I roll my eyes, used to comparisons like this.
“She’s more of a Gabe,” Sydney argues. “A strong, silent type.”
“Actually,” I interrupt, holding up a hand. “I’m a Harley, and that’s all I need to be.”
“Even better.” Lena looks positively gleeful. “Devon is in over his head with you. I can’t wait to see you put him in his place. He’s way too sure of himself.”
My brows pinch together. “What do you mean?”
“Uh, Lena.” Sydney clears her throat. “Aren’t you getting ahead of yourself?”
“Doubt it.” She reaches for a glass of wine and sips. “You must know that Devon has a thing for you, right? He’s not exactly subtle.”
Squirming in the seat, I wonder if it’s physically possible for my cheeks to be as red as they feel, because they’re fucking scorching. I’m not used to this kind of girl talk, and I don’t know what a normal response would be.
“You’re making her uncomfortable.” Sydney’s smile is gentle. “Ignore her. We’re just not used to seeing Devon twisted up like this over a girl. He’s more the love ’em and leave ’em type.”
“I know,” I reply, grateful both for the explanation and the reprieve. “It’s kind of obvious.” Turning to Lena, I add, “You’re right that he’s made it clear what he wants, but I’m not looking to be the girl who ropes him. I’m nobody’s exception to the rule, and if I went there, I’m sure he’d have moved on within a week. Besides”—I go for the knockout blow—“Seth is helping me restart my life, and his good opinion matters.”
“So you’re saying you’ll keep your hands off Devon?” she clarifies, her lips pursed with disappointment. “And here I was hoping to see him fall hard and fast.”
“Not for me.” I examine my fingernails. They’re short and neat. Unfeminine. Hardly worthy of a seductive vixen like Devon seems to think I am. If he ever got me where he wanted, he’d soon grow bored. “Trusting people isn’t something I’m good at, and he has this wild energy that screams unreliable.”
Lena sighs. “Oh, well. I suppose I can’t argue with you there.”
Sydney grabs a remote and flicks the TV on. “Shall we watch the fights? They should be starting soon.”
Devon
I stand on the edge of the crowd, just inside the arena, and watch the action going on in the cage. Jimmy has just finished his fight and I’m officially off-duty as one of his cornermen. Not that I had to do anything more than ice his legs and back. Seth does the hard yards, watching every move and offering advice—or really loud motivation—between rounds. He sees things I don’t notice, no matter how hard I try, but I still attempt to guess what he’s going to say because one day, I want to be the one coaching younger fighters. I’m not stupid. I can’t be a professional athlete forever, but I can be a coach. There’s no age limit on that. No physical limitations either, so it doesn’t matter how banged up I get along the way.
My phone buzzes in my pocket. Beside me, Jase is flat-out messaging Lena, and Gabe left the moment Jimmy’s fight ended to return to Sydney. Seth is probably still debriefing Jimmy somewhere in a back room. I grab my phone from my pocket and check the screen. It’s an unknown number. I tap the message, opening it.
Unknown:Hey. We saw you and Seth on TV. Having fun? - Harley
Grinning, I rub the back of my neck with my free hand. She must have gotten my number from one of the girls, which means she put in the effort to find it. She wants to talk.
Yeah, sweetheart, I’m down to talk.
Devon:Lots.What did you think of the fight?
Jase pushes away from the wall and shoves his hands in his pockets. “I’m off, bro. Don’t do anything crazy.”
“When have I ever?”
He raises a brow at that. “Every damn day. See you.”
“Catch you.”
My phone pings again and I hurry to see what she sent.
Harley:Good fitness but a bit too slow on the defense. His low kicks were destroying the other guy but he should try mixing it up with body and head kicks. From what I could tell, the ground work looked good.
My grin broadens. Seriously, how freaking awesome is it to have this conversation with a hot girl? Especially when she’s spot on. I noticed the same thing about his reaction times and preference for leg kicks.
Devon:Needs to improve his flexibility. His body kicks are fine, but he has a hard time getting his leg high enough to go for head kicks.
Not a problem Harley has, I’ve noticed. She can execute a flawless roundhouse kick to the face and land back in fight stance with perfect balance. It’s sexy as fuck. Especially when her lips curl into that arrogant smirk that says she knows exactly what she’s capable of. My dick twitches in my pants, but fortunately decides to chill out.
