Breaking the Silence (Hard Drive Book 2) (2 page)

He lost his breath. He felt his pulse pick up a notch. The last thing on Earth he believed in was love at first sight. But in this moment, he was a true convert.

The barista barely came to his chest. Her long, blonde hair wisped in curls around her shoulders. Her frame was small, with perfect curves in all the right places. Her lips were a soft, very kissable pink. And when she looked up at him to hand him his drink, her eyes glittered a clear, crystal blue. She smiled then turned to fulfill the next order.

She never said one word to him. Him. Rico Choate. MMA superstar Rico Choate. His picture was on posters, in magazines.

And she didn’t say one word.

He was baffled. He gripped the coffee and rushed out the door. It wasn’t until he parked his Jeep at Hard Drive that he realized he hadn’t gotten one number, not from any of the women in the shop.

He rubbed his forehead, puzzled. He didn’t want
any
number. He just wanted the barista’s. But for the first time in his life, a woman wasn’t interested in him. He was still shaking his head when he strode into gym and plopped the paper cup down in front of an equally perplexed Chloe. Before she could even utter a syllable, he stormed out of her office and onto the mats.

Rico spent the rest of the afternoon working the speed and punching bags, hoping for a little bit of relief from his memory of the barista. He couldn’t get her out of his head. After a couple of hours, he couldn’t take it anymore. He jogged up the steps two at a time then ducked his head into the office.

“Need another cup of coffee?” he volunteered.

Chloe lifted up the empty cup. “I just finished this one. I’m—”

“Another cup coming right up.” Before Chloe could object, he was down the stairs and out the door. He hopped in the front seat of the Jeep, fired it on, and sped away. He brushed his fingers through his thick, brown hair as he waited at the lone stop light that separated Hard Drive from the coffee shop. He glanced at his reflection in the rearview mirror.

Then he checked again. Yes, he looked incredible. The barista may have been able to blow him off before. She certainly wouldn’t miss him this time.

Rico stepped inside the cool, dimly lit store and glanced around. There were fewer people lounging than there were earlier. A couple of girls that had been there before waved in his direction. He ignored them as he approached the counter, frowning as he did so. The redhead greeted him with a goofy grin. “Need another jolt of java, bro?”

“Ummm…yeah.” Rico scanned behind the counter as he paid for the coffee. “Where’s the blonde who was here earlier?”

The redhead shot him a puzzled look. “Avery? You know her?”

“Not yet. But I’d like to.”

“Her shift is over. She’s heading to class. She just left to wait for the bus.” The barista handed him a paper cup. “Hey, aren’t you that MMA guy? I think I’ve seen you fight.”

“Yeah, probably.” Rico grabbed the drink and raced outside, never looking at the girls who now were vying for his attention. He searched up and down the sidewalk for the blonde barista. He picked up his pace again as his eyes landed on her standing at the corner, still dressed in her white blouse and khakis from the restaurant. A large, sky blue backpack nearly bursting at the seams was slung over her shoulder. She checked her watch as the bus crawled to a stop before her.

“Hey! Hey!” Rico shouted as she stepped on. She never turned, never acknowledged him. The door closed behind her, and the large beast chugged on its journey, leaving a dumbfounded Rico behind.

»»•««

Chloe paced the concourse of the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. It was only a matter of minutes more. She hated being away from her husband. She agreed that he should go chase his dream of fighting in the octagon and make his way through the world of mixed martial arts. But it didn’t make all the nights sleeping alone any easier.

She turned as she heard her name called, her face glowing brighter than the sunshine outside. Before she knew it, she was tied up in her husband’s arms. She giggled as Max buried her in a bear hug.

“I missed you,” he gushed.

“I missed you too.”

Max slowly let her go. He took her hand in his as he grabbed his carry-on with the other. “How’d everything go here?”

“The same as usual. The guys were at the gym every day to help out. Then they dragged me for dinner afterward. They did you proud looking after me.” Chloe paused. “So? What did you figure out? Do you and Rico have a fight?”

Max glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. “Eight weeks. It’ll be here in Minneapolis. And the promoters were so impressed they gave us another fight a few weeks after that in Florida. We’re sharing the main card in both.”

“Good. I get to keep you close to home for at least one of them.”

“And I’m taking you with me for the second. I hated being away from you for that long. I always want you by my side.” Max squeezed her hand affectionately.

Chloe stopped for a moment to press a kiss to his cheek. Together, they walked to the Mustang waiting in the parking lot. They talked non-stop the entire way to Hard Drive. Max rested his hand on her knee as he drove. She couldn’t believe how much she had missed him. Next time, they would have to let the guys run things here.

Max held open the door of the gym to let his wife walk through. Chloe laughed as Max was bombarded by students dying to talk to him. She wasn’t the only one who had missed him. His magnetic personality was what made Hard Drive thrive. They had doubled their class sizes since they had bought the place from Jack, the former owner who recruited Max relentlessly, less than a year ago. Students, both men and women, loved learning from him. He was patient. He was understanding. Chloe took a long, hard look at him. And he was hot.

“Chloe!”

She turned to find Rico striding from the locker room. By the way his hand was fisted, she could tell he was holding his Jeep keys. “What’s up, Rico?”

“Hey, man,” Max addressed.

“Hey, Max. I need to borrow your wife,” Rico proposed.

“Umm. All right. You’re not even going to ask how the trip went? We have a fight in eight weeks and then a second a few weeks later. You and me. We need to start training today.”

“Yeah, I know.” Rico turned to Chloe. “So, are you coming?”

“Max just got home. I want to spend time with him.”

“It’ll be just a couple minutes.”

“Where are we going?”

“The coffee shop.”

“What is it with that place? They have good coffee, but you’re hooked worse than I’ve ever seen.”

Rico shrugged. “I can’t get that barista out of my head. I can’t stop thinking about her. I even dreamed of her last night. She won’t give me the time of day. I don’t get what I’m doing wrong.”

“And I’m supposed to do what?”

Rico grinned. “Talk me up. She’ll chat with another woman.”

Chloe cast an astounded look at Max then turned back to Rico. “So, in short, you want me to be your wingman?”

“Yeah. That’s pretty much what I want.”

Chloe looked helplessly at Max. He pulled her closer and kissed her cheek. “Go ahead. I’ll be here when you get back.”

“Okay. Then, let’s go,” she sighed, discouraged.

She followed Rico outside, murmuring a quiet “thanks” as he helped her into his vehicle. She bit back a laugh as he rambled on while he drove. In the little over a year that she had known him, she had never seen him so rattled.
And by a girl no less.
He was always cool, calm, and collected around women.
This one must be something to have the great Rico Choate scrambling around like a nervous schoolboy.

Chloe softly whistled to herself as she hopped from the Jeep and crossed the parking lot. She stopped short as Rico grabbed her arm.

“Wait,” he gasped out.

“What? Now you don’t want to go?” she questioned, irritation seeping into her voice.

“I do, but…we can’t seem to be together. I don’t want her to think I have a girlfriend.”

Chloe lifted up her left hand, turning the back toward him. Her rings sparkled in the sunlight. “Rico, I’m married. You have no rings. Obviously, you aren’t the guy.”

“Maybe I took my rings off.”

“Maybe you should have brought Max.” She tugged open the door and led him inside. Blinking to adjust to the dim light of the coffee shop, she scanned the room for the barista he was obsessed with. She smiled then stepped up to the counter.

A black haired girl with dark make-up forced a polite smirk on her face. “Can I take your order, miss?”

“Yes. I’d like an iced tea, please,” Chloe answered with a smile.

“And for the gentleman with you?” The barista pointed her pencil over Chloe’s shoulder. She cast a glance back at Rico, noticing him bopping and weaving to see who was working. He almost looked like he was in the octagon. She shook her head and turned back to the girl. “Nope. He’s just tagging along with me.”

The barista grinned at her. “Your boyfriend is cute.”

“He’s not my boyfriend. More like an annoying brother.”

“Oh. Too bad.” The girl winked past her then typed on the cash register.

Chloe could tell by the motion behind her that Rico never picked up on the flirting. Or if he did, he didn’t care.
This woman must really be something.

She paid for her drink then took a step back. Suddenly, she felt the sharp pain of an elbow in her spine. “She’s right there,” Rico hissed in her ear.

Chloe glared at him then slowly looked to where he nodded. It was hard to watch without being obvious, studying the blonde barista as the girl took the order from the cashier. She stepped to the cooler to pull out a jug of dark liquid then fetched a plastic cup. She added ice cubes then poured the tea. She capped it with a lid and set it on the counter.

Chloe approached with a friendly expression then subtly raised her hand to her chin then moved it away. The blonde’s smile blossomed across her face as she raised her hand and returned the gesture. Chloe picked up her drink and a straw then turned toward the door. She was nearly to the Jeep when Rico caught up with her.

“That was it? You didn’t even talk to her!” he demanded.

Chloe spun around. “Yes, I did.”

“I didn’t see you speak to her.”

“Rico, you didn’t notice?”

“Notice what?”

“That girl, Avery, is deaf.”

His face went slack with disbelief. “How’d you figure that out?”

“I watched her sign with the cashier. The cashier talked to me, so she’s not deaf. And when I signed ‘thank you’ to Avery, she signed back ‘you’re welcome.’” She carefully demonstrated each sign to him.

Rico shook his head. She could see the sudden realization and then disappointment in his eyes. “I don’t know sign language. I’d learn just to talk to her. But I don’t even know where to start. How did you even know she was signing?”

“My mom had to homeschool me because of my Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome. She thought it would be good to learn another language. Instead of Spanish or German or French, I learned to sign.” She shoved her drink into his hands. “Just wait here. I’ll go talk to her again. I can’t promise anything. Do you know how long it’s been since I was in high school? I’ve only signed once or twice since then.”

She spun on her toe and strode back into the café, not stopping until she reached the pick-up counter. She smiled as the blonde barista turned to her. Chloe lifted her hands and signed,
Hi, Avery. My name is Chloe Thomas. I have a question.

Avery stared at her with a puzzled expression. Then, she responded, her fingers graceful as she formed the words.
Yes, what can I do for you? And you don’t have to sign. I can read lips.

Chloe smiled. “Oh good.” She cocked her head toward the parking lot then turned her mouth back toward Avery. “My friend who was with me, Rico, thinks you are beautiful and would love to meet you. Would you be interested
?”

Avery looked out the window, watching Rico pace the sidewalk as he waited. Her face flushed pink as she signed.
Sure.

“
Would it be all right if we stop back tomorrow?
”

Yes. My shift ends at two. Will that work?

“Absolutely. We will see you then.”

Chloe waved her good-bye then stepped out of the café. Rico rushed to her. “What did you find out?”

“You and I are coming back here tomorrow afternoon when her shift is over. I’ll translate, so you can talk to her.” She took her iced tea from his hand then stepped around him. “Now, can I go back to Hard Drive and spend time with my husband? Besides, you need to start fight camp.”

Rico chuckled as he helped her into his vehicle.

Rico brushed a piece of lint from his tight, black T-shirt. He stretched his arm across his broad chest to rub the elbow of his other arm. He winced as a jolt of pain shot through it.

Before coming to the coffee shop for his date with Avery, he had sparred with his friends at Hard Drive. Dan had locked him in an arm bar for longer than he’d liked. But Rico had been able to escape, and then during the scramble, secure his friend in a triangle. He made Dan tap out, but the scrawny blond was far stronger than Rico realized. His elbow would ache for a couple of days.

He stepped up to the counter, studying the chalkboard mounted to the brick wall behind the coffee machines to find something to drink. He never was one for fancy coffees. Americano, cappuccino, double shot espresso—none of it looked appealing. The iced tea looked safe.

As he waited for the barista to return to the register, he glanced over to find Avery preparing a customer’s mocha. As his eyes locked with hers, he flashed a dazzling smile. Her cheeks flushed pink as she turned her attention back to her customer.
Yep. She’s hooked.

The bushy-haired redhead with thick, horn glasses who helped Rico the first couple of times appeared behind the register. “Rico Choate,” he breathed, sounding awestruck. “What can I get you?”

Rico glanced at the barista’s nametag this time. “Well, Cody, iced tea will be fine. And get me a coffee too, for my friend,” Rico answered.