O continued to chuckle, so Nine turned to him because he wanted to change the subject now. “Aren’t you hot with that shit on?”
Nine motioned to O’s beanie when he turned to him in question. The guy hadn’t worn it at the shower, but the second he got in his truck, he put it on. The damn thing was like a security blanket or something, and he’d had it forever. The confused expression on his friend’s face eased when he realized what he was asking about. “Never.”
Thankfully, the subject of Dee was dropped even further when O got a call from the shop, and they headed home, talking about the latest project there. He wasn’t sure what O’s plans were for tonight since he seemed in a hurry to leave the party. But Nine knew exactly what he’d be doing, the only thing he ever got so engrossed in he forgot about everything else going on around him. It’s exactly what he needed right about now.
As soon as he was home, he ran upstairs and changed into his work clothes. Glad for the new project being such a big one, Nine had every intention of giving it his absolute undivided attention.
Chapter 8
Not a whole day had gone by. Hell, Nine’s ass didn’t even make it through an entire morning before giving in to the temptation of texting Dee. But he’d since decided it was no big deal. He’d just gotten started work for the day when he remembered her partner-in-crime comment. It’d made him smile, and without giving it much thought, he pulled out his phone and sent the text. But he’d kept it simple enough.
Glancing down at the still unanswered text, he re-read it—as if it were remotely long enough to forget.
Morning!
Nine exhaled harshly, annoyed with himself for allowing something this petty to become such a distraction. He was done giving it any more thought. It was a generic greeting for fuck’s sake, one even Nine wouldn’t question if some dude texted his girl with it. So he’d bid her a good morning. Big deal.
Determined to forget about it, he’d immersed himself in his work for hours. Just past one in the afternoon, Nine stopped working on his latest project down at the garage to grab a bite to eat for lunch. Taking apart that Volkswagen Beetle the second half of the morning, he’d succeeded in breaking the habit of checking his phone every few minutes as he’d been doing earlier.
Tagging, bagging, and labeling were tasks he didn’t take lightly. He had to be meticulous if he didn’t want this to turn into a nightmare when it came time to start putting it back together again. Even now, he’d gone back to pondering some of the parts he labeled.
He’d been upstairs in his apartment above the garage for almost a half hour, eating and getting lost in thought as he switched the channels on the television aimlessly. The laughter coming from downstairs got his attention. He thought he’d heard O yammering it up with someone down there earlier, but the laughter got louder, and he thought one of the voices sounded like Beast’s. Except the big guy rarely came in.
“I’ll be back in a few,” O said, making Nine click the off button on the remote. “But Nine should be down soon. He’s upstairs having lunch. Yo, Nine!”
Nine stood up, crumpling the aluminum his burrito had come in and tossing it in the trash but slowed when he heard the next part. “Beast’s here. Come show him your latest project when you’re done eating.”
Since they’d opened up the place, Nine could count on exactly two fingers the number of times Beast had just dropped in unannounced. Nine had to wonder now if today’s visit had anything to do with yesterday.
“You here to work?” Nine smirked at the top of the stairs, sucking on his soda straw as he started down.
Beast glanced up at him, just as O waved at Nine and rushed out. “Nah, I was just in the neighborhood, so I thought I’d stop by, but I can’t stay long. I gotta meeting in a few.”
“Cool. Let me show you this thing before you go.” Nine rushed down the stairs and toward the hunk of junk sitting in the back overhaul area with Beast right behind him. “I’m almost done with that other truck, but I don’t want you to see that until it’s completely done. This is something I thought I’d start on today since we have a skeleton crew. And before you ask”—he turned to Beast with a grin—“someone is actually paying to get this restored. Not just paying either. They’re shelling out some big bucks.”
“Good,” Beast said as he laid eyes on the carcass of a car. “It’s probably gonna cost that much to get this piece of crap going.”
“Nah,” Nine shook his head, feeling completely confident he had this.
Briefly going over what he had planned and how fairly easy he thought it’d be once he had the whole thing taken apart, Nine gave him a condensed version of his planned strategy. As usual, Beast didn’t seem nearly as confident about this as Nine did, but to Nine’s surprise, he didn’t argue or shoot down any of his ideas. Instead, he listened silently, nodding as if maybe he had something else on his mind.
“Everything okay?” Nine finally asked, putting his labeled bags in order in a box.
“Yeah, everything’s cool.”
Nine didn’t look up because something about Beast’s tone said otherwise and it unnerved him. Why it made him nervous, Nine wasn’t sure, but something about it felt off.
“I was talking to O when I got here.” Beast paused, but Nine still didn’t look up. “He told me about the way you acted yesterday—with Drew.”
Now Nine glanced up, surprised by this. “How I acted?”
To Nine’s surprise, Beast smirked. “Yeah, all sprung and shit.”
“What?” Just like yesterday when O had teased him about it, Nine felt his face warm, only this time the foreign feelings of slight embarrassment were also accompanied by irritation. “Is he gossiping about me like a fucking chismosa?”
“Not gossiping.” The smirk Beast had worn earlier went flat. “Busting your balls, that’s all. He would’ve said it in front of you and you know it.”
“Yeah, well, it’s bullshit.”
“I hope so.”
Gulping hard, Nine sucked in a chunk of air, staring at Beast for a moment before walking around to the other side of the Beetle.
“Look.” Beast sounded even more serious now. “Brad, Drew’s fiancé, he’s a pretty big deal down at 5th Street, the place where Lila and I spend a lot of time now. He’s a good friend of all the owners. Lila’s even worked directly with him since he’s in the same firm as her agent. Things could get pretty awkward down there for Lila if word gets out that you—her soon-to-be brother-in-law’s good friend and business partner—is trying to move in on Brad’s chick.”
“I’m not—”
“I didn’t think so, but then O said—”
“I’m telling you O’s full of shit.” Nine feigned a chuckle. “You know how he is. He thinks something’s hilarious, he’ll go on and on about it, adding even more to it to make it funnier. I was just being polite to her because she’s Ali’s friend. But I guess for me that’s new to him.” Nine smiled even bigger now, even though he wasn’t feeling it—at all. “I’m a businessman now, remember? Gotta practice my politically correct social skills every chance I get, right?” Nine shrugged, ignoring Beast’s perpetually unimpressed expression. “Don’t buy into O’s horseshit. I promise you, you got nothing to worry about.”
“I hope so because listen. If it were just me”—Beast lifted a hand in the air, the unmoved expression morphing into an annoyed one—“I couldn’t care less about the awkwardness down at the gym. No one’s gonna talk shit to me about what my grown-ass friends do. I’m no fucking babysitter or girlfriend monitor for that matter. She looked perfectly content to be where she was when we walked in. Only one I care about is Ali. If this upsets her sister, it upsets Ali, and if that happens, what Brad might do to you if he catches wind of you making a move on his chick, will be the least of your worries.”
Nine chuckled, and this time it actually felt more genuine than before. He knew his friend likely thought the threat was what he was laughing off. But his comment about Dee looking perfectly conte
nt was what really had him smiling now.
“How long have you known me, huh?” Nine asked, still smiling and hoping this next part would sound as genuine as it used to. “White chicks don’t do it for me.”
“That’s what I thought.” Beast sounded a little more relaxed now; though he still lifted a guarded brow. “But I also know, if she’s hot enough, it wouldn’t stop you from bagging one if you ever got the chance.”
That had Nine laughing outright now. “I have and I’d do it again in a heartbeat if she had the goods.”
“Yeah, well, goods or not, just don’t get any ideas about this one. Besides,” Beast added as he walked around the Volkswagen, eyeing it. “You and her?”
The way he said it made the very idea of Nine and Dee sound preposterous. It even had the fucker who hardly ever smiled, chuckling now. “It’s not like you and her would ever have anything in common. Pretty sure she’s our age, but she’s a mom and eons ahead of you when it comes to settling down. Matter of fact, Ali said they’ve been doing some talking about how it’s Drew’s turn to walk down the aisle.”
It was rare to hear Beast laugh, but in this case, it was even more annoying, considering what he’d just said.
“Maybe that’s what I should’ve led with,” Beast added, shaking his head, still smirking and chuckling again like an asshole. “Nothing would wilt whatever misguided hard-on you might be getting for this chick, faster than that.”
“Than what?” Nine asked, even though he was fairly certain what Beast was saying.
“Than knowing she’s into guys who can not only say the word ‘commitment’ but agree to it. You and a chick with visions of marriage sometime in this lifetime?” He shook his head. “I feel stupid now for even worrying about it.” With that, he shrugged, motioning to Nine’s calamity of a project. “What are we looking at here? If we’re talking big bucks, what else exactly will you be doing to it?”
Since it was so unlike Beast to ever talk personal stuff about women and shit to begin with, it didn’t surprise Nine that the guy dropped the subject and moved on to talk of Nine’s restoration project instead. For a moment there, Nine considered arguing, but what would be the point? He wasn’t even sure why his friend’s comments bothered him. They were all true.
Unless Nine screwed up with Dee, and something actually did go down that might upset Ali, today’s talk was as deep a conversation as any between him and Beast would ever get.
Nine got it. Beast objecting to or even questioning Nine’s intentions with any girl was unheard of otherwise. In this case, it had everything to do with protecting his sweet Ali. Nine didn’t doubt for a second Beast wouldn’t come down on him hard if this ever upset her.
Nine was done feeding his curiosity about the little blonde who’d plagued his mind for too long. Glancing down at his phone after Beast left only sealed it. Clearly, she had no interest in even entertaining his curiosity.
It’d been over five hours since he’d texted her—long enough for her to have read it and had some kind of break in whatever busy day she might be having to be able to respond—yet she still hadn’t bothered with so much as a hey.
By that evening with no response from Dee, Nine was actually glad for Beast’s unexpected visit today. It was just a reminder of how stubborn Nine’s ass could be when someone even suggested there was something he couldn’t do or accomplish.
Beast was right. A chick like Dee was the last thing Nine needed or wanted to deal with in his life now—or ever. If it were any other girl where it didn’t matter, he might still be tempted to indulge his curiosity merely for the challenge. But since it’d mean ruffling some feathers, he decided it just wasn’t worth it.
If she’d bothered to respond, it might’ve even been cool, for once, to try having a friendship with a chick he knew he wouldn’t ruin when he inevitably got in her pants. But since she didn’t seem interested in even a friendly connection, then he didn’t have to worry about things getting complicated.
Nine could deal with being around her just as he’d been doing. Sure, he’d promised Beast he didn’t have anything to worry about. But he didn’t see the harm in continuing to indulge his ravenous curiosity about her, as long as she’d let him. That’s if he even got the chance to. Her man would eventually be around. No way was Nine hanging out with her if he was around.
Chapter 9
Beast had made it sound like a night out with the guys. A potential opponent was fighting tonight, and it was a pretty big fight. He was an up-and-coming sensation out of Mexico. They’d wanted Beast to fly out to watch the fight live. It’d make for good publicity for him to be seen there taking in his next possible opponent. But of course, the guy refused to go and leave his pregnant wife behind. He also wasn’t gonna take the chance of flying her out with him and something happening while they were out there. The possible opponent was Mexican, but the fight was taking place in Panama.
So one of the trainers had invited Beast down to his place to watch the fight there. Aweless Ayala and Felix Sanchez would also be there, along with a few other trainers Nine wasn’t familiar with. Nine had met both of the other big name fighters several times now, but it never got old to be around such famous fighters and hear all their behind-the-scenes stories.
Beast had said it was early because of the time difference, so they were having a late afternoon BBQ at Gio’s for the fight. He said they’d have a friendly hold ’em tournament after the fight. Of course, Nine was always up for a good game of poker, and he considered himself a pretty good player.
Nine and O drove there in O’s truck. They were the last ones to arrive, and Gio had a full house when they got there. To his surprise, the wives were all there, and so were the kids. Nine had thought it’d be an all-guy thing. They walked into the family room where the giant TV was all set up.
Two little girls zoomed by, screeching and laughing. “Chelsea, is that you making all that noise?”
Freezing at the sound of her voice and then the name she’d called out, Nine turned slowly and glanced into the kitchen where the women were moving about. Sure enough, it was Dee. She had a can of soda in her hand and was chatting with the other women.
She put her soda down and started grabbing things like the others to take outside. Nine couldn’t take his eyes off her now. He watched her as she walked outside with the rest of the women; the same two little girls ran through the kitchen and back outside.
One of the women who walked out with Dee, walked back inside. “Honey, everything’s ready and set up outside.”
Gio stood up. “Guys, feel free to go make yourselves a plate. There’s TVs out there or you can bring it back in here. Fight should be starting soon.”
Nine didn’t give a rat’s ass about the fight now, but he did wonder which of these guys was Brad. He eyed all the ones he’d never seen before carefully. None of them looked the stuffy jet-setting-around-the-country type. Everyone was laidback in jeans or shorts even. He wanted Brad to be and look like an asshole, and most of these guys looked as laidback as the owners of 5th Street. Not only that, they all seemed to get along just fine. Fucking great.
Walking out with O, Nine’s eyes were immediately on Dee. She wore a flirty little baby-blue sundress. It showed off a pair of milky-white bare shoulders—delicate porcelain skin Nine would now have visuals of sprinkling kisses down. He watched as she laughed at something one of the other women said. Could she be more beautiful, damn it?
“Let’s grub,” O said, walking past him toward the counter on the outdoor kitchen where all the food was—the same counter Dee was walking toward.
Nine started walking again, but slowed, feeling every muscle on his body tense as a dude walked up to Dee and said something that made her smile big. Slowing almost to a halt because he suddenly didn’t want to be anywhere near her if this was her man, Nine glanced around and headed to the other side of the counter where there was more food. The guy was only with Dee for a few moments until he’d piled enough food on his plate th
en walked back inside. Dee was then distracted again by the little girl he recognized from the ER that first night.
Taking advantage of the fact that the guy had gone back inside the house, Nine grabbed a plate and approached Dee and her daughter.
“I know, baby, but you have eat dinner before you can have any pie and ice cream, okay?
She looked up from the little girl as her startled eyes met Nine’s. An awkward silent moment filled the air before either of them spoke. “Hey,” she said, smiling a bit nervously. “I didn’t know you were here.”
“Just got here,” he said, swallowing hard because it was happening again.
He was feeling like a sap already—all breathless and shit—and he’d only said one thing to her. But because of this, he had to know. “Was that Brad?”
Her brows furrowed. “Who?”
“That guy who was just here with you.”
She shook her head. “Brad isn’t here. He’s out of town for a few days again.” Before Nine could comment, she quickly added. “He’s in Panama actually, watching the fight in person. He wanted me to come with, but it’s my weekend with Chelsea, and it’s Phoenix’s birthday tomorrow. They’re going to Disneyland, and we always celebrate our birthdays together. So I’m tagging along.”
Nine nodded but decided not to comment on that. They’d established her ex was gay and in love with someone else already. Still, he couldn’t get over what an idiot Brad was. Despite being a boxing fan, if given the choice, Nine so would’ve chosen spending the weekend with Dee and her daughter instead.
Dee handed the plate to her daughter and told her to go sit with other kids at the nearby table and that she’d be over in a few. She grabbed another plate and rolled her eyes. “If I don’t sit with her, she’ll just move her food around but not eat much. She’s a very picky eater.”
“Believe it or not, so was I growing up.” He grabbed a couple of ribs, an ear of corn, and spooned some mashed potatoes and mac and cheese on his plate. “My moms had to come up with all kinds of tricks to get me to eat.” He chuckled as he arbitrarily started back to the kid table where she was headed. “I fell for it every time too. Anyone sitting here?”