“So, what made you set up here? Hell, I didn’t know this place even had an octagon.”
“It’s a new addition. I would have asked the club to put one in sooner, but a lot has happened in the last year. I’ll admit, my head hasn’t been in the game.”
“I heard about your sister, Ambros. I’m sorry. Ella was a sweet kid.”
“Yeah, she was the best. Thing is, she’d have kicked my ass if she’d seen me moping around, crying for her.”
He laughs loudly, distracting Tyrone, who takes a fist to the jaw. Tyrone stumbles back. He recovers quickly, though, throwing out a quick jab of his own.
“She sure was a spitfire.”
I nod, feeling that familiar pang of grief, but I don’t let it overwhelm me.
“So, I gotta ask if the rumors are true?”
I sigh. “You mean the ones about me having a twelve-inch cock? I mean, you knew I was gifted, but with great cock comes great responsibility?—”
He punches me in the arm, making me laugh.
“You are such a motherfucker.”
“And you know better than to listen to rumors.”
“You tell that to my wife. That woman spills the tea like it’s a national pastime. I can’t help if I become invested.”
“Don’t blame Mary. I know how bad of a gossip you are.”
He grins but doesn’t deny it. “So you’re not dating a pretty little thing you could bench press with one arm tied behind your back?”
I feel my lips twitch, but manage to stop myself from grinning like a lunatic. “Now is that any way to talk about my future wife?”
His mouth drops open. “Wait, what? You’re serious?”
“As a fucking heart attack.”
“Well damn. Mary is gonna be pissed she missed this convo. Tell me about her.”
I look at him sideways. “You didn’t read anything about her?”
“Enough to know the woman must be something special. You don’t survive something like that unless you have a core of steel. I think back to when Jackie was ten and try to imagine—” He swallows hard, his face paling. “She was just a baby. I can’t think about what she endured without wanting to rip this whole place apart.”
“Yeah, it’s every bit as hard as you imagine not to lose my ever-loving mind knowing what she suffered. But Jason, Citi is so fucking amazing. People think what you and I do in the ring is a show of strength, but they have no goddamn idea what strength really is.”
“You love her.” It’s a statement, not a question. He can read it in my eyes because I don’t hide it ever, and I never will. Loving Citi is an honor, and I feel so fucking privileged she loves me back.
“More than anything. Her and Star.”
“Star?”
“Her daughter.”
“Fuck, I forgot she had a kid.” He blows out a shaky breath, turning his attention once more to the men fighting, and I let him. It’s a hard thing to deal with, especially for men like Jason—natural born protectors and a girl-dad to boot. What happened to Citi is every father’s worst nightmare.
“She couldn’t have found a better man, you know? If my kiddo had decided she liked dick, I’d have wanted her to bring home a guy just like you.”
I take that hit, and it’s the good kind, knowing he means it.
“We’d have driven each other nuts.”
