If I could not get Fenton to look at me, at least I could get him to notice who I was with. I scanned the bar for the man most likely to make Fenton jealous. At the bar stood a tall man in black pants and a tight black t-shirt. He was passable handsome with short, cropped brown hair and a semi-vacant look. He nodded at whatever his friend in the suit was saying. I decided to introduce myself.
"Excuse me, do you mind if I squeeze in here? I've been trying to get a drink, but it’s so crowded," I said. I smiled up at the man in the black t-shirt.
The man in the suit looked me up and down with narrowed eyes and a slow smile. "Buy her a drink or I will."
"No, please, I don't want to interrupt," I said.
"I'd like to," the tall man said. He sounded as if he did not talk much. "He's always going on about work."
The man in the suit flicked a quick look at the bartender and my drink appeared in seconds. The man in the black t-shirt scooped it up for me. I realized he had nice brown eyes, sort of sad, too soft for the hard muscles and sharp angles of the rest of him.
"Thanks," I said and meant it.
His smile never had a chance to appear. Fenton was in his face the moment we stepped away from the bar together. Though he was taller and just as hard-bodied, the man in black took one small step back.
"She's with me," Fenton said.
"Didn't seem like it to me," my companion argued.
"Or me, either," I said.
"Kya, I need you to come with me now," Fenton said. He reached out a hand without taking his eyes off the taller man.
"I'm sorry," I said to the brown-eyed man. "I have no idea what his problem is."
He looked down at me and I saw the flash of sadness there again. "I do and it’s only going to get worse."
"Not before I do some serious damage to you and your friend over there. Now, turn around and leave," Fenton said.
He stood with his shoulders thrown back, his arms raised away from his body, fists coiled, but not yet clenched. Fenton was a step away from fighting the other man and I had to stop it.
"Excuse us, please," I said. I grabbed Fenton's arm, but he did not budge.
"You're leaving. Both of you. Now," he said.
The tall man shrugged his shoulders and looked over at the man in the suit. The narrow-eyed man finished his drink and nodded. They both headed towards the exit.
As soon as they were gone, Fenton dragged me into the back hallway of the bar. He was breathing heavily, muscles still coiled.
"I'm sorry. I just didn't want to see you get taken in by those other agents. I had to do something," I said.
"This was about work?" he asked. His voice exploded in the small hallway. "You were trying to get my attention to pitch your contract? With that man?"
"What was so wrong with that man?" I asked. "He was a perfect gentleman. I didn't see him running around signing women's breasts and trash talking every male in his vicinity."
"Get it through your head, Ms. Allen," he said. "I'm never going to be the buttoned-up client you are hoping for. You're not really interested in me, and I'm done with you."
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Kya
I wanted to follow him, but his shout still echoed in my ears and kept me frozen. Fenton was angry and he had every right to be. Not only had I manipulated him by flirting with another man, but I had done so only to further my business aspirations. He thought I was interested in nothing else but the dotted line of the endorsement contract.
There was no way I could explain that beyond the thin connection my work had offered us, I felt tied to him in a way I had never felt with anyone. I was all tangled up in Fenton Morris and had been since the moment we met.
I could not tell him any of that. What if he felt the same? He needed to keep his mind clear, focused on his next fight. What if I distracted him and he lost again? The image of his laser blue eyes dimming as he toppled to the mat still made me feel sick. So, the only excuse I had to be near him was the endorsement deal.
Except now. Fenton was upset and it was obvious it was more than just my tacky business tactics. Why had he been so upset about that tall man in particular?