Felix
It’d been two days, two days since he’d last seen Ella, and already Felix didn’t think he was going to last a whole week. Noah was nuts if he thought he’d be here longer than that. Unless he could convince Ella to come up and be with him a few days, he’d be here just until she got back from her cruise at the end of the week. But that’s as long as he’d hang.
During the days, he concentrated on the grueling workouts and long runs he’d take with the guys. For the most part, it did help, but Noah had still called him out a few times when he said he wasn’t focusing like he should.
The press conference announcing the rematch took place Saturday. In lieu of the meeting Adelina had been so flustered about not being able to get scheduled, she’d managed to get the press conference together at the last minute.
“Our phones have been ringing off the hook ever since the day the contract was finalized and Grecco’s website posted they had a huge announcement coming soon,” Rene explained on Saturday when Felix had gotten the conference call from Rene and Adelina. Felix had never done a press conference on such short notice. Not since his first title bout had he been the opponent and not the defending champ at one of these things. He would’ve liked to have been better prepared.
Not surprisingly, Ella had calmed him easily. “Just show up, let them take all the photos they want, and promise your fans you’re getting your title back. You know you are.”
He would’ve liked for the press conference to have been at 5th Street so Ella could’ve been there with him, but Grecco’s people insisted they do it on neutral ground, so it’d been held downtown.
They called it a night and Felix was spent. He’d warned both Adelina and Rene he’d be in training all week and didn’t have time for anything. The only person he was making time for was Ella, of course. If he had to be away from her, he at least wanted her to be the last person he spoke to every night and first person he said good morning to every day. So seeing that he had another text from Adelina again was annoying to say the least.
It seemed after the announcement that Felix was going after the title again had been made the endorsement offers had picked up overnight. Mercedes-Benz now thought that the reason why Felix had held out meeting with them was because he knew once the announcement was made there’d be more offers, maybe even better ones from a competitor. They were even more anxious to meet with him, but he’d already told Adelina this week was out of the question.
He picked up his phone with a frown and read the text.
I told them you couldn’t meet with them this week and why. They said they’d come to you. They’re willing to meet with you in Big Bear somewhere and talk.
“What part of ‘I’m training’ does this chick not understand?” Felix muttered.
“Huh?” Noah asked.
Felix shook his head as he plopped down across from Noah in the great room. “My publicist,” he said as he texted back. “She wants to set up business meetings this week.”
As expected Noah’s face went hard. “She’s nuts. I’m already having a hard enough time getting you to focus.”
Felix sent the text.
Can’t do it. I’m training all week. I can’t take a single day off.
“Yeah,” Gio, who sat in the oversized recliner agreed quickly. “How does she figure you’ll have time for that?”
Felix’s phone rang and he saw it was her. He let his head fall back onto the sofa in frustration. Letting out an exasperated laugh, he answered the call.
“Okay, just hear me out,” she said quickly. “I’ve read the offer. It’s already an excellent offer, and you know how this works. They’re expecting us to counter. I’d go over it with you when I get there. We could meet once you’re finished with your workout any night this week, the sooner the better. They know you’ll be tired, so I said it wouldn’t even be dinner we’d be having with you. Just coffee or a drink. It’s real cut and dry. They just wanna be sure you understand what you’re agreeing to before you sign. But they want this done ASAP. They’re getting antsy.”
“You have any idea how damn tired I am after my workouts?” Felix said, shaking his head. “At the end of the day, I don’t wanna get dressed to go meet—”
“We could meet with you at the complex. We’d be in and out. I promise. I’m telling you Felix this is huge.”
He let his head fall back again and closed his eyes. “When?”
“Thursday,” she said quickly and, before he could change his mind, added, “I’ll call them now and text you the details. K?”
“Bye,” he said with a smirk.
Well, Rene was right about one thing. Adelina did have her mother’s resolve. That instantly brought thoughts of the other determined girl in his life, the one who owned his heart now. He looked down at his phone to check the time. She’d be home soon and ready for their nightly call, so he stood up, already looking forward to hearing her voice.
“What happened?” Noah asked. “You gave in?”
“She’s bringing them here Thursday night, and I’ll just sign some papers.” He started to walk away. “But I’m not even getting dressed for these people. She can kiss my ass if she thinks I’ll be all businesslike when I’m training.”
“Ooh, guess you told her.” Gio chuckled.
“Yeah, we heard you,” Noah added with a smirk, “with your firm ‘When?’”
Felix laughed. “Shut up. I’m out,” he said, waving his hand behind him. “See you in the morning.”
“Bright and early,” Noah reminded him.
He’d told Ella he’d call at the usual time: nine-thirty. It was a few minutes ’til, so he figured what the hell. Plopping down on his bed, he hit speed dial. The second he heard her voice he was smiling like an idiot. “Hey, baby.”
“Hi, Felix.” He could practically hear the smile in her voice. “I was rushing to get in my sleep clothes and in bed so I could be ready for you.”
Ready for him. Why did that make him smile even bigger? This was ridiculous, but he’d since decided he wasn’t going to fight it anymore. He’d tell her exactly what he was thinking—feeling—because he loved when she did the same. “I miss you,” he said, letting his head fall back on his pillow. “God, I miss you.”
“I miss you too. How was your workout today?”
“Good, but according to Noah I’m not focusing like I should.”
“Why’s that?”
He smirked. “I thought I was focusing, but he caught me zoning out a few times.”
“Zoning out?”
“Yeah, today I zoned out, thinking about this past Saturday morning.”
She was quiet for a moment and then came the “Oh.”
Once again, he knew she was smiling as big as he was. He hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it and how much he was dying to be with her again. He chuckled when she didn’t say anything else and wondered if maybe she was zoning out too.
“I have to snap out of it though. We have some trainers flying in from Bosnia Friday afternoon.”
“Bosnia?”
“Yeah, they’ve coached several gold medalists and are supposed to be the best in the world, though Noah only wants to train with them on a few key things. But I can’t be zoning out when they get here.” He laughed. “Noah will kick my ass. These guys are coming a long way just to work with me. But anyway, how was your day?”
Ella began telling him about her day at work and the weird lady who yelled louder than anybody else even when she wasn’t told to yell. Ella’s giggles made him smile. Felix fixed his pillows behind him, getting comfortable because he could already tell he was in for another night of not wanting to say goodbye.
~~~
That Thursday, as promised, Adelina arrived before the Mercedes-Benz guys to go over the counter offer she’d put together. Then she had the two guys from Mercedes-Benz in and out of his complex in half an hour’s time. She’d been right; the offer was more than generous, the biggest one he’d had to date.
The second their car was down his snowy driveway and out of sight, Adelina turned to him and screeched. “Are you kidding me!” she said, bringing her hands to the side of her face. “They didn’t even blink at our counter! You’re gonna make almost as much on this as that damn rematch!” She stopped and looked at him. “I wonder if we should’ve asked for more.”
“The counter was already ridiculous,” Felix reminded her. “And for what? A few commercials and for me to drive around in the brand new top-of-the-line car they’ll provide me with, free, every six months. Before the new smell even wears out of the first one?”
“Yes, please!” she said, laughing.
“Good deal,” he said, looking down at his phone.
It was almost time for his call to Ella. He didn’t want to be rude, but he wasn’t cutting into his talk time with her, and the snow was starting to come down anyway. They needed to get out of the cold.
“So what now? You staying up here tonight?”
She gave him a sly look. “I wasn’t planning on it. Is that an invite?” She smiled, lowering her lashes halfway. “Do you feel like celebrating?”
“Nope,” he said quickly, “and maybe it’s best that I make this clear now since you’ll probably hear about this soon anyway. I’m in a relationship now, one I’m taking real seriously, so don’t expect any more of those kinds of invitations from me from here on.”
She stared at him for a moment, a bit stunned. “Wow,” she said then pressed her lips together, stretching her mouth down. “She must be pretty special to have you talking this way.”
“She is.”
“Fair enough,” she said with a smile. “No hard feelings here especially if we’re gonna keep closing deals like today. I’m good with keeping this strictly business.” She reached out and shook his hand. “Congrats on this deal, sir. And thanks for being such a trooper and letting me bring them up here so we could make this happen, but you have to admit it was worth it, right?”
Felix smiled, relieved. “Yes. Thank you for pushing. That was totally worth it.”
“You bet your ass it was.” She winked at him as she started down the stairs of his porch. “But I better get going. The drive down is gonna be scary enough in the dark. I’ll have to take it slowly, and I’d like to get home tonight.”
“What? Wait. You’re driving down?”
“Yeah,” she said, stopping at the bottom of the stairs and looking up at him. “It was only an hour drive or so. I’ve done way longer.”
“You do realize they don’t plow at night, right?”
Felix looked out at his own snow-covered driveway. Even driving out of here might be tricky. Fuck!
He glanced back at Adelina, who seemed to be mulling over her choices and chewing the corner of her lip. “I didn’trealize that. In fact, I didn’t realize it’d be snowing, period. I was so caught up getting this counter offer together I didn’t bother checking the weather, but I figured it’s spring now.” She looked up at the snowfall that was picking up momentum now. “What the hell?” She must’ve picked up on his suddenly stony mood because she waved a hand at him. “I’ll get a room in town for the night. I saw plenty as I drove through that quaint little town. It’s so cute,” she said, smiling as she turned to start walking to her car again. “I’ll have to come back for pleasure soon.”
“Be careful,” he said, feeling bad that he had plenty of room for her to stay there at his place for the night.
But he couldn’t risk it. The news vans were already camped out outside his complex. They were all just waiting for him to screw up so they could be the first to have the full scoop. He was certain they already knew his publicist, the one the tabloids had already raised eyebrows about because she was so young, glamorous, and sexy—just his type—had driven into his complex today. If she didn’t drive out tonight, tongues would be wagging by tomorrow morning for sure.
Adelina waved at him as she backed her car up and started down the drive. Relief began to set in as he watched her drive slowly around the circular area in front his of his cabin and then slide right into the side embankment with a loud clunk, coming to rest just under the big pine trees that lined the side of his property.
He rushed down the stairs and toward her just as Noah and Gio pushed the front door open and flew out. “Whoa shit!” Gio said with a slight chuckle. “Did she crash?”
Felix hurried his steps as he realized her car was teetering ever so slightly. It wouldn’t be going anywhere. The trees were aligned too tightly, but he knew it’d be enough that she was probably shitting a brick.
Noah and Gio followed closely behind. Felix opened her door as soon as he reached her car. “You okay?”
She clutched her chest, and she looked as white as the snow her car was now slowly getting buried in. If it weren’t because he already knew the only way they were getting her car out now was with a tow truck and there was no way that was happening until tomorrow, he might’ve laughed. Instead all he could think was fuck me!
~~~
It was past ten now, and he was just getting ready to call Ella. He’d texted her earlier that they’d had an issue at the cabin and he’d call her a little later than usual. By the time Adelina’s stubborn ass accepted that her car wouldn’t be going anywhere unless they got a tow truck up there—and there was no tow truck or cab that was going to make the trip up there tonight—they’d wasted precious time. They then had to get her shit out of the trunk, which had been no easy task. Curiously, even though she’d claimed not to have planned on staying, she had brought an overnight bag. Felix then had to get her in and situated. Luckily, all the rooms in his cabin had been well-prepped before he’d gone up there.
Now he sat on edge of his bed, and for the first time that week, he dreaded talking to Ella. She’d never asked him much about Adelina, but he saw it in her eyes and heard it in her words the few times she’d brought her up. Ella wasn’t completely comfortable with Adelina. The fact that she’d pointed out he had a very pretty publicist more than once had not gone unnoticed either. The only good thing he had going for him was that he had told her last night about his meeting with the Mercedes-Benz people and his publicist today, so Adelina still being up there wouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. But he’d also made sure to point out that her visit was going to be a fast in-and-out thing. He was certain she was wondering now what kind of issue could’ve kept him from calling her on time the one time Adelina showed up.
He hit speed dial, holding his breath. “Hey, baby,” he said as soon as she answered.
“Hey,” she said, and already she didn’t sound as cheerful as she normally did. “What happened?”
“Adelina’s car got stuck in the snow.”
“Oh . . . where?”
“Here,” he said, closing his eyes and lying back in his bed slowly. “Right outside as she was trying to leave.”
She was quiet for a moment, and he braced himself. “I didn’t realize it was still snowing up there.”
“It is,” he said, sitting up. “You can look it up. It’s a little unusual for this time of year, but it really is.”
“Okay,” she said, pausing again for a nerve-wracking moment. “So what’d she do?”
“There’s nothing she can do until tomorrow morning,” he explained as he wondered if people could actually feel their blood pressure spiking because he could swear his was. “The only way she’s gonna get it out now is with a tow truck, and no one’s gonna drive up here until tomorrow morning.”
She was quiet again, and he wanted so badly to tell her she had nothing to worry about, but he was afraid that might actually call attention to the fact that maybe she should be.
“So she’s spending the night there.”
It wasn’t a question. It was a statement, but he answered her anyway. “Yeah, I have plenty of extra rooms here. So she’s staying in one of them, and we’ll get a tow truck out here first thing in the morning.”
To his surprise, she asked about the endorsement. He told her about it, leaving out the numbers, but said it was a good deal. The numbers were bigger than any he’d had in the past, and he knew even his previous deals would blow her away. He wanted to ease her into that part of his world—a world he wanted her to be a part of soon. But he hated reminding her just how different their lives were, so he held off for now.
They talked a little longer with her telling him about her day and how she’d be leaving tomorrow for her cruise with her dad. The whole time there was something off. She hadn’t asked much more about Adelina, and he’d gladly gone with the change of subject, but he could feel the unspoken tension, and he hated it. He figured tonight’s conversation was already fucked. He may as well bring up what he knew he had to even if it might cause more tension.
He stood up and began to pace. “Baby, there’s probably gonna be stories in the tabloids tomorrow. You know it’s all bullshit. I just want you to be prepared.”
“Stories about what?”
The tone of her voice was one Felix had never heard before, which only stressed him out further. He gripped the phone tighter, hoping to God she’d understand. “About Adelina being here. The news vans are parked outside my complex, so they saw her drive in here. I’m sure there are already photos and theories flying around about that. And now that they won’t see her leave until tomorrow, they’re gonna run with it. It’s how it always happens.”
He shook his head, now suddenly understanding why Abel and the other guys hated the paparazzi so much. They had the power to destroy your life. Back when the whole thing went down with Gio and Bianca, he’d barely had time to hate the paparazzi. He was too busy being angry at Bianca and Gio, and then Jack died so unexpectedly and 5th Street burned to the ground. There was too much emotion going on in his life for him to focus on the media’s input in how everything went down. By the time it was all over, he had no choice but to accept that he’d fucked up and he probably would’ve lost Bianca anyway.
Then soon after that he’d gotten so caught up with Shelley’s pregnancy. There’d been little time to hate the press. But this was different. He didn’t know what he’d do if the paparazzi coupled with his notorious past cost him his relationship with Ella.
“It’s a good thing I’ll be on that cruise,” she said. “I’ll stay away from any gossip websites or shows. I usually do anyway.”
Felix stopped his pacing. “Good! Yeah, do that. Because I swear to you anything they say trying to turn this into something it’s not you know is all bullshit. None of it is true. Noah and Gio could vouch for it too.”
“They don’t have to, Felix. If you say there’s no truth to anything they’ll say and I have nothing to worry about, then I believe you.”
“You have absolutely nothing to worry about,” he said, wishing she were there so he could kiss her silly.
“Then I won’t.”
“God, I love you,” he said, his body already releasing some of the tension that had built up from the moment he saw Adelina’s car slide into that embankment.
“I love you too.”
Now he heard the familiar smile in her words, and that strain he’d felt earlier was gone. He fell back onto his bed with a groan. “I cannot wait to be with you again.”
He heard her giggle. “And when will that be?”
“What time do you get back Sunday?”
“I think three in the afternoon.”
“Then Sunday at three it is.”
“But what about the trainers from Bosnia?”
“They leave Sunday, and I’d already warned Noah I was out of here Sunday when you got back, so I’m sure they’ll be gone early.”
The conversation the rest of the night was like any other they’d had all week. Once again he had to force himself to call it a night and hang up, but when he did, he lay there smiling. He was officially done thinking there’d be no other way Ella could impress him. They just might get through this relationship without the paparazzi fucking shit up.
Already he could hardly wait for morning so he could call her again.