Page 6 of Invisible String
As I walk in, guys and a few women fill the gym, sparring and pounding the bags. Some lifting weights. It’s home when I walk in—the sound of thunder ricochets against the walls. Adrenaline pulses through me like a drug to get in the ring and release the monster raging in me.
“Max, my man,” Carlos calls out after finishing a round of sparring with some teens. For a forty-year-old man, he looks good. You would think he was not a day over thirty. “You made it just in time. Julian and Nathan are here to spar with you.” He jumps off the ring.
“Watch it, old man; you don’t want to break a hip.” My lips twitch when he raises a brow at me. Carlos is fit. He has been since the day I met him.
. “Old man, huh? I can take you down,cabrón.” He throws a punch at my side. Carlos shakes his head. “Damn, you’re made of stone.”
Lifting my shirt, I flex my abs. He laughs. “Conceited ass.”
Carlos has taken me under his wing as a good friend and family. Although I don’t fill him in on everything, he knows enough about me. At first, I lied to him, telling him my parents worked late, and I would walk back home. It took two years from when I met him to spill the truth when he was about to drive me home to the last foster home I had at eighteen. Since then, he’s been a father figure to me. He’s asked me to move in with him and his kind wife, Nessa, but there’s no way I’d be a burden to them.
“Get dressed, son, and we’ll get started.”
An hour later, I’m soaking—sweat glazes down my body. My shirt clings to my body. Catching my breath, I sit on the bench in the locker room connected to the showers.
My heart bulges in my chest, satisfied for now to unleash the monsters who lurk in me. All my life, I’ve been the outcast. The boy no one wanted. Fighting makes me feel in control—alive. Just because I know how to fuck a person up doesn’t mean I’ll start a fight, but I’ll sure as hell finish it if they come near me.
“Max, I know you’re a man who takes care of his own, but I know people in high places. I can ask if they’re hiring. You know I’m always here for you. If you need money for rent, I can help you out.”
With a towel, I wipe the sweat off my face and look at Carlos. “You’ve done a lot for me through the years. I’ll find something, don’t worry.” He takes out a wad of money from his wallet and hands it to me.
Shaking my head at him, I gently push his hand back. “Nah, I have money, and Mike’s going to pay the other half,” I lie. There’s no reason he needs to know how fucked up I really am. “I appreciate it, though.”
He sighs, clearly not believing my bullshit, but he won’t question me. “Will you at least come over for dinner? Nessa is preparing your favorite.”
“Yeah, I’ll stop by. I’m going to be gone for a while.”
His forehead creases. “Where are you going?”
“Out to Tahoe for the summer. I need to regroup and get out of city life. Mike lent me his family’s cabin.”
“That does sound like a good plan. City life can get to you. We all need a breather sometimes. Stop by the house at six for dinner, and you know Nessa. She’ll load you with food for the road.”
I hardly smile, but for his wife’s kindness, I will.
“You got it. I’ll be there. Let me shower, and then I’ll head out.”
“Good. I’ll see you tonight.” He pats my shoulder and walks out.
Turning the faucet on, I lean into the hot stream of water. Thank you, Carlos, for having showers at the gym. My head falls back against the tile wall. I take a moment to inhale a long breath. It’s been a shit day, but then again, my life was damned at a young age.
Stepping out of the shower, then drying off, I slip on a clean pair of boxers and shorts. The backpack hangs from one side of my shoulder as I weave out into the main room of the gym, where the rings are. Coach Bliss, Carlos’ long-time assistant, juts his chin at me.
“Hey, Max.”
A girl jumps out in front of me as I’m about to greet Bliss. My mind doesn’t register her name. I’m shit when it comes to remembering anyone’s names. She’s about to lay a hand on my chest. She stops herself when I step back. “So, I was wondering if we could hang out and do what we did the other night.”
I’m clueless about what I did to her. Her eyelashes flutter like she wants to lure me in.
“Not sure what we did. I have no knowledge of it.”
She blushes. “We had a night?”
I raise an eyebrow, confused.
“We…you know had me from behind.” Her ears grow red.
That explains why I don’t remember her. My number one rule with women is to take them from behind. They don’t touch me, and we both get a release. No need to be all touchy.
