Beyond Promise (5 page)

“I’m all warmed up,” Ayden told him.

“Yep. He’s been in the gym for over an
hour,” I confirmed.

Derek nodded and dropped his bag onto the
ground, fishing out some belt weights. “Let’s get outside before it
starts to rain.”

Ayden gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Whatever you say.” Ayden opened the door
and there stood Brandy and Gabby. They were grinning from ear to
ear and looked suspiciously inside as they eyed Ayden, who was
still shirtless.

“Did we interrupt something? We can come
back later.” Gabby started giggling.

“Very funny,” I hollered over Ayden’s
shoulder. “He’s training. Derek just got here and they’re headed
outside.”

“Sure he was,” Brandy yielded a wry
laugh.

Gabby and Brandy came inside and set their
purses on the entry table. I noticed Brandy’s slight limp had
returned. She hadn’t mentioned anything about her leg recently, but
obviously that didn’t mean anything.

“Like my decorations?” I asked, shoving the
thought aside. I knew Brandy hated when we brought up anything to
do with her accident, and I tried my best to respect her
wishes.

This morning I had decorated the entry table
with mini pumpkins and dried leaves. I was quite impressed with
myself, considering I’d never really been the crafty type of
person.

“It looks lovely,” Gabby said, taking her
purse back off the table. Brandy did the same.

“You didn’t even notice, did you?” I
narrowed my eyes and they both exchanged looks.

“It looks amazing,” Gabby said again.

“And that’s my cue to exit.” Ayden gave me a
wave and a quick hug to his sister, Brandy, before walking outside
with Derek.

“It really does look neat,” Brandy
seconded.

“But?”

“But nothing. It looks amazing.” Gabby
reached over and squeezed my hand.

Brandy bit her lip and looked at the table.
“I think that would be the perfect arrangement for an end table or
somewhere a little smaller. It kind of gets lost on this huge
table.”

I glanced at the long foyer table that
stretched the length of the wall and she had a point. The
distressed wood table was probably five feet long and my
arrangement, maybe, took up six inches of the table.

“I don’t think she needs something that
takes up the whole table,” Gabby countered.

“I didn’t say that, but I didn’t even see it
until she asked about it—”

“And size isn’t everything,” Gabby
interrupted, and then turned bright red as she realized how that
could be misinterpreted. “Okay, size is important sometimes.”

I started laughing, realizing that these two
had already become like sisters, arguing and all, and Brandy hadn’t
even officially walked down the aisle with Aaron yet.

“Alright. I’ve got the perfect addition,” I
said, remembering an embroidered table runner Brandy and Ayden’s
mom had given me. I walked into the dining room and opened the
drawer of the hutch.

“What about this?” I asked, removing the
burnt-orange table runner with embroidered pumpkins and leaves.

“That is perfect,” Gabby agreed.

“I thought you said it already was perfect,”
Brandy laughed and Gabby rolled her eyes.

I walked it over to the table, and we all
worked on the display, placing my arrangement back in the center as
the final touch.

“That does look better,” I announced.

“Yep. Now it says, don’t put your purse
here.” Brandy smiled. “But back to the important stuff. What smells
so delicious?”

“Pot roast. I’m making pot roast.”

“I’m so impressed,” Gabby said, following
Brandy and me into the family room. “Our Lily is cooking
and
decorating.”

“It’s almost like she’s nesting.” Brandy’s
brow arched, and I smiled, not taking the bait. I knew her brother
hadn’t told her, and I was eighty percent certain Mason hadn’t
mentioned it either.

“I’m not a bird.”

“No, you’re not and don’t let anyone tell
you otherwise,” Gabby assured me, and I chuckled. These two were
exactly what I needed to relax. I’d been wound so tightly since the
weekend I needed some comic relief.

“Seriously, though, are you doing okay? I
feel like there’s something beyond the obvious you’re not telling
us.” Brandy took a seat on the couch, and Gabby sat in a wooden
rocker near the fireplace. Ayden and I’d just bought it at an
antique store in town. We both thought it would be perfect for when
the baby came.

“You do seem nervous about something.” Gabby
nodded. “Is it the fight?”

I sat down on the couch next to Brandy and
rested my head on the back cushion.

“Yeah.” I looked at Gabby. “Has Jason told
you anything about it?”

Gabby shook her head. “Nothing more than the
usual.”

“I wouldn’t be mad if he did…”

Gabby’s brows furrowed in confusion as she
slowly rocked in the chair, and I realized she actually didn’t
know. Jason hadn’t told her the details.

I let out a sigh and turned my head back and
forth. “Turns out Ayden’s last fight is against someone who is also
undefeated in the circuit he fights in.”

“He’s gone against other undefeated
fighters,” Brandy said, resting her hand on my knee in reassurance.
She wasn’t thrilled about her brother fighting either.

If only that was where it ended.

“True.” I sucked my lip in and blew out air,
trying to keep the worry at bay.

“So that’s not all of it, is it?” Brandy
prodded.

“Ayden is about to step into the ring
against a fighter who killed his last opponent.”

Brandy and Gabby gasped before their
expressions turned to horror. Gabby’s gaze fell to my belly and she
shook her head. “Why is he still doing it?”

“He’s gotta bail. You’ve got to make him
throw in the towel,” Brandy almost whispered. “If our parents found
out…”

I shook my head. “I could never ask him to
do that.”

“It’s not a question about what you want.
It’s about safety and Ayden’s life. This is ridiculous.” Gabby
stopped rocking. “Why in the world would he do this when you guys
are…” She didn’t continue.

“Is it the money?” Brandy asked, but she
knew her brother better than anyone. It had nothing to do with
money.

“Not at all. Granted, he’d lose a lot… More
than any other fight they’d promoted and managed, but that’s not
it. His company’s sales are skyrocketing, and besides the money
he’s already put away, I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if one of the
big companies didn’t try to buy him out soon. So no. If it was
about money, it would be easy to get him to stop. With Ayden it’s
all about pride and proving to himself he’s the best.”

“But he’s already proven that time and
again.” Brandy looked unnerved, exactly how I felt. “I can’t
believe he’d do this to you. To me. To our parents.”

I let out a deep breath and looked around
the room. The usually cozy place felt completely chilling as the
thought of Ayden losing forced its way into my mind. I’d been
keeping positive, but when I saw the fear I was feeling reflected
on my best friends’ faces, it forced me to deal with the
alternative. What if Ayden was never here to enjoy this room, this
house, with me again? No. That wasn’t how it worked. Ayden won
every match he’d ever entered.

“I’m not trying to cause a problem between
you two,” Brandy began. “But it only takes one second for a
person’s life to be changed forever. I know firsthand…” She chewed
on her cheek for a few seconds before continuing. “There isn’t a
day I don’t wake up with pain. And there are some days that I want
nothing more than to crawl under the covers and sleep my aches
away. But I wouldn’t do anything different. I thank the heavens
above I’m here to be with my friends and family, no matter how much
it hurts. But I can’t understand throwing yourself in front of a
speeding train. I don’t understand my brother’s line of reasoning.
Maybe I shouldn’t have been so private about my suffering. I’ve
never wanted to burden him or Mason. It’s bad enough Aaron has to
listen to me.”

My gaze connected with Brandy’s and my heart
ached for her. I didn’t know she was in pain every day. If I could
personally meet the man who did that to her, I didn’t even know
what I would do to him. And I also understood what she was saying
about Ayden’s desire to step into the ring.

“Aaron loves you so much, Brandy. We all do
and you’re never a burden. We all want to be here for you. And I do
think you should tell your brothers about how you’re doing.”

“It’s not about me right now.” Brandy shook
her hands. “It’s about my brother who’s being absolutely
pig-headed. Life isn’t only about him any longer.”

“What if this isn’t his last fight?” Gabby
asked.

“He promised it would be,” I said
softly.

“Sometimes promises change,” Gabby replied.
“Would you allow him to fight after this one?”

“It’s not a question of me allowing him to
do anything. That’s not how our relationship works. I’d be
horrified if he told me I could or couldn’t do something.”

Brandy smiled and nodded. “It’s true, Gabby,
she’d have a complete tantrum and I’ve seen it firsthand with Ayden
growing up. They’re two peas in a pod.”

“I suppose.” Gabby eyed me and then turned
her attention to outside where Ayden and Derek were training. For
someone who hadn’t seen it before it might look somewhat
strange.

“Why in the world is Ayden twirling around
by that tree?” Gabby questioned.

Brandy craned her neck to get a better
view.

“Oh my word. He really is twirling. He just
needs a tutu.” Brandy smiled wickedly. “If only I had my
phone.”

“The exercise is for balance. If he gets
knocked around, he still needs to be able to throw a punch at his
opponent. No matter how dizzy he gets, he needs to be able to
focus. Keep watching and you’ll see.”

I kept my eyes steadied on Ayden. Derek
grabbed Ayden’s shoulders, stopping him in place, and held up a
target, waiting for Ayden to throw a punch. Within seconds, Ayden’s
knuckles landed directly in the middle of the target, pushing Derek
backward and my body filled with relief. He was going to win this
fight.

“I had no idea there was such an exercise,”
Brandy said.

Ayden’s smile was filled with
accomplishment, and I knew I wasn’t going to be the one to ask him
to wave the flag of surrender. Derek handed him two huge ball
weights, and I watched him grip them tightly and curl his arms
up.

“What’s he doing now?” Gabby asked.

“He’s holding his arms up by his face to
strengthen them so they don’t get fatigued during the fight when
he’s blocking punches. Arm fatigue is a huge thing in fighting so
they’re always working on ways to keep his endurance up.” A couple
minutes of silence passed as we watched Ayden’s expression
intensify as the burn radiated down his arms and shoulders, but
behind his stare sat fortitude and grit.

“You’re right. There’s no way of talking him
out of it,” Brandy said quietly. She turned on the couch and her
eyes fastened on mine. “As your almost sister and someone who loves
you and my brother very much, I have to ask this. I want you to be
protected no matter what.”

My heart hammered inside my chest as her
gaze studied mine. There was a coldness resting behind her eyes,
and I understood completely what she was about to ask, and it took
everything I had not to burst into tears as she and I faced the
facts about what her brother—my fiancé—was about to do in less than
a week.

“Has he prepared his will? If not, I can
help you both with getting everything in order if he hasn’t done
that recently. You need to be protected.”

“That’s how Brandy is. Straight to the point
and practical. Always very practical,” Gabby assured me.

“I know, and I’ve always appreciated that
about her. But hearing her talk about Ayden’s affairs so
matter-of-factly was startling. It made this all seem too
real.”

We were sitting on a bench in the middle of
Discovery Park in Seattle, overlooking Puget Sound. The late
afternoon weather teetered between chilly and refreshing as the
meadow grass trembled in the wind, and the red and gold leaves
clutched the limbs of the maples that dotted the trail alongside of
us. We were two days away from the fight, and every hour ticked by
at an excruciatingly slow pace. To pass the time, I hitched a ride
with Gabby to the park. She had a wedding cake to drop off near
here, and Ayden planned on swinging by later to pick me up. I’d
gotten all my work done at the office in record time this morning
and needed a mental break. It was hard to focus on anything other
than Ayden stepping into the ring.

“It’s too real. That’s the problem. I
understand where you’re coming from, and why you don’t want to tell
him not to fight, but sometimes we know better.”