The sunshine blinded me as I stepped outside. Yet another reminder of how dark and dank the damn gym was. I glared down into my Styrofoam cup and then tossed the whole thing into the nearby trashcan. I didn’t want shitty coffee. I didn’t want to be here at all.

Do not think about her.

Was she really hiring a stripper?

“Fuck me.”

Carlos raised a brow. “Sorry, bro. There are some things I am unwilling to do. You’ll just have to live with disappointment that my extraordinary dick is unattainable.”

I snorted. “I guess that dream will have to die.” I was about to give him shit when a Land Rover rolled up in front of the gym. A much-needed tide of white-hot rage crashed through my system. I planted my feet and let it ride.

At my side, Carlos stood up, his hands fisting. “Puñeta.”

A chauffeur opened the back door, and a tall blond guy got out. Garret.

Ignoring the ribald Spanish curses flowing from Carlos’s mouth, I tried not to glare down at the guy. But he was a persistent fucker.

He nodded at us both as he stopped at the bottom of the stairs. “I wondered if you had time to chat?”

“If it’s about buying the gym, then I don’t think so,” I said.

“I have a new offer for you.”

Shit. My gut churned. Part of me wondered if turning this guy away made my choices just as fucked up as my dad’s. “The gym is not on the market. It would just be a waste of your time and mine.”

Garret sighed and glanced down the street before turning back to me. “I know you’re in trouble with the bank.”

Heat crawled up my neck, but I kept my voice neutral despite my anger. “Yeah? And how the fuck would you know anything about my finances?”

He shrugged. “I know people.”

“Yeah, well, you don’t know me, Garret. I’m not selling my gym.” I crossed my arms over my chest and spread my legs.

Garret’s gaze drifted over me. “I understand pride, Mr. Morgan. But if you’d put yours aside for a minute, you’d realize I’m doing you a favor.”

“Yeah, sure.”

His smile was thin, half amused, half pissed off. “When the bank takes this place from you, they’ll auction it off on the cheap.”

Like I didn’t know this. I had nightmares about it. They’d auction off my gym and then turn around and suddenly I’d be on stage. Behold the final death of a broke-down boxer’s pride. So, yeah, I knew about pride. Sometimes it was all you had.

“Makes me wonder why you’re bothering now, instead of waiting.”

Garret shrugged. “Maybe I’m just a nice guy.”