Not during my daily trips to Donner Bakery.
Not at the Piggly Wiggly.
However, the thought did cross my mind to stop by her family’s feed store, but seeing as how I never bought the goat I jokingly considered a couple of weeks ago, it might be a bit obvious. Besides, I’m still not sure what my intentions are with her. For someone who is generally decisive, I find myself waffling when it comes to her.
On one hand, I’m attracted and turned the fuck on.
On the other hand, I promised myself no hookups or relationships.
Bottom line, I still don’t trust myself or other people. But something inside me tells me Maggie is different. The best part, nothing about her reminds me of Chloe. Actually, quite the opposite. Everything about Maggie makes me forget—Chloe, the lies, the distrust, the hurt… why I’ve sworn off relationships.
“Vali,” Tempest calls up the stairs, practically scaring the shit out of me.
“Up here,” I call back, closing down my laptop and organizing the papers I have scattered around the table. Even with my thoughts on Maggie, I’ve still managed to get a lot done. I worked on advertising for Ericksons and Viking MMA, contacted a couple of managers about our exhibition fight, and finalized the graphic we’re going to use for merchandising. All in all, it’s been a great week.
“Hey,” she says, appearing at the top of the stairs. “Can you still help me with the class tonight?”
Wild horses couldn’t drag me away.
“Sure,” I say, keeping my eyes on the stack of papers so I don’t look too eager. “If you need me.”
“I do. A few of my mama’s friends signed up for the class yesterday, so we’ll have at least three newbies. And if everyone who’s signed up comes, we’ll have an odd number again, so I’ll need you to pair up with someone.” She winks, and I know she’s conspiring. “Think you can take another beatdown?”
“Is that a challenge?”
“You know you like her.”
My immediate response is no I don’t. But that’s juvenile and would make me a liar, so I don’t say it. Instead, I shake my head and tuck my chin to my chest to hide my smile.
“It’s okay, you know?”
“What?” I ask, playing dumb as I stuff my laptop into its case.
Tempest laughs and it sounds endearing and sympathetic. “To like her.”
When I finally glance up at her, I know she sees everything from the way her smile grows and then fades. “You know,” she starts, pulling out one of the chairs at the table and sitting down. “When your brother first came to town, I was in a horrible place. The first night I met him, I was celebrating my divorce and my name change.”
“And you danced on the bar.”
Her eyes grow wide and so does her smile. “He told you? Oh my God. I’m going to kill him.”
I laugh, running a hand through my hair. Thanks to Missy’s deep-conditioning treatment, it feels amazing. “I think that’s one of the things I love most about you.”
She blushes a little but continues. “Anyway, I was in a bad place and definitely not looking for a man, even though the thought had crossed my mind. There’s no way I would’ve ever gone through with a one-night stand or anything like that. It’s just not me. And I’m not suggesting that for you, but maybe having a female companion while you’re in town wouldn’t hurt.”
Sighing, I rub my eyes. “I promised myself I wouldn’t,” I admit. “Beyond that, Maggie seems like a really good person and I don’t want to string her along or give her false hopes.”
“Maybe she’s just looking for a companion too?” Tempest asks, shrugging nonchalantly, but I can see it all over her face that she knows better.
We sit in silence for a moment and I let myself wonder what could it hurt?
She’s an adult.
I’m an adult.
No harm, no foul, right?
“She was the one who was married,” Tempest says quietly. “Not you. You didn’t lie. She did. You didn’t cheat—”
“She made me a cheater,” I say, cutting her off, feeling the familiar punch in my gut every time I think about it. One thing I always said I’d never do was cheat. I had a girlfriend in high school who was screwing the captain of the football team the entire time we were together, behind my back. When I found out, I was more pissed than anything, but it also made me feel like shit and I swore I’d never do that to anyone. I also didn’t plan on dating another cheater, but here we are.
“Don’t let your past dictate your future.”
Smirking, I shake my head. “Did you read that in a fortune cookie?”
“No,” she says, chuckling. “It’s a piece of wisdom someone gave me and I think you need it, so I’m giving it to you. It’s yours now.”
“Thank you,” I say, feeling grateful. After years of having asshole brothers, it’s nice having women around to talk to who aren’t my mother. She’s great and all, but she’s a bit biased, so her advice is often skewed.
“One last bit of wisdom,” Tempest says, standing from her seat and walking toward the stairs. “Sometimes the second chance is better than the first time ever dreamed of being.”
A few moments later, I follow Tempest downstairs and watch Gunnar and Vince spar for a few before women start filing in for the class. Keeping my eyes on the mirrors, I watch for Maggie’s tall form and gorgeous dark hair.
There she is.
Of course, all my body parts take notice, but it’s the warmth in my chest that catches me off guard. I just met this woman, so why am I reacting this way? I watch and she walks over to the back wall and places her bag down, eyes scanning the gym until they come to rest on me.
And then they find mine in the mirror staring back at her.
She smiles and then turns to do something with her bag, giving me a fantastic view of her ass.
Oh, the things I’d love to do with that ass. It’s luscious and full. Perfectly grippable.
Pretending like she doesn’t know I’m watching her, she walks over and joins the rest of the women who have started congregating on the mats.
When Tempest greets everyone, I decide it’s time for me to stop being a voyeur and join them.
Standing in the back of the class, I continue to watch Maggie under the ruse of assisting Tempest. When she started out, she was unsure of her movements, which is understandable. For a lot of people, the act of defending themselves is a foreign concept. Even if they’ve seen it in movies or television shows, they’ve never actually done it. Some can get it with a simple explanation, where others have to actually do the movements to understand.
Maggie isn’t entirely in tune with her body, which is obvious from watching her. Well, obvious for me, because I grew up in a gym and watched my dad turn average people off the street into world-class fighters. My understanding of the human body goes a bit further than most. Even though I didn’t choose to train or fight for a living doesn’t mean I don’t know how to do those things. So when it’s time for Maggie and me to pair up, I don’t hesitate.
Going to her, I immediately switch into training mode, giving her instruction specific to her.
“You’re not turning your hips enough,” I tell her, silently asking with my eyes if it’s okay for me to position her where she should be. She doesn’t hesitate, but I do notice the slight blush as I place my hands on her waist and shift her hips. “Like that,” I continue, fighting my body’s natural responses to her the entire time.