The Look of Love (21 page)

He shook his head. “When I tried being honest when I was a kid, people didn’t believe me. Why bother now? If I say I can beat someone in a fight and I lose, I look stupid.” He stared at Eboni. “If I promote this place as a safe haven for the community and something happens, no one will trust my word. It’s taken me a long time to build it back up. I need to protect it.”

“The difference between then and now is intention. Because you are selective with what you say, your word will go a long way. People will know that you care about something.” Eboni held Gunnar’s hand. “I didn’t know about Queen and how you really felt. I shouldn’t have gotten Drew’s hopes up and obligated you.”

“Apology--” Gunnar stopped and looked at something over her shoulder.

She turned and saw a man with a shaved head coming toward them.

“I had to get a coat to come out to this place. No snow in Vegas.” He stared at Gunnar. “We need to talk.”

“Who are you?” Eboni kept herself between Gunnar and this stranger.

Gunnar put his hands on her shoulders. “This is my manager, Chuck. He’s about to tell me why he came all the way out here from Vegas when I told him I was taking care of my mother.”

First Eboni had tried to obligate Gunnar to promote the center, and now Chuck had showed up to make demands of his own. Gunnar couldn’t wait to hear this.

“Eboni, go on to the house. I’ll see you there.” Gunnar kissed her temple and nudged her toward her car, all the while keeping a careful eye on his manager.

He tried keeping his temper in check by smiling, but inside, he had to count to one hundred in the hope of dousing the fire in him.

“I don’t want to leave you.” Eboni held on to his arm even though he continued moving her toward her car. “I haven’t seen you fight recently, but back in the day, you had that same look in your eyes when you were about to get into it with someone.” She peered down. “Your hands are in fists.” She glanced at Chuck. “So are his. I thought you said he was your manager.”

“He is.” He shook out his hands to calm her fears. “My hands are cold.”

“Okay, can you explain why you look like you want to knock his block off?”

He couldn’t verbalize it. Too bad she’d picked up on his displeasure to see his business associate here and now. “I’ll be fine.” Gunnar raised his hand to Chuck. “He’s my manager. I’m sure he only has my best interest in mind, right?” He gave her a quick peck. “Go see my mom. I’ll be right behind you.”

“Are you sure?” Eboni split her attention between Gunnar and Chuck. “He looks, I don’t know, angry.”

“He’s passionate. We all are, right?” He nodded. “I wouldn’t lie to you.”

“I suppose if you’re introducing me to him, it means he’s your friend.”

He blinked at her statement. She remembered the situation when Queen had followed him when he’d met up with his gang. He glanced at Chuck again and realized why she worried.

In his stance, he looked ready to rumble. His trainer kept his hands tightly balled into fists. He had a wide stance to maintain his balance. At one time, Gunnar thought he heard the man snort like a bull. He felt his gut tightening, but he had to remain cool for Eboni.

She wrapped her arms around his neck. In his ear, she said, “If you’re not at the house five minutes after me, I’m coming right back.”

Gunnar chuckled. “There’s my tough girl.” He patted her back. “Go. I’ll be home shortly.”

Eboni shot a glare to Chuck before she got into her car. She sat in it for a couple of minutes, probably warming it up again. The entire time, she kept her stare on Chuck.

Gunnar couldn’t remember Eboni being this staunchly loyal before. He liked it. He really liked it. Had Chuck not been there, he would have shown her how much he liked her strong stance. Right now, he had another problem on his hands.

After Eboni pulled away from parking lot, Gunnar addressed Chuck. “What the hell are you doing here?”

Chuck leaned back with his arms outstretched. “You don’t seem happy to see me.”

“I’m not.” Gunnar crossed his arms over his chest to prevent Chuck from seeing his fists.

“I’m thrilled to see you. I thought you had fallen off the face of the earth. I call and you don’t answer. I tell you that you have an upcoming match and”—Chuck scanned him—“it doesn’t look like you’ve been keeping up with your training.”

Gunnar shook his head.

“And now I see you hanging out with some woman who--”

“Don’t go there. You don’t want to do that.” Gunnar wouldn’t take to him or anyone else talking about Eboni.

Chuck cocked his head and smiled. “Oh, I didn’t know you were in love so quickly. I mean, are you going to ask her to marry you? Is she knocked up with your kid already?”

Gunnar stormed toward Chuck, who stumbled backward. “I told you I needed some time away to take care of my mother.”

“Really? I checked with the hospital. She was discharged today.”

Gunnar stalked his manager. “You have some big brass ones. She still has to have surgery. I’m staying here until she has it. If it takes her six months or a year to recover, I’ll be with her.”

“You can’t do that, Guns. You’ve got upcoming matches. Hell, you’re the titleholder. You’re obligated to defend it.”

“My only obligation is to my family.” Gunnar jutted his finger in front of Chuck’s face. “Before you, before the training, before the fights, my mother and brothers had my back.” He turned to his rental. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to go be with my family.”

“Don’t walk away from me, Guns. If you do--”

“What? What’s going to happen? You’re going to have my title stripped from me? You’ll talk shit about me to the association? I’ll never fight again? I don’t care. You do what you have to do, and I’ll do what I have to do. When I’m ready to get into the ring again, I’ll call you.”

Chuck studied Gunnar for a moment before he spoke. “I can’t figure it out. Are you scared or tired? Which is it, Guns? Are you afraid Seamus is going to beat you, or are you tired of fighting?”

Gunnar wouldn’t answer that question even though he’d thought about it a lot lately. He enjoyed being able to sleep when he wanted and not have to train every minute of the day. The idea of quitting had crossed his mind. He wouldn’t be sharing that information with Chuck until he needed to reveal it. Right now, he would take advantage of this break.

Gunnar pointed down the street. “Get your ass on a plane and take yourself back to Vegas. There’s nothing for you here.”

Chuck tsked and lowered his head. “I wished you hadn’t said that. You leave me no options.”

Uninterested in hearing what else Chuck had to say, Gunnar got into his truck and sped out of the parking lot. He pounded his fist against the steering wheel to work out some of his aggression.

Gunnar still couldn’t believe his manager had come all the way to Virginia to convince him to fight again. How could Chuck think that he could leave his mother now?

When Gunnar thought about the fear in Eboni’s eyes when Chuck had showed up, he had to grip the steering wheel again. He never wanted her to worry about him. He had to show her and his mother he could be a changed man. No one defined him but him. No one.

* * * *

“Darling, will you sit down, please.” Elizabeth spoke from her seated position on the couch.

Since arriving at her house, Eboni had planted herself at the living room window, waiting for Gunnar to come home. She glanced at her watch again, counting down the seconds until it reached that critical five-minute mark.

“I want to make sure Gunnar gets back okay.” Eboni chewed on her lower lip.

“He’ll be fine. I thought you said you came over to visit with me.”

Eboni turned to her friend. “If you saw this guy and how Gunnar looked at him, you would be concerned.”

“Chuck? That’s Gunnar’s manager. He’s harmless, well, except for the need for the man to make a buck. But that’s all managers, right? They’ll squeeze every dollar they can out of you.”

Eboni turned to Queen. “You don’t. You’re a great boss.”

“I’d like to think I motivate you all in different ways.” Elizabeth patted the seat next to her on the couch. “Come sit with me.”

Eboni turned back to the window. “Aren’t you worried about Gunnar?”

“Every day of my life. I worry about all of my children. I consider all of you at the salon my kids too. Come sit down.”

Queen Elizabeth’s soothing voice lulled Eboni to the couch next to her.

“Take a deep breath.” To show Eboni what she meant, Elizabeth took a deep breath first. When she exhaled, she smiled. “You’ll feel better.”

“I’ll feel better when Gunnar comes home.”

Queen held Eboni’s hand.

When she did that, Eboni broke from her guard duty to address her. “How do you manage to remain so calm?”

“Oh, honey, when the boys were younger, they put many a gray hair on my head. Thanks to Miss Clairol, you don’t see that.”

Eboni smiled.

Queen continued. “Through the years, I’ve found that I have raised really good men. All of them are so responsible. I don’t worry about Gunnar because he has never given me a reason to worry.” She thought about her statement and quickly added, “As an adult. You’ll see when you get married and have children.”

Eboni took in the weight of her words. She didn’t think the anxiousness that riddled her body would go away if she married Gunnar, especially if she had children.

As soon as she saw a flash of headlights beam into the living room, Eboni darted to her feet and ran toward the back door.

“Eboni, a lady never runs,” Elizabeth called after her.

Eboni didn’t care. She burst through the door.

As soon as Gunnar stepped out of the truck, she jumped on him and wrapped her arms around his body.

“Whoa! I’ve only been tackled like this in the ring. What gives?” Gunnar laughed and held her.

“I didn’t like that guy.” When her body trembled, Gunnar held her closer. “He gave me the creeps.”

“I told you I would be okay. We talked. That’s it. I do all of my fighting in the ring now.” He ran his hand up and down her back. “Let’s get you inside. You’re shivering.” He slammed his truck door and walked her back into the house.

“Is that guy gone?” Eboni asked.

“I told him to go back to Las Vegas and that I would call him when I’m ready to work again.” Gunnar walked into the living room where his mother sat. “Right now, I’m not ready to go back to work.” He leaned over Queen Elizabeth and gave her a kiss on her forehead. “How are you doing, Ma?”

“I would be better if you hadn’t scared the pudding out of this girl.” She wagged her finger at Eboni. “Tell her you’re okay.”

“I did.” Gunnar took off his jacket and hung it in the closet.

“Do it again so that I can see it.”

Gunnar smiled and faced Eboni. “I’m sorry for--”

Elizabeth cleared her throat.

“Oh, that’s right. I apologize for making you worry about me. I’m fine.”

“Now kiss her.”

When Gunnar said, “Ma!” Eboni exclaimed, “Queen!”

“Oh, come on. I know you two had sex. It’s obvious.” She turned to Eboni. “You wouldn’t be so worried about him if you hadn’t.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Gunnar and I are just--”

Before Eboni could finish her statement, Gunnar wrapped his arm around her waist, held her face and pressed his lips against hers. She closed her eyes and fell into the sensual expression.

When he pulled back, Eboni opened her eyes. She found Gunnar staring at her.

“Mama knows best.” He helped her to a chair. “I’ll get dinner started. Any preference?”

“Pasta.” Elizabeth smiled.

He nodded and headed to the kitchen.

Elizabeth leaned over toward Eboni. “It’s all he knows how to make really well.”

Eboni laughed. She found that the more she hung out with Gunnar, the more she realized how much he had changed. Why was she pushing so hard to keep their relationship hidden? She put her hand over her heart. Since she’d given him permission to leave, starting anything with him again would break her heart in a million pieces.

Gunnar poked his head out of the kitchen. “Next Sunday is the Super Bowl.”

Elizabeth clapped. “We need to have a viewing party.” She pointed down. “It needs to be here at the house with everyone from the salon and the flower shop. We have to support Gideon.”

Gunnar’s face looked tight at his mother’s suggestion.

“Lighten up, grumpy bear. It won’t kill you to be hospitable for a day.”

He growled before saying, “Yes, ma’am.”

Elizabeth held Eboni’s hand. “Will you help me plan it?”

“Of course.” She glanced at Gunnar. “I would do anything for you and Gunnar.”

He smiled before disappearing back into the kitchen. Eboni hoped he knew that about her. She shouldn’t have had sex with him. Now she wanted to figure out a way to keep him home…with her.

* * * *

After dinner and a few card games, Gunnar’s mother started yawning more and more.

“You want me to help you upstairs to your bedroom?” He held her hand.

“No. It may take me a while, but I’ll get there.” She stood from the table. “You two don’t stay up too late. You both have early days tomorrow, right?”

Both Gunnar and Eboni said at the same time, “Yes, ma’am.”

“But once I get to sleep, I won’t hear anything. You could scream and shout, and I won’t catch any of that.”

“Mom!” Gunnar bolted to his feet.

“Good night, baby.” She smiled as she crept up the steps.

Gunnar didn’t know about Eboni, but his face felt like flames surrounded it. He finally glanced down at her and found her looking serene with a cat-that-ate-the-canary smile.

“She teased me about us too.” Eboni motioned between herself and Gunnar.

“I’m chalking it up to the medication the hospital gave her.” Gunnar returned the playing cards to the junk drawer in the kitchen.

“Then it has been a while since you’ve been home.” Eboni stood. She sauntered into the living room and grabbed her coat.

At the sight of her getting her coat and purse, Gunnar’s heart sank. He hadn’t really expected a repeat performance of last night…although in his head he’d prayed several times over for it to happen.