Miss Match Page 16

  Logan looked between them briefly before he asked, “Someone want to fill me in on this?”

  Samantha spoke first. “Andrew and I obviously have different ideas about how your services should be utilized. Thank you again for your work, we really appreciate it. I called you in today because I have another list for you. I think it’s going to be a little busy the next few weeks—is that going to be a problem?”

  “No, that’s fine, I’m around. I’ll get this back to you in a few days.” Logan took the list from her hand and excused himself, closing the office door as he left.

  Andrew stood, dropping the head shots onto the couch and crossing his arms. “I put a call in to Logan when I realized you and Lucinda were getting more serious. I thought I would intercept him before he got to you.”

  Samantha didn’t say anything at first. Maybe because she was shaking. Maybe because she felt as though she had violated Lucinda’s trust through Andrew’s actions. She did not want to hear about anything pertaining to Lucinda’s life unless it came from Lucinda herself.

  Andrew shifted uncomfortably under her stare. She let out a slow breath, her lip curling with disgust as she hissed out, “What were you thinking?”

  “I was thinking that if you’re going to get in a relationship with someone, I’d like to know a little bit about them first,” he bit back defensively. “And that maybe you should know a little bit about them first, as well.”

  “Andrew, what the fuck?” She stood and shoved her chair back with more force than necessary. Tears welled in her eyes before she could stop them. She ducked her head, slamming closed the open folders in front of her and reaching blindly for her purse.

  “Samantha.” Andrew’s voice softened. He took a step forward and raised his hand to slow her frantic movements. “I just wanted to make sure you weren’t getting involved with the wrong person. I can see how much you like her, I just wanted to be sure.”

  “Be sure of what, Andrew? Be sure she wasn’t some fucking serial killer? Seriously?” Samantha couldn’t believe Andrew would go behind her back like this, another betrayal by someone she cared about. “Did you ever think that maybe I could be responsible for my own actions? My own choices?”

  Andrew recoiled, hurt. “I don’t want to go down that same road with you again. Deceptions happen.”

  “Oh, please tell me you are not comparing this situation to Eric.” She was livid. She felt nauseous. She couldn’t unlearn the things she just heard. Assault? A domestic dispute? “What were you thinking?”

  Andrew gaped. “Samantha, I’m sorry, I was just trying to protect you. I saw how badly you were hurt before—it almost ruined you, it almost ruined this business.” His tone changed. “Someone has to be proactive here. We didn’t work this hard to be knocked down by another liar. I just wanted to make sure she was good enough for you.”

  “Good enough? This isn’t some client, Andrew, this is me here. You don’t get to screen my girlfriend without my permission. You don’t have that right.”

  “Samantha, please, wait.” Andrew stepped toward her as she moved to leave her office. “I didn’t mean to upset you, I just—”

  Samantha stopped him by holding up her hand. “Don’t, Andrew, just don’t. It’s done. You can’t take it back.”

  *

  Sweat poured down Lucinda’s face. She hadn’t had this much physical exertion in a while, and she missed it. She missed the physicality of it, the way her skin flushed and her muscles burned, begging for rest. She loved it. She spit the water out of her mouth and pulled herself back up. She had been distracted, thinking about Samantha, and she had gotten clocked in the side of the head. That just wouldn’t do. She adjusted her mouth guard, repositioned her hands in her gloves, and stepped back into the ring.

  She had taken up boxing a few years ago to help burn off a little steam. Dominic called it her rage workout. Years of foster care and bullying proved to make Lucinda a decent fighter; she could take a hit and throw one like a champ.

  Toni brought his gloves up and bounced in front of her before jabbing with his left and swinging low with his right. She ducked and swerved to avoid the hits and countered hard against his ribs twice with her right while she blocked with her left. He coughed out a laugh and pressed forward, shoving her by the chest before swinging high with his left, narrowly missing her chin as she hit him with a hard uppercut, knocking him back. A bell rang behind her signaling the end of the sparring practice—just in time for both of them, who were breathing heavy and already sore.

  “It’s been a while, Lucy, you are getting sloppy,” Toni teased between gasping breaths.

  “Not too sloppy to miss hitting you in that enormous chin of yours,” she countered as she leaned against the ropes, rolling her shoulders.

  He chuckled and pulled off his gloves, removing his headgear and cracking his neck. “When will I see you again?” he asked as he helped her tug off her gloves.

  “I was thinking, maybe next week?”

  “Sure, let me check the schedule, I’ll be right back.” He tossed her a bottle of water as he ducked out of the ring and jogged to the office off to the right.

  “Hey, Luce,” Toni called out five seconds later, “you got an admirer.”

  Lucinda looked up from unwrapping her hands and saw Samantha across the gym. She flashed a wide smile before ducking under the ropes and climbing down the stairs. Samantha walked toward her slowly, her heels echoing in the large room, a matching grin on her face. “I see you found the place. Welcome to my workout.”

  Samantha’s eyes settled on Lucinda’s sweat-covered stomach, pulsing with her still ragged breathing. She had wandered into the gym about ten minutes earlier and caught the end of Lucinda’s sparring match. After her fight with Andrew that morning, she’d texted Lucinda to ask to see her before their scheduled dinner plans, telling her she needed to talk. Lucinda had called her immediately to make sure everything was okay. She lied and said she was fine, just busy at work, and Lucinda had suggested they meet at her gym. For the rest of the day, Samantha had avoided any of Lucinda’s attempts at communication. She didn’t want to believe any of it. She didn’t want to believe she could be so wrong about someone again. So she curled into herself and avoided it. Until right now.

  “Hey, Casanova!” Toni hit Lucinda in the chest with a rolled-up gym towel. “Dry off, you stink.” He chuckled when she shot him an annoyed scowl. “I’m available on Wednesday or Thursday night around this time,” Toni said. “Or we can do a midmorning Saturday thing. What’s your pleasure, blondie?”

  Lucinda dried herself off but not before Samantha noticed she spent some extra time making slow circles over her abs. “Wednesday works. Maybe Saturday too, I’ll confirm on Wednesday. Sound good?”

  Toni faked a jab to Lucinda’s jaw before nodding. “Yeah, you might need both days, Luce, you’re a little rusty. Or is it just a little distracted?” He winked and waved over a young kid gawking nearby. “Julio, get in the ring, you’re late.”

  He turned back to the women. “Nice to meet you,…?”

  “Samantha.”

  “Nice to meet you, Samantha. Watch this one, she’s trouble.” He jerked a thumb toward Lucinda, who rolled her eyes. “See ya, Luce.” He touched her shoulder before jogging back to the ring.

  Lucinda looked a little bashful as she stepped up, lightly tracing her fingers along Samantha’s arm. “So, how long have you been here?”

  “Long enough to see you get nailed in that pretty blond head of yours.” Samantha grimaced as she stepped forward, brushing back a stray lock off Lucinda’s forehead. “Are you okay?”

  Lucinda turned her head and kissed Samantha’s palm. “Yeah. This box of rocks is stronger than it looks.” She stepped a little closer before hesitating and stepping back. “I really want to scoop you into a hug, but I’m kinda gross.”

  “I love being close to you when you’re all wet and sweaty.” Samantha smiled. “But I prefer when it’s because of me and not some hairy guy th
at got you there.”

  “Oh, ouch.” Lucinda grimaced playfully. Her face turned serious for a moment before she asked, “Are you sure everything is all right? You sounded a little flustered before.”

  Samantha shrugged. She didn’t really want to lie, but she was already feeling better. “I just had a long day. We can talk about it later.”

  “Listen, give me like ten minutes to rinse off quick and we can head out. Do you mind waiting in here? I know it’s not the warmest of environments.”

  Half a dozen men were lifting, using the heavy bags, jumping rope, all casting Samantha the occasional once over. “I’ll be fine here, don’t worry. If I need anything, I’ll just call out to Toni, okay?” She smiled reassuringly, part of her loving the predatory glare Lucinda was shooting the guys.

  Lucinda nodded quickly, looking around once more. “All right, fine. I’ll be super quick, I promise.”

  “Don’t be too quick—I’d like you not smelling like a jock strap when I finally kiss you.” Samantha winked, her smile disguising the anxiety she felt in her chest.

  Lucinda grabbed her bag from the ring steps before trotting toward the women’s locker room.

  Samantha watched Lucinda walk off as she tried to force away the thoughts circling in her head. Her purse vibrated again, causing her to frown. It was either Andrew or her mother—she was almost positive of that. And she didn’t care if that was Andrew calling, or if it was her mother trying to track her down. She had nothing to say to either of them.

  She stood there for a few minutes, trying to ward off the feelings of uneasiness before she wandered toward a corkboard in the corner by the office Toni had retreated to earlier. There were sign-up sheets for sparring partners, posted matches with ticket markers attached, some ads for new and used boxing equipment, and photos of Toni with a few younger adults holding trophies or wearing medals. There was a framed picture of Muhammad Ali with a gleaming silver autograph next to the board, and above it were Rocky Marciano’s signed gloves in a glass frame with a plaque that read, Rocky Marciano, signed September 25, 1954. Over the door to the office was a black-and-white photo of someone named Tony DeMarco, and the inscription next to it stated he was a famous Boston boxer.

  “That’s Toni’s great-grandfather.” Warm hands settled on her hips as Lucinda breathed against her ear. “He was a notorious heavy slugger, real hard worker. They named a street after him in the North End.”

  Samantha smiled as she covered one hand with her own. “I love it when you spout random Boston facts so seductively in my ear. It’s fascinating how much you know.” As unsure as she felt in this moment, Lucinda’s touch soothed her and she welcomed it.

  Lucinda placed a quick peck to her cheek before spinning her around. “So, darling, you ready to go? I have to get you out of here before one of these guys tries to pick you up and steal you from me.”

  “Oh, please,” Samantha said, laughing, “I don’t think anyone here has the stamina I’ve gotten used to.”

  Lucinda flashed a lopsided grin as she laced her fingers with Samantha’s and tugged her to the door. As they hit the front door she paused. “I wasn’t anticipating seeing you until later and I sort of jogged here from work. I took the train in today fully expecting to have time to go home and change before our date.”

  Samantha smiled. Lucinda was adorable, even when she was beating the crap out of someone thirty pounds heavier than her. “I drove, babe, it’s okay. So, your place?”

  Lucinda nodded as she walked with Samantha to her car. The sleek black Audi had a matching black interior with soft red dash lighting and heated seats. It was as sexy on the inside as the outside. Lucinda settled into the seat and rested her head back, her still damp hair hanging limply on her shoulders. She closed her eyes and took in a few deep, calming breaths, appreciating the smell of new leather paired with Samantha’s perfume. Her eyes still closed, she reached out and gently squeezed the exposed skin on Samantha’s thigh, resting her palm there before quietly asking, “So, you want to tell me what’s going on? Or should I pretend I didn’t notice?”

  She heard Samantha exhale nervously and squeeze both hands tightly on the leather-covered steering wheel, making a rubbing sound in the pin-drop quiet car. When she didn’t respond right away, Lucinda opened her eyes and took in a nervous and oddly guilty looking Samantha Monteiro.

  “I…” Samantha clamped her mouth shut, as if not sure how to start.

  Lucinda remained quiet, giving Samantha time to figure out what she wanted to say. She pulled out and began to drive along the road in silence. Lucinda was careful to leave her palm resting softly on Samantha’s thigh while Samantha had a death grip on the steering wheel, obviously at war with herself. After about ten minutes Lucinda cleared her throat. “Take this next left.”

  “What?” Nervous eyes darted to hers.

  “Turn up here on the left.”

  Samantha nodded and flicked on her blinker, following Lucinda’s directions until they were driving up a small hill to an open parking lot. She pulled into a spot and looked over anxiously at Lucinda who gave her a small smile before pulling back her hand and stepping out of the car. Samantha shut off the engine when Lucinda got out, waiting in the car until Lucinda opened her door, reaching down and extending her hand to pull her out.

  Lucinda led Samantha from the car, walking the short distance on this warm night to a break in the clearing in front of them. She stood at the top of a large, sloping hill with Samantha holding her hand by her side. A paved path weaved its way down to two illuminated softball fields below. She could see that both fields were occupied with teams and fans sitting in the short-stacked bleachers kitty-cornered on each side. Lucinda motioned for them to head over to a large flat stone a few feet from the clearing.

  Lucinda sat down and patted the space beside her as Samantha slowly lowered herself and crossed her legs, eyes directed to the ground.

  “Do you know where we are?” Lucinda asked softly, her eyes on the perfect profile to her right. Samantha shook her head, finally making eye contact.

  “We are at the back of Franklin Park.” She pointed off to the right. “Behind those trees, down the road, is the Franklin Park Zoo. And over there, that’s a golf course behind that small hill. And right down there? That’s where I first played after-school softball on an intramural team in junior high. And if you squint and look real hard, through those trees on the horizon are a few tall buildings of the city skyline.”

  Samantha’s gaze followed Lucinda’s gestures, taking in everything.

  “We used to call this Lovers’ Rock, because from here you have a great view of all the wonderful things that make up the largest park in Boston. And it’s tucked far enough off to the side that you can mack it with your girl without too many onlookers,” Lucinda added with a smile that Samantha matched with a blush.

  Lucinda put her hand over the nervously clasped hands in Samantha’s lap and leaned in, pressing a sweet, soft kiss to Samantha’s lips. “I missed you today.” She pressed her forehead to Samantha’s.

  Samantha nodded and closed her eyes, leaning forward to kiss Lucinda earnestly, teasing her tongue until Lucinda deepened the kiss. She pulled a heavy sigh from Samantha as she broke away a few moments later.

  “Now tell me, what’s up, beautiful?” Lucinda asked.

  Samantha nodded and looked out at the field of players below. “Andrew and I got into a fight this morning.” She was quiet for a moment before looking up at Lucinda. “It was about you.”

  Lucinda felt her eyes widen in surprise. This was unexpected.

  “I have a private investigator do background checks on all my clients and prospective suitors. It’s just part of the business, keeping honest people honest.” She shrugged, her frown deepening as she breathed out heavily. “Andrew took it upon himself to run your name in the list without telling me.”

  Lucinda quirked an eyebrow, her face tensing as she moved her jaw slowly, clenching and unclenching her teeth. She left h
er hand on Samantha’s, but it was a struggle. Her natural reaction was to recoil and scoot away. She was silent for a moment before she asked coolly, “What did he find?”

  Samantha fidgeted on the rock. She unclasped her hands and pulled Lucinda’s in between them. “There was information about your time in foster care and an assault charge from a few years ago.”

  Lucinda breathed in through her nose sharply, directing her eyes out at the horizon as she braced herself. “What do you want to know?”

  “Truthfully?” Samantha whispered. “Everything.”

  Lucinda nodded slightly, her eyes focused down at the softball games below them. It wasn’t necessarily that she had many secrets; quite the contrary really, she was just a private person. With private pains and memories she would rather forget. She had grown accustomed to walling herself in from the real world after she was continually disappointed by its inhabitants. Samantha Monteiro had a way of pushing past her boundaries or scaling them with ease.

  “You know about the foster care stuff.” Lucinda blinked a few times, her jaw clenched in stress as she turned to face Samantha. This time she pulled her hand back into her own lap. She needed to ground herself. She could see the hurt and strain etched on Samantha’s face. Lucinda hated this.

  “The assault charge is from a few years ago. I had been dating Grace for a couple of years before we split up. But I was foolish and had been casually seeing her on the side, being a doormat of sorts, I guess.” She kicked at the dirt with her toe, admitting this made her feel weak and stupid. “I put up with the drama of it all because I was in love with her. I thought she was the one, you know? Then her new boyfriend caught us out together. He was furious and making a scene, spewing all kinds of shit at me while she just looked on and did nothing. I think I was so hurt by the fact that she just let him verbally assault me that I was distracted when he shoved me backward into a wall. Instinct took over and I belted him in the mouth. He was surprised but he wound back to hit me and I kicked him, knocking him and his fist into Grace. She ended up with a black eye and a hairline fracture of her cheek. I escaped with a few bloody knuckles and a stern talking to from the bouncer at the bar. I didn’t know about the assault complaint until the next day when a few cops showed up at my dance studio after a class. They took my statement and assessed my injuries, informing me that I had to come down to the station with them.” It felt like the night around them had grown quiet.