Page 78 of The Baby-whisperer and the Brute
It was like a horrific crash on the side of the road—you didn’twantto see the mangled mess but could hardly keep your eyes from straying there.
Both boxers seemed to be having a hard time staying on their feet, but neither would give in. They hung on each other in between jabs, sweating profusely, breathing heavily, two battered titans locked in an epic battle for survival.
Toward the end of the round, each of them seemed to get a final surge of energy.
Sully rallied with a hard left and right combination to Diggs’ face. I hoped it would be enough to knock the guy out or at least take the last of the fight out of him, but Diggs volleyed with a series of rapid punches to Sully’s left rib cage.
He cried out so loudly the television mics picked up the sound. His ribs had to be broken. Tears sprang to my eyes for the hundredth time tonight. I felt like I’d been punched myself—I literally couldn’t take anymore.
Sliding off my barstool, I started to leave when the final bell rang, signaling the end of the fight.
“It’s going to be a split decision,” the guy next to me said to his friend.
The bartender nodded in agreement, adding, “I love the guy, but I think Sully lost it this time. You never know with a judge’s decision though. If it’s close, they’ll usually call it in favor of the champ.”
The bartender was right. After a few minutes of conferring, the official winner of the fight was announced. It was Sully.
He was clearly too tired to celebrate, but he stood in the center of the ring while the referee raised his right glove high.
And then Sully collapsed.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
In Sickness or Health
Angelina
Racing back to the mansion, I turned on the TV in the family room, frantic for new information.
Calling Sully’s phone was useless of course. My own phone rang, and I was about to let it go to voicemail when I saw Cinda’s name on the screen.
I swiped the screen, hoping my friend had gotten a report on Sully’s condition somehow. Her husbandwasa prince, and they had billions of dollars, so it was possible.
“Hi. Have you heard anything?” I said, my voice sounding breathless.
Cinda was considerably more composed but still sounded worried. “No. I was hoping you had. Alex and I were watching. It was awful.”
“I know. It’s horrible. I kept thinking I couldn’t stand one more minute but then I couldn’t stop watching. I had to find out what happened. Oh Cinda, what if…”
My words were cut off by a sharp, unexpected sob, which was followed by several more.
Cinda made soothing noises into the phone, murmuring platitudes about how it was all going to be okay. When I calmed down, Cinda’s consoling tone became a knowing one.
“You’re in love with him.”
“No.” I sniffled, grabbing a tissue from the bathroom. “No, I’m just worried about the girls. If anything happens to him, they’ll be devastated. They love him so much.”
“And so do you. It’s okay to admit it. This is me here.”
“Ican’tlove him,” I argued. “I’m going to be a nun.”
“Are you?” Cinda asked. “Still?”
Another sob broke free. “I don’t know. No, I don’t think so. I don’t know how I can. Oh Cinda, what am I going to do?”
“Only you can answer that one, but Idoknow love when I see it, and I can tell you… it’s worth it—all of it. Okay, well I’ll let you go, but will you promise to call if you get some news?”
I promised and hung up, running back to the TV and turning up the volume. After an agonizing wait, I finally learned Sully had been taken to Mount Sinai Hospital where he’d been diagnosed with a concussion, a cracked orbital bone, four broken ribs, and a ruptured kidney.
