“Meet me there in an hour and we’ll go a couple rounds on the heavy bag. You sound like you need to punch something.”

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“She’s coming here?” Chris asked with a raised brow. He sat on a locker-room bench as John changed into a tank top and sweatpants.

“I invited her to come down and let off a little steam,” John said, tying his hair up.

Chris laughed. “Okay.”

John ignored the joke that his friend was dying to make. When he’d heard Victoria’s voice on the phone, he wanted to help her immediately. From the sniffles on the other line, it was evident that she had been crying. “I’d like you to behave yourself while she’s here,” he said. “Could you do that?”

“What do you imagine me doing that would offend her?” Chris asked with mock-dismay.

John caught his gaze and held it. “Just don’t dude-bro out in front of her.”

“I’m hurt. Seriously hurt.”

“Now that I know you clean up after me, I’m keeping an eye on you,” John said, biting back a grin. “Victoria is mine.”

“Possessive already?” Chris asked as he stood. When they left the locker room, Victoria was already waiting by the front desk, a duffel bag hanging off her shoulder. She was dressed in a black tank top and leggings and her braids were tightly bound in a high ponytail at the top of her head. “Now I see it.”

John saw it too. Saying that a woman was his wasn’t usually his style, but something about Victoria made him want to snap his jaws at his own best friend. Chris, who was just as handsome, and perhaps more charming, couldn’t be seen as an alternative this evening.

“Maybe I can help you two with sparring later?” Chris asked.

John narrowed in on his tongue-wagging and shot him a glare. “I’ll let you know if your services are needed.”

“Please do,” he said as they drew closer to her.

When Victoria spotted them, she flashed a nervous smile and waved. “Hi there,” she said, shifting from one foot to the other. “I don’t know if I need to sign in or where I should put my bag.”

“Allow me,” Chris said, taking her bag. “I’ll keep this in my office.”

John watched her face redden as Chris slipped the strap from her shoulder. “Thank you,” she murmured. He was used to seeing his friend’s effect on women, just not the one he was infatuated with. Chris wasn’t a real threat, but John couldn’t help feeling a little territorial.

“Dr. Reese, this is my best friend, Chris Flynn,” he said.

“And the owner of this fine establishment,” Chris said, holding out a hand.

“Pleasure to meet you,” she said with a warm smile.