The muscles in Lance’s shoulder bunched. “Some of us don’t have the luxury of being choosy, you know?”
This wasn’t the conversation Mac wanted to have this morning. Seemed he was making things worse, not better. He just needed to get to the heart of things. “I’m sorry about the other day. No matter what you think, that wasn’t me.”
“I pushed your buttons.” Lance faced him, leaning back against the counter. “I’ve had time to think on it, too. I shouldn’t have come at you the way I did. You’ve spent the last four years dealing with your grief in your own way, and you’re not with me for an hour and I’m all in your face about it. So, yeah, you exploded. I probably would’ve done the same in your shoes. In fact, I’m pretty certain. I felt anger rising just now at you asking why I didn’t cut back my hours.”
“Hey, man, I didn’t mean to upset you with that.”
“I know, but it did. The same way you got upset with my remarks.” Lance remained silent for a moment, then said, “About a year after you left Kansas, Skylar was diagnosed with leukemia.” Mac shot to his feet in shock. Lance held up his hand, shaking his head. “You were going through your own shit. She’s in remission now, but Piper’s insurance sucked, and so did mine. The approved treatments weren’t working, and the hematologist recommended something different. Of course, insurance denied coverage. But I wasn’t going to let anything happen to my little girl, and it sure as hell wasn’t going to happen because some suit in an office was denying her healthcare. So I found the money.”
“How?” Mac sat back on the stool, stunned by what he’d just learned. How had he not known? How could he have not been here for Lance?
“Piper thinks I took out a loan. In a way, I did, just not a traditional one. The truth is, money like that isn’t given to a guy like me by a suit in a bank.”
Unease curled in Mac’s gut. “Who did you borrow from?”
“There’re a few guys I used to gamble with. Remember them?”
Mac closed his eyes. “You didn’t.”
“I’d die for her, Mac,” Lance paused and swallowed. “Going to two rich-ass goons was an easy-peasy decision. I think you, of all people, would know something about that.”
Yeah, he did. He would’ve done anything to save Ally if he’d had the chance. Unfortunately, that chance had never been given to him. “How much do you owe?”
“A lot.” Lance shrugged. “It’s not like the movies, though. They don’t come banging on my door in the middle of the night and crack their knuckles, threatening to take out my kneecaps with a baseball bat if I don’t get them paid back on time. We have a loan agreement, just like I would with a bank. I pay a set amount each month, about the price of a really nice home. As long as I pay, we’ve got no problems. Except…” He sighed. “I’ve been doing this for two years…and I’m getting tired. But there’s no end in sight.”
Mac would never have believed he’d ever hear those words come out of Lance’s mouth. Mac surveyed his friend’s face, really studied it. The other day, he’d been too caught up in himself to notice anything except surface things. Upon closer appraisal, dark circles and bags aged his friend’s eyes. Deep grooves bracketed his mouth. Lance did look tired…exhausted actually.
“I can write a check right now, Lance. Help you out.”
“No.” Lance shook his head sharply. “Absolutely not.”
“This isn’t the time for pride.”
“I pay my own way, Mac. I always have. I always will.”
“If it’s that big of a deal, we’ll set up an arrangement like you have with these guys. Just a lower interest and stretch out the life of the loan for a few more years.”
“No. We both know how fast shit can happen. If you ended up needing the money you let me borrow, I’d never forgive myself. All I want you to do is help me train so I can win this fight and hopefully get a shot in the CMC. Things would be a lot easier if that dream came true.”
“Why don’t I just talk to Ethan Porter? I might be able to get you a fight without all of this.”
Lance’s jaw tightened. “No. I do this my way or no way. Got it? I don’t want to be known as the fighter who got into CMC because of a favor. I want to get in because I earned it. If I’m not good enough, I’m not good enough. All right?”
Inhaling, Mac nodded. Although at this particular moment he didn’t agree with his friend, he understood his need to prove himself and take care of his own. “Okay. We’ll train our asses off, then. How about we start right after you feed Skylar?”
A grimace contorted the other man’s face. “Got to go, bro. I have a repo out in Wichita. Big job.”