Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Cameron

I hadn't missed the expression on the doorman's face. He was probably calling Chris now telling him what a bloody mess I was and how this cannot happen again. This is great. I've only been here less than twenty-four hours, and I'm sure everyone is talking about me.

I didn't care, but I knew Chris did. I was going to have to explain to everyone what happened. Well, maybe not the truth because the last thing I needed was the media learning that I was almost knocked out by a woman who might be five foot four and that was stretching it. Hell, even my manager would have a field day with this.

I needed to do some damage control, fast. It meant getting the good ole doc out of here fast. I rushed through my shower, and pulled on a clean pair of shorts, and a T-shirt. Before leaving the bathroom, I checked the cut on the right side of my head. It looked worse than I thought it would. Thankfully it wasn't bleeding any longer, but was it going to be fully healed in the next five days? Not so sure.

She had cleaned the wound thoroughly before I had showered, and she didn't seem overly concerned any longer. Didn't actually say it looked good, but since she didn't insist I go to the hospital or her clinic anymore, I took that as a good sign. But she had no idea what was coming up in a few days.

Two things could happen. Either the doctor would pull me from fighting because he thought I had a prior head trauma, or my opponent would see it as a weakness, and use it to his advantage. I'd like to avoid either from happening.

I knew she hadn't meant it, but damn it, the timing of this couldn't be worse. Walking out of the bathroom, I found her sitting on the couch, leaning back, with her eyes closed. I stood there watching her for a moment, expecting her eyes to fly open and yell at me for staring. But she didn't move. Was she asleep? Funny, she was so insistent about coming here to take care of me, and now I needed to leave the room, so that I didn't disturb her.

Although she was beautiful, and I was enjoying the view, I had something else that I needed to take care of. Grabbing the keys to the apartment, I headed back down to the lobby. Might as well see if I can talk my way out of whatever trouble I had caused for Chris. When I arrived, the doorman was speaking to another one of the tenants. Their expression made it apparent that I was the topic.

Walking over to them I said, "Excuse me. I wanted to apologize for my appearance when I entered a short while ago. You all know that I'm training for a title match in a few days. I hadn't expected the cut to re-open on my way back to the apartment. This has never happened before and I'll make sure it doesn't happen again."

The doorman nodded and said, "Thank you."

I could appreciate the fact he was a man of little words. Too bad the guy who was standing there wasn't the same.

"I've done some research on you, Giampietro. Do you really think you can win?" he asked. "I mean, it looks like you lost in training and that was just a sparring partner."

Arrogant ass.

He probably couldn't last thirty seconds in a ring with a sparring partner, never mind in an actual fight. " If you want to lose your money, feel free to bet against me. But trust me, I'm ready." I wasn't going to waste my time trying to convince him otherwise. All it was going to do was piss me off, or worse, create a doubt within me that I couldn't afford to have.

Turning away before either of them could continue with the conversation, I headed back up to the apartment. When I entered, I saw her standing there, looking stressed.

"Where did you go? I've been worried," she said.

"Sorry. I forgot something in my Jeep. I would've let you know, but you were sleeping soundly."

She let out a long exhale and nodded. "I've had a long day at the clinic, and then what happened after, well, it took more out of me than I thought. I'm sorry. I meant to stay awake and check on your wound when you finished showering."

I turned and showed her my head. "All clean. And it didn't bleed when I washed it. You did a great job on it." It had been a little more than an hour since she'd whacked me with that board. If it were still bleeding now, she wouldn't need to tell me to go get it checked. I'd be doing that myself.

She walked over and gently touched my cheek, so my head turned to the side. "Oh, it is swollen and looks like it hurts."

What hurt more right now was the physical need to pull her into my arms and feel that gentle touch on the rest of my body. Fuck. Don't think about it.

"It does. But it was an accident," I said, pulling away. I needed to keep my distance.

"A foolish one. If I wasn't so afraid of the rats that were chasing me, it never would've happened."

"Why don't we sit on the couch, and you can explain what made you go into the alley in the first place," I suggested.

I sat on the other side of the couch and waited for her to answer my question.

"I hired a contractor to do some work for me. When I left the clinic, I found that he hadn't cleaned everything up. When I called him to ask him to return, he explained why he couldn't. Since I own the property, it is my responsibility to handle it. I was concerned that someone might trip on it and get hurt."

"And you had no one you could call to come and do it for you?" I asked.

She shrugged. "I just wanted it done so I could go home and rest. Hence why I fell asleep while waiting for you."

"I hate to say it, but I'm glad I was in the alley. Not that I'm worried about the rats because they were probably more scared of you. But it is not safe for you to be there alone," I warned.

"You were there. Why?" she asked.

"I had gone out for a run and was cutting through the alley on my way back to my Jeep." I had stopped running when I saw her by the dumpster, backing up, slowly. What I hadn't planned on was her turning so suddenly with that damn wood in her hands because I was so focused on trying to see what had her so scared.

"Mr. Giampietro, I can't say it enough, I'm sorry."

"First of all, please stop calling me Mr. Giampietro. I'm thirty. Not ancient. My name is Cameron, and don't worry about it. I'm fine. If I wasn't, I would tell you," I lied. She was already stressed enough. She didn't need to worry about me. "Why don't you let me bring you home so you can rest."

"I can't leave you alone. What if something happens and you need help?" she asked.

"Did you see the doorman downstairs?" She nodded. "Trust me, if I need anything, he will have it here in the blink of an eye. Even a doctor," I said.

"And what about dinner? I could stay and cook for you," she offered.

"Maybe another time when we can enjoy it. Right now, take-out sounds just about right," I said. It wasn't the cooking that bothered me. It was the damn dishes after.

Her eyes looked like they could close again, yet she was still willing to take care of me. It was sweet. Unnecessary, but sweet. You need to take care of yourself. "Are you sure? I feel responsible."

"How about if you give me your cell number, I promise to text you an update if there is any change in my health?" I offered.

"Okay. If you promise, then I will agree to that," she stated.

"I give you my word. Now, what is your number?" I asked. She gave it to me, and I put it in my phone. "Okay, Dr. Swoony, let's get you home."

"Please, call me Sydney. And can you send me a text now, so that I have your number in case I want to check on you first," she asked.

It wasn't like I could hide from her. She knew where I was staying and if I didn't reply, she probably would drop everything to come and check on me in person. Reluctantly, I did as she asked even though I hadn't intended on texting her. At least not this week. From the second she turned around and our eyes met, I knew she was only going to be a distraction. Didn't need that. And even with her here right now, and my head pounding, I wanted to pull her onto my lap and kiss her senseless. I usually had more self-control than this, but my mind kept going back to her.

Oh yeah. I need you out of here before I do something really stupid.

Standing up, I said, "Let's get you home."

She stood and followed me to the door. Before leaving she looked around one last time and said, "I know this is your place, but somehow it doesn't feel like you. It's really nice, but..."

"I know exactly what you mean." No need to tell her it wasn't my place.

"I hope I didn't offend you. It's just something about you that seems more...relaxed than this. I mean, you don't even have any photos on your walls. Just fancy artwork.

I looked around as well and realized that until now, I had never noticed the lack of anything personal in here.

"A place like this is easy to clean," I said, still trying to move this conversation along and get her out of there before I changed my mind.

"You would hate my place. I have pictures of my parents, my younger brother and his family, and even pets that I had over the years. Not that I'm a hoarder or anything, but I am a bit more...nostalgic."

Another thing I liked about her because I was the same way.

"Do you like burgers?" I asked.

She shook her head. "I don't eat meat."

Well here lies the first major difference. It's my main food group.

"Vegan?" I asked.

"No. Just no meat. I'm an animal lover but I do eat eggs and drink milk. Why did you ask?" she questioned.

Because I foolishly almost asked you to have dinner with me.

"I'm going to order some on my way and didn't know if you wanted anything. But I'm sure they have great salads there. Would you like me to order you something to take home as well so you don't have to cook?" I offered.

"I'd love a COBB salad if you don't mind," she replied. "Just no meat and add extra avocado please."

"You got it." I pulled out my cell phone and called in the order to the same place I had ordered from the night before. "They said it will be ready in fifteen minutes. We should get going."

She smiled up at me and said, "Just so you know, I'm buying. It's the least I can do. And I am not taking no for an answer."

I gave in. "I will allow it this time."

I saw the look in her eye. She hadn't missed it. I'd hinted there would be a next time. I hated to disappoint her and didn't want her to wait for my call. For the next several days, all I wanted to do was train and maintain my weight.

Why couldn't we have met after the match?

Thoughts like these were a warning that I couldn't be around her. She was dangerous. A temptation that could ruin everything I'd worked for. And since she made it clear how she feels about boxing, it's not like there could be anything between us even after the match.