Page 44 of Green Flag
Even with his drunk ways, maybe she’d think more of him. He was a ladies man. Something about his lack of English really turned women on.
But she wanted fun, not conversation.
And she probably thought he’d last a lot longer than I would. I couldn’t blame her.
Fuck my cock for being so eager.
I was mentally calling my dick every name under the sun — gaunt, geriatric groin gouger, perverse pork sword, quick to the hustle love muscle — and wallowing in self-pity with another whiskey when Cesari pointed over to me, in some form of conversation with her.
Her gaze lifted to mine.
With one finger, she made a ‘come hither’ motion and, as if she lassoed me, I was walking mindlessly to her side. No questions asked.
“I could take you on now,” she said with a smile to the racer. “He was going easy on you.”
Cesari slammed his chest with his palm. “You wound me.”
“What are you talking about?”
She leaned back to look up at me standing behind her, the back of her head nearly knocking into my chest. I was so desperate to press into her, but I kept my distance. Of an inch.
“Cesari was talking about your training session the other day,” she said. “When you two were boxing in the gym’s ring.”
“Oh really?” I asked, trying with all my might to be casual. I knew she’d watched me train — and taken great joy in the fact — but that had been a day when Ces wasn’t there…
Cesari was grinning, brows slightly higher as his lips turned. Ah, he was drunkenly testing the waters between us.
“I was telling Cesari here that you’re going to teach me to punch and I’ll have no problem taking him to the ground.”
A little optimistic on her part there. But I nodded with conviction.
“I’d willingly go to the ground with you,” Cesari said and grinned, his eyes glazed and unfocused. Somehow, for someone who rarely spoke English day to day, after a few drinks, he became much more confident. Annoyingly confident.
Gently, I took the drink he’d managed to scavenge from someone and downed it.
His mouth fell open with a slow blink.
“I’m cutting you off,” I said. “The bar already did so. Now I am too.”
In true dramatic body language, Cesari style, he poked out his bottom lip.
“Nope,” I said with a shake of my head.
“It’s a shame,” Everly said, changing the topic. “You probably won’t be able to teach me to punch. It’s my last night.”
I placed the glass down beside her empties. “Is that confirmed?”
A sad smile and a stare into the distance accompanied her shrug. “I gave it my best shot. Did you see Livie when she listened to my song? She walked out of the pit box straight after. There’s no dismissal quite like it.”
“I’ll talk to her,” I said, ignoring Ces going back to the drink I’d confiscated. There had to be a mix-up. Livie was smart and always thinking of ways to push the Ciclati brand into a positive spotlight. Surely, she wouldn’t waste an opportunity like Everly for our team? She was a viral sensation.
“No, don’t,” she said, shaking her head and reaching for my hand. “If she doesn’t want me, she won’t fight for me. And it means my dad can dismiss me whenever he pleases.Ineed to fight for this.”
She could still follow the championship if she wanted. Her dad would pay for her to join us.
I’d pay for her to join us.
Though that would look like some romantic proposal, I didn’t know if I had that in me. Because would it look romantic? Or creepy? Or desperate? I didn’t have a father to know what a solid, loving relationship looked like. Alv’s wife had been cheating on him… and if someone could do that to him, love might not be in my future.
