Finding real estate in Chicago from a distance wasn't easy. The rest of the week I spent on the phone with Monica, Tammy, and Hilda while coming up with ideas. My plan was to get a multi-purpose building that we could use to host our own events, get the girls a training environment, and hopefully some apartments and offices for the team and whoever needed it. The crowds at a typical match in the Chicago boxing club were in the low hundreds. If we could get something set up that would get us a few thousand, then it would boost the local cash flow and help make the girls more money.

               They deserved that, and so that was the plan.

               I had three properties in mind, and all were located near Chicago's Soldier Field. The Bears were rumored to be moving to a new stadium in the suburban town of Arlington Heights soon, and some of the buildings there were going for sale in anticipation of less traffic in the area. That was fine with me, it was a perfect area for us. Good transportation and parking already built in.

               On Tuesday I heard that I had an offer on my condo. It hadn't even been advertised yet, and it was $75k below my asking price, but it was in cash, and they could close on Friday. I told my real estate agent to accept the offer and started looking at driving routes to Chicago. Monica, Tammy, and Hilda, all offered me places to stay until I found a place, but I decided to stick with Monica, as the other two I felt too nervous around. Not that I didn't trust them or myself, but I could only handle so much flirting, harmless or not! Not to mention, I didn't want a jealous girlfriend.

               The biggest problem was that the drive estimate was over 30 hours, and that didn't sound fun at all. If I made two stops so I didn't wear myself out, that was still a three day journey. My ass was sore just thinking about it!

I had to find a way to see Brooke before I left though. I had to make sure that she knew that I wasn't just leaving without her. A part of me thought that was exactly what I was doing though, moving out of the city without consulting her. Carol had told her what was happening, but that wasn't the same. Maybe I could see her on Friday night after the closing, and then start the drive on Saturday? I kept checking my phone for any texts from her, but so far there was nothing. Did her father somehow get her phone? This was so aggravating!

Me – I'm bringing pizza for dinner Friday. I want to see you and Brooke

Carol – Okay, I'll let her know.

Me – Does she have a phone?

Carol – Her father cancelled her plan and took her phone. I'm taking her to get a new one this evening.

Me – When are you firing that asshole?

Carol – Nike is announcing the winning bid on Friday. I'll settle all the business then.

Me – Excellent! Then maybe I can be with my girl!

Carol – No fucking in my room!

Me – We'll behave.

Well, we'd behave in her room. But we could always get another room if we wanted to spend time together. Honestly, I just wanted to see her and talk to her before I left so I could make sure she understood that I'd wait for her. That this was just a temporary absence. That I wanted to get away from everything here and start over with her. If she still wanted me after all this.

Wait a minute.

Was I in deeper than I'd thought? My heart ached for her, and my body cried out for her touch. Did she feel this? Was she going as crazy as I was? I was in that nebulous more than like, but not quite love, area that drives you a little crazy. Wasn't I? I don't love Brooke already, do I? Was it just a matter of spending a bit more time together?

Suddenly, my overall plan seemed insane. Yeah, I'll move to Chicago, and then expect Brooke to follow me and live in a new city before we've decided that we're in love with each other? What the hell was I thinking? Ugh! I still wanted to sell my condo, but maybe I could just stay in a hotel room with them while we sorted everything out. Or was that stupid too? The idea had been to get out of the city so Brooke's father couldn't hold any threats to me over her, but that meant no time with Brooke. This was a mess! Every time I made a new decision it seemed like I was zigging or zagging in a new direction!

But Friday I'd sort it out. My hotel room was good until Saturday either way, and worst case I could extend it. If things didn't work out, then I'd go. I guess I'd have to keep my plans loose for now. But that did mean I could work on other things instead. I didn't want to reach out to other potential sponsors, but I made a list of them as well as the contacts for each company. I had a list of companies that would be good for league sponsorship, like health care, dental care, and toothbrushes, as well as a list that would be good for individual sponsors like gum, mints, toothpaste and perfume. By the time I was done, I had a lot of options, and could reach out to the individual companies about getting involved.

But I also realized I needed more people. I needed someone like Sophia to help the competitors with contracts, and I needed someone like Carley to help do accounting. Tammy and Hilda were both personal trainers who taught body combat classes, and they could help keep the rest of the team in shape, but I'd probably need a nutritionist at a minimum, and another trainer in the long run so I didn't put too much pressure on Tammy and Hilda.

This was becoming more and more complex! When I first thought about owning a team, all I considered was watching Hilda and her teammates kissing every weekend. But now, I was realizing all the minutiae that I'd have to contend with. Luckily, being organized and doing research were two of the things I loved to do, so I could be ready once I got to Chicago.

By the time Friday came around, I was so stressed out that I barely slept the night before. I wanted the condo sold, and I wanted pizza boxes in my hand as I went to the hotel. When 9am hit, I was at the title company to sign the paperwork for the sale of the condo. It was pretty straight forward. I go in, I sign, and I leave. The buyer could come in any time with their check, and the title company would transfer the funds to me as soon as they had the money.

They had everything set up in a nice little conference room, and I had a stack of paperwork to go through, initializing in some places, signing in others, and then it was over. As soon as the buyer signed, I no longer had a condo. As weird as it was, I'd miss it, though I never spent a ton of time there. But I needed a new start.

With the paperwork done, I walked back out of the office and towards the elevator bank to take me back down to my car. I figured I'd spend the rest of the day at my hotel before grabbing pizza and heading over to the other hotel with Carol and Brooke. My mind was too scattered to think about doing much more. The prospect of seeing Brooke was making me jittery.

And then, in a case of severe déjà vu, the elevator doors opened, and Brooke was there staring at me.

The last time we met at an opened elevator door, she was coming to apologize, and it had kickstarted our relationship. This time, she gasped, as soon as she saw me, and then just ran out of the elevator and into my arms. Neither of us had a chance to say a thing before our lips found each other, and we were both crying happy tears.

The shock of seeing her at such a random time had been like a punch to my heart. As much as I had missed her before, I realized now that I'd underestimated just how much she meant to me. The flowery scent of her perfume, the taste of her lips on mine, the whimper from her throat, the feel of her soft skin under my hands and the sight of her happy smile overwhelmed me.

"I missed you so much!" she murmured between kisses. "I can't believe you're here!"

I couldn't believe she was here either, but I didn't mind. The nerves I'd been feeling earlier were gone, and all that mattered was that woman in my arms. "I'm surprised to see you too! What are you doing here?" I asked once we finally paused for air, her forehead resting against mine.

"I found a condo, I'm here to buy it today," she whispered as she leaned in to kiss my neck.

Fuck. What were the odds? I knew she'd been looking for a place to buy to get away from her family, but why did it have to be mine? "I think you're buying mine," I told her with a sigh. "I just signed the paperwork to sell it."

"You're leaving?" she asked, stepping back from me in shock.

I pulled her back into me. "I'm not leaving you. I'm trying to keep from being used to keep you married to Jax. Your father threatened you, right?"

She nodded sadly. "The same guys he had scaring away girls in high school and college. He was going to have them... He was going to have them hurt you."

I leaned in, kissing away her tears. "Don't worry, it's ok. Buy the condo. We'll talk about options tonight, okay? He will not hurt me, too many people know what the threat is. If I'm not here, he can't touch me without being the prime suspect. Once you're free of Jax we can be together."

"Together?" Her eyes lit up in excitement.

"If that's what you want, yes. Seeing you just now made me realize how much better my life is with you in it. This last week has been full of up and down emotions, but nothing was as good as it could have been had you been by my side. I need you with me. There is so much happening, and I want to do it all with you."

She twisted her face into a little smirk. "You wanna do it with me, huh?"

"Yes, that too! I miss you."

"Then let me go buy your condo, then I'm going to go see Sophia. I'm going to ditch my husband."