and a shirt that already has a sheen of sweat caught