Stacked Up: Worth the Fight Series (7 page)

Yet he’d gone and thrown those same words right back at her. He felt like the worst kind of asshole for saying those things to her.

He asked the nurse if there was any news, but the nurse said that Enzo and JL were still asleep. He sent Enzo a quick text letting him know he’d be back in an hour and asking him to keep him posted about any changes. Then he did the one thing that always seem to quiet the nervous energy flowing in his veins—he went to the Academy.

He was one of the only people who had a key, and he came and went at all kinds of odd hours, but still, it was unusual to see the Academy completely empty. This morning, though, everyone else was either still sleeping or heading to the hospital to check up on Enzo and JL. He didn’t even hesitate—he went straight to the speed bag. He didn’t even bother taping up, but just started pounding. The thing with the speed bag was that you had to have a certain rhythm:
one-one-two-three,
one-one-two-three.
His mind couldn’t reel if he was counting. He closed his mind and focused:
one-one-two-three, one-one-two-three.
The musky, sweaty smell of the gym reminded him of home, because this place was more his home than the trailer he’d grown up in with his shitty mother. He didn’t even bother turning on the state-of-the-art music system; he focused all his attention on the noise of the spring bouncing and the feel of his knuckles hitting the leather.

Finally, when the sweat began to fall into his eyes, his arms were burning, and his knuckles stung, he stopped. He glanced at his phone for the time, and when he didn’t see any calls or texts from Enzo, he hopped on the treadmill and began to run.

His upcoming fight was going to be the biggest of his life, but he knew that there was no way his opponent trained more than he did. Travis practically lived in the Academy, and when he wasn’t here, he was running, jumping rope, or doing laps in his pool. He was in the best shape of his life, and he was fierce with determination.

His phone buzzed with an incoming text. He stopped the treadmill and read Enzo’s incoming text:
They are going to start prepping her for a C-section soon.

He dialed Enzo, because he wanted more information, but it went straight to voicemail. He jogged to the locker room, splashed water on his face, wiped away as much of the sweat as possible, changed into some clean clothes he kept there, and then was on his way back to the hospital.

Never having been particularly fond of kids, Travis was more nervous about his sister’s health than about the fact that he would soon meet the newest members of the family. He’d never doubted that his sister would have babies, and genetically speaking, the fact that she was having twins wasn’t exactly a shock either.

He was already back in the waiting room pacing when he saw, from the corner of his eye, his friends step out of the elevator, but he didn’t want to talk to anyone right now. He was in a weird state at the moment.

Quietly he slipped out of the waiting room and went off to look for a vending machine. Usually he was the loudest and most talkative of the bunch, but right now he needed quiet…and food. Food always helped. He must’ve really been worried, because he hadn’t even noticed Penny come up to him as he slid a dollar into the machine.

“Good morning,” she said in that soft voice he’d recognize anywhere.

“Hey.”

“How’s your sister?”

“Enzo said that they’ll be prepping her for a C-section soon,” he responded without looking back. When the bag of cookies fell down, he reached into the machine to grab it. “And you? Any update on the news? On your stepdad?” he said, finally turning around to meet her warm brown eyes.

“I don’t know. I don’t have Internet at home, and you’ve seen my phone.” She looked at him, her eyes lacking the gleam that he’d gotten a glimpse of on occasion. It was as if the light had been turned off. He didn’t like that blank look. It screamed of hopelessness.

“Are you okay?” she asked, worried about
him
when she looked so lost herself. “You don’t
look
okay.”

He shrugged as he stuffed a cookie into his mouth. “Two butterballs are about to come barreling out of my sister’s, uh…” He winced and pointed to Penny’s nether regions. “That’s gotta hurt,” he said with a genuine look of concern. “I don’t like knowin’ my sister’s about to be in pain. Or worse, in surgery.”

She didn’t say anything for a moment. That was her way. She was quiet and introspective. “So you’re scared,” she finally remarked.

“Nervous,” he quickly corrected her.

“You’re a good brother,” Penny assured him. “Don’t worry. I know she’ll be fine. I’ve been praying and—”

“And what? Praying solves everything for you? Doesn’t look like it’s been doing you a helluva lot of good. No offense or anything,” he added.

Almost as soon as he said it, he saw the hurt in her eyes and regretted it. She physically flinched at his words. She pivoted around to walk away, but he grabbed her by the arm. “Wait, Pen—”

“Travis!” Violet yelled from the lobby, interrupting him.

As soon as he ran back, he saw a tearstained Enzo wearing a loopy grin that looked somewhere between terrified and ecstatic. Quickly he led the group upstairs to JL’s room, where she was holding two tiny babies.

“Guys, meet Heather and Trip Silva,” Enzo croaked, his voice thick with emotion. Everyone fawned over the tiny babies. “Even though they’re a little early, they’re healthy and big enough that they don’t need to be in the NICU.”

Violet nudged Travis forward, and hesitantly he approached his sister and the babies. “I can’t believe I have a niece and a nephew,” Travis said, his eyes smarting. “Are you sure they’re okay? They’re so tiny.”

“Five pounds nine ounces and six pounds. They’re perfectly fine,” JL said.

Travis stood close and looked at the most beautiful babies he’d ever seen. Well, really, the only babies he’d ever seen up close.

JL carefully handed Heather to the nurse, who placed her in a small rolling bassinet, and then gave her little Trip, who went into another bassinet. “I have to get them all checked and then Mom and Dad can see them again,” the nurse said. Enzo looked hesitant to let them go, but finally relented. Everyone except Travis left, too, wanting to give the new parents a little privacy.

“So, JL, how you doin’?” Travis asked, sitting on the edge of her bed.

She smiled wearily. “I’m fine.”

Enzo broke in. “I am in awe of your sister. She did so well. I’m a little concerned that the first words the twins heard were a very colorful combination of curse words, but other than that, everything went okay.”

Travis promised his sister and Enzo he’d be back after JL had had a chance to rest a little, and then he went outside to the hallway, where he leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. His head was spinning. Ten minutes ago he hadn’t thought he liked kids. Now, well…it wasn’t like he wanted kids, but meeting those tiny little people who were related to him—the only other blood relatives he had, aside from JL—got him all choked up. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He felt a small, warm hand on his biceps. “They’re beautiful, Travis. Congratulations,” Penny said.

He took a deep breath before opening his eyes and turning to face her. “Penny, again, I’m sorry I was a dick earlier. I don’t know what’s gotten into me. I’m not usually so short-fused. It’s the stress of…well, everything. But that’s not an excuse. I’m not used to religious people, and I got defensive or uncomfortable—I’m not even sure which.”

“It’s fine. I understand. I’m not judging you. I know that praying doesn’t resolve everything, but I like to think that putting my faith in something greater helps me get through tough times.” She looked down at the mint green vinyl tile. “I know you’re mad at me, Travis. I get that and I am sorry, truly. I don’t regret sleeping with you; aside from Belle’s birth, it was probably the best night of my life. I do, however, regret that I hurt you. I didn’t think you liked me enough that my omission would’ve hurt you, but I see that it did. And, again, truly, I’m sorry.” Having said her piece, she gave him a smile. Together they went back downstairs to join their friends.

When they reentered the waiting room, Penny borrowed Violet’s phone. After a few scrolls, she handed it back to Violet.

“Did you find anything new?” he asked, guessing that she’d been checking online with Violet’s phone.

“No. Maybe you were right and it’ll all be okay,” she said.

“Is JL sleeping now?” Violet asked.

“She said she was going to try to rest,” Travis reported. “But I had to get out of there,” he joked. “She gave me way too much information about what had to be sewn up down there.”

As he was speaking, he saw Penny slip out of the room and head toward the elevators.

Even though none of this was his fault, he still felt terrible about it. He caught up to her and joined her in the elevator just as the doors closed.

“So, where’s the kid?” he asked as they descended.

“Belle’s with my neighbor. She watches her when I work.”

“I’ll drop you off at your house.”

She began to fiddle with the pearls around her neck as she stepped out of the elevator. “I think I’m just going to take the bus.”

“Penny, get in my truck. I’m too tired to argue,” he said wearily.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure,” he said. “Come on.”

After Travis dropped her off, Penny went over to her neighbor’s to pick up Belle.

“Hello there, dear.” The elderly woman opened the door wide. “Go on back and get her. She’s playing with that teddy bear she loves.”

Penny walked back and paused to watch Belle playing with the old bear. It hurt so much that she had to spend so much time working and away from her daughter. Now that she had a better work situation and would have more time, she’d make sure to go more often to the park with Belle.

Just then Belle saw her and held out her arms. With a smile, Penny went to pick her up and give her a cuddle.

“Did you hear that Jamie Lynn had the babies last night?” Penny asked as she grabbed Sarabelle’s belongings.

“Sure did,” Ms. Hannigan answered. “Lidia’s husband knows the janitor at St. Joseph’s, and he called him, and then Lidia called me.”

Penny chuckled. “Small-town life, huh?”

“Sure is. Also heard you got yourself a new job.”

“I did. So many things happened last night I completely forgot to mention it. I’m so excited. Less hours, more money.”

“That’s wonderful, dear. But you know I don’t mind watching your precious little angel.”

“I know. And there’s no way I can ever repay you for that. Still, it’ll be good to spend more time with her.”

“It certainly will,” Ms. Hannigan said as she leaned down and kissed Sarabelle’s forehead.

“You want to go to the park, Belle?” Penny asked.

“Pak. Pak,” Belle squealed.

“I guess we’re going to the park. Again, thank you so much for watching her.” Penny leaned in and kissed the woman on the cheek. “Maybe
I
can make
you
dinner for once. How about it? Six at my apartment?”

“If you’re sure…”

“Definitely.”

“Well, then I’ll see you later. Bye, dear.”

Penny had the most relaxing day she’d had since moving to Tarpon Springs. She and Belle took the bus to a hidden little park she’d seen one day, around the corner from the beach, and on the way home Penny picked up some groceries. Afterward, while Belle took her afternoon nap, Penny cleaned her apartment from top to bottom and then made arrangements with Joe to go in the next day for a few hours to train with Olivia, another bartender. Then she’d made a chicken potpie and ate with Ms. Hannigan. The older woman reminded her of her paternal grandmother—she was kindhearted and pleasant to be around. Penny knew that Ms. Hannigan’s husband had died two years ago, and about a month before Penny arrived in Tarpon Springs her dog had died too. She’d been lonely all by herself in her tiny apartment, and spending time with Belle brought her joy.

They talked and laughed as they watched Belle stand, try to take a step, and fall down. They also made plans for her to watch Belle the next evening while Penny trained at Ruby’s.

After dinner Penny was exhausted—and happy that she had only thought of Travis a few dozen times that day.

Growing up, she had been taught that casual sex was a sin. With Lawrence she had thought she was in love, so when they had finally had sex, she hadn’t felt guilt—she’d thought he was the man she was going to eventually marry. She quickly learned her affection was one-sided, and any feelings she may have had for him quickly morphed into sadness and then anger.

With Travis, there wasn’t love, but there had been such deep-seated desire and need in both of them that she also hadn’t felt guilt. How could something that felt so good be bad? Since leaving Oklahoma she’d begun to question a lot of the beliefs that she’d thought had made her who she was.

It was midnight by the time Penny finally took out her contacts, tied her hair back into a ponytail, and washed her face. She was just heading out of the bathroom when a sudden loud knocking at her door startled her. Looking over her shoulder to see that Belle hadn’t awakened, she quickly threw on a long T-shirt, the one she slept in, and ran to the door.

She looked through the peephole and was shocked to see Lawrence standing there. Leaving the chain on, she opened the door just enough to say, “Lawrence? What are you doing here?”

“Can I come in?” He looked haggard and tired.

“No.”

“Let me in, Penelope. We need to talk.” Lawrence was normally an even-keeled kind of person. She blew out a breath before shutting the door, unlocking it, and then letting him in.

“You’ve made such a mess of things,” he sighed, running his hands through his hair, not bothering to even say hello.

“I’ve done no such thing. Plus, it’s none of your business what I do,” she said, her hands on her hips.

He turned and looked at her for the first time in almost two years. “Wow. You look so different.”

“I’m an adult now.”

He tipped his head to the side. “You were an adult then too.”

“Barely,” she replied. “What is it that you want, Lawrence?”

“Your stepfather asked me to come get you and bring you back home. We need to make it look like I’ve been around the entire time. A big happy family living in Florida.”

“What about your wife?” Penny asked incredulously.

“My wife left me and took everything. Turns out she was having an affair.”

“Can’t say I feel bad for you. Either of you, actually,” Penny said. “And the photos? Me kissing another man?”

“You strayed. I have forgiven you,” he replied matter-of-factly.

“And then what? You and I live together like a big happy family? Because that’s not going to happen, Lawrence.”

“You think I want that to happen? I don’t want this. Any of it. That’s why I paid you off and told you to stay away.”

“And I did. Now it’s your turn to stay away. You’re a grown man. You don’t have to do what Kip Owens says. I’m certainly not going to.”

The man blew out a big breath and sat heavily on the couch. “You are. You’re going to do exactly what Kip says. So am I.”

“Yeah? And why’s that?”

“Kip promised me money, and I need it. Most of it is going to pay for my divorce. But he won’t give it to me unless I bring you home with me and go through this ruse with you.”

“What? No. Absolutely not! Your problem has nothing to do with me.”

“I need the money, Penny,” he repeated. “And you need to leave here and come back with me, because Kip won’t stop. I’m not trying to be the bad guy here. I screwed up. I know I was wrong, but now I’m in a bind, and so are you. We can help each other out. It’s not forever—once the media interest dies down, we can go our separate ways.”

“I said no. I’m not going back to Oklahoma. I’m sorry you’re in a bind, but that is not my problem. Not at all.”

Lawrence leaned forward and took a frame in his hands. It was a photo of Belle and Penny at the park. “Is this her?”

Penny snatched the frame from his hand.

“You need to go, Lawrence.”

“Can I see her?”

“No!” she said harshly, at the same time as there came a pounding on the door.

It was the middle of the night, for goodness’ sake, and now for the second time in just a few minutes someone was banging on her door. Penny went to the door, looked through the peephole, and saw Jack, a local police officer and a good friend of Travis’s, on the other side.

She quickly opened the door. “Jack? Is everything okay?”

“I should ask you the same thing.” He looked over her shoulder toward Lawrence. “Your neighbor called about loud banging coming from next door.” As he said that, Ms. Hannigan opened her door.

“Are you okay, my dear?”

“Oh, Ms. Hannigan, I’m sorry if Lawrence woke you up. I’m fine. It’s fine. I’ll explain tomorrow,” Penny said, then turned to Jack. “I’m sorry you came all the way over here for this, Jack.”

“Ms. Hannigan said you’ve never had a single visitor here in over a year.” Then he looked at his watch. “It’s the middle of the night. You sure you’re okay?”

“Yes. I’m fine. Lawrence was just leaving. Weren’t you, Lawrence?”

Lawrence stood and nodded. “I don’t want to be the bad guy, Penny. You’re making me be the bad guy.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You seem to have forgotten one thing: she’s still my daughter,” he declared as he walked out, followed close behind by Jack. “So yes, my problems are now your problems.”

She’s still my daughter.
The words echoed in Penny’s head.

“Travis! Travis!” a small-town newspaper reporter called out to him as he walked toward the Academy the next morning. Travis stopped and turned to her. “Can you tell me a little about your training? Hank Lemmon, your opponent, told me he’s been training feverishly. And the consensus is that he’s the favorite in the match.”

This reporter was one that he already knew. She wore a tight-fitting suit, a silk shirt, and a simple pearl necklace with matching earrings. Admittedly, he’d never paid attention to details such as jewelry, but after seeing how Penny’s fingers fumbled with her pearl necklace when she was nervous, he couldn’t help but notice that type of necklace on other women. Except with Penny, it was all class. She may have been just a bartender, but Penny’s outfits screamed class through and through.

The woman sauntered toward him with her sky-high heels and perfect smile. “You got a statement?”

“Rosie, honey, I ain’t stupid. I know you’re trying to goad me. There’s no way Lemmon said shit to you.” It was true—his opponent was known to be a recluse.

She leaned casually against the wall and pouted as she flirtatiously picked a piece of lint off his shirt. “Okay, maybe he didn’t. But come on, can’t you give me something? Tell me about the rumors regarding
Sports Central,
then. Did the magazine offer you the cover?”

He hated when women behaved like that—it was manipulative and fake and drove him mad. There had been rumors about the cover, and his agent had apparently been made aware, but nothing concrete had come of it yet. Even so, this was not something he was going to share with Rosie.

Sensing his attitude, she shifted her tactics. “My boss is breathing down my neck,” she pleaded. “This is a small town. Not a lot going on, and now y’all are being followed by a bunch of cameras from a major cable network. Come on, I need to get in on this before you guys blow up and don’t have time for lil’ ol’ me anymore.”

He blew out a heavy breath. “Okay, listen. We’ve all been training hard, and there’s really not much else to say. You guys will have to watch the special, which will be airing next week. And as for the cover of
Sports Central,
that’s just a rumor as far as I’m concerned.”

“Can you tell me about Penelope Richards?” she blurted out.

That stopped him in his tracks.

“Excuse me?”

She laughed. “Come on, you know what sells these shows. Some people care about all your training and skills. But the women mostly tune in to see all the shirtless muscle men. And add to that some sort of romantic scandal with a famous girl who’s been off the grid for a year…well, you’ll be famous. It’s salacious! Did you know who she was this entire time? Did she run away to come be with you?” She reached out to tap the brim of his hat, but he pushed her hand away.

He opened his mouth to comment, but quickly closed it. He wasn’t sure what the correct answer was right now, or how what he said might damage Penny. He was also surprised to hear that people already knew her story.

“See you around, sugar.” He walked into the Academy.

Half of Worth the Fight Academy stood by the front desk chatting when he walked in. “I saw you with Rosie,” Slade said. “She’s been hanging around trying to get us to talk all morning.”

“What did she ask you?” Travis inquired as he sat on a nearby bench and began to wrap his wrists and fingers.

“If we knew about your relationship with Penny. Also if I was single. They’re just looking for the juicy story. Scandalize this up somehow.”

Slade took Travis’s hands in his and finished wrapping them up for him. “When we agreed to do the show, Tony made sure that the producers would be focusing on the Academy and the training. We want to bring big names in to train at WtF, plus get people invested enough in us to buy the pay-per-view fight in a few months, once the show is over.” Slade opened up the boxing gloves so that Travis could slip them on and then tightened them. This was a routine that happened every single morning when he walked into the Academy, but today, Slade tightened them way more than necessary. “I don’t want this place turning into
Jersey Shore,
got me? This isn’t about money and pussy, Texas. Keep it in check and focus on training. Understand?”

“I didn’t tell her shit. I’m here at seven in the fucking morning to train, just like I’ve been doing for the last year.”

“Fame will fuck you up. Focus on the fight,” Tony, who had been loitering around and prepping the other fighters, said with a smirk. He pointed a finger in Travis’s face, and Travis quickly swiped it away.

“Come on, everyone wants a little fame,” Travis admitted. “But they’re not interested in me because of Penny.”

“Well, they certainly aren’t interested in you because of your fighting talent,” Tony teased. “Maybe it’s because of how big—or in your case small—your dick is.”

“You’ve been lookin’ at my dick, boss?”

“No, just assumed, because of the lack of women.”

“Ha ha.”

With the teasing out of the way, it was time to train, which is what Travis lived for. Some men went to fancy gyms and trained with expensive trainers. Travis didn’t care about any of that. He had a different fire within him, a different drive. He’d been fighting his whole life—he lived and breathed it. His drunk mother had never paid much attention to him, and he’d been on his own for as long as he could remember. He’d learned to fight in the streets. He’d started getting into trouble way too young, but what no one knew at the time was that he wasn’t fighting just to fight. He wasn’t an angry kid; he was a hungry kid. He began fighting for money, which he used to buy food for JL and himself. It hadn’t been much, but at least they hadn’t starved. When he wasn’t fighting in the ring as a kid, he was out hustling in the streets, which inevitably led to more fighting.

He was ashamed of some of the things he’d done. But another thing he’d learned was there was no use in looking back. He’d done what he had to do back then; he’d done other things that he probably hadn’t needed to do, but he’d been too stupid and young to know better. And it had been nearly eight years since he’d been in any real trouble.