Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 118459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 592(@200wpm)___ 474(@250wpm)___ 395(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 592(@200wpm)___ 474(@250wpm)___ 395(@300wpm)
“You’ve finished your charity work today, Hunter. Let’s go,” Jason says.
“My charitable acts . . .” He looks at Jason and busts out laughing, his anger sloshing beneath the surface of his tone. “My charitable acts can include the gift of orgasm, Mrs. Gentry. It’s kind of a coveted thing by women, especially ones passed around. Like you. I’ll leave the invitation open until after the fight. Your tune might change after I kill your boy.”
His eyes shine like a tiger ready to pounce. “And I do mean kill.”
JULIA
My hand shakes, the adrenaline still coursing through me minutes later as I dial Will’s number. Although Hunter is gone, the room still smells like him. His energy is still in here, crawling over my skin. I shiver, waiting on Will to answer.
“Hello?” he asks, sounding distracted.
“Hey, Will. It’s Julia.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I need to talk to you.” I pace the floor from the door to the window, trying to burn off some of the energy I can’t seem to rid myself of.
“Is Ever okay?”
“Yes. Ever’s fine.”
“Okay. What’s up?”
“Will . . . Hunter Davidson just left here.”
“What? He just left where?”
“The hospital. He showed up here with another guy. Jason Someone.”
“What the fuck?”
“I don’t know. They walked in here and gave me a check. It was all so weird.”
He pauses, the line rife with tension. “Did he do anything else? Say anything else?”
I stop pacing. I look out the window and a part of me wishes I could just jump out of it. It would end the drama, the pain, the confusion.
“Yeah, he did. And I don’t know what to say to Crew.”
“What did he say?”
I laugh, my voice crackling with nervous energy. “It wasn’t as much what he said, Will . . .”
“Did he touch you, Jules? Did he do something to Ever?”
“Ever’s fine. She wasn’t in here most of the time . . .”
“Look, I’m going to need you to be really honest with me here. You’re gonna have to tell me what happened so I can help you.”
“I don’t want Crew to do something stupid,” I whisper, my hands starting to shake.
Will exhales, the sound of his breath rippling through the phone. “If Davidson touched you, Crew will go to prison. Fact as fuck.”
I sit on the sofa and bury my head in my free hand. I know Will is right. I can’t blame Crew for wanting to go after him. But I can’t let that happen. Not now.
“He pushed me against a wall, Will,” I blurt out. “He grabbed me . . . you know . . .”
“Imma fucking kill him myself, the stupid motherfucker!”
“Will, stop! Listen to you,” I cry. “I can’t tell Crew this if you are acting this way. I don’t want to lie to him, but what do I do?”
He mutters a string of profanities under his breath, the sound of something slamming against something else bursts through the background. Finally, he says, “We can’t tell him. We can’t. He’ll lose his head and probably shoot the cocksucker.”
“So I lie?”
“No,” he says. “You omit. You can tell him later, after the fight. But if you tell him now, his focus will be gone. Fighting is as much mental as it is physical and if he knows this, he’ll lose the fight even if he manages not to go to prison.”
“But—”
“No buts, Jules. If he gets pissed later, blame it on me. I’m going to the gym now to let Sal know if he hasn’t heard about it already. I’ll break it to Crew that he was there so you don’t have to. But do not tell him the rest.”
“Are you sure?”
“No.” He laughs. I hear a door shut and a car engine start. “But I think this is our only option.”
“Thanks, Will.”
“Thank me later. Pray for me now that Crew doesn’t kill me for being the messenger.”
FIFTY
CREW
I finish my round with Victor in the ring. This is the last time we’ll spar before the fight.
“Hey, man,” he says, sticking his glove out. I knock it with mine. “Good luck this weekend. You’re ready.”
“Thanks,” I say, climbing over the rope. I take my gloves off and toss them on the floor. I search for Sal, who’s strangely missing from the gym. I turn the corner to his office and see him sitting at his desk, Will across from it.
I lean against the doorframe and watch them. I know something’s going on. I see it on their faces. I feel it in my stomach.
Sal glances at Will and nods. He leans back in his chair and rubs his temple.
“What are you doing here?” I ask Will.
“How was training?”
“Shut up and tell me why you’re here.”
He looks to Sal one more time before pulling his phone out of his pocket. “Sal called me in here to talk about some stuff.”