Page 107 of Filthy and the Beast

For a couple of days, the media paid attention, but like Damian predicted, they cared more about me being bi than anything else. Being an out athlete doesn’t bother me one little bit. I’m too proud of my man to feel shame anyway. Quickly afterward, this new and different story of me took hold, almost like the past was forgotten.

Like I told this class when they asked, I made a mistake under pressure, and I locked myself away for years because of it. But a real fighter keeps trying, like I’m doing now.

I can’t beat the mob back on my own, but I can carve out a place in the fighting world for something different. With every class here at Reggie’s gym, I build an alternative, something I truly believe in. Going public about training Nat, attending her fights right alongside Gwen, is icing on the cupcake.

“Hey, Damian,” Maisie calls out, Gertrude panting happily in their arms. “Are you making a video today?”

“And can we be in it?” Lulu adds.

Grinning, Damian turns to address them. “No videos today. My moms are in town, and my boyfriend is taking us bird watching once he’s done barking at you all.”

“Speaking of.” I raise my voice. “Stances!”

As everyone groans and goes back to their positions, Damian laughs. “Sorry to interrupt.”

I shake my head. “Don’t be. We’re almost done. Your moms are at home?”

“Impatiently waiting for the next installment of Birding with Enzo,” he says. “Mom sent me a picture of the binoculars ready to go.”

The first time I met his family, I was nervous as hell. But Samia and Vera are every bit as warm as their son, and once we got to talking about Seattle and the birds and my garden, I realized how much we all have in common. Now Vera is as much of a birder as I am, and we even share photos and message each other when we spot something good.

“I’m going to say hi to Reggie so I don’t distract you anymore.” Damian scoops Gertrude up. “See you in ten?”

I give him a quick kiss. “I’ll be here.”

We finish up class with some time at the punching bag. After, Damian drives us back to the house. He’s planted flowers along the driveway, and the last of the remaining summer blooms are bright beneath the changing autumn leaves of the trees. When we enter through the back, the smell of fresh-baked cookies hits me, and the dogs come rushing after.

I drop Gertrude to play with her sisters. “Are they baking?” I ask Damian.

“I told you,” he says out of the corner of his mouth. “They’re going to mom you, so you might as well enjoy it.”

I sniff. “Who’s complaining?”

Their laughter filters out from the kitchen, and I take Damian’s hand as we walk into the house. All the curtains are pulled open, and light fills the space.

For a moment, my mind flashes back to the first days when Damian was living upstairs. The house had been mine alone for so long. Even just his dog-eared book on the coffee table launched me into an emotional spiral.

Now, the den is a studio for his business, his games are stacked on the living room shelves, and the closet in our room is stuffed with his brightly colored clothes. It’s our house, not just mine, and the warmth of our love radiates everywhere.

Thought my life had run its course. Never imagined I’d get a new chapter, and in a million years, I wouldn’t have expected to fall in love with a man twenty years younger than me. But as I greet his moms with a hug, everything feels right.

Been waiting my whole life for something like this.

Been waiting my whole life for Damian.

* * *

DAMIAN

Binoculars hanging around her neck, Mom takes a deep breath of the fresh mountain air. “Now this is what life is all about.” She points at me. “You need to spend more time at the lake with your man and not so much time working!”

“Anyone care to explain that concept to my wife?” Nat asks.

As we walk down the path, Gwen links arms with Nat. “You want me to spend more time at the lake with Damian’s man?”

Mama laughs. “This is how it starts,” she jokes, addressing Nat. “One day, Enzo takes your wife birding. The next thing you know, it’s seven o’clock on a Saturday morning in the middle of the winter, and you’re loading the car to go searching for swans.”

“Beautiful swans,” Mom adds.

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