“What?”
He parks and smiles. “You’ll see. Come on.”
I follow him through the double doors and stop when my eyes catch where we are. I was so intrigued that I didn’t even look properly from the outside as we arrived. Now, my heart is going to explode from happiness, not because I’m here, but because he thought of me and my needs and wants. Because now I know I can rely on him.
My lips spread into a smile, and I turn to him. “So, you fulfilled your promise to me.”
“I’m a man of my word. I don’t promise anything unless I’m sure I will deliver.” His low voice slices through to my core, and I almost wish it was the other kind of promise.
I lick my lips and swallow. I open my mouth to say something, maybe to play coy and ask what he means, but a gruff voice interrupts us. “You're late.”
Gabriel chuckles and turns toward the older man. His white hair contrasts with his all-black tracksuit. His eyes narrow with intrigue that he covers with displeasure as they shift from me to Gabriel.
“Only a few minutes.”
“A few minutes or not, I don’t tolerate tardiness, and you know that.”
Gabriel nods and turns to me. “This is Valentina, my wife. Valentina, this is Boris.”
I offer Boris a smile as his calculating eyes scan me from head to toe before his lips twitch, and he takes a step toward me, extending his hand.
“You're the opposite of what I expected.”I arch an eyebrow. “Oh, and what did you expect?”
“Anything other than you, my dear. I heard you trained before.”
“I did, but nothing professionally.”
“You don't have to train professionally to have it in you to be a great fighter. You just need to have it in here.” His finger taps his chest, and my lips pull into a smile.
“Oh, I have plenty of that. I didn’t have the means to have someone train me, but I did have a good teacher.”
“We’ll see about that.” He looks behind him and makes a move with his hand, summoning a woman who looks around his age. She may look old, but the muscles on her body and her stance say otherwise. “Ivana will show you where you can change, and I will test you so I know how to move forward with you.”
I’m about to argue that I didn’t bring any clothes when Gabriel passes me my gym bag.
“Thank you.” I grab the bag from him and follow Ivana. I didn’t even see him bring my bag.
“So, you're the woman who finally brought Gabriel to his knees.” Ivana’s voice turns my attention to her.
I smile sheepishly. “I wouldn’t say that. Our marriage was arranged.”
She chuckles. “You're wrong. Even if arranged, he is your husband, and that means he’s already on his knees and he doesn’t even know it.”
A laugh escapes me. I like this woman already. “I’m Valentina,” I say.
“I hope you know what you’ve got yourself into. Boris will not go easy on you.” She gives me a subtle wink.
I smile. “I never expected that. I just want a chance to do something I love.”
She shrugs and pushes open the door of a small changing room. “We don’t have many women coming here, but for the few that do, Boris wanted a safe space. The corner locker on your left is free to use. Change and come out when you're ready.”
I place my bag on the bench and smile before I strip off my clothes and change into my workout outfit.
“I’m staying.” I hear Gabriel as I enter the gym area where I left him and Boris.
“No, you need to leave. You can wait in your car. Your wife needs to be handled like anyone else, and you being here isn't fair to her or anyone here. If she can handle me without your presence, then we have a deal.” I listen to their debate as I approach them.
“What deal?” I ask from behind. There is a glint of surprise on Gabriel’s face, but it’s gone in a second.
