Total pages in book: 31
Estimated words: 29494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 147(@200wpm)___ 118(@250wpm)___ 98(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 29494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 147(@200wpm)___ 118(@250wpm)___ 98(@300wpm)
He squares off with the other man. I wring my fingers together. I don’t think it will ever get easier watching him fight; thank God he’s good at it, and I know he can take a few hits like it’s nothing.
I watch as he ducks a few swings before finally taking one of his own. I cringe when his fist makes contact with the side of the man's jaw. His opponent falls over. The crowd roars!
It doesn’t take much longer until he’s back on me, lifting me off my feet so I’m now towering over him. "All right, now tell me,” he shouts over the screams and cheers.
I press my hands to his cheeks and lean down. “You won.” I return the same smirk he always gives me. “Daddy.”
“Josie?” I can see the happiness shine in his eyes. I know he wants this, too. We may use it as dirty talk in the bedroom sometimes, but it is still true. I nod. He pulls me in for a kiss.
Both our childhoods were rough, but we’ve come a long way. Us both finding our way to our dreams. Those dreams came together to make one knockout perfect life together.
Epilogue
MICK
Years Later
“You’re spoiling me,” Josie says as the saleslady leads us behind a large semi-hidden wood door into a private lounge area that is almost larger than the main sales floor.
“That’s the idea.” I grin. We take a seat on the signature orange sofa. Another staff member appears and presents us with sparkling water and flutes of champagne. The beverages are followed by plates of fresh cut fruit, delicately crafted desserts, and small sandwiches no bigger than my finger.
The sales associate in charge takes one look at the sandwich plate and shakes her head violently. Shortly after, another tray appears, and this time the sandwiches are full-sized.
Josie bursts out laughing. “They took one look at you and said, this man isn’t going to buy a thing if we only feed him Hobbit-sized food.”
“They’re not wrong.” I pick up a roast beef sandwich and eat half of it in one bite. The thing about these fancy stores is that they know good food. I never turn down free stuff either because I know it’s just tacked on to my bill in one form or another.
In my ten years of boxing around the world, there’s no place more luxurious than Monaco. The streets always seem newly paved, the cars freshly washed, and the people are all dressed up for the parties that are hosted nightly.
Casinos are the main source of income, and the highest of high rollers place bets in the millions on the felt-topped tables. I had my biggest payouts in Monaco, so it seems right to be giving some of that back in the plush private shopping rooms of its nicest stores.
After the parade of food and drinks, our sales associate appears with a clap of her gloved hands. “Josie and Mick, so good to see you. It’s been a while.”
“A couple of years.” Josie nods.
“You won the Grand National Championship,” Polly remembers. “But now you’ve retired.”
“It’s a sport for the young men.” I was in it for ten years, won every belt imaginable, and padded my bank account with more zeros than I thought was possible. Along the way, Josie gave birth to four kids, started a business of providing esports training to underprivileged kids, and we now are part-owners of a world champion esports team. It’s a good life. Way better than I ever imagined for myself even a decade ago.
“It’s good to see you both so healthy. I have a few particular goods I set aside when I heard you were coming. May I show them to you?”
Eight purchases later, we’re out the door and on to our next appointment.
“I don’t think I needed four new handbags.”
“You couldn’t decide between the light pink and the dark pink, so why not both?”
“Seems extravagant.” She toes off her shoes and wiggles her toes around. I pull them onto my lap and give her a massage.
“They’re already made, so someone has to buy them. Seems like you’re as good of an owner as anyone. Besides, we have three girls. You’re like buying for four people.”
“I suppose that’s one way of looking at it.” She strokes the pink purse we just bought. “This is lovely.”
“Because you’re its owner. It looks better next to you than in the box.”
“You’re pretty good at this husband thing.”
“It’s the ten years’ experience.” I wink at her.
After another private room and more snacks—the sandwiches were better at the clothes place—we move on to my favorite: the jewelry store. I love buying the glittery stuff. I love seeing Josie wear it. It’s a flashy, noisy sign of both my success and my claim on her. The wedding ring I bought her after my first title is ten carats. The matching earrings and necklace came a year later. Tonight, I’m going to make love to her while she’s wearing whatever ostentatious piece we are buying because she never looks more beautiful than when she’s naked with nothing but a giant pretty jewel dangling between her lush tits.