“
If I didn’t have so much work, I might not be going straight home tonight.”
That wasn
’t entirely a lie. If she didn’t have so much work to get to, she might’ve stopped to buy more wine to drink at home
alone
. She was getting low, down to less than half a bottle, but she’d let Roni think otherwise.
“
Nellie, I’m just going to go on the record and say I
hate
this. When Noah told me about Abel’s date, I was seriously pissed for you.” Roni hushed her words to a whisper. “Wasn’t he just over at your place a few days ago?”
Nellie clenched her teeth for a second
, not wanting to think about it. “Yes, he was, but I told you, Roni, that I’m okay with this.” She tightened her grip on the wheel then remembered. “And hey, guess who has a date in a couple of weeks and
not
with Abel?”
“
You
do
?” Roni wasn’t whispering anymore. Nellie wasn’t even sure why she had in the first place. It wasn’t as if Noah didn’t know about her and Abel. “With whom?”
“
I told you about Logan, right?”
“
The new guy you said was kind of pushy?”
Nellie rolled her eyes.
“I’m pretty sure I used the word persistent, but, yeah, him. Emily says she thinks he’s hot.” She hoped that throwing that in would excite Roni, because Nellie in all honesty didn’t exactly agree with Emily. Her idea of hot was now synonymous with only one guy. And Logan didn’t even come close in her opinion. “We’re gonna go see Slightly Stoopid at the House of Blues.”
“
You are? I thought you said it was sold out.”
Nellie knew Roni would be a bit disappointed. They had talked about going together. Everybody knew it was their favorite band lately
, but it’d been sold out. “They were. I don’t know how, but he got the tickets. I could ask if he can get more if you want.”
“
No. We’ll go see them together another time. I don’t want to crash in on your date. This is a date, right? You called it that. So that’s different than with Abel.” Nellie could almost picture Roni’s furrowed brows as she paused. “Please tell me this is different than with Abel.”
Nellie attempted to chuckle
, though thoughts of Abel on
his
date tonight made her stomach tighten, and a chuckling mood was the last thing she was in. “It’s different, but don’t get all excited or anything. I work with the guy. I’m not looking to make things uncomfortable for us. So, yes, I called it a date only because we’re going somewhere other than my bed, but don’t expect any engagement announcements or anything. I already told you I’m not ready to get into anything serious with
anyone
.”
After filling Roni
’s inquiring mind a little more about Logan, Nellie was off the phone, and her thoughts were immediately on Abel. Except for small talk and a few questions Abel had asked her about the people in the photos in her home, they rarely spoke of their personal lives. The only times he ever really opened up were to talk about his upcoming fight for the heavyweight title. She’d never dream of asking him about his dates with other women. It was none of her business, and she doubted he’d ever ask her about her dates, but mostly because she now knew she’d rather not know about his.
Deciding ignorance was bliss
, Nellie drove into her garage, determined to not think about something that didn’t matter anyway. Even this wouldn’t ruin the breathtakingly little time Abel gave her. She’d meant it when she told Roni she wasn’t ready for anything serious anyway.
C
hapter 2
Making a quick move toward the front door, Abel walked as quietly as he could.
“
Oh,
you look handsome.”
Damn.
Abel stopped and glanced up at his mother who was looking away from the stove where she was making dinner, while his brother Hector and his girlfriend, Charlee, studied at the kitchen table.
Hector smirked
, knowing Abel’s cover had been blown. “Another
non
-date with Nellie?”
Abel gave him a look but ignored the question
, walking into the kitchen instead of out the door. His mother, on the other hand, as expected, didn’t ignore Hector. “Nellie?” She turned to Hector first then back to Abel with a confused expression. “You’re dating, Nellie,
Mijo
? Roni’s friend?”
“
No, Mom, I’m not dating
anyone
.” He shot Hector another warning look. “I already told you I gotta train. I don’t have time for dating right now.”
His mother was no fool. She threw the dish towel she held over her shoulder and wiped her hands on her apron with a knowing look.
“Then where are you going tonight?”
“
To hang out with a
friend
,” he said, stabbing a fork into one of the pieces of chicken she had simmering in green sauce and blew on it. He held his hand underneath in case it dripped. “But it’s not a date.”
His idiot brother was obviously enjoying this.
“I’m pretty sure that’s what you called it when Noah asked at the gym.”
Abel rolled his eyes
, biting into the chicken on his fork.
“
Ay
, Abel. So just say it. What’s the big deal?” his mom asked as she stirred the beans in the other pot. “Wait, Nellie? Isn’t she Roni’s age?”
Hector laughed. He knew just as well as Abel that their mother had never been t
oo keen about Noah marrying a girl eight years older. It was no surprise this would be the first thing she’d bring up. Both he and his brother knew their mother would have issues with this—issues he wasn’t willing to discuss or get into. It didn’t matter—he wasn’t dating her.
“
It’s not a date, and who said I’m seeing Nellie tonight anyway?” Abel set the fork down, kissed his mom’s forehead, and looked back at his brother. “I told Noah I had a date. I never said with whom.”
His brother gave him a knowing look. Aside from getting together with Nellie in the past few weeks
, Abel had been too caught up in his training and everything else leading up to this fight for a social life, period. Hector knew all too well that Nellie had been Abel’s only escape from all the fight madness in weeks. And since Abel was notoriously private about his personal life, Hector was also the only one who would know this. Even one girl was too much of a distraction for Abel’s anal ass. Juggling more than one at a time like this in his life would be out of the question, so there was no use denying it.
“
Okay, so I’m meeting up with her again, but it’s not a date,” he said as indifferently as he could. “I just said I had a date to Noah to get him off my back. The guy asks too many questions.
“
Yeah, well you know why,” Hector said just as Abel walked up behind him and squeezed his shoulder so hard that Hector leaned over. “Because he’s nosey, that’s all. That’s
all,
” Hector repeated as Abel squeezed harder.
Abel squeezed one last time for good measure. Playful banter or not
, he was not getting into this now. The bottom line was Nellie was
exactly
what he needed right now: someone he could spend time with and release all the pent-up stress that was building up because of this fight, without any demands of commitment. And since Nellie was okay with him squeezing in some release time after his training here and there without asking for more, this was the perfect arrangement. God damn it. He’d never needed to release so much in his life.
Coming off that cruise
, he told himself he’d keep his distance. As long as she was game, he’d go see her once or twice a month—keep things light—but he hadn’t been able to go even a few days before he showed up at her place and they’d gone at it all night.
After that
, he promised himself he’d had his fill and didn’t need to pay another visit for at least another few weeks, and, son of a bitch, he made a detour on his way home just the other night. Now here he was with every intention of seeing her again, only this time he was going to ask her if she wanted to have dinner first. It was beginning to feel a little rude, his showing up just to get his glorious release and then leave while she slept soundly.
Abel had showered and cleaned up at the gym.
Since the bathroom in the pool house behind the house where his mom and brother lived was being remodeled, he’d even taken clothes to change into, all for the sake of avoiding any type of interrogation from his mom. He’d even been willing to endure Noah’s questioning instead. Now, because his dumb ass had forgotten his ATM card in the main house, he’d been caught doing both.
E
ver since Nellie told Roni about what happened on the cruise, Noah had been all over Abel. In the very beginning, Noah had been angry. Abel remembered that first phone call he’d gotten from Noah the night they got back from the cruise. Obviously Nellie had told Roni everything.
“
Are you serious? You’re gonna do this with
Nellie
? Do you know the
shit
I’m gonna have to hear once you wipe your hands of her and move on? Hell, I’m already hearing it.”
Abel thought he
’d silence him when he told him this was
her
idea. But Noah came right back at him.
“
Of course it’s her idea. She’s lonely right now—vulnerable.” Abel was still having fun, listening to his paranoid friend fret until his next comment. “Roni knows her better than anyone, and even though Nellie claims she’s ready to let loose and make up for lost time, Roni’s still worried. She’s not a dude, and most important, she’s never been like that. Jumping from one bed to another and having meaningless sex with one guy after another will have her feeling like shit in no time. I don’t want you,
my
friend, to be caught up in this mess. I’ll never hear the end of it.”
Abel had been short on words
, promising only that he’d keep his distance, only to replay that damn conversation in his head again and again, even as he’d driven to Nellie’s place the very next day. He’d make sure he’d work her out long and
hard
, leaving her so exhausted she couldn’t possibly think about jumping into anyone else’s bed, not for a while anyway. Not that it mattered. It was just a game—a guy thing. It was hard to explain, but the satisfaction he’d felt when he left her sleeping so soundly that she could sleep into next week with no energy to even be thinking about other guys, was damn good. He was enjoying this. That’s all it was.
Tonight
, Noah had started in on him again, when he saw him getting dressed and not in the usual basketball shorts that he typically changed into just to go home in. But Abel had been quick to shut him up by saying that he had a date. Noah knew Abel didn’t refer to his time with Nellie that way. As long as Noah didn’t push, he wouldn’t have to tell him the truth. Thankfully, Noah hadn’t and Abel had left it at that.
He thought the questioning was over
from his mom.
“
Does Nellie cook?” His mother asked as she sipped from a serving spoon.
“
Ma,” Abel had to laugh with Hector now. He grabbed his keys. “It doesn’t matter.”
“
What do you mean it doesn’t matter?”
“
Okay, okay, she cooks, Mom.” He turned to her as he reached the door, bouncing his eyebrows. “She cooks
real good
.”
“
Ay,
cochino
!” His mother threw the dishtowel at him, but it hit the door as he walked out. “Don’t wait up!” he yelled, still laughing as he walked down the concrete stairs.
Abel could hear Hector and Charlee laughing
and then his mom scolding Hector for laughing. He shook his head as he reached his car. Suddenly, all thoughts of his mom and Noah’s questioning were pushed to the back of his mind, and he thought of something more urgent. He needed to stop and buy more condoms—lots more.
~*~
After setting up her laptop on her dining room table, Nellie decided she’d have a glass of wine while she worked. Glad that she had so much work to keep her mind busy and off
other
things, she set her glass of wine on the table. She was about to take a sip when she heard the rumbling of a car engine pull up outside then turn off.
Curious, she stood up and out of her chair. The second she peeked out of her window and saw Abel
’s car in her driveway, she darted off to her bathroom. Her heart was already pounding, and she felt as silly as a school girl, but she couldn’t help it. Luckily, he was sitting in the car still on the phone, so she had a few seconds to freshen up.
Thoughts of his
date
came to mind. Had it fallen through? Was he here for a consolation prize? Is that what she’d now become? “Oh stop!” she said to herself in the mirror as she powdered her nose. “You’re being ridiculous,” she continued to whisper softly. “This is the perfect setup. Who could ask for more? The guy’s body is
unreal
!” Now she pointed at herself menacingly. “Don’t you dare let your feelings get involved and ruin this!”
After rinsing with mouthwash and spraying a little perfume on, she hurried to the front door. He
’d already knocked once.
“
Hey,” she said, trying to tone down the huge smile and not look so ecstatic to see him as she opened the door for him.
“
Hey,” he said with a smile just as big as hers felt then stepped in. Before she could say another word, he pulled her to him. His mouth was on hers instantly, kissing her feverishly.
Nellie fell into his possessive embrace
, feeling every inch of his hard body press up against hers. His mouth continued to devour hers as if he hadn’t kissed her in months. She held onto him tightly, feeling her legs go weak with every stroke of his tongue, which wrapped around hers. When he finally came up for air, he leaned his forehead against hers and smiled. “You busy?”
Taking a deep breath but still unable to even speak
, she shook her head and gulped. His eyes were so dark and full of shine. It had always amazed her how sexy and welcoming his stares could be only to turn into such a contrast when those very same eyes were in the ring, staring down an opponent ominously. They were still sexy as sin either way, but she’d only recently begun to see the smoldering stare—a new one she liked to think he reserved just for her. But she knew better.
Her mind had
wandered off to what he would do to her tonight. The very thought unbelievably had her tingling already.
“
You wanna go to dinner?”
That shot her right out of her thoughts.
“Dinner?”
Abel shrugged
, pulling away a bit, and she had to fight the urge to pull him back to her. “Yeah, I figured I owe you that much.”
Immediately she shook her head
, wondering if Noah or Roni had somehow put him up to this. Maybe Roni had picked up on the dive her mood took over the phone and told Noah to do something about it. “You don’t owe me anything, Abel. We went over this in the beginning, and I’m good with the way things are. I really am. In fact, I’m
great
with this arrangement. It’s for the best this way. No demands, remember?” She really hoped she sounded convincing, because as much as she hated to admit it, she was more than thrilled to know he was here and not out on his
date,
regardless of why. The last thing she wanted was for him to start thinking that she was expecting more and for his visits to cease.
She noticed his eyes going a bit dark
, and he lifted a brow. “Yeah, I remember. I just thought it’d be cool if we went to dinner first.” His jaw clenched for a moment then added. “There’s a place downtown I think you might find interesting.”
Secretly excited that he wanted to do more than
their usual but amazing romps, she lifted a shoulder and tried to appear as indifferent as she could. “I guess. I
had
skipped dinner.” She nodded in the direction of her dining table with her laptop and a still-full single wine glass. “I was just going to do a little work, but now that you mention it, I am a little hungry.”
“
Good.” His lips spread into a sexy smile. “Then let’s go.”
She loosened her hand from his so she could go grab her purse from her bedroom
, but he grabbed her hand back and pulled her to him again, diving into her neck. Feeling his warm tongue lick her neck then suck it made her tingle in the most private of places, and her entire body trembled in response.