Tomas swipes at the bottoms of his eyes, which are suspiciously moist. I wish I could hug them both. This is such a huge moment for them. The culmination of everything they’ve worked for.
“And that’s why I’m taking a three-month break.”
Silence descends in a rush. I could hear a pin drop. No one dares to say a thing. Meanwhile, I’m trying to figure out what on earth is going on in Gabe’s head. Seth’s shocked expression tells me this is news to him, too. “Vacation” is not a word in Gabe’s vocabulary.
“I’m following my heart,” he says, as though that explains everything. “You see, there’s this girl, and she’s been waiting for me forever. I think it’s about time I do a little waiting on her.”
Oh, my God.Oh, my God.
Lena bumps me with her elbow. “Did you know about this?”
Mutely, I shake my head. In the cage, Gabe hands off the microphone and strides to the edge, then leaps out, heading my way. He’s built like a bear, but moves like a panther, all sleek muscles and fluid motion.
My fighting panther. Burning me up with his gaze.
He stops in front of me, and Lena shoves my shoulder.
“Go,” she hisses.
I stand on shaking legs. Gabe offers me a hand and I take it, grateful for the physical support. He’s still wearing his gloves, and they’re damp with perspiration, but I hardly notice because suddenly everyone’s attention is on me. I can practically see the questions in their eyes. Without saying a single thing, he escorts me out the same way he came in. People cheer as he passes, and many reach their hands out. He bumps fists with a couple of guys but doesn’t release me, and based on how tightly he’s holding on, he doesn’t plan to. As soon as we’re out of view, he drags me into an empty side room and pivots to face me.
“We can talk now,” he says, the strain audible in his voice. “I did the fight, and now it’s just you and me. That was the deal.”
I nod, because I don’t trust myself to speak after his big announcement. Especially when he’s so close and emitting all of those damn pheromones that men give off after they’ve been sweating. It’s very Neanderthal of me, but watching Gabe physically best another man has my entire body eager for his touch.
“What are you doing?” I ask. “You can’t just take a sabbatical without any warning.”
“Yeah.” One side of his mouth hitches up. “I kinda can.”
“But why?” It doesn’t make any sense to me. All I know is that everything is changing, and not in the way I expected.
“For us. I know I haven’t always been good to you in the past,” he says slowly, and the squeeze of his fingers around mine reminds me that he’s holding my hand. “I’ve brushed you off or forgotten our plans because of other things going on in my life. I regret that, but I can’t go back and change it.”
I cling to his hand, waiting to see where he’s going with this.
“The last few weeks have been messy as hell—all those emotional highs and lows—but they really helped me get my shit in order.” He steps closer, and now he’s so near me that when my nipples peak, they almost touch his glistening chest. “You’re my priority, Syd. From here on out.”
God, I hope he can’t feel my hand quivering. Everything inside me is vibrating like crazy. I want to believe him so badly.
“What does that mean?”
He dips his head and his breath tickles my hairline. “It means that I’m all yours for the next three months.”
“But how—”
He stops me with a look. “I’ll obviously need to keep in shape—although I’m going to rest plenty too. I’ll sort the details out withPapalater, but it’s happening. I need to slow down a bit. Learn to take it easy. My mental game has been all over the place, and I need to get myself together and be clear about what actually matters. I want to date you properly, and take you on that beachside vacation you’ve always dreamed of.” His lips curl, and his smile is so breathtakingly hopeful I can hardly stand it. “My job is never going to be normal, babe, but I want you more than anything else, and from now on, I promise you’ll always come first.”
He’s saying everything I’ve always wished to hear, but is it just words? Or will he follow them up with action?
“But then what?” I ask. “After your vacation, is everything supposed to magically resolve itself? Because the real world doesn’t work that way.”
“No, it doesn’t,” he allows. “But the time away will give me a chance to figure out how to readjust. I’ll talk to Jase and other guys on the circuit, and work out how they balance their personal and work lives. You and I can come up with a plan together. Even if I only fight a couple of times a year, I can earn enough money from that and endorsements to provide us with everything we need. Most of my winnings so far are invested anyway, so I could survive for years without working if I needed to.”
“But you shouldn’t,” I protest. “You love what you do.”
“I never said I’d stop. But I can slow down.” His expression becomes wry. “The fact is, I love training and being with my team, but I don’t need to fight as often as I do in order to have a good career.” His free hand curves around the side of my face, and a shiver slides down my spine. “I want to make time for us, if you’ll have me.”
Staring deep into his dark eyes, I can tell he means it. He really, truly does. With that, the last of my insecurities and uncertainties lift from my shoulders and fly away.
