Page 125 of Crimson Promises
I frowned. “Why would you do that?”
“Ben, you’re one of the best boxers I’ve seen come through those gym doors in a long time.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“And if you won’t agree to fight competitively, cut the old guy some slack. I was just looking for answers. If I can’t train you, then I figured I could at least bug you. If I rag on you enough, maybe you’ll make an old guy’s dreams come true by finally giving in and repping the gym at an event.”
“Not going to happen, Sul.”
“I figured.” His shoulders drop a quarter of an inch. “She must be something special to catch your attention.”
“She is.”
“Bring the girlfriend in some time.”
“She isn’t my girlfriend,” I retorted.
“If she’s that special, she’ll be someone else’s girlfriend before long if you keep diddle-dallying.”
I made a noncommittal noise.
Next session, I was going to throttle Connor. He'd be running suicides inside the ring until he vomited.
Sully was staring at me pointedly.
“Yeah, yeah. Get off my back,” I said. “Though, I may take you up on that offer of bringing her by.”
“Mi casa es su casa,” Sully said, giving the ring a knock before leaving.
Once alone, I closed my eyes against the fluorescent lights. Earlier this morning, Aurora had continued to pester me about training her, but doing so would be in direct violation of Michael’s order. It was bad enough I had told her most of what I suspected about her origins.
She deserved to learn to defend herself, my self-conscious rebutted my solid logical decision. Even if she remained mortal, she should learn tactics to protect herself.
My job was to guard her.
Not teach her to fight.
Or kiss her.
Or hug her.
Or taste her.
Or claim her.
Or call her mine.
Yet, last night, I hadn’t danced across the line. I fully crossed it. Consequences be damned.
I couldn’t get enough of her. I thought after one time, we’d be able to work each other out of our systems. How wrong I’d been. Now that I had a taste, all I wanted was more. And not just the feel of Aurora's body against mine, or what it had felt to be inside her, but more of her laughs, the way she bit her lip when she was worried or anxious, the way her eyes bulged when I made a lewd comment, but the way she clenched her knees together at the same time, her humor, her devotion to those she loved, and her heart. I’d never met anyone like her. I knew, like sand through an hourglass that our time was finite.
I held up my end of the bet from the night she had beat me at mini golf. A night with no barriers—or, at least, as many as I could let down. Just fun.
I opened my eyes, wondering if anyone was waiting to use the ring; it had grown quieter since I talked with Sully. I surveyed the gym, imagining what it would be like to bring Aurora here to train her. To bring that effortless push-and-pull dynamic we had into the ring. I closed my eyes and turned my mind to the best kind of pulling I had experienced earlier.
* * *
Earlier this morning, my body had been satiated; for the first time in a long time, I felt peace. Aurora had fallen asleep in the crook of my arm after our third round. While I had watched her sleep many nights, that was the first time she was sleepingwithme. If Lucifer had dared to enter her dreams, he would have regretted the day he ever set his sights on Aurora. I remember keeping my nose buried into the crown of her hair, trying to imprint her scent of lavender and honey into my mind, so I could relive that moment. Before I knew it, I drifted off from the reality that had become better than any dream.
