Page 51 of Fight For Her
We didn’t need pads or gear. The trust was there that we’d keep it clean and not get carried away. I pulled my shirt up and over my head, tossing it aside like a wet rag. Shawn followed my lead and did the same. We faced each other, hands in defensive positions in front of our faces and sidestepped. Each of us waited for the other to make the first move. It was a dance, a violent one.
Shawn came at me first by throwing a low punch to my abdomen, which I blocked at the last second. While he was open, I took my chance and went in for a kick. He saw me coming from a mile away and blocked me with a knee.
We circled while throwing punches and blocking most of them. Shawn tried to get me in a headlock but didn’t succeed.
Breathing heavily, I threw another low punch. “Still want to wager that bet?” I was talking shit since neither of us had landed much of anything, but I was holding my own.
He crouched before countering with a knee to my chest. Air whooshed out of me in a grunt. Shawn laughed. “Yeah I think I do.”
“Asshole,” I groaned.
Still chuckling, he circled me again. My plan was to knock him to the ground. I always beat him when we grappled. For Shawn being such a big guy, once I got him down, I could pin him fast. I glanced at the floor realizing the worn wood wouldn’t be the softest place to land, and the last thing we needed during a damn hurricane was a trip to the emergency room. As I was letting a new plan of action form in my mind, a gust of wind shook the walls, and in that moment of being unfocused, Shawn found his in and pinned me under his armpit in a headlock.
“Dude,” I wheezed, “I do not need to be this close to your nipple.” He let go, laughing, and we fist bumped.
“Want to go again?” he asked as he wiped his hands against his damp gym shorts.
“And get my ass handed to me? Nah, I’m good. I’ll walk away with my dignity intact.” He walked around the bar, grabbed two glasses, and filled them with water from the soda machine.
“You’ll get me back soon enough,” he said. “Remember how long I was out of shape after I missed a bunch of classes over the summer? You caught me off guard and got me in a chokehold from behind.”
“I do.” I took a long sip and sat in a nearby chair. “It’s one of my fondest memories.”
We were quiet as we finished our waters and caught our breaths. It would have been nice to have this kind of brotherly relationship with Clyde. My brother and I had a decent relationship until he hit his teenage years and started working at the mine.
Yeah, Shawn and I piss each other off here and there, but I knew he had my back and I had his. Maybe it was sentimentality or some shit, but when I opened up my mouth to speak, the thing I never expected to say slipped out.
“I didn’t leave to help a friend. My father died.” I examined my empty glass, knowing that if I looked up, I’d regret opening my damn mouth. “That’s why I had to up and leave so quickly.”
Shawn stayed quiet, listening and waiting. There was nothing more for me to say. I didn’t even know why I gave up the information to begin with. After a few breaths where I watched the last drips of water slide down the side of my glass, he spoke. “I’m sorry, man.”
“I’m not. Son of a bitch can rot for all I care. It was complicated. I had to sell their house and get rid of so much shit. Still have to finish up actually. I don’t know why I’m telling you all this. Sorry.”
The scratch of chair legs across the hard floor had me looking up. Shawn took a seat across from me, his face unreadable.
“Just cause someone had it coming and deserved their end doesn’t mean it makes it any easier to process that shit.” He sighed as he opened and closed his fists. “It’s not my business why you didn’t want anyone to know what happened. Hell, I get it. I’m a private guy. You don’t have to justify shit to me or anyone.”
“Thanks, man. I guess I needed to get it off my chest.” I leaned back and stretched my legs out in front of me, feeling the painful pull of my hamstrings.
“One word of advice though, I made the mistake of keeping things from Mia, and it fucked me over in the end…” he said.
He screwed himself over by thinking he was never going to be good enough for her, or anyone. Was I trying to sabotage any chance of a real relationship with Kendahl because I was scared I’d turn into my piece of shit father? I knew deep down that would never happen. But that involuntary impulse was testing my limit.
“I hear you loud and clear.” If I wanted everything with her, the real deal, then I’d have to come clean even if that shit scared the hell out of me.
“Good.” He stood up, stretching his arms up. “Plus, I’m sure whatever family issues you have aren’t half as bad as the rumors that made their way around the gym while you were gone.”
“For real? Ken hasn’t said much just kind of implied that stuff was said.” I scratched my jaw wondering what kind of nonsense was spread around.
“Yup. You got someone in Palm Cove pregnant and were running out on her…. you have a wife and kid somewhere in the Midwest…”I chuckled. “Or my personal favorite, you’re a, how should I say it nicely… an adult film actor and had to go off to shoot a movie.”
I couldn’t hold my laughter in at that one. “Wow, I could get behind that rumor.”
“Your man-whoring all of Palm Cove really got into the rumor mill, so I wasn’t too surprised to hear that one. Between us, Kendahl’s jaw dropped to the floor when she heard them though.”
I shook my head, not believing what I was hearing. “I have a lot of work ahead of me to fix my reputation.”
“Too bad. I was enjoying the entertainment.” We laughed our way back out into the rain, shirtless because what was the point.
