“Of course,” Andy assured him. “I’m already here at 5th Street, and Noah’s given me a rundown of who he thinks might be good to feature. But you’ll get the final say.”

“Whatever Noah says is fine with me. I trust his judgment.”

He got off the phone and called his mom to let her know she wouldn’t be seeing him again until later tonight and that was only while he blew in and out to grab his stuff for tomorrow. Between the media crap, training, and now making time for Nellie in between, he’d hardly been home at all lately. And as long as Nellie didn’t protest, he planned on spending a lot more nights at her place. Maybe without him having to actually put his feelings out there, his staying would deter Nellie from going out on any more damn dates.

Clenching his jaw as he drove into the 5th Street parking lot, he pushed aside the annoying thoughts of Nellie on any dates with someone else. Before he could even get out of his car, he saw Rachel hurrying toward the car. Well shit. He glanced around casually to see if he spotted any paparazzi. They’d long since posted signs all over warning of charges being pressed on any unauthorized photographers or paparazzi who were ever found trespassing anywhere near 5th Street’s private property. That included the parking lot, but he knew that that never stopped those vultures. During Gio’s mess and even when Felix had visited since then, they’d been known to pay people who lived in the nearby apartment buildings whose windows faced 5th Street to camp out by their window to try and get that perfect shot of something.

“Abel!” Rachel raced up to him her hands clasped in front of her face. “Oh my God, I just heard about the Fitness Magazine photo shoot thing.” She spoke a mile a minute. “This would be such an enormous opportunity for me. To get featured in a magazine of that caliber would do wonders for me. You know I’ve been trying to get into fitness modeling, and this could be just the break I need. Andy said you had the final say, and I just wanted to say that I’d be willing to do anything—”

He lifted his hand, stopping her right there with a smile. “You’re in.” Her eyes opened wide, and she brought her hands over her mouth, her eyes instantly swimming in tears. It only made him smile bigger and feel better about doing this. “You’re right. This is exactly why we’re featuring regulars from the gym. You’re a perfect candidate for this. It is an awesome opportunity, and I agree this could do wonders for you. They take one look at you and you’re golden.”

She shook her head, apparently too overwhelmed with emotion to speak, so he pulled her to him and hugged her, chuckling. “You’re gonna do great.”

Wrapping her arms around him tightly, she jumped up and kissed him, missing his lips by an inch. “Thank you so much! You have no idea how much this means to me.”

“I do actually,” he said, pulling away from her and realizing that if the media did get any footage of this they’d have a field day. That’s the last thing he needed, especially now that he sensed he was making strides with Nellie. Maybe her damn date was just what he already knew—something she’d had planned long before their time in San Francisco. Luckily, it wasn’t even eight yet. It was probably too early for the vultures to be lurking. He squeezed her arm. “Let’s go tell Andy.”

Her eyes opened wide again; only this time she looked alarmed. Grabbing his hand, she tugged him along, laughing, but practically broke out into a sprint. “We gotta hurry. He mentioned that Noah had already made his choice. And even though he said you’d have the final say, I don’t want Noah telling any of his choices that they’re in and then say that it’s too late for me.”

Abel hurried along with her, assuring her she was in no matter what. Just as they got to the door, she brought her hands to her face again, her eyes doing the crying thing all over. Then she wrapped her arms around his neck. “I cannot thank you enough.” She laughed against his neck. “As soon as we talk to Andy and Noah, I’m calling my dad. He’s gonna flip!”

Wrapping his arms around her waist, Abel couldn’t help smiling. Finally, Andy had an idea that wasn’t purely about getting publicity or sponsors. This might actually make the interview and photo shoot worth it.

Chapter 12

For the past forty minutes, Nellie had practically pranced around her bedroom, going through her outfits for tomorrow. She’d decided to ignore Sam’s text asking if she was going to be able to join him for brunch. Roni would be furious, especially because her decision to ignore him was a direct result of her night and morning with Abel.

There was no question about it now. She was definitely picking up on a vibe from Abel. She wasn’t alone with her growing feelings, but she was still too chicken to dare say anything. Their second night in a row together, although she wasn’t counting on it, might shine some light on things. She knew there was only so much small talk they could make before delving into personal stuff. Already Abel had broken some of the unspoken rules on more than one occasion.

That reminded her that she still didn’t know much about his opponent, and they’d certainly be talking about his fight from here until the big day that was fast approaching. Last night they’d filled her in on their meeting with the director of PR, someone she’d be meeting with in a couple of days.

Since she was in the middle of a load of laundry, she decided to have some coffee and do some homework on this Hammerhead fellow they spoke of last night with such disdain. Apparently he and his camp were all about playing ugly in the media. She’d be handling all the fight-related events at 5th Street leading up to the fight where there would be reporters, cameras, and such present. It was best if she knew a little of what she was getting herself into.