Page 15 of Wild Child
She exhaled dramatically as if relieved. “Good. Let him explain.” She met my gaze with bright, clear eyes. “What do you have to lose? A burden of grief? If moving on without Devin is what you really want, Ellie, then you’ve just been given your chance. Hear him out, then move forward again. It’s a process you’ve perfected the last three years, and I couldn’t be more proud of you.”
Reluctantly, I nodded. Devin needed to stay gone, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to know what he’d say. What if he had great reasons for what he did? Although, I couldn’t think of any good reason to harbor a lie.
No, I just wanted to tuck this back into the box and shove it off a cliff. Once we spoke, that stalwart box wouldn’t have a place in my mind any longer, with its gentle pulse and quiet reminders as it collected age and dust.
This time, Devin would go away, and there he’d stay.
“C’mon.” Lizbeth hooked her arm through mine. “JJ made this scrumptious naked Black Forest cake that is to die for. The cherry glaze?” She shivered. “Let’s just say it makes baby Lizbeth so very, very happy.”
4
Devin
When the dullthudof a fist hitting a bag rang in my ears, I knew I’d found the right place.
Dawn hinted on the horizon as I stepped inside the MMA Center. Sweat from my 4:00 a.m. run drenched my shirt, making it cling to my back. The run had worked out the kinks of crappy sleep. Returning from the other side of the globe was never going to be easy, but this time transition really sucked. At least I could remove the dreams and residual darkness that lingered.
But now, I needed to hit something.
Somethinghard.
“Devin Blaine.”
A familiar face approached me from behind a counter. Short, stocky body. Muscles on muscles. Quick grin and short blonde hair buzzed low on the sides and spiked on top. I almost didn’t recognize him.
“Jax?”
He grinned and held out a hand that I clasped and pulled into a quick man-hug with a thunderous back pounding. When he stepped back, I could hardly believe my eyes.
“Gentle Jax.” I shook my head. “My, my, how you’ve grown.”
He laughed and slapped me on the shoulder. “It’s been a few years, my friend.” His arms spread to encompass the gym. “Welcome.”
“This is yours?”
“Nah, I just help Ben run it. He wanted it all MMA-focused, but I’ve convinced him to make it a real gym where people come to work out. He lets me run classes and the gym side. He does all the rest.”
“Benjamin Mercedy?”
“The one.”
I whistled low. The guys would die if they knew where I stood. Retired MMA fighter Benjamin Mercedy still had everyone’s attention with the training gym he opened after his career-making final fight.
I glanced around the gleaming space with floor-to-ceiling windows and alternating black-and-red mats on the ground. Groups of workout equipment cluttered the back of the room. Several joggers kept treadmills busy or stacked bumper plates on bars near the squat racks. More than I would have expected little Pineville to produce at 5:00 am.
“Sweet place, man.”
“Thanks. How are you? Didn’t know you were back.”
“Surprised everyone,” I said with a quick smile.
Jax’s eyebrows rose. “Everyone?”
The drawl in his voice immediately clued me in. He meant Ellie, which likely meant that Ellie and Jax were still friends. Of course, they were. Who else lived in Pineville, population 300?
Before I could change the subject, he chuckled. “Actually, you showing up this morning explains a lot.”
“What do you mean?”
