Page 20 of Bewitched

CHAPTER EIGHT

Saturday, March 8

San Diego

Blake stood in front of the Undisputed gym downtown and waited for his friends to arrive. Laird’s brother, Chase, was fighting in an exhibition match and some of the guys had planned on coming down. With his back against the wall, Blake quartered the area. The brick building and cracked concrete reminded him of his years on patrol in the Stans. The smell was completely different and so were the sounds, but the heat emanating from the street wasn’t.

Hearing a whistle, he looked up and saw Chris approach. The Iceman looked like shit, and Blake figured it had to do with the son he had at home. “Hey, Chris. Looks like the little man is doing a number on you.”

Taking a gulp of his extra-large coffee, Chris grinned. “Whoever said that kids were not adept at torture was lying.”

Blake threw out his hand and shook his friend’s hand. “Brother, when was the last time you slept?”

“Seven months ago. Best damn time of my life.” Looking up at the building, he grimaced. “This place used to be owned by the father of the men who kidnapped and beat Rachel.”

Glancing at the sign, Blake shook his head. “Damn, I forgot the connection. I heard it was bought by a family and they revamped everything.”

“Heard the same thing,” Chris replied. “One of the owners is the All-Army Combatives Champion.”

“Damn, that’s a serious credential,” Blake responded. “Hey, thanks for the help the other day.”

Chris nodded. “No problem. I handed off the information to Laird, and he’s been working on it.”

Blake kicked the ground and studied the trash that was strewn across the gutter. “I don’t know why I can’t let this go. She never called, so I should just leave it alone.”

“And…” Chris made a rolling motion with his hand.

“And, something about her has me ten kinds of crazy. It’s like she has me under a spell or something. One night and I can’t forget her.”

“Bewitched,” Chris stated. “The woman has bewitched you. Same thing happened with Rachel. I knew it the moment I saw her. Just don’t make the same mistake I did.”

“Which was?”

“Ignored my feelings. That tiny woman scared the hell out of me and I did nothing about it. Had I managed to find my balls and ask her out, I could’ve saved her from the pyscho ex.”

“You don’t know that for sure,” Blake said as he studied his friend. “It’s possible she wouldn’t have been ready.”

“Maybe, but I would’ve known what was going on and I could’ve protected her. We lost a baby, and not a day goes by that I don’t blame myself. Rachel tries to convince me otherwise, but in my heart, that’s how I feel.” He drained his coffee, then pitched the cup in a trash can. “My advice to you? Go for it. This sort of thing comes by once in a lifetime if you’re lucky. It’s better to cross the line and suffer the consequences than to stare at that line for the rest of your life.”

Everything Chris said rang true. One of Blake’s first commanders told him, “You are always one decision away from a totally different life.” It had been true in combat and it was true in life. He’d hesitated when he’d gone out with Ana years ago, and he always regretted it. If he didn’t do something about Paige, he would never forgive himself. “Thanks, man. That’s exactly what I needed to hear.”

Chris let out a laugh. “Who would’ve ever guessed that I had anything helpful to say about relationships?”

“No one. Absolutely no one.” Blake snorted.

Mark and Travis walked down the street, and the conversation ended. No more talk about feelings and shit. They were going to see some serious MMA contenders, and Blake looked forward to it. Seeing two men beat the crap out of each other on a Saturday afternoon was his idea of a good time. As they all walked toward the entrance, he wondered if Paige might like something like this. Chris was right. She had bewitched him. Paige Bennett had been on his mind for over three months, so he might as well accept it and move forward.

***

The group entered the gym, and Blake felt Chris go on alert as they entered. “You okay?”

“Not sure, man. The last time I was here was when I was carrying Rachel out, unconscious. Looks totally different, though.”

Travis knocked fists with Chris. “A lot of good things happened after you got her out of here. You married her and have a twenty-pound monster of a boy. It all worked out.”

“That’s the truth,” Chris agreed.

Laird was on the other end of the gym, near the octagon, with his wife, Lexi, and their daughter, Bella. He waved them over. “Thanks for coming to support Chase,” Laird called out.

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