Page 34 of Tangled in Vows

Olivia stares at me with wide eyes, probably trying to digest the news like I am. But she told me she hasn’t been messaging anyone, and despite our predicament, I don’t think she’s lying to me. Not with how freaked out she was when she found the naked guy in her bed.

“Listen, I know there’s a lot we need to talk about, but right now, I need to figure out how that piece of shit got these messages. I need you to stay with Phoenix and Evie until I return.”

That snaps her out of her shock. “No. I’m going to stay with you.”

Did she just tell me no? “You’re going to stay with me?”

Her shoulder lifts and drops. “This is about me and my life, isn’t it? I think I should be involved.”

I don’t answer right away, so she narrows her eyes at me. “Are you hiding something from me, and that’s why you don’t want me around?”

This entire situation is going to give me a headache. But in the end, I won’t lie to her. I can’t.

Sooner or later, you’ll spill all of your secrets to her.

Shit. I’m not sure what the right thing to do is here. If it were up to me, I’d spend every waking second with her, surely catapulting us toward our final demise.

But she doesn’t seem to know what’s happening behind the scenes or how involved I’m in it. Cautious middle-of-the-road approach it is. “I need to talk to someone in another part of the club.”

Her confused expression confirms my suspicion. She has no idea what’s going on underground.

“Are you talking about the dance floor?” She walks to the mirror and fixes her makeup with a tissue and water.

I lean against the wall and watch her. “No, there’s another level underground.”

At that, she stops and looks at my reflection. “Another level?”

“Yes.”

“For what?”

“Fighting.”

Her brows shoot up. “There’s a fight club underneath us?”

I nod, wishing I could glimpse into her brain to know her thoughts. How does she feel about all of this?

“Do you fight there?”

I shrug. “Sometimes.”

Her throat bobs on a swallow. “I didn’t realize you were still doing that.”

That she brings up our past shouldn’t give me warm fuzzies, yet it does.

She knows I used to fight for cash. It’s how I could afford both of our apartments back then and save a lot to invest. “It’s just for fun now.”

She nods like that makes perfect sense and throws away the paper towel. “Now I’m definitely coming with you.”

There’s a lightness to her I haven’t seen since I’ve reentered her life. At times, I actually wasn’t sure if she still possessed it or if her life and career had eradicated it. She undoubtedly loves her job, especially singing in front of large crowds, but this spark of excitement is different. It’s reserved for something else. Something that might teeter on the edge of being dangerous or forbidden.

Seems like her wild side wants to come out to play, just how it did when she begged me to let her come with me back then.

She blinks up at me, her hands clasped together in front of her. “Please, Holden. I want to watch your fight. Just this once, please. I promise I’ll behave and stay with Tom the entire time.”

I shake my head, more at myself than her. I told myself I’d protect her at all costs, so am I seriously considering taking her with me?

“Hurricane, it can get rowdy sometimes.”

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