Chapter 1
Gabriel
Get this deal done.
That was the only thought on my mind as my town car pulled up next to the curb across the street from one of Los Angeles most popular lounges.
“Before the night’s over, you need to make your move on Eli,” my business partner and closest friend, Preston, said through the phone line.
“You think I don’t know what I’m doing?” I asked as I surveyed the crowd forming outside of the downtown Los Angeles restaurant.
Before Preston could answer, the driver opened my door. With a nod, I exited the vehicle and turned to wait for my date.
“I know you’ve got this despite how much you hate LA.” Preston chuckled. “I would’ve taken this trip, but I’m here.”
“You’re handling business elsewhere,” I said, noting that he was on the East Coast for our athletic management company, No Sweat Management.
“Speaking of, everything went well with Chris’ game. We’ve got another sponsor lined up for him.”
“Sounds like it went more than well, then,” I responded.
“Yeah, but I hate being here on the East Coast,” Preston grunted.
I snorted. “No more than I like the West Coast. I’m going to wrap this shit up with Eli and get my ass back to Texas.”
“Same here.”
“Gotta go.”
“Later,” Preston said before disconnecting the call.
I slipped my phone into my pocket and finally looked at my date for the evening.
“How’s Preston doing?” Annabelle asked with a lift of her plump, cherry red lips.
“He’s handling business.”
She pouted. “A shame he couldn’t meet us out here in LA. I’ve got a girlfriend who’d be perfect for him,” she purred as she pressed closer into my body, gliding her finger down the length of my torso.
I wrapped my much larger hand around hers. “He’s busy,” I said firmly. “And so am I.”
Annabelle pulled her hand free from mine and gave me a slight roll of her eyes. “Right. You’re here to sign your next athlete. You couldn’t possibly take the time to talk about our relationship,” she whined.
I stiffened. “Relationship?” The word tasted sour in my mouth as I spit it out.
“Yes. That’s what we have, isn’t it, Gabe?”
“Where did you get an idea like that from?” Regretting the question, I held up my hand with a shake of my head. “Don’t even answer that. I’m here to connect with some people in my industry. Most importantly, to convince an up-and-coming fighter to sign with my company, and that’s it. You’re here because you needed something to do on a Friday night.”
“I’m here because I look good on your arm, and you can’t show up to these types of events dateless.”
“That too. Are you ready?” I held out my arm for her to take, not willing to discuss this shit any further.
Annabelle knew what she and I had was far from a relationship. Yeah, we went out on a date, fucked, and shared some laughs here and there when I was in town, but that was the extent of it. She knew a lot of people in LA since her father was a former promoter.
She was helpful in that way, but she was far from my girlfriend.
“Fine. We’ll talk about it later,” Annabelle said as she took my arm.
