Page 67 of Crash
He planted a kiss on my forehead and bounded off across the floor to where the younger fighter was waiting amongst the weight machines. With a shake of my head, I ventured into the kitchen in search of my morning staple—coffee of the blackest variety.
As I wandered into the room, I wasn’t bothered in the slightest to find Bobby dancing around to the radio while poking at something he was cooking in a big pot on the stove. When he saw me standing by the coffee machine, he grinned.
“Sup, Violet?”
I grunted, pointing to the coffee machine, and he shook his head with a chuckle.
“You and Linc, huh?” he asked with a wink.
“Yeah.”
“Hallelujah, the stars have aligned!” he exclaimed, doing a little dance on the spot.
I gave him a look. “What do you mean?”
“You didn’t think I couldn’t see you two looking at each other all moon-eyed? It’s about time that happened, doll.”
I titled my head to the side. “Doll?”
“Pretty doll,” he declared.
“Hands off, Bobby.”
I turned to find Lincoln walking into the kitchen. Usually, this would be the point I turned into a beetroot and looked at my feet, but I just smiled and watched him saunter over to where I stood.
“I forgot to ask if you wanted to get lunch today?” he asked as my mug finished filling.
“Sure,” I replied. “In all the excitement, I forgot to bring mine.”
He shifted closer. “Excitement, huh?”
“You betchya.”
Grabbing my coffee, I walked with him out into the gym, and my aching thighs began to give me an idea…and an excuse to spend as much time as I could with him.
“Do you think you could teach me a thing or two?” I asked, pointing to the gym.
He cocked his head to the side, surprised at my interest. “You wanna—”
“Not here,” I said, glancing at the early morning class that was currently going through drills on the mats. “I’m too…” I shrugged.
“Self-conscious?”
“Did you have to say it?” I asked, rolling my eyes.
“We can train anywhere you like.” His eyes were sparkling like he’d just won the fucking lotto, and I was suddenly really glad I’d brought it up.
“We have a gym at the house,” I said. “When Ash was,you know, he trained there.”
He raised his eyebrows. “So, I assume because it’s your brother, the thing is fully kitted out?”
I nodded, and his eyes darkened at the thought of getting sweaty together. He wasn’t the only one.
“Well then, I’m sure I’ll be able to show you a thing or two, Vee.”
“Really?” I asked coyly.
“Fucking oath.”
