"You were wasted then, too," I reminded him.
"Come on, now. You were matching me drink for drink until you met Kya," he said.
"Can you please let me get ready? Aldous is not going to let me slack off, even the day after a win. I've got to stay focused if I want to win the title fight, and the last thing I need is you thinking you're a better matchmaker than a manager."
"I agree," Aldous said. He held open the locker room door. "Especially about the not letting you slack off part. You've got thirty seconds to change and get to work."
It was a relief to work my sore muscles, stretch them out again, and get out of my own head. The harder I worked out, the more the world retreated and I did not need to worry about focusing. There was nothing else. Just me doing what I was born to do.
"Looking good there, Morris," a voice interrupted.
I spun around and came face to face with Mario Peretti again. He was dressed for the sparring ring with a towel around his neck and a smirk on his face.
"Congratula
tions on last night," my rival said.
"Thanks. I hear I'll be seeing you in the ring for the title fight."
Mario nodded. "Speaking of seeing people; I met a woman named Kya Allen the other night. If you see her would you let her know I'd love to take her out for dinner? She's just the kind of trophy I'd like to take home on top of the title."
Both Aldous and Kev had to hold me back. Mario threw his head back and laughed as he left.
"Don't let him get to you," Kev said. "Remember the part about staying focused?"
"Sure, yeah, I'm fine," I said. I blinked back the red haze. I could not wait to face Peretti in the ring again. I would show him who I was. And, I'd make sure he knew Kya belonged to me.
After the work out and the run-in with Peretti, Kya was all I could think about. I headed back to the Tropicana and punched the elevator button. If she wasn't back from her dinner with the golfer, it would be hard not to go after her. What was one more scene in a restaurant besides extra publicity?
"Oooh, there you are, honey bunny!" a woman shrieked.
I stepped back as Sienna and her onslaught of bright lights and cameras cornered me at the elevator bank.
"Just the man, the sexy, sexy man I was looking for," Sienna said. She kissed my cheek and tried to plant one on my lips.
I pulled my head back. "Heading over to the Tropicana's new night club?" I asked.
"Not unless you're coming," Sienna purred. "I bet you've got killer moves."
I shook my head and hit the elevator button again.
"No, silly, I came to find you. I hear the big party promoting your fight is tomorrow night," Sienna said. She leaned against me and toyed with the collar of my shirt. "It is tomorrow night, isn't it?"
I knew she was fishing for an invitation. She was already on the list, but she wanted to be my date. I just nodded and got into the elevator. "Yeah, maybe I'll see you there."
"Maybe? He's so superstitious," Sienna said to her nearest friend. "Can't get involved before a big fight, otherwise he'll get distracted."
I was glad when the doors closed and I was alone. Sienna was just trying to explain away my disinterest. But she was right. It was not necessarily bad luck to get involved right before a big fight, but it was definitely distraction.
Still, all I could think about was Kya.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Kya
I tried not to wait by the fire until Fenton got back to the suite. I left out a bottle of wine and two clean glasses and made sure the lights were dimmed. Then, I went into the master bedroom and pretended to work on my laptop. After the door opened and he came back, I forced myself to wait a full two minutes before I went out to the living room.
"I thought maybe you were still out with the golfer," Fenton said. He grabbed a plate and piled leftovers from a burger joint on it. "One of those glasses for me?"