Breaking Through (Atlanta #3) (2 page)

Marcus didn't always buy it, but he rarely pushed. That day, however, he wouldn't let it go.
 

"Come on, Luke, I'm getting tired of your bullshit answers. This time you had a real, honest-to-god smile on your face. I say you take it and run with it," Marcus said. "So let's go punch for punch. Every time I land one, you talk. Every time
you
land one, you talk."

Luke chuckled and shook his head. "Somehow you seem to win either way."

"Yeah, that was the point. Come on, get your gloves."

Luke went over to the sparring mat and let Marcus tape his knuckles. He returned the favor and walked over to the center of the mat and pulled the minimalistic kick-boxing gloves over his fingers. Strong and ready, he squared off against one of Atlanta's best fighters. Luke was Marcus's first trainee, and even though Luke was brand new to the MMA scene, Marcus's skill in both fighting and training was impressive. And because of that, Luke continued to learn fast. Marcus even talked about getting him in an unofficial, public exhibition match soon.
 

When they were both ready for some one-on-one practice, Marcus opened with a jab/sweep combination Luke avoided quickly. Marcus smiled and said, "nice." Luke went for a straight-on jab…instantly blocked.
 

Luke laughed. "Guess I'm not talking anyway."

Marcus knocked the smug look right off his face with a left hook and enjoyed his own smug smile as he stood over him. "Wrong. Let me hear about your smile."

Luke shook his head. "Sophie hugged a stranger."

"What?" Marcus asked with confusion while helping Luke up off the mat. "That's your smile?"

"If you can hit me again I'll tell you about it," he said with a cocky grin.

"If? Ha." Marcus crouched down aggressively and dropped the casual sparring vibe. He went after Luke like an animal, punched him again and spun behind him. With the momentum, he had Luke tossed to the floor in less than two seconds in a tight submission hold. "Like I said,
if
? Now talk."

Luke got a little pissed. He didn't realize how much Marcus held back during training. Luke was more than a little humiliated.
Fuck
.
 

"Get the hell off me," Luke gritted.

"Talk first," Marcus demanded.
 

"Fine, asshole. Sophie reached for a woman who works at her doctor's office. She's never done that before. The woman was beautiful and it made me smile. Satisfied?"

"Yes," Marcus said, letting him up.
 

At least Marcus never pushed him too far for information. He nipped away like a relentless little ankle-biter, though. If Luke didn't love the gym so much, he would have walked out a long time ago. But he needed the physical release from all the pent up anger in his body. Marcus understood well and let Luke practically live there. Today, though, he was done. He turned toward the locker room when Marcus stopped him.
 

"Hey!" Marcus said as he squared off again. "We're not done here. I won't ask anything else. Let's work on your jabs."

"Fine," Luke said in a flat voice as he put his hands up again.
 

Marcus encouraged his punches and coached his way through jabs and combinations. Luke worked hard to focus, but Marcus already unleashed his frustration with that take down. Now instead of the beautiful face from the clinic, he had his dark situation swirling through his mind. Without meaning to, his controlled practice-jabs turned into full-on punches. Marcus called him out like he always did.
 

"Knock it off," he barked. "Focus. Control. Pull it together or we'll
talk
some more."

Luke understood the implication. Marcus would take him down hard and force him to confess a little more about his smiles or his anger. Luke tried hard to focus, but the rage bubbled too close to the surface now. He swung again with more strength than he intended, and Marcus took him down. Too easily.
Fuck
.
 

"Talk," Marcus ordered while he held Luke on the mat.
 

"Fuck you."

"I can hold you here all day long. I got time."

Luke tried to wrestle away in anger and frustration, but Marcus's hold was too strong. Even with calm focus he rarely got away from Marcus…but he was learning. Eventually he would be able to, but
eventually
didn't help him right then. He quit thrashing and sighed.

"Fine. I'm never going to get any real time with Sophie. I have no job, no apartment, no stability. Not really father material."

Marcus released him and pulled him up off the floor. He appraised Luke with his hands on his head. "I think I can fix at least two of those," he said. "Work on your jabs with the dummy and then spot anyone who wants to lift. I'll be back in an hour."

Luke looked at him in confusion and shook his head. He walked over to the dummy and saw Marcus walk into Bill's office and reach for the phone. A minute later he was out the door and down the sidewalk.
Whatever
.
 

Luke took his anger and bitterness out on the poor sparring dummy who shook wildly from the force of his blows. The more the dummy danced, the harder Luke hit. Too bad he couldn't put himself in the dummy's place. He deserved that kind of punishment, even though no one around him would believe him.
 

None of them knew how dark his insides were. He kept the ugliness locked up tight so no one else would have to deal. Holding the guilt clenched in his gut physically ached sometimes, but hiding the darkness was better than bringing anyone else down with him.

Jenna did little else all week other than sit in her brand new apartment and think about that short but intense moment at the clinic. Luckily, she loved her new place and shuffled her belongings around the space while she thought about his gorgeous green eyes.
 

This duplex, converted from an old Victorian house from the turn of the century, originally housed a multi-room master suite in the second floor. What was designed to be a grand bedroom had been converted to a kitchenette/living room which also served as her entranceway. Basically, every time she walked in her door, she saw her kitchen and table to the left, her sitting area and tv to the right, and a hallway across the room which lead to two bedrooms and a bathroom.
 

Her bedroom was originally a study, she was told, so the size of the room was fairly small. What used to be a fur-closet was now her storage room. A single bed would probably fit in there with a dresser if she ever needed a roommate, but that wasn't likely. The owner was one of her favorite retired professors from her medical assistant's program. She knew her as a reliable, hard worker and let her stay there at a fraction of the usual rent. Otherwise, she never could have afforded such a nice place.

With the exception of the cheap rent, by far the best part of her entire place was the huge, luxurious bathroom. The antique iron tub was larger than even the standard antique claw-foot tubs she'd seen before. At some point the owner built a shelf/platform structure around the edges of the tub, complete with a mini-staircase leading up to the rim. Between the shelves and steps, Jenna had a beautiful place to keep her vast collection of scented oils, bubble bath, scrubbers, and scented candles. Baths were always her favorite way to relax, but this tub made the experience extravagant every time.

So, on the Tuesday evening before little Sophie's next appointment, Jenna filled her tub and considered everything about her life, mostly that she finally felt like an adult. At age twenty-two, she had a real job, a budget, and a day-to-day routine which included grocery shopping, paying bills….and now her obsessive thinking about a guy she'd only seen once. She rolled her eyes at herself.

She eased herself down into the big iron tub, treating her skin to eucalyptus-spruce bath salts. While she soaked in the warm water, she tried to figure out what she would say to Sophie's dad if he brought her in. She assumed she'd be unable to say anything. Her shy nature didn't allow for such forward interactions.
 

However, she'd been friends with Cassie Walker long enough to know how the concept of bold works. Maybe she could channel Cassie's inner-strength and work up the nerve to at least say hi or introduce herself. What a terrifying and exciting thought. Maybe Sophie would reach for her again so she could have a conversation starter other than, "May I see your insurance card please?"

As much as she would like to, she couldn't ask something like,
"Are you single? And if so, will you kiss me please?"
 

She giggled out loud at the preposterous notion of such a question and imagined how strong one would have to be to utter those words. Probably as strong as Luke's world must be. She imagined him asking without hesitation. Well, not exactly. With his commanding presence, his words would be more along the lines of,
"Kiss me. If you're not single, get that way."
Jenna smiled at the thought.

Luke Baylor would certainly be strong in every way, and Jenna loved to rely on people with that kind of strength. Cassie offered confident direction as a friend, maybe Luke could help Jenna feel a sense of confidence with him. He was most likely a loving, powerful man. He had muscles on his muscles, tattoos that practically screamed
I'm a badass
, and a darkness in his eyes that no one would dare mess with. And yet, that kind, loving way with which he handled his daughter belied a part of him that was sweet, maybe even wholesome.
 

"Please be single, I want to kiss you."
At least she enjoyed the thought of those words, even if she could never say them. Her body wanted her to, though. His presence kick started a rush of brain chemicals so raw she barely believed it. And because of his possible reappearance in her world, Jenna spent extra time in the tub primping for her shift at the clinic the next day. She scrubbed away the dry skin of her heels, shaved her legs and even her puss, wanting to feel smooth all over. How dumb. No one would ever see any of her extra softness.
 

But still, maybe with her body as smooth and soft as possible, she could have an extra boost in her own confidence. She once again inspected her physique which sported a little too much mushiness and sighed. So much for her hopes of confidence. Nothing could be done about her shape by tomorrow, anyway, so why bother worrying about it? Still, her undefined physique deflated her hopes. A man like Luke Baylor would not notice a girl like her.
 

She drained the tub and dried herself off and painted her nails anyway. Why not primp as much as possible? She would feel good even if she didn't have a valid need for all the fuss.
 

Her subtle, mint-green nail-color matched her Wednesday scrubs. Not that he would notice…if he showed up to the clinic at all. She fixed herself a mug of herbal tea before bed. Hopefully the long, warm bath and comforting drink would help her sleep.
 

As she expected, sleep eluded her for a long time. Not only did she think about the perfection of Luke Baylor, she dwelled on the imperfection of herself. By the time she drifted off more than an hour later, Jenna was frustrated and without any sense of confidence. She didn't like being so shy, or even weak, but she hoped eventually she could figure out how to be strong on her own. Again, she wondered what it would be like for Luke to help her get there, but sighed knowing that would likely never happen.
 

Jenna woke up the next morning surprisingly rested…and glad Cassie wasn't working that day. As much as Jenna loved her bold friend, she didn't want her forcing an interaction between herself and Luke if he came in. If anything was to happen, Jenna wanted the process to be natural, not influenced by Cassie. Jenna wouldn't trust the connection if it weren't made between the two of them alone.
 

She pulled on her scrubs, still smelling subtly of crisp eucalyptus and earthy spruce. The comforting scent made her smile and reminded her of her smooth skin for the day. A tiny bit of confidence sneaked back into her heart while she slid bright pink Crocs over the purple polka-dotted socks on her feet.
 

Those shoes were super-comfortable and a favorite of the staff. Most of the nurses wore them every day. Not only did they keep everyone's feet happy, but those clunky shoes made most of the little kids smile. Cassie, of course, started the trend at their clinic. Now, the tradition evolved to include brightly colored socks like her purple ones, and little rubber decorations clipped into the shoes themselves. How fun…but how potentially embarrassing if Luke noticed them. But then again, if Sophie loved those crazy shoes, Luke probably would, too. That's the kind of father he obviously was: dedicated and adoring.
 

Swoon
.
 

With one more hope to see him, Jenna got in "the blueberry," her little blue two-door Civic, and drove off to the clinic to start her shift at nine o'clock…right when they opened the doors…five hours and ten minutes before another potential encounter with Luke Baylor and the adorable little Sophie.

Luke laughed at how easily he got Sophie from CB for the afternoon. All he had to do was appeal to her mile-wide-selfish-side. He offered to "deal with Sophie" so she could go shopping with her friends. The concept of
dealing
with Sophie was ridiculous. Time with her was fun and important. He loved to bond with her any chance he got. Had he known how easily he could get more time with Sophie, he'd have worked her mother's selfish side even sooner. He didn't like feeling so manipulative, but time with Sophie was worth the underhandedness. She would benefit from time with her daddy, anyway. He had no doubt.

Luke showed up to Miranda's parents' house right at noon to pick up Sophie. He had to borrow their car to drive her anywhere. He hated that, but there was no way to put Sophie on his Harley. He'd have to get a car if he was going to spend more time with her.

Thankfully, Miranda was already gone and her parents were waiting for him. They weren't as nasty as Miranda, but they were disinterested at best. To quote Sophie's grandma, "We already raised our kids. We don't need to do it again." These people were absolutely baffling to Luke. They all lived in their house with a beautiful, sweet little girl and not one of them appreciated her.