Roxy wanted to laugh out loud when she heard a lightthwack, a low grunt, and then Jodi’s hushed, “Freeman! Be nice!”
“Well who the fuck is this guy—”
“Guys—”
“—oooh, maybe he’s her boyfriend,” she heard Jodi whisper and mortification flushed over her hotly. She glanced up at Travis, who was smirking down at her.
Roxy flushed darker red when she heard Free mutter sourly, “—oh, like hell he is—"
“Oh my god, you guys, stop!” Roxy called loudly over them. Holding the phone close to her face and turning away from Travis slightly, she whisper shouted, “He’snotmy boyfriend!”
Travis plucked the phone out of her hand from over her shoulder and she attempted to snatch it back, but he chuckled lightly and spoke directly into it, “Name’s Travis. Roxy is in my kickboxing class. I stayed to keep an eye on her after last night.”
Roxy waved her hands frantically, silently begging him to stop, but it was too late. She groaned out loud and buried her face in her hands when Free’s angry voice boomed, “What the fuck happened last night, Red?”
“Thanks for that,” Roxy muttered sourly to Travis, who just smirked and refused to hand the phone back to her. “Free, I’m fine—”
“She has a fresh black eye and potentially a concussion,” Travis said over her. Free’s colorful expletives sounded from the phone and she groaned again.
“Let me guess, she wouldn’t go get checked out?” Free asked sourly.
“You may know her well,” Travis said with a light chuckle, leaning his hips against the counter and crossing his arms over his chest. She stood in front of him, her foot tapping out a beat in annoyance, her eyes narrowed on his face.
“How bad?” Free asked.
“It’s fine—”
“It’s not pretty,” Travis interrupted, glaring down at her. Speaking directly to her, he muttered, “You’re not going to play this off like you’re not in pain, Roxy. As someone who’s made a living off being hit and doing the hitting, I know for a fact how much pain you’re in. Don’t lie to us.”
Jodi’s quiet gasp sounded through the phone and Roxy could hear her whispering to Free. “Who did you say you are?” Free asked, wariness coming through his voice.
“My name is Travis Hayes,” Travis said softly, his eyes never leaving hers as she stared up at him. “I’m a former MMA fighter. I teach a kickboxing class at the gym that Roxy goes to. She’s in my class.”
“What happened last night?” Free asked gruffly.
Travis stared down at her. “Can I trust you to tell the truth or do I need to recap?” Roxy glared up at him.
“You’re a bully,” she whisper hissed, but he just smirked again, handing her the phone. “You don’t get to yell at me, Free.”
“Not a good way to start, Red,” she heard his grumble through the phone. She sighed wearily, and he murmured, “I promise not to yell at you. What happened, Red?”
“Neal sent me flowers the week after I got home from Colorado. That’s when it started again.” She recounted the events from the last few months, leading up to the night before, skimming some details and earning a disgruntled interruption from Travis. By the time she’d reached the end of the night, her head was pounding. She pressed her fingers into her right temple and squeezed her eyes shut.
“You’ll let me know when you’re hitting the road?” Free asked. She hated the fear she could hear in his voice. She’d thought she was free of Neal. It was laughable now. “I really hate the idea of you traveling alone, Red.”
She sighed quietly. “I’ll be fine, Free—”
“I’ll drive her.”
Her eyes snapped open, her gaze flying to meet Travis’s, her mouth slack in shock. Roxy shook her head and said, “No, that’s not necessary—”
“I like that idea,” Free said, the damned traitor. She glared down at the phone screen and then raised her eyes back to Travis’s. “Travis, take my phone number down.”
Travis pulled his own phone out of his pocket, typing in the numbers as Free rattled them off. He saved the contact, then slid the phone back into his pocket.
“You’re all bullies,” Roxy muttered grumpily. “I don’t need—"
“Bullies who care,” Jodi called softly, interrupting her, and Roxy inhaled deeply to try and restore some semblance of calm to her system at being railroaded by all three of them. “We just want to make sure you’re okay.”
