Bam . . . Bam . . . Bam!

The private training room at 5th Street was obviously not private enough. Already there'd been several people with camera phones at the door windows, trying to take pictures of Abel training. As usual, he'd tried to not let it distract him, even when the would-be amateur photographers were asked to leave. What he had a harder time not being distracted by were thoughts of Nellie and her date tomorrow night with Logan.

Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!

"That a boy," Gio said, holding the bag. "But remember you're not wearing gloves. You don't wanna hurt your knuckles. This is about endurance, not strength, so take it easy."

Abel nodded and slowed a little taking in a breath.

Bam . . . Bam . . . Bam! Bam!

"There you go," Noah said, taking a seat on the stool nearby.

Abel wasn't so sure what was more troubling: the fact that she was going out with this guy she worked with—someone she actually had a relationship not just someone she was planning on just having fun with—or the fact that he cared so much. He'd already made up his mind earlier that day that he had no time for a real relationship. Now was the worst time in his life for that. He had too much going on to be able to give any girl the attention she needed, which was exactly why he thought what he had with Nellie was perfect in the first place. So what if she saw others when he wasn't around?

Bam! Bam! Bam!

"Easy, Abel!" Gio reminded him again about his knuckles.

So what if she might end up sleeping with Logan tomorrow night?

Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!

"Dude!" Noah stood up off the stool. "What're you doin'?"

Abel slammed his fist into the bag one last time before backing away and wiping the sweat off his face with the front of his shoulder. "I'm done," he said simply. "I gotta get outta here."

He started to walk away, but Noah stopped him. "What's wrong with you? Everything okay? You've been on edge all week."

Both Gio and Noah stared at him now. "Nah, I'm good," he said, afraid to look Noah in the eyes, so he started undoing the wrap on his hands.

"Give me that," Gio said, reaching out for his hand. Abel reached out and let Gio help him take off the wrap. "Maybe you should take a few days off." Gio offered.

"Nope," Abel said, immediately shaking his head. "I just took time off for New York. I can't take any more off. We're too close now."

"Well you need to relax, man." Gio insisted. "You can't keep having these kinds of workouts where you're either beating the shit outta one of the trainers you're sparring with or your own knuckles. Someone's gonna get hurt."

"I'll relax," Abel said then smirked. "I know exactly what I need, and I'll take care of it tonight."

Noah's expression soured, but surprisingly he didn't say anything. Abel had thought about it all damn week. Ever since Noah had told him about Nellie's date, he'd thought that was it. He'd take a break from his visits to Nellie for a while if not for good. The trip to New York had helped. Hanging out with Felix, whom he hadn't hung with in a while, was a much needed distraction. The guy knew how to party, and if Abel wasn't in the middle of such intense training, he might've partied with him. The time he spent with him still served its purpose. Felix was also a pro at handling the media, telling Abel that if he just stopped and posed for a few photos the paparazzi would be more relenting. The only problem with that was that Felix didn't mind posing with every girl who was all over them. Abel hadn't bothered to check, but he was certain there were plenty of shots with each of them looking as if they'd for sure gotten laid that night. Felix most likely did. Abel had gone back to his room alone and thought about the same damn thing he'd thought about all week—Nellie's date.

He'd been so desperate to just get over it that he'd even gone as far as agreeing to have lunch with Rachel, one of the girls who worked the juice bar at the gym. Knowing from experience that she was good for few rounds of fun and wasn't the clingy type either, he figured that she might do the trick. She was forever dropping hints that she was ready to go at it again whenever he was. Stupidly, or maybe he'd just been naïve, he thought maybe she'd make a nice little stress reliever, just as he'd claimed Nellie was.

But after spending a whole half hour listening to Rachel's endless drivel and cheap attempts to be sexy with her fluttering lashes and sucking of her own fingers as she ate, he had to pass. There was zero substance, something Nellie had in buckets and something he hadn't realized until now that he wanted. He'd decided that he was being an idiot, and not only could he handle the understanding he had with Nellie but doing so was absolutely worth the reward. He wasn't so sure now. Worse yet, he wasn't sure if maybe he'd blown it today by making his aversion to her date tomorrow so obvious. He could only hope now she wouldn't send him packing tonight when he showed up at her place.

Once done taking off the wrap, Abel made his way back to the private showers. Noah followed. Somehow Abel had a feeling he would. "So is it true?"

Abel walked into one of the open shower stalls and turned on the water. He turned back to Noah who sat down on one of the benches on the other side of the stall's pony wall. It came up past Abel's waist, so he could still see Noah's curious expression. "Is what true?" Abel asked, pulling off his trunks and briefs, and stood under the shower.

"That you and Rachel are real serious?"

"What?"

Noah laughed. "Roni saw it first and asked me about it, but just last night, I was flipping through the channels, and it was on like two different tabloid shows. They have pictures of you and her earlier this week having sushi and then getting back in your car, so apparently it's real serious."

"It's bullshit. We had lunch. That's all. Andy said they'd do this once we got closer to the fight." Not wanting to look at him now, he stood under the shower for a few seconds, lathering up before asking. "What did you tell Roni?"

"I figured as much. So I told her you'd just bagged the girl a few times in the past and that's probably all this time was too."

Abel squeezed his eyes shut. Fucking great. As if he needed to give Nellie more reason to feel free to jump from bed to bed. If he was doing it, why shouldn't she?

Noah stood up now. "Is she who you're seeing tonight?"

This wasn't like Noah. He never asked Abel details of his conquests, and he knew better than anyone that Abel wasn't one to be talking about his personal life. The only reason Noah even knew about Rachel was because she was the one who told everyone. There could only be one reason Noah was asking now—the same reason he'd ever asked before—so Abel had to ask, but he still wouldn't look at him." Why?"

"Just wondering."

"No, you're not." He turned to him now. The irritation that had mounted all week and that he'd had to fight to keep under control in Nellie's office today had just peaked. "You don't wonder about my personal life, and you know I don't talk about it. Ever. So what gives? The little wifey put you up to this?"

"First of all," Noah pointed at him with a murderous glare, "you watch that fucking tone when you talk about Roni. You hear me?"

Abel turned back to the shower, leaning his head under it. He seriously needed to get a grip. He might as well just tell Noah he had no idea how to deal with knowing that Nellie would be on a date tomorrow and that it was making him insane since he was being so damn transparent about it.

"Second," Noah continued, sounding a little calmer. "Roni mentioned Nellie hadn't heard from you since last week, the day I told you about her date this Friday. I was just hoping that the tiny little flame I thought I saw in your eye that day had finally set something off upstairs and you'd come to your senses. Then after seeing you enjoy your time with Felix and all those girls and watching the Rachel gossip on TV, I thought you'd really moved on. But seeing you walk around here all week with that look on your face, the one you usually reserve for the ring just before you're getting ready to tear someone a new one, it got me thinking." Noah stopped talking and Abel assumed he was waiting for him to look at him, so he took a deep breath and did. Noah lifted a brow. "Please tell me what Roni thought might happen and you assured me wouldn't, isn't already happening." Abel stared at him and Noah shook his head. "Aside from us, Nellie is the only family Roni has. Tell me no matter what happens that we'll be able to sit around the table or be in the same room without the tension becoming so thick it changes everything."

"Nothing's changing," Abel said, turning off the water. He grabbed a towel from the shelf on the wall. "This fight is getting real now. You know I have no patience for the paparazzi, and they've been all over my ass. I've just been wound a little tight." Finished drying up, he tied the towel around his waist then looked up at Noah and hoped he could pull this next part off. "But Nellie and I are cool. Like I said before, her personal life and what she does when I'm not around is none of my business."

Noah let out a heavy breath, looking somewhat relieved. "Good."

Abel started walking away toward his locker then turned and looked back at Noah "And sorry about my tone there. You know I love Roni."

"You better be sorry," Noah chuckled. "'Cause I don't care how big you are. Mess with her and I'll come after you."

For what felt like the first time since Abel had first walked into Nellie's office today, he smiled. "Yeah, I know you would."

He'd have to keep in mind how closely Noah was watching him now. He thought it earlier this week, and he was beginning to think it again. Maybe Noah was right. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to keep this up. If only he could convince his heart of that, the same heart that was already pounding against his chest from just knowing he'd be seeing her real soon.

After getting dressed, Abel picked up his brother's tablet, which sat on the desk in the back office. He'd done everything he could to avoid the tabloids stories ever since he heard the stuff they were saying about his dad. He didn't really care, but it'd pissed him off that his mom had felt it necessary to once again explain his father's death as if he or Hector were in any way buying the bullshit stories.

His dad had been in a bar with his brother in Mexico where a brawl broke out. There were shots, and his dad and uncle were two of several men shot and killed that day. End of story. It was later reported that the fight had originated between two guys arguing over a drug deal gone wrong, but his dad and uncle had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. They weren't involved in the argument at all. The tabloids however were painting a whole other picture. He could only imagine the shit they were saying about him and Rachel and the girls in New York, especially since a few of them were celebrities. Felix told him not to sweat it. He was a free man. These kinds of photos only became a problem if he was ever involved with someone. Abel could only pray now this wouldn't become a problem because Felix told him to expect the photos to go viral.

Frowning as the photos came up on the screen, he groaned flipping through them. There were so many. And of course he looked like he was having the time of his life in most of them. So Felix was fun to hang out with, and he was hilarious when he was drinking. But damn it if they didn't catch every compromising position he'd been in with those girls. Felix had warned him ahead of time that the girls at these clubs were not shy. And they were especially touchy-feely when they knew they were being photographed. There was photo after photo of him with one girl or another either wrapped around him or leaning into him, saying something to him extra close to his face since the music had been so damn loud.

"Fuck," he muttered as he came across the photo of him and that actress he'd met getting in a car together. He read the bullshit caption under the photo.

Leaving his buddy welterweight champ Sanchez behind, boxing's heavyweight contender "Aweless" Ayala was caught making An early escape with the beautiful Tammi Fischer.

Caught? He walked right out the front door flooded with waiting photographers. Since Felix had made no secret about which hotel they were staying at, Tammi knew they were going the same way. She suggested they share a car so they both could escape the paparazzi faster. What was he supposed to say? Hell no? They've already taken enough incriminating photos I don't want my non-girlfriend to misinterpret? Luckily there were more photos of each of them arriving at their different hotels alone. No story there, assholes.

Then he saw the other headline and bigger story.

Has Someone Finally Broken The Tough Exterior of Aweless Ayala?

Just under the headline were three photos of him sitting with Rachel at the sushi place. He never once noticed photographers that day. In the first two photos, it appeared that he was completely captivated by her conversation. The third one had her feeding him a piece of her sushi. He remembered being annoyed when she'd done that. It was just another attempt to be sexy, and maybe if it'd been someone who didn't try so hard—someone like Nellie—it might've been amusing.

Seeing the photos now, he had to wonder if maybe Rachel had given the photographers a heads up. That day he'd chalked up her overly playful and flirtatious behavior to maybe her getting caught up in the fight hype as well. Now that his name and the fight were all over the TV, radio, and Internet maybe she wanted some of the spotlight on her. She wouldn't be the first to try this, and she'd told him all about her dream of making it as a fitness model. She certainly had the body for it. And after getting to know her a little better, he didn't blame her for trying to make the most of her looks. Like in his first few lustful encounters with Nellie, they'd never done a whole lot of talking, but unlike with Nellie, he'd never been inclined to spend the night at her place or have her stay at his. After only three times, like most of the girls he had fun with, he'd also lost interest. Not once had he felt the undeniable need to be with her again like he was feeling that moment about being with Nellie in just a few minutes.

Unable to get past even the first ridiculous paragraph about how it appeared that without warning his heart had been stolen, he shut the tablet down and thought about the irony of the headline and story. Inadvertently, they were on to something about his heart being stolen. Only just like the stories about his dad, they had their facts all wrong.