One Good Reason (A Boston Love Story Book 3) (24 page)

“Then I’ll be there.” I pause. “With Parker. Try not to be a dick.”

He sighs audibly. “I’ll do my best.”

“Luca.”

“Fine! I’ll be
nice
.” He spits out the word like a curse. “Whatever.”

“See you at seven,” I say cheerfully.

He clicks off without another word.

Typical.

Before I can even set the phone down, it starts ringing again.

“Hello?”

“Tink!” Phoebe yells. “Please tell me you’re back from your adventures on the high seas now that Lancaster and that Hermès guy are behind bars.”

“Hermès?”

“Birkin.”

“I don’t follow.”

“God, you know nothing about fashion, do you?” She sighs. “
Birkin
. As in Hermès
Birkin bags
. As in the most expensive, desirable purses on the market.”

“Uh huh.”

“No one appreciates my fashion references.”

“How sad for you,” I say wryly.

“Shut up. Are you back, or what?”

“Um.” I glance up at Parker, who’s hovering over me with an amused expression. “Yes, we just docked.”

“Great! I’m having an impromptu New Years Eve get together this afternoon. Just the girls. Obviously, we’re all going to the fight tonight—”

“Wait, what?”

There’s a brief pause. “Of course. We’re all going to see Blaze fight. It’s, like, the hottest NYE gig around this year.” She pauses again. “Plus, my friend Lila really has the hots for him.”

I ignore the last part of her statement. “Who’s
we
?”

“All of us. The whole gang.”

I’m silent.

She sighs, then explains. “Me, Nate, Gemma, Chase, Shelby, Chrissy, Mark, Theo, Owen, and some of Nate’s other boys, if he decides to give them the night off. Which is unlikely, but a girl can dream because hot damn, those boys are gorgeous. Oh, plus Shelby’s husband, if he can
bear
to pull himself away from work.” She sighs. “But, anyway, we’ll all be there to cheer on Blaze! Apparently the guy he’s fighting is a real douche. The boys have been betting and discussing odds all day.”

“But…” I glance at Parker a little desperately. He just grins at me, the bastard. “Don’t you all have better plans for ringing in the New Year than an underground UFC fight at a crappy gym?”

“Nope!” Phoebe says happily. “No plans at all!”

“Oh. Imagine that.”

She laughs. “Anyway, come by my place if you have a chance. Any time! I have big news, and I want to share it with all my favorite girls at once.”

Holding Parker’s warm gaze, I find the strength not to panic at this show of sisterly affection.

“Okay,” I murmur into the receiver. “I’ll be there.”

“Fabulous!” she exclaims. “See you soon!”

She clicks off before I can say anything else. I stand and wrap my arms around Parker’s waist.

“Your sister is alarmingly pushy.”

“I know.”

“A quality you share,” I note dryly.

“Well, I did raise her.” He shrugs and tucks his chin on top of my head. “When we have kids, they’ll probably be pushy, too.”

“What?!” I practically screech at the top of my lungs.

“Shhh.” I can hear the smile in his voice. “I was just kidding. Maybe.”

“Parker!”

“You’re right.” He laughs. “I totally wasn’t kidding.”

“
Parker
!”

“Zoe!”

“This isn’t funny.”

“Actually, it’s kind of hilarious.”

I sigh deeply. “Why do I get the sense it’ll be easier to give in than keep arguing with you?”

“Because you are very wise, Oh Tiny One.”

I snort. “I have to go get ready. Apparently, I’m being subjected to another girls’ day at Phoebe’s place. No doubt there will be gossip and naked pillow fights galore. When these women get together, anything is possible.”

“Please keep in mind that you’re talking about my sisters.” Parker grimaces. “Not a good image.”

“After the kid comment, it’s really all you deserve.”

“True enough.” He hooks an arm around my waist and starts leading me down the docks. “Come on. I’ll drop you at Phoebe’s and go check in with Nate. I want to get the details of all the shit that went down with Lancaster first hand.”

“You’ll tell me everything,” I demand instantly, my tone booking no room for argument.

“Of course.” Parker’s mouth hits my temple. “None of this would’ve happened without you, darling. I know it, Nate knows it, the damn FBI knows it, and I’m sure Lancaster knows it. Hell, he’ll be spending the next twenty-five years in his prison cell knowing it.”

I grin at the thought. “It’s a Christmas miracle.”

After a quick change of clothes from foul weather gear to jeans, flats, and a comfortable sweater, Parker bustles me into the Porsche and drives me across town to Back Bay. When we pull up outside Phoebe’s brownstone, he leans over and kisses me soundly on the mouth.

“I’ll be back in an hour or so to take you to the fight.” His hand grips my chin so he can look deep into my eyes. “Don’t do anything to put yourself in danger.”

“All the bad guys are in jail, remember?”

His eyes are serious. “And yet, I still want nothing more than to put you back on my boat and lock you away in my lighthouse for the rest of eternity, where I know you’ll be safe.”

“That’s kidnapping,” I say lightly, leaning forward to nip his bottom lip with my teeth before I turn and push open the door.

“Not if the captive is willing!” he calls after me.

I bend back down to blow him a kiss. “When it comes to you, Peter Pan, I’m always ready and willing.”

“That sounded like an innuendo, Tinkerbell.”

“That’s because it was.”

His eyes flash with heat. “You’d better go, before I change my mind about letting you out of my sight.”

I’m still smiling as I slam the door and turn to face the brownstone. Before I can do something logical, like run for my life, the front door swings open and Phoebe appears in the entryway, Boo a white blur at her feet.

“
There
you are!” she yells, running barefoot down the snowy stairs and grabbing my hand. “Come on! Everyone else is already here and I’m dying to tell you my news!”

I don’t fight her as she pulls me into the house, though I do cast one last longing look over my shoulder at Parker, who’s idling at the curb to ensure we make it inside safely.

Unnecessary, but rather nice of him, I must admit.

Phoebe practically sprints into the house, dragging me behind her like a rag doll. I do my best to keep pace with her, but by the time we burst into the kitchen where Shelby, Gemma, Lila, and Chrissy are gathered around the granite island drinking wine, I’m breathless.

“Hey, Zoe!” They all smile at me.

“Hi,” I croak, bending at the waist and hauling in air.

“Jesus, Phoebe, you’ve nearly killed the girl,” Lila chides. “We already scared her away once, let’s try not to do it again.”

“I can’t help it. I’m excited. I have news!” Phoebe settles on a barstool and I follow suit, happily accepting the glass of wine Chrissy slides my way.

I bend down and scratch Boo behind the ears so he’ll stop sniffing my shoes like a maniac.

“I have news too!” Gemma announces.

Phoebe’s grin widens. “No way will it beat mine.”

Gemma’s head tilts. “Oh, I think it might.”

“As fascinating as this conversation is, can someone just spill the fucking beans already?” Shelby says, taking a big sip of wine. “I’m getting wrinkles just sitting here listening to you two debate whose news is better.”

I hide a laugh behind my wine glass.

The two sisters stare at each other, eyes locked in challenge, both totally convinced they’re about to out-do the other.

“On three?” Phoebe suggests.

Gemma nods. “One… two…”

“Nate proposed on Christmas!” Phoebe screams at the same time Gemma yells, “Chase and I are pregnant!”

And then, quite suddenly, everyone is jumping up and down, alternately screaming and crying, touching Gemma’s entirely flat stomach as if there’s already a full-blown baby doing jumping jacks in there and fawning over the mammoth rock Phoebe’s just pulled from her pocket and placed on a very important finger.

I barely know these women, but their excitement is infectious. So I don’t let myself hold back — I scream right along with them, just one more lunatic in the flock of crazies, and it doesn’t feel forced or weird. I don’t feel like an outsider. I’m just… one of the girls.

And it’s pretty fucking great.

When the collective freak-out cools from a boil to a simmer, we all sit in silence around the island, grinning until our cheeks ache.

“Suddenly, the spa gift card Mark gave me seems a bit underwhelming.” Chrissy shakes her head. “Though, Winston made me an ornament out of macaroni noodles and a paper plate at daycare. That was pretty sweet.”

“If it makes you feel any better, all I woke up to was a hangover from the tequila shots I did on Christmas Eve,” Lila says, grinning. “Not exactly the most magical day of the year.”

“I received multiple orgasms,” I blurt, drawing all their gazes to me. “Which pretty much makes it my best Christmas ever.”

Lila, Shelby, and Chrissy silently high-five me while Phoebe and Gemma make gagging sounds.

“
Brother
,” Phoebe reminds me. “Practically raised me. Gross.”

I shrug. “Your brother is hot.”

I receive more high-fives all around.

Shelby sighs and looks from Phoebe to Gemma. “Nate gave you an engagement ring. Chase gave you a fucking
baby
for Christ’s sake. I really hate to be a story-topper on your special day, but…” She trails off with a grimace, slugs back a big sip of wine, and steadies her shoulders. “I gave a pretty sweet gift of my own, this year.”

We all wait in suspense as she takes another sip.

“Divorce papers.” Shelby smiles and, for the first time since I’ve met her, I see something like relief in the depths of her pretty brown eyes. “I served Paul divorce papers, with a big red bow right on top.”

“Oh, honey,” Chrissy whispers, wrapping an arm around her friend.

“Are you okay?” Gemma asks, crowding in on her other side.

“Should we kick his ass?” Phoebe asks. “And by
we
I obviously mean
Nate and his boys
.”

Shelby laughs and waves away their concern. “Guys! Stop. This is a good thing. I mean it.” She leans back on her barstool. “I never thought I’d get divorced. To be honest, it always felt a bit like admitting I was a quitter, or that I’d made a mistake. But I don’t feel that way anymore. The bigger mistake would be continuing to shrink myself down to fit a relationship that I’ve outgrown. Frankly, I’m tired of making myself smaller so my husband doesn’t feel insignificant or emasculated. It’s not enough to have someone there to take care of your financial needs if they refuse to take care of the more important ones.”

Lila’s nose crinkles. “By
needs
you mean those of a sexual variety, correct?”

Shelby laughs. “I was thinking more about my emotional needs, but hell yes. I do yoga three times a week. I haven’t eaten a carb in four years. I’m almost thirty years old, and I’m not going to waste another goddamned moment of my life fighting for someone who gave up on us a long time ago.”

We’re all quiet for a long moment.

“How did he take the news?” Phoebe asks after a minute.

Shelby’s expression darkens. “Not well. Surprising, since I figured he’d be too busy boning his secretary to even notice I’d finally put my foot down.”

There’s a sad moment of silence where no one knows quite what to say.

What
can
you say to fix an unfixable situation?

“Oh, love.” Gemma squeezes her tight. “Anything you need, we’re here to help.”

“I could bring over food,” Phoebe offers. “Whatever vegan crap you want.”

Chrissy’s head tilts. “Or alcohol. Under the circumstances, I think tequila might be necessary.”

“I’ll help you change your locks,” Lila contributes. “I’ve had to do that
several
times after ex-boyfriends got a little testy about me kicking them out.”

Shelby smiles. “Thanks guys, but none of that is necessary.”

I’m the only one who hasn’t contributed anything, so I clear my throat. “I could hack into his computer and replace all his files with YouTube videos of goats screaming. Or, if you’re really looking to inflict some emotional damage, I could put him on the government no-fly list so next time he’s headed through security at the airport…” I smirk. “Full cavity check.”

A startled laugh flies from Shelby’s mouth. “Wait, that’s awesome. Really?”

“I knew we liked her,” Lila murmurs, grinning at me.

Phoebe slings an arm around my back. “Welcome to the club, Tink. Now that you’re in, there’s no going back.”

“I would be lying if I said that didn’t terrify me a little.” I look around warily. “You’re not going to have me killed by your crazy macho boyfriends if I decide I don’t want to be friends with you anymore, right?”

They all laugh like I’ve said the funniest thing ever… but I notice not one of them contradicts me.

I
’m slightly
tipsy by the time Parker shows up to bring me to Luca’s fight later that night.

“We’ll see you there!” Phoebe calls from the doorway, swaying on her high heels. Her cheeks are red from the alcohol in her system. “Nate’s coming with the big SUV in a few.”

I wave and climb into the Porsche, smiling dopily at Parker as soon as the door shuts behind me.

“Hi.”

“Someone’s a little drunk.” He laughs and leans over to kiss me softly. “What, did my sisters ply you with alcohol?”

I shrug. “Basically.”

“I take it they shared the good news.”

“You know!?” I gasp. “How?”

“Darling, Nate is my oldest friend. Who the hell do you think he asked for permission?”

My heart clenches. “That’s pretty sweet. You’re sweet.”

“Wow. You’re complimenting me?” His brow furrows. “Now I’m concerned. How many drinks did you have?”

“I’m fine!” I smack him on the arm. “What, I’m not allowed to be nice? I seem to remember you demanding I do just that not too long ago.”

“Yes, but the crux of our relationship is founded on the concept that I demand things and you flatly refuse me.” His eyes crinkle in amusement. “You actually listening to me is unheard of, snookums.”

Hearing the dreaded pet name, I cross my arms over my chest. “I take it back. You aren’t sweet at all.”

“Too late. You already admitted you think I’m sweet.” His mouth hits my cheek. “I wonder what else I could get you to admit.”

I feel a blush working its way up my neck. “We’re going to miss the fight.”

“You sure you’re up for it?” His voice is soft. “I don’t want you drunk in a crowd. These things get rowdy under normal circumstances — on New Year’s Eve it’s going to be a madhouse in there. I don’t want you getting swallowed up.”

“I’m not five.”

“Zoe, darling, I don’t care if you’re five, twenty-five, or a hundred and five,” he rumbles. “You’re my girl. I’m always going to worry about you. Always.”

“You’re being sweet again,” I say, feeling my eyes prickle suspiciously. “Stop it.”

He laughs. “Okay, I’ll say something terrible.”

“Good. Do that.”

His stubble scrapes my ear. “You look beautiful.” He plays with a blonde tendril that’s escaped my clip. “I like your hair like this.”

I whip my head around to glare at him. “That’s the
opposite
of terrible.”

“Fine.” He thinks about it long and hard. “Nope. Can’t come up with a damn thing.”

I sigh. “I see I’m going to have to lead by example.”

“Ah, yes, because you’ve never insulted me before. This will be a fresh experience for me. Uncharted waters.”

I giggle. “Shh. I’m thinking of insults.”

“Very serious business.” He forces his face into a somber mask. “I’m ready. Hit me with your worst.”

“Okay…” I narrow my eyes. “You snore.”

“Ah!” He throws a hand over his heart, as though gravely injured. “I’ll never recover from that one!”

“And!” I point a finger at him, in case he thought he was getting off easy. “You have bad breath in the morning.”

“No! Not bad breath!” He gasps. “You mean to tell me
I have bad breath before
brushing my teeth
? That is just shocking information. Truly revolutionary.”

I stifle a laugh. “Fine. You want me to play rough?” I make a show of cracking my knuckles, like I’m going into battle. “You once used the word
aggravate
wrong in a sentence. Technically it means
to intensify
not
to annoy
. Just for the record.”

“Did you just correct my grammar?” he whispers lowly.

“…Maybe.”

“Shit just got
real
.” His eyes narrow. “There’s no going back, now.”

I bite my lip so I won’t laugh. “Bring it.”

“Oh, I will. This is war.”

“I’m hearing a lot of empty talk, playboy.”

“Fine.” He drops his voice to a dramatic whisper. “I hope every time you charge your phone at night, the cord doesn’t go all the way in and you wake up with a dead battery!”

I gasp. “Well… I hope the next chocolate chip cookie you bite into is actually oatmeal raisin.”

“I hope you pick the slowest line at the checkout
every
time you go grocery shopping.”

“I hope every prime parking space you find actually has a motorcycle in it when you start to pull in!”

“Wow. That’s just… evil.” He shakes his head. “I had no idea I was falling for such a sociopath.”

“This is the worst fight ever,” I say, laughing. “You’re terrible at this.”

“At fighting with you?” His eyes get warm. “Maybe that’s because I’d rather be doing other things with you.”

“Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?” he asks innocently.

“Like you know what I look like naked.”

“But I
do
know—”

“Parker.”

“Fine, fine.” He reaches for the key and turns over the ignition. “Let’s get this damn fight over with. There are several creative methods I had in mind for ringing in the New Year with you. Shockingly, none of them involved watching two sweaty, bare-chested dudes wrestle.”

I roll my eyes. “Just drive the car, drama queen.”

He sighs as we jolt away from the curb, one hand gripping the wheel tightly as we merge into traffic. His other hand is twined tightly with mine on the console between us, which only adds to the warm glow spreading inside me.

Lancaster is in custody.

Christmas was actually kind of amazing.

Five kickass women befriended me against my will.

And it’s all because of this amazing man, holding my hand and simultaneously holding my whole world together.

I don’t know if it’s sheer force of will or pure stubbornness driving him to try to save me from everything — even myself. Frankly, I don’t care.

So long as he keeps being here, holding my hand and leading me through this mess called life, I think I’ll be okay.

Does that scare the shit out of me?

Of course. I’ve never been one to willingly depend on another person.

Does that mean I’m going to run?

No fucking way.

T
here’s
a line around the corner outside the gym when we arrive. It takes an eternity to find parking nearby and by the time we make it down the narrow side street to Scythe Gym, there must be a hundred people waiting to get in.

More than a few boos and grumbles emanate from the crowd as I lead Parker to the front of the line where Colton is standing with several large bouncers, collecting cash cover charges and shamelessly ogling the girls at the front of the line who are wearing a shockingly small amount of clothing, given the fact that it’s about twenty degrees outside.

“Colt!”

“Babe!” Colton reaches out a beefy arm and grabs me in a bear hug. He spins me around in a circle before setting me back on my feet. “Happy New Year.”

“Put me down, you oaf.” I elbow him and glance at Parker, who’s glaring at the buff fighter with a look I’ve only ever seen him use around Luca.

I swallow. “Colt, meet Parker. Parker, meet Colton.”

Parker gives a stiff nod to Colt.

Colt returns the nod with narrowed eyes.

Idiots
.

“Oh-
kay
. Now that we’ve gotten those warm introductions out of the way, maybe we can go inside? It’s fucking freezing out here.” I glare at Colt and gesture at the doors.

“Go ahead.” He sweeps an arm toward the entrance. “I’ll see you in there.”

“Okay. And don’t forget, I have a group of friends coming, too. You’ll get them in, right?”

“Depends.” Colt looks contemplative. “Are they cute?”

“Well, one’s married with kids, one’s knocked up, one’s freshly engaged, one’s soon to be divorced, and the other is already half-in-love with Luca.” I tilt my head. “So…”

“Babe.” Colton shakes his head. “Never tell me the odds.”

I laugh. “You’re insufferable.”

“Hey, what’s a guy to do? I spent ten years pining over you, and you never even blinked at me. Had to move on eventually.” He ruffles my hair until my clip falls to the pavement. His voice drops to a whisper. “Still secretly holding out hope though.”

“Oh, shut up, you big buffoon.” I roll my eyes. “You’ll get them in?”

A dimple pops in his cheek. “For you? ‘Course I will, babe.”

“Thanks, Colt.” I sigh and reach for Parker’s hand. “Come on, playboy. Let’s head in.”

The men exchange another set of frosty nods, which makes me sigh deeply. Parker’s fingers engulf mine as we walk into the gym, leaving a grinning Colton on the street. I shake my head disapprovingly at him before we disappear inside.

“What is it with you boys and your macho posturing?” I ask, staring up at Parker as soon as the doors shut behind us. It’s pretty crowded inside — not full to capacity yet, but certainly getting there. The crowd pulses like a living organism as money and alcohol are passed around, charging the air with adrenaline.

“Another one,” Parker mutters.

“What?” I yell over the roar of the crowd.

He looks down at me. “Another guy, in love with you.”

“Colt was kidding.”

“No, Zoe.” Parker’s eyes are serious. “He wasn’t kidding at all.”

“That was just his sense of humor. He likes his girls tall, busty, and brainless. Basically the
opposite
of everything I am. He’d never be interested in someone like me.”

“Zoe.” His voice is incredulous. “You seriously think
any
guy wouldn’t trade his left nut for a chance with a girl like you, over some bimbo? You’re fucking crazy, darling.” He pulls me toward the wall, where it’s a bit quieter, and cups his hands around my cheeks. “You’re the kind of girl men spend a lifetime looking for. And you’re mine. So forgive me if I’m not super fond of watching some random dude who admits to being in love with you run his hands all over your body.”

“Don’t be jealous.” I wrinkle my nose at him. “There’s no foundation for it.”

“I’m not jealous, babe. I don’t do jealous.” He leans down and kisses me. “I’ve told you before — I don’t want to make your decisions for you. I have no interest in controlling you.” His voice goes soft. “You don’t fall in love with a bird and stick her in a cage. You let her fly free and hope like hell she comes back to you.”

“You know what?” I ask, kissing him back.

“What?” he murmurs.

“Tinkerbell and Peter Pan
both
knew how to fly.”

He grins as he deepens the kiss.

“Gross!” I hear a familiar female voice yell, interrupting us. “Get a room, you two!”

We break apart to find Phoebe and Gemma glaring at us. Chase and Nate are standing behind them, arms crossed over their chests, looking amused.

“Get over it,” Parker tells his sisters.

“When’s this shindig starting?” Lila yells, appearing on the fringes of the group with two beers in hand, one of which she passes to me. Shelby and Chrissy both trail in her wake with drinks of their own, waving hello when they join the group.

“Should be any minute now,” I call back. “I doubt they can fit another body in here.”

“Come on!” Phoebe’s eyes are sparkling. “Let’s get closer to the stage!”

“It’s not a ballet recital, little bird. It’s called the octagon.” Nate’s voice is warm.

She waves away her fiancé’s words. “Whatever.”

I grin and sip my beer as we push our way through the crowd, Parker’s heat at my back.

“Who is Blaze fighting, tonight?” Lila leans close so I can hear her.

“Jack Forrester. Really giant dude from Maine. Built like an oak tree. They call him Lumberjack. He has a killer knock-out punch.”

Lila swallows. “Doesn’t that worry you?”

“Every damn time,” I admit. “I pray for the girl who ever falls for Luca. With what he does… you’d never get a good night’s sleep so long as he’s fighting. And I don’t see him stopping anytime soon. There are UFC scouts here, tonight. If he wins…” I glance at her and see thoughts turning over in her eyes. “He’s going all the way.”

She nods slowly and sips her beer, but says nothing else.

Lila is a conundrum.

On the one hand, she’s blunt and bold and funny as hell. On the other… she’s a total mystery. Even her closest friends aren’t exactly sure what she does for a living or how she spends her free time. I have a feeling there’s a lot more lurking behind those glossy brown eyes than she lets on.

When we reach the ring, the girls engage in a heated discussion about which octagon girl has the best outfit as we watch them parade around, hyping up the crowd. (The one in the black leather lace-up bikini is winning by a landslide.) The men adopt carefully blank expressions and refrain from commenting on our debate.

Apparently, they’re smarter than I gave them credit for.

Chase, Nate, Parker, Owen, and Theo form a towering wall at our backs, keeping the crowd from pushing in on us as the overhead lights start to flash, a telltale sign that things are about to begin. I’m laughing at something Parker’s whispered in my ear when a young guy in a Scythe Gym t-shirt appears in front of me along the inner railing.

“You Zoe?” he asks, his brown eyes nervous.

I feel Parker and Nate both shift into high-alert mode.

“Yeah,” I say, eyebrows lifting.

“Blaze wants to see you.”

My face screws up in a confused mask. “But he never wants to see me before his matches. He’s in his zen mode.”

“Apparently he changed his mind tonight.” The guy’s expression is anxious — it’s clear he doesn’t want to let down the hulking, two hundred pound wall of pure muscle who sent him out here to get me. “He said he needs to talk to you before he fights. Alone.”

Shit.

If Luca wants to see me, he must be more worried about this fight than I thought. I suddenly feel like the worst friend on earth — I didn’t even check in with him today.

“I have to go,” I say immediately, looking up at Parker. “I’ll be right back.”

“You’re not going anywhere alone.” His voice is totally serious.

Nate shakes his head, seconding Parker’s statement. “Agreed.”

“Guys! I’m not leaving the building. I’ll be fifty feet away. Luca never asks to see me before a fight — if he’s asking, it must be important.”