“I understand perfectly. I’m not telling you again. Get out. I don’t even want to see your face right now.” She stared straight ahead, her jaw taut, her arctic eyes unblinking.
Even though she stood only a few feet away, she had never been further from him. Nothing he could say right now would help. She was so fucking angry. Rightfully so. She needed time to calm down, so they could talk rationally. Then he’d get her to see what he now understood perfectly.
She was the love of his life. Not the partying, not the fans, not even fighting. She was.
He swallowed and bent to pick up his duffel bag, then snatched Warrior’s leash off the hook by the door. After he connected it to the dog’s collar, he stopped in front of her. She refused him eye contact, staring straight at his shoulder.
“This isn’t over, Julie.”
Her eyes snapped to his. “Yes, it is.”
He stepped out onto the porch, and she slammed the door behind him. The sound made him jerk and his grip on Warrior’s leash tightened.
She’d loved him.
Past tense.
Seemed unfair, since he’d just learned about it in the present.
But what he’d said was true. This wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.
He made his way down the steps to the front yard, then froze as he looked around the quiet neighborhood.
Julie had kicked him out, and he had nowhere left to go.
Chapter 16
Julie looked through the peephole in her front door, saw Brody standing on the stoop, and breathed a sigh of relief. Over the last two days, Tommy had knocked on her door more times than she cared to count, sometimes yelling for her to answer the damn door. The neighbors were surely getting an eyeful, but she didn’t care. She never responded, and he didn’t dare use his key. Smart man.
She didn’t want to see him. Probably for the rest of her life.
When she opened the door, Brody stepped inside.
“Hey,” she said. “What are you doing here so early?”
He’d been lucky he’d caught her. She was just about to leave for work.
“Mac got in touch with me.”
She waved her hand and retreated to the living room. “I don’t want to talk about him, Brody.”
He grabbed her upper arm. “Jules, you need to listen.”
“Listen to what?” She yanked her arm out of his grasp. “How Tommy misses me? How he’s hurt and can’t understand why I won’t talk to him? How—”
“He’s canceling the fight, Jules.”
That slammed her mouth shut. The last bit of the anger she’d clung to since she’d watched Tommy completely exclude her evaporated as Brody’s words sunk in. “What? Why?”
“He’s got it in his head it’s the only way you’ll forgive him.”
She stepped back. “He can’t do that. He can’t put that on me.”
“Well, he is. This morning, unless you stop him.”
At a loss for words, she dropped her gaze to the floor. Tommy was willingly giving up his chance for redemption in the ring, for her? He’d worked so hard for this fight. Him giving up fighting had never been an option. Never even entered her mind.
Her gaze shot to Brody’s. “You can’t let him do that.”
“No, you can’t. So go stop him.”
With a curt nod, she grabbed her purse and was out the door within seconds. As she sped down the highway, she realized she wasn’t sure where to go. Should she go to Mac’s, where Tommy’d been staying? Or Mike’s, where he was training?
The gym would be the best bet. If he wasn’t there yet, she’d wait for him.
After she found a place to park, she ran down the sidewalk. She spotted Tommy with his head down, shoulders hunched, just as he was pulling the gym door open.
“Tommy!”
He froze, his head slowly turning in her direction. then he spun and started walking toward her.
“What are you doing here?”
“You can’t do this.”
“Fucking Mac.” Tommy thrust a hand through his hair, his jaw clenching. “What’d he do? Wait until I was asleep and come to you?”
“He contacted Brody.”
“Brody?” A forced laugh came from Tommy’s mouth as he placed his hands on his hips and looked skyward. “Shouldn’t be surprised, should I? That asshole has stuck his nose in my business from day one.”
“You can’t cancel the fight.”
“You won’t talk to me. It was the only thing I could think of to get your attention enough to know I’m serious.”
“Fine. We can talk now,” she said, crossing her arms.
“Okay.” He reached for her hand, but she couldn’t bring herself to touch him, fearing if she did, she’d lose herself in him again. Right now, she had to stay focused on herself, on what was best for her…and that wasn’t Tommy.
When he realized she wasn’t going to take his hand, hurt shone in his eyes and he dropped it.
“How”—he cleared his throat—“how about we find a place to sit?”
“Lead the way.” She followed him down the sidewalk, thankful he’d gone in the opposite direction of “their” bench. About half a block down, he finally found another bench under a tree, and sat.