Claiming The Prize (6 page)

Turning to hang the towel he held, St.
Clair
wondered at the shyness of the pair.
When he loved a woman, not
hell or high water would halt his declaration.

“
Come on, Gracie,” he said, picking up
the coffee pot and heading for the dining room.

He jumped, for as he rounded the corner,
Drago appeared from the opposite direction.

“
Excuse me,” Drago offered.
“Is Grace
in the kitchen still?”

“
Yeah, yeah.
She's in there,
Zadrovec.”

Shaking his head, St.
Clair continued into
the dining room, a knowing smirk plastered on his face.

Drago didn't notice.
It had been a long
afternoon for him.
An afternoon of wanting to be alone with Grace.
He wasn't willing to wait any longer.
She stood, staring out the
window into the dusky horizon as he neared, her scent, soft and
light, luring him closer.
Being next to her, Drago longed to wrap
his arms around her, to touch her as he did in his dreams every
night.

Grace's skin tingled at his presence, every
nerve humming in awareness.
Towering next to her with heat rolling
from his body, he reached to touch a stray, silken lock of dark
hair, sending a shiver from its roots to her toes.

“
You have beautiful hair,” he
complimented.

Grace was afraid to move or speak, for fear
she would break the spell of enchantment, afraid she was conjuring
the daydreams in which Drago touched her.

“
Will you walk with me,
Grace?”

Her heart hammered, flooding her ears with
the rush of blood, knowing in some odd way that they stood on the
edge of her dreams, wanting to take a step forward in the hopes
that his dreams were her own.

“
I...
yes, I'd like that.
Let me grab
my coat.”

Her reply came out breathy.
She moved to
gather her coat and hat, safekeeping in her heart the questions
that she hoped to have answered.

Drago followed, grabbing his navy Carhartt
and knit cap.
He helped her into the black wool Pea-coat and waited
as she wrapped the lavender cashmere scarf around her head and
neck.
A few dark tresses spilled out the bottom, and to Drago, she
couldn't have looked lovelier.
Opening the back door as she pulled
on shiny, black rain boots, Drago held it for her.

“
I thought we could walk to the near
barn and look in on the lambs,” he suggested as they
strolled.

For a few moments they each shared the sights
they admired in the landscape, the purple sky against the black
edge of the horizon, the first stars in the cloudless dome of
night.

“
I have seventeen weeks remaining
before the Harrison fight.”

“
Yes, I know.
You'll be
ready.”

Grace knew that her father and the Friar were
very pleased with his progress.
He had a solid jujitsu background,
and Antolini technique would make it great.
Drago's striking, St.
Clair often relayed, matched the best he had seen in his years of
coaching.
Add in his legs, and the members of team Anto-Engage were
confident that Drago would be a top contender for the
light-heavyweight title.

“
I must return to Bratislava then,
Grace.”

“
Yes...,” came her resigned
sigh.

“
I am asking, Grace, would you have me
return for you?”

He continued to walk, looking down at his
hands that held a long, dried stem leftover from the previous
Indian summer, awaiting her reply.

“
Return for me?”
she half whispered,
not certain of his meaning, not able to allow herself to think he
said what she wanted him to.

“
Grace, do you remember when I asked
you if you would go on a date if you were asked?
I am asking you.
I
am asking you for many dates.”

“
I thought,” her voice was pensive and
hesitating a moment, then she laughed softly, “I thought you'd
never ask.”

“
You are saying yes, I think,” he said,
joining her in laughter.

“
I am saying yes,” she assured
him.

She stayed in step with him, their ascent up
the subtle grade to the barn leisurely.

Drago took her hand, squeezing with
gentleness, and they continued in silence.
Grace's heart sang
within her.
The cold's nip went unnoticed, and it seemed her feet
did not touch the ground.
His large hand encased hers, sending
warmth spreading up her arm, and she wished the contact to never
end.

Drago contemplated the repercussion of her
words.
He had less than eighteen weeks to woo her, to gain her
heart completely.
He would not leave her with only a promise to
return.
He would leave with a promise of forever.

Rolling back the weathered, gray barn door on
its track, the smell of fresh straw permeated the air.
A soft light
bathed the stalls, and the broken quiet by their entrance brought
the bleating of ewes to their ears.
Grace leaned over the rail to
admire the lambs curled together in the soft bedding, and a ewe
neared, nuzzling against her hand.
Drago joined her, giving the
same attention to another curious animal.

“
I have spoken to your father,” he
said.
“He knows my intention.”

Grace listened as she stroked the soft fleece
under the ewe's chin.
Mirroring her actions, he continued.

“
In my time here, I have enjoyed coming
to know you.
You understand the life I lead; it is yours also.
We
compliment one another, being both private people and sharing our
faith.”
He paused, regarding her with his dark eyes.
“And I find
you beautiful, Grace.
Know that I say none of this lightly.
I have
remained single, hoping to find someone to share my life with, to
love and have my love returned.”

Grace's heart swelled within her chest.
She
could not find her voice, her throat too thick with emotion.
Tears
of happiness filled her eyes, glistening in the glow of golden
light, and she reached to cover his arm with her hand.
It was all
the encouragement Drago needed.
Pulling her into his arms, he held
her, resting his chin on the top of her head.
She wrapped her hands
around his waist, laying her cheek against his chest, the action
sliding the scarf down over her shoulders.

“
Mas moje
srdee...
you have my
heart
,
” he
murmured into her hair.

They stood together, neither speaking
for sweet moments, savoring the closeness of one another until
Drago's soft laughter broke the silence.

“
We had better return to
the house or your father will question my honor.”

Looking up into his face, a
rosy blush on her cheeks, Grace shared in his laughter.
Seeing her
flushed so beautifully in his arms, Drago felt desire surge through
him.
Lowering his head, he brushed her soft lips tenderly with his
and took her hand once again.
As they left the barn, Grace's free
hand touched her lips, still warm and tingling from the contact.
The gesture did not go unnoticed, and Drago realized that he had
been the first to kiss her, the knowledge impacting him deeply.
His
time with her had led him to believe she had never been intimate
with a man, but he had not imagined that she was even innocent of a
first kiss.
He would not bed her before they married, regardless,
having vowed to wait until marriage since returning to his faith
after wild younger days had left him devastated, but knowing he
would be the only man to touch her evoked a fierce protectiveness
within him he had never experienced before.
Rubbing his thumb over
the back of her hand, they descended the path toward the house,
each happy to dwell on what had taken place.

* * *

Guy heard the door open, and he waited
to hear the tone of the conversation before entering the kitchen.
When laughter reached his ears, he relaxed somewhat.
His daughter
obviously returned the Slovak's interest, an interest he had
watched grow over the past months, but he had not been certain
Grace would accept any overture from a fighter who trained in his
gym.

It was inevitable, he knew,
that one day she would find love, and it was good that she did.
As
a father, he was both thankful and worried.
He liked Drago, was
confident that the man was honest and hard working; he would not
expect his only daughter to choose otherwise.
Still, he had hoped
she would not become involved with a fighter.
It could be a
difficult life, and he wanted Grace to have a happy, peace-filled
existence.
But she was his child, and therefore this life was a
part of her as much as her dark hair or her brown eyes.
He hoped
she would not have her heart broken, now or in the
future.

He had loved Grace's mother, truly.
Elleni Sardopolis had entered his life during his rise through the
ranks of K-1 Kickboxing.
She leveled him out, kept him focused on
what was important in life.
They married and spent five happy years
together, and Grace had arrived in their third year of marriage to
great surprise as Elleni had been told she would never have a
child.

When Grace was approaching
two years old, word had come that Elleni's mother was ill and
didn't have much time to live.
Not wanting her mother to spend her
final days in a hospital, Elleni Antolini had made the trip to her
Toronto home to care for her.
Guy never saw her again.
She had
ignored the pain in her side, not wanting to leave her mother who
was close to death.
When she collapsed, no one was there.
Her
appendix had ruptured, filling her body with poison.
She and her
mother were buried together a week later, leaving Guy alone to
raise their daughter.
He had never remarried, content to rear Grace
and fight.

Emotion welled in his chest at the
sight of his daughter, her cheeks glowing and eyes shining as she
poured the steaming cups of tea.
God, she reminded him of Elleni.
Always, she would remain his little girl, yet he knew he must come
to terms with the fact that she was now a woman.

“
Would you like some tea
too, Dad?”
She grabbed another mug from the cabinet, anticipating
his answer.
“I see everyone cleared out early tonight.”

“
Yes, I think the Friar is
anxious to begin early tomorrow.
Henner will get a workout in
before the noon break, and then we'll head to the airport.
Our
flight is scheduled for a three-twenty departure,” Guy
explained.

“
I wish I was going to be
there for Jeremy's fight.
I think he'll do well.”

Grace slid the mug toward her
father.

“
If he follows the fight
plan, he'll do fine.
He's young and hungry,” Guy chuckled.
“Ike
will handle most everything while I'm gone, but make sure you get
him the daily schedules.
Otherwise, he'll never accomplish half of
what he should.”

“
Of course, Anto!
He'll
never suspect he's not completely on top of everything.”

Her grin and slight shake of head let
him know she would take care of everything without making Ike feel
sidelined.
He was a great trainer, but coordinating all the
activity and scheduling in the gym was best left in more capable
hands.

“
There's something we'd
better discuss, Gracie girl.”

Drago, who had been quietly listening,
rose to excuse himself, catching the serious tone of Guy's
statement.

“
I'll ...”