Sucker Punch (TKO 4)

“Thank you,” I blush. “You look good yourself.” I feel pretty crazy right now. I probably just sounded so corny. I’m not used to complimenting someone of the opposite sex.

“Hey, you live by Raegan and Garrett. I didn’t know that.”

I remember chatting with Raegan the other night and I smile. “Yeah, I guess I do. I met her the other night.”

“They’re good people. He fights like I used to,” he tells me. “I’m not sure what you like to eat, but I was thinking we could grab some burgers or something.”

“I love a good burger.” I grin as he pulls my hand into his, leading us to his car. Here’s to a good night. I’m actually beginning to thank myself for not being so damn stubborn.

Chapter 12

Austin

I can’t believe Paige agreed to this date. I was nervous as hell to get behind the wheel of a vehicle again, but with a little pep talk from Ruston, I decided it’s now or never. I can’t live scared all my life because of one little—okay, pretty big—mistake I made. My car has sat up ever since the accident. I’d have Ruston go start it occasionally for me, and now I get to drive again.

I pull up to Paige’s apartment complex and immediately recognize it. She lives by Raegan and Garrett. What a small damn world.

One knock at the door and she answers, looking so damn beautiful. I feel like the luckiest guy in the world as she lets me hold her hand to my car. I open the door for her and watch as her eyes widen. “This is your car?”

“This is my baby.” I smile. I hate I wrecked Ruston’s truck but I would have been devastated if I had wrecked this beauty.

“It’s nice,” she says before I shut the door. I walk around to the driver’s side, giving myself a pep talk the whole time. We aren’t going far. For my first time back behind the wheel, I didn’t want to venture too far out. I’m taking baby steps.

I turn down the radio as I drive away from the complex. She looks a little nervous, and I guess I don’t blame her. “I’m glad you decided to come out with me tonight.”

“I am too. After the past few days of work, I think this was a good idea.”

I haven’t seen Paige since that night at Joe’s. I just can’t get enough of her. I pull into a local burger joint up the road and park the car. I get out wondering why people are staring, but then I remember I don’t wear m

y prosthetic anymore. They’ll just have to get used to it. I can’t stay locked inside a damn apartment. I have a life too.

I open the door for Paige and we both walk inside to order. We sit down after I pay, waiting for the waitress to bring us our food. We start talking a little. I’m finding I like her more and more with every word she says.

“So yeah, I decided I wanted to be a nurse and my parents backed me one hundred percent through nursing school. It wasn’t easy, but I made it through,” she tells me.

“Why? Because you wouldn’t have met me?” I joke with her.

“Pretty much. To be honest, this is the first date I’ve been on in years.” She looks down into her drink nervously.

“Really? Can I ask why?” I don’t want to pry, but for someone as beautiful as she is to not have been on a date in years—I just can’t believe that.

She looks up from her drink and a sadness fills her eyes. “I just haven’t had time. I work a lot and that’s my life.”

“I understand,” I tell her as our burgers get placed in front of us. I ordered mine almost plain just to be safe. I don’t know how holding a burger will work and I don’t want to make a mess.

I watch her take a bite of her burger and smile. I’m glad she’s not one of those picky eating females. “This is so good,” she says. “I’ve never been here before.”

“Yeah, they make really good burgers. I liked to come here occasionally before my accident,” I tell her.

“Can I ask what happened that night?” she sets her burger down.

I gulp, wondering if she really wants to know. I lived it but I haven’t quite ever talked about it since. I know Ruston, Tamilyn and I all had our apologies and everything but no one has ever sat and discussed it. “Yeah, I’ll tell you.”

I begin to tell her the whole story about Tamilyn and how I didn’t know she had been seeing my cousin, her best friend, pretty much the entire time. I assured Paige that Tamilyn and I were never anything official and we all get along now. I had to stop when I got to the part about catching them sleeping together that night. I told her about my suspicions in all of it and how it broke me to know I was right. I told her about the fight in the front yard and how I sped off in Ruston’s truck because he and I rode together that night.

“Then there was the accident, and that’s how I ended up in the hospital.”

Paige’s eyes fill with tears which look like they might spill any moment now. “I’m so sorry Austin.”