Stacked Up: Worth the Fight Series (16 page)

“Chinese tonight?” he said, following her.

She closed the refrigerator and looked over her shoulder.

“No. How about grilled cheese and tomato soup?”

“Sounds good. I’ll take a quick shower.” He turned to leave the kitchen, but Penny grabbed his shirt, stopping him.

“Just wanted to tell you that I’m…when you’re not here, I miss you.”

“Missed you too, momma.” He kissed her lips and wrapped his arms around her waist. “We’ll pick this up when I’m not so sweaty.”

“Okay.” She kissed him one last time and went to prepare dinner.

Penny opened the enormous pantry and pulled out a can of soup, thinking again about how the only time she’d ever called Travis was when she was in trouble. She always waited for him to make a move because she was too insecure or nervous to do it herself.

It was time to be bold, she thought. To do what she wanted to do and not worry about what others thought or what was right or wrong or even proper or improper.

She put the can back, peeked into the room where Belle was to make sure she was asleep, then took a deep breath and opened Travis’s bedroom door. She could hear the shower. She quickly undressed and quietly opened the door to the bathroom.

She’d expected to see Travis soaping his body or shampooing his hair. But through the glass door she saw he was leaning against the wall in the shower spray, his eyes closed and his impressive erection in one hand.

Since this was her first attempt at being bold and sexy, she was unsure of what to do, and she stood there nervously, trying to figure out her first move.

“You gonna stand there and watch or you gonna come in and help me?”

Startled, she looked at him and realized that he’d opened his eyes and was looking at her.

She pulled together her courage, then opened the shower door and stepped in. He grabbed her by the back of the neck and drew her roughly against him, attacking her mouth. The kiss was hard and desperate, and his dick throbbed against her stomach.

She pushed him away and got on her knees.

“You sure?” he asked.

Instead of responding, she inched closer and nodded.

“Then open up that pretty mouth,” he commanded, his voice hoarse.

She opened her mouth and he guided himself inside, leaning forward with both hands on the tiled wall. Water sluiced down his body and onto her as she tried to figure out how to do this.

“So long as you don’t bite hard, you can’t really fuck up a blow job, momma,” he said, answering her silent question.

So she wrapped a hand around the shaft and moved her hand up and down. “Harder. Your hand—squeeze harder,” he hissed, his voice tight.

She followed his directions, and he seemed to be enjoying it because he moved his hips slightly forward. He had said not to bite
hard.
But he hadn’t said not to bite, so she nibbled a little as she moved her hand up and down.

“Christ.” He pulled her up to her feet. “Stop.”

She pushed the wet hair from her face. “It wasn’t good?”

He snorted. “It was fuckin’ great. Didn’t want to come in your mouth. Your turn.” Before she had a chance to react, he was on his knees, one of her legs was over his shoulder, and his tongue was on her—in her. He dug his nails against the skin on her ass and looked up at her as he sucked her clit hard into his mouth. Her head fell back against the wall. She was seconds away from coming when he stopped and spanked her pussy, causing her to mewl loudly. He opened the shower door, reached under the sink, and took out a box of condoms. Frenzied, he used his teeth to rip open the cardboard box, which fell apart in his wet hands. “You need to get on the pill. I hate rubbers.” He quickly opened a wrapper and slid on a condom, then lifted her up. “Wrap your arms and legs around me and hold tight, darlin’.” He pressed her back against the wall of the shower as he moved in and out of her.

“So good, Travis,” she moaned.

He grunted as he pushed into her. “You’re so tight, it’s too fucking good,” he breathed into her neck, the water spraying around them. “Feel you coming,” he grunted.

“Yes!” she moaned as he thrust one last time, both of them exploding together in a heady combination of sensations—his warm skin, the cold tile, and her hot, oversensitized body.

“Will it ever be bad?” she asked dazedly after the shudders had subsided.

“Not between us, I reckon,” he said, kissing her shoulder, his hardness throbbing inside her. “Y’know, I was hoping you’d come in here while I was in the shower,” he admitted.

“You were? Why didn’t you just ask or say something?”

He unwrapped her arms and legs and helped her down. “Because I always initiate it, and you’re living here. I don’t want you to feel obligated. I want you to come to me because you want to. Freely.” He stepped out of the shower and brought her a towel.

“Travis, I want to tell you something,” she said as she dried herself. “Before this big mess, when it was just my secret, I liked you. I looked forward to work because it meant I would see you. I wondered where you were right before coming to the bar and where you went after. I am in awe at your confidence and the way you command a room by just smiling. You make everyone around you at ease, and that night when you kissed me, you impacted my life. Travis, I felt so helpless that day, and you gave me a renewed sense of hope just by wanting me. I’ve felt so lonely and discarded for so long. So if I’m guarded, it’s only because I have Belle to think about, not because I don’t like you.” She looked down at the towel, fingering the hem. “If you want the truth…the truth is that I’m scared of the feelings I have for you. I shouldn’t feel these things for a man who says he doesn’t want kids or trouble.”

He slid one of his T-shirts on her and then tossed both towels aside. “Wow. That’s a lot of words,” he said as they walked to the kitchen.

She quickly began to prepare the soup and sandwiches she’d promised she’d make. “Maybe I said too much? I did, didn’t I? I just didn’t want you to think my lack of being forward is a sign of disinterest.”

“No, I’m glad you said how you feel. I’m not always sure. And—” Just then his phone chirped. He reached for it, read the caller’s name, and hopped out of his chair. “Shit. I have to do something, darlin’. Should be fast.” He took the sandwich from her hand and shoveled some of it into his mouth.

“What? You’re leaving? It’s midnight.”

“I know, but it’s very important.”

“Is it JL? Did something happen?”

“No, nothing like that. You trust me, right?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, then go to bed. I’ll be back soon.” He jogged to his room and emerged in gym shorts and a T-shirt. He kissed the top of her head, grabbed his keys and wallet, and ran out, leaving her utterly confused. She’d just laid her heart on the line, and he’d literally run away.

Travis opened the door to the Pier. Jack had sent him a text saying he’d been at the Pier handling another matter when he’d seen Lawrence walk in alone. Travis didn’t want to waste an opportunity that might not come again.

When he walked in, he saw Lawrence in a booth in a corner. Without waiting for permission he slid in across from him.

“Let me guess,” Lawrence said. “You changed your mind. You want the money after all. No woman’s worth fifty thousand, am I right?”

Travis shook his head, his hands fisted under the table. He had to remain controlled and cool about this. “How much is Kip paying you?”

“None of your business.”

“You just said no woman’s worth the money, right? So why would you want a woman and a kid, neither of whom wants you? Seems like a lot of aggravation for someone who doesn’t appear to want any aggravation.”

“Like I said, it’s none of your business.” It had only been a day since Travis last saw Lawrence, but over the past twenty-four hours he seemed to have aged. He looked like a tormented man.

“What’s your deal, man? You seriously look hard up. Drugs? It’s gotta be more than money. Penny told me your ex cleaned you out, but damn—you look like shit.” When Lawrence still said nothing, Travis sat back. “Beer?” he offered.

“Don’t drink.”

“Oh, that’s right. It’s for sinners.” He remembered Penny telling him that Lawrence worked with Kip and likely held the same beliefs.

“Yes. But there was nowhere else open at this time, and I needed to sit and think.”

“Since you ain’t talking, I’m just goin’ to talk. One thing you probably don’t know about me is that I can talk. A lot. So, let me see. It’s not drugs, I don’t think. I mean, if you don’t drink, I doubt you’d be usin’. Gambling? Sex addict?” Travis guessed. “Wait! You work for Kip, isn’t that right? That’s how you met Penny. You can’t even get a job, can you? Kip has your balls. You’re fucked, aren’t you? He won’t give you a recommendation or a job or something? Am I right? Getting closer?”

Lawrence’s grip around his soda mug tightened. “Why are you here?”

“I want a number. How much it’ll take to make this all go away. I want you out. Gone. Never to be heard from again. You sign the paperwork and you leave town.”

“And Kip?”

“Fuck Kip. Kip can’t do shit without you. You’re the baby’s father. Without you, any and all threats are bullshit. You relinquish your parental rights. You acknowledge that you did this for personal reasons and it has nothing to do with Penny’s qualifications as a parent. And you never again speak to the media about this. The reality is, Kip can make her life hell, but he can’t claim the kid—only you can. So, give me a number.”

Lawrence sat back, his shoulders relaxing a little.

“One hundred and fifty thousand dollars.”

“That’s a lot of fucking money, Lawrence.”

“That’s my kid, Travis.”

“Whom you’ve never even met,” Travis ground out through gritted teeth.

“I have. In the park. I saw her.”

“Is that why you look so tormented? Now you’ve grown a fuckin’ conscience? I don’t believe that for a minute.”

“We have a deal or what?”

“Where you going to be?”

“I’m here for the week. I’m at the Regency in Tampa, room 782. You’ve got a week. Either you pay up or I take my kid and Kip’s money.”

Travis rose, planted his palms on the table, and leaned close to Lawrence. “There’s a special place in hell for people like you.” Travis threw a few bills on the table. “I’ll be in touch.”

It was the middle of the night when Travis slid into his bed, but it was a new kind of wonderful to come home to a woman in it. As soon as he lay down, she scooted close to him. One hundred and fifty thousand dollars was a lot of money, he thought. After the money he’d spent on the house, it was about all he had left from the show. It was the money he’d planned to use to travel, to live worry-free. He let this thought run through his mind.

“You okay, Travis?” she murmured sweetly against his chest.

“Yeah, momma. Go back to sleep, baby.” He kissed her head. He had always been a terrible sleeper, but when Penny was in the house, even when she’d been in the next room, he’d fallen right into a restful slumber, all worry slipping away. Tonight was no different. Even with all the thoughts consuming him, he went right to sleep.

“I’m starved,” Travis announced, as he walked into the kitchen the next morning. Penny sat on the couch brushing Belle’s hair into two pigtails.

“Twavis!” Belle yelped as soon as she saw him. Her arms reached up for him.

“Sit still, Belle. Let me finish.”

“Twavis!” She began to cry.

“No tears, baby girl.” He ran to Belle and lifted her, and the little girl began to giggle.

“She is such a little sneak. Those sobs were totally fake. But they worked, didn’t they, sweetie?” Penny poked Belle’s side, causing the little girl to giggle harder in Travis’s arms. Then she addressed Travis. “There’s not much food left. I have to do some work for Patsy here today, and then I have to be at Ruby’s tonight. But I have time now, so do you mind dropping us off at the grocery store on your way to the gym? We can take the bus back afterward. I think there’s cereal for breakfast, or I can make you one of those protein shakes.”

“Nah. Why don’t we grab some grub at EE’s, then I’ll drop you off at the market. Besides, you think I’m going to be cool with the two of you trekking all about town on a bus with the paparazzi being dicks?”

“Sounds good.” She took Belle from Travis’s arms and set her on her feet on the floor. Belle promptly fell down.

Travis crouched down. “You are a wobbly little thing, sugar,” he said, tapping her nose.

“Do you think I should worry that she isn’t walking yet?” Penny asked.

“No idea. Have you asked her doctor?”

“Yes. He said that she just needed time and opportunity.”

“Makes sense.”

“I suppose. At Ms. Hannigan’s she was in a Pack ’n Play most of the day, and in my apartment, there was barely any room to move.”

“So let her roam around here. Bet she’ll be running in no time,” Travis said, standing up. Belle crawled behind him. “Come on, baby girl.” He scooped her up and set her on his shoulders.

He’d told Penny he would just drop her at the grocery store after breakfast, but instead he went in with her. “Don’t you have to go burn off the two zillion calories you just consumed at EE’s, cowboy?” Penny asked as she pushed the shopping cart.

“I’m too full to work out,” he answered, patting his stomach. “I’ll go to the Academy later.”

Travis took charge of the cart as Penny loaded up on the necessities. Travis loaded up on everything else.

“That’s a lot of stuff,” she exclaimed when she saw what he was buying.

“I know, but you cook and I eat. It’s a great arrangement, don’t you think?” he said, looking down at Belle, who just giggled.

“Yeah, but are you inviting people over? That’s a lot of steaks.”

“Have you seen how much I eat, woman?”

She laughed. “Okay, cowboy. It’s your wallet.”

A moment later he told her, “Oh, there’s something I’ve been meaning to do. Keep going, I’ll be right back. Don’t be stingy on the cookies!” he called over his shoulder.

Penny laughed, grabbed three different kinds of cookies, and tossed them in the cart. “He’s funny, isn’t he, Belle?”

“Funny,” Belle giggled. She shook her head and blew a raspberry.

Half an hour later Penny rolled the cart up to the checkout just as Travis returned. “Here,” he said, handing her a bag.

She took it and looked inside as Travis moved their items onto the checkout. “What’s this?”

“You don’t know what a phone is?” He shook his head and rolled his eyes, but the entire time he was looking at Belle, who just laughed. Actually, every time Belle looked at Travis she laughed. It was cute.

“I know what a phone is.” She pulled hers out of her pocket to show him. “I have one.”

He took it from her hand. “This, darlin’, is not a phone. This is some ancient artifact that is no longer relevant in Western civilization. It flips open. Unless I’ve been hit on the head one too many times, the nineties are over and your phone somehow came through the vortex into this decade.”

She put the box back into the bag. “Travis, my phone works perfectly fine. I don’t need this. I know how expensive they are.”

“You need a phone. You have a little girl. If you have an emergency—”

“I’ll use my phone to call.”

“It takes you thirty minutes to text.”

“So I’ll just call. People used to talk, you know? They didn’t always text.”

“Well, what if I have some sort of food emergency? What if I want to send you a recipe or a picture of a food item I’d like to eat? You see, you need this phone to do that.”

She laughed. “Didn’t realize you were going through cookbooks in your spare time.”

“Lots of things you don’t know about me, sugar.” He winked and took out his wallet to pay.

She reached into her purse and he stopped her. “Let me at least pay for my share.”

“No.”

“Travis, please. There’s at least a hundred dollars in diapers and baby food alone.”

Seeing the older lady at the cash register looking at them with a knowing smile, Travis said, “You ain’t going to emasculate me here in front of”—he looked at her name tag—“Joanne, are you, momma?” He handed Joanne his credit card.

Penny put her wallet back in her purse. “Travis, I don’t feel comfortable with this.”

“Listen, you cook, okay? You make me dinner, even breakfast on occasion. How ’bout we call it even?”

“That’s not even. Not even a little bit.”

“It is. I’m sick of drinking protein shakes all day. Your cooking is great. If I hired someone to cook or went out every night, it would be double what we just spent. I have the money, Penny. It really isn’t a big deal. And if it makes you feel better, your help around the house is more than a fair trade.”

She blew out a breath. “Fine, I guess.”

Travis leaned down to where Belle was sitting in the cart’s seat. “Look at that, baby girl. Your momma just accepted some help,” he said, ruffling her hair. “Miracles do happen.”

The little girl just giggled.

Travis was on his hands and knees chasing Belle around the house when he stopped and looked at Penny, who sat at the kitchen table with stacks of papers, a calculator, and a pencil sticking out of the messy bun she had on her head. She nibbled on another pencil while sifting through receipts. She looked like she belonged exactly where she was.

“You’re looking mighty fine sitting there, drowning in papers,” he told her.

She put her pencil down and began to straighten her hair.

“I wasn’t saying it sarcastically, sugar. You look beautiful.”

She looked at him questioningly. “I’m a mess.”

He reached up and pressed his lips against hers. “You’re perfect.”

“Mama.”

Travis stopped, and Penny threw herself on the floor to be at her daughter’s level. “Did you hear her? She said ‘Mama’!” She crawled after her daughter. “Say it again. Mama,” she repeated slowly. “
Ma-ma.
Say it, baby. Travis, you heard her, right?”

Travis was sitting on the floor with his back against the wall. “Yeah, darlin’, I heard her,” he said, laughing.

“Mama,” Penny kept repeating as she crawled across the floor.

Travis got up, wrapped an arm around Penny’s midsection, and pulled her up by her waist, causing her to yelp. “Leave that poor girl alone,” he said in a mock-scolding voice. “You’re harassing her. She ain’t gonna talk again if you keep it up.”

“Twavis!” Belle yelped as she crawled to her pile of toys on the other side of the room.

“Are you secretly teaching her to only say your name?”

Travis shifted Penny onto his lap. “You caught me.” He winked and kissed her lips.

“You never went to the gym.”

He kissed her again. “I know.”

“Why’s that?”

He kissed her again. “For the first time in my life, I have something I’d rather do.” As he gazed around the room, which was full of scattered toys, he held her tight.

“Hey, Travis, do you mind giving me a lift to Olivia’s to drop off Belle before work?” she yelled from the bedroom.

“No problem,” he shouted back from the living room. His feet were propped on the coffee table as he watched Belle crawl all over his house. “But I don’t like how late you work.”

“It’s fine, Travis. I used to work late at the Pier. Now that I’m not working at EE’s during the day, I get to spend more time with Belle while she’s awake. At night I come in one or maybe two hours later, but she doesn’t even know because she’s asleep.”

“I know. But still, I don’t like it. You shouldn’t be traveling all over Tarpon Springs in the middle of the night with Belle.”

“Well, it wasn’t exactly like that before. The babysitter was my neighbor. Plus, this is just for tonight, since normally Olivia works the same shift I do. I have to figure out something more permanent. Even when I move back, Ms. Hannigan can’t keep watching Belle forever—she’s too old.”

Travis dropped his feet from the coffee table and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “C’mere, Belle.” Belle giggled, took a step, and then fell down, but stood up again and continued to try. “Did Ms. Hannigan ever make you her famous Key lime pie?” Belle just looked at him and blew a raspberry.

“I take that as a no,” he chuckled.

“How did you know about that?” Penny called from the other room.

“I’ve been living in Tarpon Springs for a long time,” he told her. “I think Ms. Hannigan may have founded this town—she’s that old. Isn’t she?” he said to Belle, who was less than a foot away from him now. “I think she’s probably too old to take care of herself, never mind a baby.”

“She’s kind. Plus, I was in a bind. I never thought Belle was unsafe with her. Which reminds me—I need to go see Jessica and Slade this weekend. They’re giving me one of Drogo’s pups. I can’t take it yet, but I wanted to see them.”

“You want a puppy, Belle?” he asked the little girl.

“No! It’s for Ms. Hannigan. She keeps talking about the dog who passed away last year. Plus, if Belle isn’t going to be at her place, I think she’ll be lonely. So I want to give her a dog.”

“Okay, we’ll go this weekend.”

“I’m ready to go,” Penny said, rounding the corner and coming into the living room.

With the tight shirt and short shorts that cupped, curved, and accentuated all the right places, Penny was a sight. “Jesus,” he whispered as he ran his hands through his hair.

“What?” she said, looking down at herself.

“Nothing. Just—wow. You’re so fucking beautiful.” He covered his mouth and looked down at Belle, whose arms were stretched up toward her mother. “Shit, sorry. I shouldn’t curse, huh?”

“Probably not. Thank you for the compliment, though.”

“Thank
you
for wearing that. I should probably send Joe a thank-you note for picking out that uniform.”

She giggled. He was surprised by the sound—he hadn’t ever heard that from her. And it reminded him of her daughter. “Point made.”

“Ready to go?”

“Yep. Let’s hit it.”

After he dropped Belle off at Olivia’s and then Penny off at Ruby’s, he went back home. He made himself two protein shakes and drank them. Afterward he paced the house restlessly. He decided not to wait for morning to call Frances.

“Hey, Frances. Did I wake you?”

“Nope. Just studying. What’s up?”

“I met with Lawrence last night.”

“No kidding. What did he say?”

“He wants a hundred and fifty thousand.”

“Holy fuck, Travis!”

“I know.”

“So what are you going to do?”

“Give him the money.”

“You sure? That’s a lot.”

“That’s almost all of it,” he admitted.

“Damn,” she said. “Well, maybe
Fight Night
will be renewed. Plus, if you win the fight in Vegas, that’s a big chunk of change. More than you make with
Fight Night
.”

“I don’t care, to be honest. I want all this shit to go away. When do you think you can get me all the papers? I don’t want this son of a bitch changing his mind.”

“I’ll rush it. Should be ready tomorrow. You’ll need to bring Lawrence and Penny with you to the attorney’s office. And you don’t give Lawrence a cent until he signs everything.”

“Of course. Send me the attorney’s info—I’ll call the bank and transfer over the money to his office.”

“Okay. And Trav?”

“Yeah?”

“Proud of you,” she said before ending the call.

Travis put on his gym clothes and went for a jog. He’d intended to only go for a short run, then go home, shower, and pick up Penny after work, but without realizing it he found that it was nearly one o’clock and he’d jogged all the way to Ruby’s.

A few minutes later, as he was leaning against the railing by the employees’ entrance, Penny came out laughing with Darlene. “Travis?” she exclaimed, surprised to see him. “What are you doing here? And why are you all sweaty?”

“Came to get you.” Travis pushed off the railing and kissed Penny. “Hi, Darlene.”

“Hey, Texas,” Darlene said back.

“You didn’t have to. Darlene was going to drive me to Olivia’s to get Belle and then to your house.”

“Don’t mind.” He brushed a bit of hair away from her face. She wasn’t wearing that headband thing anymore, and her bangs were growing out.

Darlene gave them both a strange look. “Okay, then. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye, guys.” She waved as she walked to her car.

Penny looked around. “Where’s your truck?”

“Oh, shit!” He jogged over to Darlene. “Wait up. I ran here. Can you give us a lift?”