As I slid my arms around his waist and rested my head on his warm, hard chest, Rhys wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head. “I’ll be fine, Tink.”

“I know.” I squeezed him and then lifted my head from his chest. “I have good news.”

Rhys gave me an affectionate smile. “Yeah, what’s that?”

I told him about my confrontation with Fairchild and about the board buying him out of Horus. “Jackson gave me a permanent contract. Fairchild can’t touch my job. And I have leverage on him now. I think … I think we might be out of those particular woods.”

His smile widened and this time he squeezed me. “Baby, that’s not good news, that’s fantastic news.”

My own smile fell. “I blackmailed him.”

Sobering, Rhys nodded. “And I know how you probably feel about that. But I think you’re pretty fucking brave. Thank you. Not just for me and Dean, but for doing it for yourself. Proud of you.”

My breath caught. “Really?”

His hands coasted down my back as he studied me. “Yeah, really.”

Gazing up into his too-handsome face and those beautiful, warm eyes, emotion welled inside me with such force, I couldn’t have stopped it even if I’d wanted to. “I love you,” I blurted.

Rhys’s eyes widened, his nostrils flaring, his lips parting and he—

“Right, time’s up, lovebirds,” Jimmy burst into the room.

My boyfriend’s arms tensed around me as I attempted to retreat. “Jimmy—”

“Nope, nearly time and Parker here needs to take her seat. Go on, darlin’.” He gestured toward the door with his hand.

“It’s okay,” I reassured Rhys, even though I was trembling with the magnitude of what I’d just confessed. “Uh, well … break a leg.” I frowned and shot a worried look at Jimmy. “No, that’s not right. What do you say to a boxer for good luck before a fight?”

The trainer’s lips twitched. “Good luck.” He threw Rhys a teasing look. “I thought you said she was smart?”

Rhys apparently wasn’t in the mood to be teased. His tender gaze fell on me. “She’s the smartest fucking person I know. But thankfully, she’s got a big blind spot when it comes to me.”

Grinning, I shook my head. “Not true. I see you clearer than anyone.”

Something big flickered across Rhys’s expression, and that was when I found myself being gently guided toward the exit and summarily dismissed by Jimmy. “Enough. I need him juiced, not fucking sweet on his girl.”

“Parker,” Rhys called my name.

Jimmy let me go, and I glanced over my shoulder at my boyfriend.

“You’re the first person I want to see after this fight. Yeah?”

Nodding, I let out a nervous sigh. “Yes. Good luck. And Rhys?”

“Yeah, baby?”