“On the way up here, we finally talked about it and got it straight.”

“Ah,” Hector nodded satisfied. “No wonder. So this is as recent as yesterday.”

“Yeah,” Abel pushed away from the wall since Hector began to back away. “What do you mean no wonder?”

“Nothing really. It’s just that a few weeks back at Noah’s she was talking about some dude with the girls when I walked up to Charlee and it got my attention. Roni said Nellie had met some guy the night before with eyes that captivated Nellie or some shit like that.”

Working his jaw, Abel thought back to how tortured he’d felt that night and every time he thought of her on her dates. Eyes that captivated her? No matter how long ago that was, it was still grating to hear about it.

Hector said he had a live chat to get on with his girl, who was at a chess tournament in Canada, and took off. Finally, Abel would get to where he’d been dying to be all day—his room with Nellie.

~*~

Shocked didn’t even begin to describe how Nellie felt when Abel told her that McKinley and his detestable people not only already knew about their relationship but were using it to bait him. She hated that she’d been the cause of Abel losing it. He refused to tell her the ugly things they’d said. He only said that it made him even more anxious to get the ass**le in the ring. Of course, that only made her more nervous. But she was glad that he wanted to avoid the media hype completely. The thought of them saying more things about her or their relationship to upset him made her even more uneasy. She’d be doing the same thing. Seeing her name in any of the headlines for whatever reason would have her hyperventilating for certain.

It was the day of the fight. As much as she was trying to enjoy their day alone in Abel’s suite, Nellie was having the hardest time relaxing. Ever since last night when Abel got back to the room and told her about the brawl and the reason for it, she’d had a knot in her stomach. Then that morning she’d gotten another text from Logan, which she planned on ignoring. The last thing she wanted was to have any sort of discussion that might upset Abel. He had strict instructions to relax all day and keep his head clear. She knew bringing up the fact that Logan was still texting her about Sam would ruin the relaxing aura he was supposed to be having today. Even their lovemaking had been just that. Any strenuous or mind-blowing acts like so many of the hot and sweaty ones she’d experienced with him so far—the fun and dirty kind where they both came to loud moaning and breathtaking climaxes—were axed today. Instead their lovemaking had been slow, deep, drawn out, and beautiful. Nellie wasn’t sure now which she preferred more.

Still lying there with her head against Abel’s chest, basking in the glow of the incredible climax she was just coming down from, her phone buzzed on the nightstand. Abel reached for it, and she flinched, so he stopped and looked at her. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she said, caressing his incredible chest with her fingers.

“You want your phone?”

She nodded, already mad at herself for being so jumpy, but she had such a bad feeling in her gut. She wasn’t sure what to expect. Now she could only pray that it wasn’t Logan again and that Abel wouldn’t see his name on her screen.

Letting out a slow breath when she saw the text was from Emily, she smiled at Abel and showed him. “Emily, my assistant.”

He smiled back, moving a strand of hair away from her face. “The mixer still all good?”

“It was the last time I talked to Emily and the new accountant,” she said, hitting the envelope with Emily’s text, hoping everything was still fine. She’d told her to text her if anything came up. “Her sister is getting married this weekend.”

I’m about to board a plane, but I’ve been sitting here at the airport, glued to the monitors with all the gossip and even news channels going on and on nonstop about you and Sam. OMFG! They’ve been talking about that more than the fight of the decade! I’ll be turning off my phone now, but as soon as I get to Phoenix, I’ll turn it on. Call me if you need to vent, cry, scream! Holy shit! *hugs* Sweetie! <3

Nellie sat up, suddenly needing her inhaler. Going on and on about her and Sam? Feeling the wheezing start, she thought of the argument Sam had been in with that guy that first night she arrived in Vegas and all the people taking pictures. Had they photographed her going into that staff only room with him? They’ve been talking about that more than the fight of the decade? What in the world were they saying? Call me if you need to vent, cry, scream? What would upset her so much?

“You okay?” Abel sat up, staring at her, looking very concerned.

Nellie wheezed in loudly. She hadn’t realized she was having such a hard time breathing.

“Baby, what’s wrong?” Abel was immediately on his knees, holding her by the shoulders.

She waved her hands in front of her frantically, the air she breathed in barely trickling into her lungs, but it wasn’t enough. Scrambling, she jumped out of bed recklessly, grabbed her purse, spilling all its contents, and dropped to her knees, wheezing loudly as she fumbled through everything, searching for her inhaler.

“What is it? What’s wrong with you?” Abel asked, already on his knees too then suddenly jumping to grab his phone. “I’m calling 911!”

“No!” she gasped as she found the inhaler, bringing it to her mouth, inhaling deeply, but she knew that she was near that too-far-gone stage—the one where she usually had to make a visit to the emergency room—somewhere she hadn’t been in so long.