Page 49 of Bruised Hearts

“You can’t be this slow. If Breaker is fucked up in the head, then he loses the fight. He won’t be in the right frame of mind.”

“Why do you care what space he’s in?” Did this nigga bet on the fight?

“I represent Danger now. He’s a money asset, so of course I want him to win.”

“So, let me see if I got this right. You represent me. You represent Danger, and now you two are plotting on ways to get in his head.”

“Yes, and that’s all you need to know. I’ve never explained my business to you before, and I’m not about to start. You need a ride home?”

“I’m good.” Limping off, I made my way to my car. Getting inside, I sat there for a minute. I had so many questions, with so few answers. What Stone said made sense, but it wasn’t sizzling right in my spirit. Driving off, I rode through the city of Miami trying to figure out what my next move was. If Stone is representing Danger, there is no way I was going to allow him to keep representing me. The fact that they tried to dangle me on the line to get in his head wasn’t cool. I wasn’t a fucking pawn, and neither were my hurt feelings.

I continued to ride in silence. No music, no destination. Just my thoughts. Was Stone his agent before he sent me there? I thought back to our conversation, and he said he was representing somebody, but not who. Was it Danger? If so, did he know he was going to use me? The thing that was bothering me the most was trying to figure out how he was using me to get in Landon’s head. Training me? Dating me? Why would they do that to him? Nope, I was not about to do this. I was not about to sit here and take a piece of information and rewrite what happened. I wasn’t sure what their plan was, but I was certain of one thing.

Landon still played me. However, that knowledge left me with more questions. I still didn’t know why he did that. To make matters worse, he came to the fight. I didn’t expect to see him there, and I damn sure didn’t expect for him to start coaching me. None of this made sense and the last thing I needed was a headache. Tricky already damn near knocked my head off my shoulders. Looking up, somehow, I was passing by The Ninth Round. That was the last place I needed to go. Then again, it was the only place that held some of the answers I needed.

Keep Driving.

The voice inside my head was loud, but my feelings were louder. Cursing myself, I parked. Seeing his car caused me to laugh. Of course, this nigga would be here. It was time to shit or get off the pot. Opening the door, I climbed out of my car. Walking to the door, I stood there for a second before pulling the door open. I was shocked to see how empty it was. I almost turned around to leave, but then I heard talking. A woman. You would think my common sense would have kicked in and told my ass to go, instead, I slowly walked toward the sound.

“Can you show me how to hit this one?” The voice from the club. Her shit was embedded in my membrane.

“Tan, even if I show you, your ass won’t know what you doing.” My legs kept moving closer.

“Teach me something, and then I’ll teach you something.” I rolled my good eye hard as hell, and the closed one damn near got stuck.

“Ouch. That hurt.”

“I ain’t do shit. Your ass swung at the bag.”

“Well, I told you to teach me.” By this time, they were in view. She tried to hit him, but he caught her by the arm. My stomach dropped. Even though it wasn’t a sexual touch and you could clearly see there was no chemistry, I still felt a way. It reminded me of all the nights me and Landon stood in this very gym training with each other. I was the bitch giggling in his face while he taught me techniques. I moved to leave, but Tan looked up and saw me. Landon followed her stare, and we locked eyes.

“Ariyah, what are you doing here?” Damn, a bitch couldn’t even get a hello. For a while, I tried to come up with a reason, but nothing came out. Finally, I decided on the truth.

“I don’t know. So, you brought this bitch here.” Tan’s head snapped around, but I kept looking at Landon.

“This ain’t your spot no more.”

“Boy, fuck you!”

“Fuck me? You got some nerve bringing your ass in my shit. Then you skip past nerve and have the audacity to question me. Fuck out of here.”

“You know what? This was a fucking mistake. Be happy with your lil groupie.”

“I will, all night. Get the fuck out of my gym.” Not responding, I did just that.

30- Robert “Stone” Winfield

“Honey, can I have some money? I want to go hang out with the girls. Lunch, spa date, and shopping.” Irritated, I turned to face my wife.

“Samantha, I don’t have anything for you. I swear, all you do is fucking beg. If I wasn’t waiting for a big payout from your daughter, I would have been divorced your ass.”

“You don’t mean that. I know it’s been hard dealing with her, but I’ve always made sure she wasn’t any trouble to you.” I looked at her like she was crazy.

“That’s all she’s been; fucking trouble. Look, I have a meeting with another client. I’ll be back later.” Leaving out, I got in my car and disregarded what she asked me for. I wanted to leave Samantha when the girls were in high school. She was spending more than I was bringing in. Pussy was mediocre, and her child had a chip on her shoulder. I barely wanted to play daddy to another nigga’s kid, but since he was dead, I said what the hell. Her ass kept getting into trouble, and I had to keep using favors to get her ass out. Right when I had my lawyer draw up the paperwork, I got a call about a boxing match while she was away at the detention facility.

As angry as she was, there was no way her ass couldn’t make me a grip. At least that’s what I thought until I found out she was a dud. Bitch couldn’t even get booked. Pulling up at Knock Outs, I parked and got out. Heading inside, I saw Danger and motioned for him to meet me in the back. Going in the office, I took a seat. It took Danger thirty minutes to come back, and I was annoyed as fuck.

“Don’t bring your ass in here summoning me like I work for you.” His ass was mugging like I was getting on his nerves.