Page 52 of Fought and Freed

“What are you looking for?” the sales guy asked.

“Gloves and shorts,” Maddy told him.

She had noticed that, at Cody’s last fight, one of his gloves was worn down.

“Does your guy do boxing or MMA?” the clerk asked.

“MMA,” Maddy replied.

He showed her a couple of different types of gloves, and she chose the ones he said were the best. She did the same with the shorts.

Two guys down and two more to go.

She had an idea for Skylar, but Jace was hard. It took another hour before they had everyone’s gifts.

After all that shopping, Maddy was ready for a nap.

They were walking toward the exit where they parked, talking about their purchases, when Maddy glanced across the railing on the walkway, and her breath caught on a sharp gasp.

Standing with his arms resting on the railing, watching her, was Mike.

She stumbled and caught herself before she fell.

“You all right?” Torr asked.

She looked back, but the railing stood empty.

She shook her head. “Yeah, I’m tired. I need a nap.”

Torr linked their arms together, offering Maddy support. “Well, let’s get you home.”

Maddy peered over her shoulder once more.

Did she really see Mike? Or was she so tired that she just thought she saw him?

Maddy was quiet as Torr drove her home.

As she pulled into the driveway, Jace came running out to help carry everything inside. “Did you have fun, baby girl?”

She grabbed a few of the bags. “Yeah, I did.”

Once most of the stuff was inside, she turned to Torr in the driveway. “Thanks for taking me shopping. I’ll see you tomorrow when we leave.”

Torr grinned, still full of energy. “I need to get home and finish packing. See you bright and early tomorrow!”

Maddy left the last of the bags in the driveway for Jace to grab, walked into the living room, and fell onto the couch, exhausted.

14

MADDY

Jace set down the last bag before falling onto the couch beside her. “Looks like you had some fun shopping.”

“Yeah, I did. It was my first time at a mall.” She shifted to make more room for him. “It was difficult, at first, to buy whatever I wanted and not worry about the price.”

“I’m glad you let that go and got what you needed.”

She looked around. “Where is everyone?”

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