Sucker Punch (TKO #4) Read online

  “He was worried the whole night was ruined, Mom. It was so sweet.”

  “If you keep seeing him, we’d love to meet him. Right, honey?” She looks at my dad.

  “Of course. Darla just passed out. Do you just want her to sleep here, Paige?” he asks me. I hate I drove here to find her asleep and I hate the feeling I’m putting them out.

  “Y’all watch her enough. I don’t want to burn anyone out,” I tell them.

  “Paige, you’re not. Darla is our granddaughter and we love spending time with her. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

  I know I shouldn’t be, and I also know they are right. “Fine, if you guys insist. I love you for everything you do for the both of us.”

  “And we love you two too,” Mom tells me. “So tell me some more about this Austin fella.”

  I smile and Dad just rolls his eyes and walks back into the living room. I sit at the table with Mom and tell her everything I know. She’s smiling as big as I am by the time it’s all over with. I never talked this excitedly about Brendan with her and she notices.

  ***

  I awaken to a quiet house, remembering Darla stayed with my parents. It’s time for me to get up and get ready for yet another day of work. Nora got text confirmation about the date. All I told her was everything went great. I figure I’ll give her the full details in person.

  I clock in and notice she’s not here yet. Usually we meet in the parking lot, but today I didn’t see her there. As soon as I close my locker, I hear her voice.

  “Hey hooker, I’m ready for the details of this date!” she says as she walks to her locker.

  I grin and begin telling the same story my mom heard last night. When I get to the part about the fight, her eyes widen, just like Mom’s. I laugh—I can’t help it. I left out the kiss to my mom but I tell Nora all about it.

  She gets all giddy. “So, when are you seeing him again?”

  “Nor, seriously, you know it’s not that easy for me. I have a kid, I can’t just go out on dates all of the time,” I remind her.

  “I know. Just let me be excited for you, okay?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” I chuckle. One great date doesn’t constitute completely letting my walls down. Some walls need to stay up a little longer.

  I check my phone one last time before I begin my shift. Austin just sent his typical good morning text. I reply before shutting my locker. I sure do plan on having a good day.

  One of my patients this morning is a young girl who just had a small surgery and is in recovery. As soon as she wakes, she can be transferred from ICU to a regular room. I grab her chart and look it over. She’s only nine years old and I read her appendix had to be immediately removed. Poor little girl. I turn and see a bouquet of flowers on the desk of the nurse’s station. I go and grab one to set it on her chest. That way, when she comes to, she’ll have something beautiful to look at.

  I have to go check on another patient and I hope I’ll be there when this little girl wakes. I walk back out of the room and continue on my rounds. Since losing a patient the other day, I’ve been a little nervous to walk into these rooms. Not knowing what was going to happen just constantly ate at me. Today things are going well though. I see a few patients get to leave ICU while others hang onto their lives. These people are fighters, and I admire each and every single one of them.

  I make my way back to the little girl’s room. As I walk in, she is being prepared to move out of ICU. She looks up and smiles at me. That warms my heart so much. She clings to the flower as they finish prepping her. I step out and think about what a great day this is so far.

  I take my lunch break soon after and check my phone as I bite into the turkey sandwich I made this morning. There’s a message from Austin and a message from Brendan. Talk about a buzzkill. I open Austin’s message but ignore Brendan’s. He’s the one who told me to leave him alone, and I will.

  Austin: I got in trouble for my fight last night.

  Paige: What do you mean?

  Austin: Fighting outside of the gym isn’t allowed. Even though this wasn’t my fault.

  Paige: I’m sorry.

  Austin: I’m not trying to ruin your day, I just wanted to talk to you and that sorta came out.

  Paige: I don’t mind. I’m just on lunch.

  Another message from Brendan pops up and I groan. My gosh, what is his problem? I decide to torture myself and see what the hell he wants.

  Brendan: What the hell are these papers I got served today?

  Brendan: Paige, fucking answer me. I don’t owe you shit. We already talked about this.

  Oh hell, I completely forgot about the child support papers I had filed. I’ve been doing this on my own and doing a damn good job but I’m tired of letting him live an easy life. My mom sat there with me while I filled them out weeks ago. I wanted her help in case any something confused me. I can’t believe that slipped my mind.

  Paige: I don’t have to answer anything for you, Brendan. I’m leaving you alone like you asked.

  Brendan: You fucking bitch. You won’t get a fucking dime from me.

  Paige: We’ll see about that. Leave me alone. It’s time you own up to your responsibilities. Either that or sign your rights away like you probably should have done to begin with.

  Brendan: Where do I sign then, because you aren’t getting my money.

  What a selfish fucking asshole.

  Paige: You know what? I’ll talk with my lawyer and I’ll let you know.

  Truth is, I don’t have a lawyer, but I guess now I’ll need to find out just how to make all of his fucking dreams come true. What the hell did I ever see in him? I’m so agitated I toss the half of my sandwich I hadn’t eaten yet and throw my phone into my locker. I see there is another message from Austin, but it can wait. Brendan just ruined everything.

  Chapter 14

  Austin

  Howard glares at me as I walk into Lou’s. Hell, how does he know? I’m positive he does. He must suspect something because he has eyes and ears literally everywhere. I’m ready to defend myself no matter what. I didn’t insinuate the fight, the asshole did.

  “Austin, my office now,” he says firmly.

  I keep my head held high as I walk past Lance. He has a strange look on his face. I know he doesn’t realize anything that’s happened. I haven’t talked to him.

  I step into the office and shut the door like he instructs me to. I begin to open my mouth and tell him just what happened but he shuts me down. “You haven’t been part of the family for long, but I distinctively remember explaining the rules to you.”

  “Yes, sir.” I hang my head. “But, Howard—”

  “But Howard nothing. You know what you did was wrong. Now, before I decide the disciplinary action, would you care to explain?”

  He sets his hands on his desk and stares at me. This is my time to tell him the truth and I am beyond ready. “I took the girl I like on a date. We went and ate burgers. When it was time to leave, some asshole started calling me a freak.” My eyes begin to water. I can’t believe I’m about to cry right now. “I told him to leave me alone but he kept on. I just couldn’t take it. I should have walked away but I didn’t. I knew being different wasn’t going to be easy, but I wasn’t ready for that.”

  Howard sighs and looks at me. I wipe a lone tear from my eye and wait for what he has to say. “Did you throw the first punch?”

  “Yes, sir, I did. He tried to hit me back but I caught his arm and threw him on the ground. I didn’t hit him again after.”

  “I don’t condone fighting outside of here in any form, but I’m glad you stood up for yourself. It’s not going to be easy, and assholes like him are everywhere. I’ll let this one slide, but if it happens again, I won’t be so nice.”

  “Thank you so much, Howard. I swear, it won’t happen again.”

  “I’m trusting you. Don’t let me down.” He stands and opens the door. Lance nearly falls over, completely unprepared for it. “You were listening, weren’t you, Lance?”

  “I was. That’s bullshit, Austin. I’m glad you did something about it.”

  “Thanks, man,” I tell him, hoping he stops this conversation before Howard changes his mind and decides to punish me.

  “I wish I could have seen your moves.” Yeah, he isn’t dropping it.

  Howard clears his throat, reminding us why we’re here and it’s time to get to work. I grab my phone and text Paige before putting on my glove. Lance and I spar continuously.

  “So, show me your kick ass moves from last night.” Lance grins.

  “No,” I deadpan. “But if you insist, I’ll recap in case you didn’t hear me tell Howard. Basically, I punched him in the face before grabbing his shirt and throwing him to the ground. I may have also sunk my foot into his chest.”

  “And I missed this? Holy shit, you really are badass!” He gets all giddy, jumping around like a kid in a candy store.

  “I know I’m not supposed to street fight and I’m not trying to brag, but he had to be put in his place,” I say, more to myself than to him.

  I look at the old clock on the wall after a while and notice it’s around lunch time. I wonder if Paige has replied yet. I go check my phone and saw she answered my first message. We exchange a few texts and she tells me she’s on lunch. I reply but she doesn’t. I guess she went back to work.

  Garrett comes walking in late and explains Raegan wasn’t feeling well this morning so he stayed with her until her stepmom could come by. He asks how my sparring has been going. Lance opens his big mouth and tells him all about the fight last night. Garrett raises his eyebrow and I confirm it all. His eyes widen and even he tells me he would have done the same thing if the roles were reversed.

  “Hey, Raegan told me she saw your car last night. You’re driving again?”

  “Last night was the first time since the accident. I took Paige on a date and apparently y’all live in the same complex,” I tell him.

  “Oh yeah, Raegan told me she met her the other day. Helped her carry a few bags to her apartment.”

  “Looks like we may all be seeing more of each other.” I grin.

  “Well, you know y’all are always welcome. Except for now since Raegan is sick. She must have a stomach bug. She’s never sick.”

  “Or you may have implanted your seed into her again.” Lance grins. I burst out laughing.

  “Who the fuck talks that way?” Garrett laughs too.

  “I do, got a problem?”

  “No sir.” Garrett doubles over. When he stops laughing he looks at me. “Ready for a real sparring partner?”

  “I sure am.” We get ready to begin. I know he and Lance both have fights coming up. Hopefully all the sparring they’ve done with me is helping them.

  ***

  I get home and go straight to the shower. Ruston wasn’t up last night and he asks about the date. Once again, I go through all the details. He’s seething when I tell him what the guy said to me, but I assure him I more than took care of it. His eyes sadden and he meets my gaze. “This is all my fault, Austin.”

  “We’ve been through this before, Rus, it’s not. Unfortunately, things like this are going to happen.”

  “I have a date scheduled with Tam but I can cancel if you want to hang out.”

  I laugh as I tell him, “Ruston, go on your date. I’m glad you two made up. I’ll be fine, I swear. I’m just probably going to talk to Paige later and watch a movie.”

  “Okay but only if you’re sure.” He stares, waiting for me to crack.

  “I’m positive. Have a good time and tell Tam I said hey.”

  I walk to the fridge and pull out the some ham and cheese. It’s not easy but I manage to make a decent sandwich. Ruston grabs his keys and says bye as he walks out the door. I lock it behind him and take my sandwich to the couch. I begin flipping through the TV channels as I eat. When I finish my sandwich, I text Paige.

  Austin: How was your day?

  Paige: It could have been better.

  Austin: Want me to come by and see you for a little bit?

  Paige: I wish, I’m about to go to bed. I had a tiring day.

  Austin: What happened?

  Paige: Just a bunch of bullshit, I’m okay though.

  Austin: Okay, well I can let you rest.

  Paige: You can call me if you want.

  I tap her name and the phone only rings once before she picks up. “Hey, Austin.”

  “Hey, beautiful. Hearing your voice just made my day.”

  “I could say the same thing. Did you really get in trouble earlier?” she asks.

  “Yeah, a little, but he let it slide this time. I explained everything to him. We’re not allowed to fight outside of the gym at all or we could be suspended,” I tell her.

  I hear a small voice in the background and then it all sorta turns muffled. “Is everything okay?” I ask her.

  “Yeah, it was just the TV. I’m watching a movie.” She yawns and I figure I better let her get some rest. I know her job isn’t easy. I couldn’t imagine doing what she does.

  “Well, get some rest, Paige. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, okay?”

  “Okay. Do you, uh, want to maybe get some coffee in the morning before you head to your gym? I don’t have to work as early tomorrow. I switched a shift with another nurse.”

  “Paige, are you asking me out?” I whisper.

  “Yes, I am.”

  “I’d love to. Tell me where to meet you.”

  “I’ll text you in the morning.”

  “Goodnight, Paige.”

  “Night, Austin.”

  I hang up the phone and grin. She initiated this one and I’m fucking elated. I’ll be too excited to sleep tonight. She’s so damn beautiful and I’m not sure what she sees in me but I’m glad she does.

  Chapter 15

  Paige

  I just dropped Darla off to my parents’ and told Mom I had a coffee date with Austin. Her grin stretched from ear to ear.

  I was worried last night my secret would be revealed. Austin and I were talking on the phone and Darla came walking sleepily into my room and asked if she could lie with me. I was able to play it off as my TV being on. I don’t even have a TV in my room.

  My hands clamp up against my steering wheel as I begin driving to a coffee shop near the hospital. I texted Austin the name of it earlier and told him what time to meet me. For some reason, seeing him feels like the first time all over again. He takes my breath away and I feel like a giddy school girl.

  I pull up to the coffee shop and notice his car parked a few spots down. I decide to get out of the car and walk in that direction in case he hasn’t gotten out yet. Just as I’m about to approach his car, he steps in front of me, wearing a grin.

  I nearly jump out of my skin. “Oh, you about scared me. I was coming to see if you were still in your car.”

  “Sorry.” He leans forward to kiss my cheek. “I saw you pull in so I decided it would be a good time to get out.”

  I know a few people from the hospital frequent this place but I’m not worried about them right now. I don’t hardly know any of them and it’s not like this coffee date is going to be a big deal. Austin grabs hold of my hand as we walk through the front doors. This is so unlike the burger joint from our date. No one is gawking at us, everyone is just minding their business and enjoying their coffee. We approach the counter and each give the barista our order. I get a vanilla latte and he wants a black coffee. I scrunch up my nose, wondering how people can drink it black. I try to pay for my own, but Austin forces his credit card in front of mine. The poor barista looks so confused as to which one she is supposed to grab. With one final attempt, I push my card forward with such force it slips behind the counter. As the barista bends down to pick it up, I smirk at Austin before looking back at her.

  “You can just use that card,” I tell her.

  “Fine, you win this time,” Austin whispers in my ear. “Thank you for the coffee.”

  “You’re welcome.” I grin, feeling awfully proud of my victory. It’s not every day I’m able to get away with buying coffee for a guy I like.

  Austin spots an empty table in the middle of the coffee shop and we go sit down. “Thank you again.”

  “Not a problem,” I reply. “So, what were you like before the accident?”

  He looks down at his cup for a moment before meeting my eyes. “I was an okay guy. I could have almost anything I wanted with no issues. Before I moved here, I lived with my parents. I got into some trouble and they thought it would be best for me to live with my cousin, and then things got a little better before they got worse.”

  I scrunch my brow, wondering what he means. “The accident?”

  “Yeah, the accident changed everything for me,” he admits.

  My mind begins racing. I wonder if he would have even batted an eyelash at me if we met and he’d never gotten in that accident.

  “Tell me a little more about you,” he insists.

  My coffee cup nearly slips out of my hands. “Well, you know I’m a nurse. That’s pretty much it, I haven’t led an exciting life.” I nearly shut down on him. I can tell him some things, but I keep Darla tucked far away.

  “You’re a good girl, there’s nothing wrong with that.” Austin smiles.

  “I guess you could say that,” I reply.