Page 52 of Playing for Keeps (Checkmate 4)

“Strategizing? Girl, let me strategize how to beat your ass for looking at boys when you should be training for your fight. You wanna get your ass kicked next month?”

Evie laughs. A legitimate, arrogant, I’m-the-most-gangster-girl-I-know laugh fills her chest. “I don’t lose, Mom. You know this.”

“Really?” Tina’s brow pops with dare. “Wanna spar with me? I’ll show you what happens when you pay attention to Benny when you should be keeping your eyes to yourself.”

My ears perk up at the mention of my boy. “You got the hots for my nephew, Evie?”

“No! We were strategizing for my fight. You might think they’re dumb boys, but those dumb boys have real moves that Uncle Jack won’t teach me. So I watch Mac and Benny, then Bean and I spar and I kick her ass.”

“You kick my ass?” Bean – aka, Jimmy’s little girl – turns with a murderous glare. “You don’t kick my ass! I won the last fight!”

“And I won the last two before that.”

“I won the fight before that one!”

Evie might be fair – hair, eyes, skin – and her cousin the opposite – brown eyes, brown hair – but they’re equals in the arrogance and sass department. They’re both full of themselves and take after their uncles with the ‘I’m the best fighter in the world’ superiority. So to avoid a beatdown when my ass still hurts, I push Nacho forward until Evie takes her against her chest and snaps her mouth closed.

“Evie, Bean; meet Nacho. Nacho, meet next decade’s UFC champions, but they don’t get to be champions until they stop staring at boys when they should be training or studying. Boys are dumb; don’t stoop to their level.” I look into Evie’s eyes. “Nacho doesn’t much like men, so don’t pass her around. She’s not allowed on the mats, so don’t put her down. And she scares easily, so be gentle. She’s allowed to eat anything, but don’t be excessive. She already had a cupcake today, so shouldn’t be hungry.”

Bean’s wide eyes come back to mine. “We’re allowed to hold her?”

“Yep. I need you both on pig-sitting duties while I visit. Can I rely on you to be responsible?”

“Yes, Miss Andi.” Evie kisses Nacho’s nose. Wet, noisy kisses that make her mother gag. “We’ll take care of her, we swear.”

“Good. Thank you.” I take Tina’s hand and lead her away. “You’ve got so much trouble coming your way. Jesus, Tina. Your kid has the hots for Benny?”

She scoffs. “Don’t I know it? It’s a disaster. Aiden’s ready to rampage every time he catches the girls watching them. He’s ready to run over to Oz’s place and lay down the law; he doesn’t give a shit that Ozisthe law. But I’m not even stopping him; I wanna beat Benny’s ass, too. They were all sneaking out last year, did you know that?”

“Benny?”

“Benny, Mac, and both the girls.” She leads me into the long hall that has locker rooms on each side. “Rumor has it Mac was the instigator there, but still, Benny’s the oldest and I almost beat him up.” Her eyes come to mine. “He’s a teenager, and I almost went to war and tore his face off.”

No longer smiling, my eyes narrow. “He’s mine, Tina. He’s a good boy, and I’m feeling kinda protective listening to your plans to beat on him.”

“Sorry.” She opens a double door and lets me step into the room. “It’s just a natural reflex. I was in a relationship way too young, and my baby is approaching that age. It’s giving me indigestion.” Looking up, she gestures toward the room full of men in black sweatpants and the gym’s purple insignia. I expect to find them sparring, or hitting bags, or… something. But what I see is Meg at the top of theclass, in downward dog pose, while four of the five Roller champions groan and attempt to copy.

Four men, all more than two hundred pounds each, some more than others, bend and fold their bodies in ways I’m not sure they’ve ever tried before. Meg manages a perfect bend with impeccable form, while Bobby Kincaid attempts the same on the end – and whimpers from the stretch.

“Bring your feet closer to your hands, guys! We’re stretching, not presenting our asses and hoping to get knocked up.”

“It burns!” Jimmy balances on one hand and uses the other to shoot a rude finger toward a laughing Meg. Jimmy’s wife stretches right beside him, her pose as perfect as Meg’s, while Jon Hart – Bobby’s best friend – is on her other side, his face painfully red as he tears his hamstrings rather than admit it hurts.

“If it burns, you got the wrong hole, Jimmy. Stop being a sissy.”

Tina snorts ands draws the attention of the men in the room. Aiden follows us in, chuckling when Bobby falls on his face and grunts.

“I wanna do the kiddie pose again.” Bobby lies on his side and pulls his knees up. “I’m too old to learn shit now, Megan. I don’t wanna stretch, I wanna fight.”

“Yeah?” Slowly standing, she arches her back and lifts her hands above her head. “Imagine how much better you’ll fight when your legs kick higher? You could gain an extra foot or so of reach if you stopped being a little bitch and actually stretched your muscles out.”

Jon drops to his knees and presses his forehead to the floor. “Suck it, Peacock. You got told.”

“Shut up, Fart! Baby!” Bobby arches his neck and searches for his wife. “Where’s Kit? Kick his ass, baby.”

“She’s not in here, dumbass.” Jon grunts and turns to his back. “She’s working with the kids today. She’s not stupid enough to sign up for a torture class.”

“Torture.” Scoffing, Meg rolls her eyes and knocks Jimmy to the floor as she passes. “Swear to hell and back, we’re stretching, not scalping you. I’ve never in my life met a whinier bunch of badasses. Andi.” She stops in front of me and pulls me into a tight hug that sets off aches in my body. I might’ve hurt more than just my ass out front, because now my left thigh hurts, and my elbows ache and are starting to make me think they’re bleeding beneath my coat.

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