Rough Around the Edges Read Free Page B

denying it – for whatever reason, a woman had caught his eye and his attention for the first time in well over a year. The Afghanistan desert where he’d been deployed for eight months had been anything but a dating scene, and then when he’d come home his life had been such a clusterfuck that romance had been the last thing on his mind.
    Something had changed that day at the gym, even if it was something as simple as being intrigued and turned-on by a woman – something that probably happened to most guys several times a day. He couldn’t explain it, but damn if it didn’t feel good just to know what he wanted as he turned off the stove burner and slid his simple meal onto a plate. Friday night was going to be the best night he’d had in a long time, and not just because he was going to win the middleweight prize purse.

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 2
     
     
    When Ryan thought about what he’d liked about New York, he didn’t think of the skyline, the endless entertainment options or the energy of millions of people all living out their lives in the country’s biggest metropolis. Weird as it might be, it was the scent combination of sweat and dampness that captured what he’d loved most about his years in the city.
    That same scent was present inside Knockout as he wrapped his hands in the men’s locker room, preparing for his first turn in the ring. Outside the locker room, the place was packed full of spectators. Their body heat had raised the normally cool building’s temperature considerably. It was almost too hot, even though he was only wearing a pair of shorts, but he didn’t mind. It was a familiar environment – one he’d craved – even if he was in a different city now.
    “Hey.” One of the lightweights from Knockout poked his head into the locker room. “Sanchez is kickin’ this guy’s ass. Last round. You’ll be up soon.”
    Ryan nodded and finished wrapping his left hand. Showtime. A sense of impending satisfaction expanded  inside him at the thought of stepping into the ring. It had been a long time, but he was more than ready. In fact, if something somehow prevented him from going through with his match, it just might kill him.
    Or at least, that was how it felt. He was ready to feel like his own self again, even if it was only for a single round.
    Five minutes later, he was in the ring. It was impossible to resist scanning the crowd. He hadn’t stopped thinking about how Ally had said she’d be there.
    She hadn’t lied. She sat in one of the many folding chairs, in the second row back. As soon as he laid eyes on her, she was all he could see. She was as stunning as he remembered – not that he’d forgotten what she looked like over the past couple days. Not even close. And standing there in the ring, he really did feel like his old self. So, almost without thinking, he did what New York Ryan would’ve done and winked in her direction.
    She was staring back, which wasn’t a surprise seeing as how she’d come there as a spectator for the purpose of watching what went down in the ring.
    After savoring her expression of surprise for the briefest of moments, he turned to face his opponent.
    Another middleweight, he was built a lot like Ryan. He looked determined as he glared back, but it didn’t matter. Ryan wasn’t going to lose. Not in any case, and especially not with Ally watching.
    The round began with a flurry of movement. His opponent was fast, but not fast enough to land all the hard punches he threw. Ryan dodged a second jab and landed one of his own, using the momentum and his body weight to send the other man sliding backwards. A couple more punches and he had him against the ropes – right where he wanted him.
    Quickly, he pummeled him with blows to his ribs and jaw. With every punch, his sureness that he was where he was meant to be increased. All he could think about was the fight, and losing himself in the task at hand was sweet oblivion, even when the