"Come on, Fen, you know I like my independence. Don't be like everyone else and make the mistake of thinking I'm only dancing because I can't do anything else. I like it and it pays very well. I'm not afraid of liking the attention, I'm not embarrassed at showing off my body, and I'm not about to find something boring to do just because other people think it’s more respectable."
"Yeah, I thought you would say that." I kissed my sister on the forehead. "And, I love you for it."
I was still chewing over everything my sister said when I got to the gym. Kev seemed to appear out of nowhere. He was lucky I didn't knock his teeth out. Even crazy fans knew better than to surprise me by now.
"Whoa, you've gotta be hungover if I'm able to get the drop on you," Kev said. "I mean, I know I'm hungover from last night's festivities, but I'm not the one that has to get back in the ring."
"I'm not hungover, I'll be fine," I said.
"Yeah, I wondered if you were just playing it up for the cameras last night," Kev said. "Gotta say I was jealous of you and that Sienna. God, she is hot, and she was all over you."
I headed to the locker room, but Kev followed me. "It was all for the cameras. None of it was real."
"Real, fake, I wouldn't care if she was made entirely of plastic," Kev said. "She's hot, you're hot, and the publicity from her reality show is red hot. You should invite her to be your date to the fight promotion party. Think of all the free publicity that would buy you. Plus, her sexy friends."
"I didn't really think she was that hot," I said.
"Seriously? But she was still there when I left." Kev waggled his eyebrows at me.
"I sent her home. Nothing happened."
Kev jumped in front of me again. "Nothing happened with her, but something did happen, didn't it? Oh, I knew it! That's great, man, that is so great."
I wiped his hands off the front of my shirt. "What is great? What are you talking about?"
"You can't lie to me, man, I know you. You were with Kya last night. I love it! I love you two together. I mean, you and Sienna made for a hot reality show couple, but you and Kya, that's for real. I saw you two looking at each other from across the party."
"You have no idea what you're talking about. You were wasted last night," I said.
"Wasted or not, I recognize a connection when I see it," he said. "And you two connected that first night in the club."
"You were wasted then, too," I reminded him.
"Come on, now. You were matching me drink for drink until you met Kya," he said.
"Can you please let me get ready? Aldous is not going to let me slack off, even the day after a win. I've got to stay focused if I want to win the title fight, and the last thing I need is you thinking you're a better matchmaker than a manager."
"I agree," Aldous said. He held open the locker room door. "Especially about the not letting you slack off part. You've got 30 seconds to change and get to work."
It was a relief to work my sore muscles, stretch them out again, and get out of my own head. The harder I worked out, the more the world retreated and I did not need to worry about focusing. There was nothing else. Just me doing what I was born to do.
"Looking good there, Morris," a voice interrupted.
I spun around and came face to face with Mario Peretti again. He was dressed for the sparring ring with a towel around his neck and a smirk on his face.
"Congratulations on last night," my rival said.
"Thanks. I hear I'll be seeing you in the ring for the title fight."
Mario nodded. "Speaking of seeing people; I met a woman named Kya Allen the other night. If you see her would you let her know I'd love to take her out for dinner? She's just the kind of trophy I'd like to take home on top of the title."
Both Aldous and Kev had to hold me back. Mario threw his head back and laughed as he left.
"Don't let him get to you," Kev said. "Remember the part about staying focused?"
"Sure, yeah, I'm fine," I said. I blinked back the red haze. I could not wait to face Peretti in the ring again. I would show him who I was. And, I'd make sure he knew Kya belonged to me.
After the work out and the run-in with Peretti, Kya was all I could think about. I headed back to the Tropicana and punched the elevator button. If she wasn't back from her dinner with the golfer, it would be hard not to go after her. What was one more scene in a restaurant besides extra publicity?