Page 29 of The Fighter

My tone was enough to make him back down, and he waved the white flag by holding his hands in the arm, palms out, as he backed away. With a nod that held a little bit of chagrin, he turned on his heel and retreated down the hallway. I stood with my hands fisted at my sides until the door beeped and then shut behind my nosy-ass bodyguard. Only then did I turn to Tav, apprehensive about how he’d take Nik’s appearance.

Tav’s body was more relaxed now that he no longer felt threatened, but his gaze was on the hallway where Nik had just left, and his brow was furrowed in thought. As I walked toward him, his eyes met mine. “Why do you have a bodyguard, Con?”

I went right to the coffeemaker, needing to do something with my hands. “He’s my driver. He drove us home from Collar.” Tav hadn’t seen Nik that night, not with the partition in my car and the tinted windows.

“You said bodyguard, though.”

I poured a mug of coffee and turned with it between my palms. “I did, you’re right. He serves many purposes.”

Tav wasn’t letting this go. He took a step toward me. “Why do you have a bodyguard?” he repeated. His eyes shone at me. “Are you safe?”

My heart skipped. I replayed the last five minutes, registering the fact that when Nik had entered, Tav had immediately shifted into protector mode. Even facing down the muzzle of a revolver, Tav had stood firm armed with only a knife. He hadn’t been scared. He’d been focused onprotecting me. He’d brought a literal knife to a gunfight and hadn’t wavered.

I placed my mug down on the counter without taking a sip and braced my hands on the edge. “I’m safe. Nik has worked for me for a long time, and his roles have shifted depending on what I need him for.” That was sort of true.

Tav’s fingers fidgeted with the ties on his sweatpants. “Do you fuck him?”

My chest cratered at the way his voice faltered.Oh no. No way would I let Tav leave here thinking I fucked Nik. Or anyone else in the last few months.

I rounded the island with purpose until I came toe-to-toe with Tav. He made to back up, but I gripped his hip firmly, fingers digging into the muscle there with enough force that his breath caught in his throat. I held his gaze. “I don’t fuck Nik. I never have and I never will. He’s my employee. And know this Tav, I haven’t touched anyone since I brought you home from Collar, and if I had my way, I wouldn’t touch anyone else but you for a very, very long time.”Forever. But I didn’t say that. Not yet.

Tav’s chest rattled with a rough exhale, and he dropped his head. “I’m not asking you to wait for me, Con.”

A bitter thought occurred to me then, tearing through my muscle and sinew until my brain synapses fired alarm bells. “Has anyone touched you?” My voice came out more demanding than I intended. I brushed my thumb along his split lip. “Sexually, I mean. Have you let anyone have you since me, Tav?”

He shook his head immediately, eyes wide. “No, Con. And before Collar—” He bit the inside of his cheek. “It’d been a long time.” As if to emphasize his point, he said again, “Long.”

I cupped the side of his neck and brushed my lips over his. “And that’s the way it will stay, until I tell you otherwise.”

His eyes fell to half-mast. I couldn’t read what that meant. He nodded, and then said, “When’llotherwisecome?”

I rubbed my thumb along the stubble on his jaw where a bruise had yellowed. “If I had my way,otherwisewould never come.” There, that was as close to my true feelings as I thought he could take. And even that seemed too much to him. He stepped out of my grip, retreated on his heels until he stood a few feet away from me, which felt like miles. He propped his hands on his hips and stared at the floor.

Finally, his gaze went the clock, and he swore softly. “I need to go.”

I had to let him. I had to watch as he gathered his clothes and dressed and stood at my door lacing up his boots. When he walked out, he didn’t make false promises about when he’d see me again.

As the door closed behind him, I couldn’t forget the image of him standing in front of me with the knife. That was all he’d had, and he was ready to fight. Meanwhile, I had unlimited resources at my disposal. I didn’t have to bring a knife to a gunfight for Tav. I could bring a nuclear bomb.

With my cooling cup of coffee in front of me, I pulled out my phone and began to fire off some messages. Tav’s secrets would be mine soon, enough to get him to crack the rest of the way. Because I was done seeing the pain lurking behind his eyes or the physical manifestation of trouble on his skin. What was the point of all I’d built the last ten years if I couldn’t save one broken man who’d stolen my heart?

TWELVE

Conrad

Later that morning, I settled into the driver’s seat of my car. While readjusting my mirrors, the passenger door opened, and Nik slid inside. He shut the door behind him, strapped on his seatbelt, and sat with his hands casually folded in his lap.

I glared at him. I had intended to be on my own today. Petty? Yes, but I was still pissed off at Nik. Well, in actuality, my anger had ebbed, but it was easier to be mad at Nik than stress about everything else in my life. Namely,Tav.

Nik picked a piece of lint off his pants and turned to me. “Silent treatment, Conrad? Really?”

“I can drive my own car if I want to.”

He leveled me with a look. “Tell me the last time you drove your own car.”

“I get a lot of work done when you drive,” I said defensively. “Traffic is a bitch.”

I started the car and pulled out of my reserved parking space. I had just turned onto a main road when Nik spoke again. “You’re overreacting.”