The Fighter's Block Read online

  “I don’t know,” Dani shrugged.

  “You don’t know? I mean…a one-night stand? You guys gonna see each other again? What’s the deal?”

  “I don’t know,” Dani shrugged again.

  ***

  “Van, you have to make an appearance, kid. Your dad has zero chance of getting parole if you don’t make it to his parole hearing…”

  Van was listening to his father’s lawyer, but Gus just didn’t seem to get it. Van wished that he hadn’t even come to the meeting in the first place.

  “Things are different this time,” Gus continued. “He’s doing good, he’s turned over a new leaf. He found God. That changes a man. This could be it, Van, and you should be there when your dad makes parole.”

  It didn’t matter to Gus that Van’s life had been a living hell because of his father. Gus didn’t have to have Donny Kemp as a dad. Van’s only concern that day was making sure his dad stayed in prison and he didn’t like what he was hearing. However, Gus wouldn’t be begging for his help if he didn’t think it was needed, so Van had a bit of hope things might work in his favor.

  Van headed for home after grabbing some takeout from a nearby restaurant. He would have called Dani to let her know, but he stupidly realized he didn’t have her phone number. Plus her cell phone was dead and he hadn’t had a charger that was compatible with it. He called his apartment number, just in case she would answer it, but when the answering machine picked up and he told Dani to grab the phone, there was nothing.

  She wasn’t there when he got home and he just sort of stood in the kitchen, thinking it over. He thought about the past twelve hours as he ate lunch right from the takeout containers. After the night they’d enjoyed together, and then the morning shower, he would have never guessed that she’d just leave like that, without even a word.

  Or a note. Maybe she left him a note.

  He looked over his entire apartment—the bedroom, the bathroom, the fridge, the kitchen counter, and the front door—and didn’t find a thing. He could feel himself deflate when he realized he had no way to get a hold of her. Not even a last name.

  Quincy pounded on the door and hollered at Van a minute later, so he got up to let him in. He watched him enter like he had almost every day for the past seven years.

  “Feeling a little hungry today?” Quincy chuckled, eyeing the several containers of takeout.

  Van only shrugged as his best friend helped himself to the orange chicken.

  “So you get your shit taken care of?” Quincy mumbled through a mouthful.

  Van only nodded.

  “Well don’t tell me too much about it, asshole,” Quincy scoffed.

  Van slightly smiled and said, “Sorry, just got things on my mind.”

  “Like what? What you’re gonna do if your dad gets out?”

  “I’ll avoid him entirely. I already got that figured out. He can fuck off.”

  “Well what’d the prick lawyer have to say? What’s eatin’ ya?”

  Van wasn’t sure what to say—or how much to say—so he grabbed a couple of beers from the fridge and set them on the counter between them.

  “You’re not gonna tell me?” Quincy decided as he grabbed a bottle. “What’s wrong with you today, man?”

  “I met a girl last night,” Van divulged. He took a swig of his beer while Quincy’s curiosity grew. “She was here last night, and then I left for that fucking appointment with the lawyer.”

  “And she left?”

  “Yes.”

  “So ‘here’ last night means…?”

  Van sighed but told him the entire story, from seeing her in the parking lot to kissing her goodbye when he left.

  “Holy Mary, mother of Jesus. You had a one-night stand?”

  Van knew Q wouldn’t focus on the real issue, which is why he didn’t want to tell him. But he just shrugged and said, “Well, I didn’t think it was gonna turn out to be a one-night stand. But maybe I was just trying to tell myself that…”

  Both guys were quiet as they ate, but Quincy noticed that Van was agitated. It wasn’t typical of Van to be that way, so it did cause Quincy to worry.

  “So you’re pissed that she left,” Q surmised.

  “I’m not— Well, maybe, but mainly because I don’t even know how to get a hold of her.”

  “She left you with nothing.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Ouch.”

  “Thanks a lot.”

  “Sorry.”

  Van got up and flipped on the television as a distraction. He was annoyed with the situation because the last thing he discussed with Dani was that he was going to help her figure out her next move when he got back to the apartment. He hoped that she’d just gone out for a bit and would return, but trying to be patient was absolutely killing him.

  ***

  Dani finally returned to Van’s apartment on Monday night after work, but there was no answer when she knocked. She was worried that she’d messed everything up by leaving on Saturday morning without even a note, but she was hoping that Van would understand. He seemed like that type of guy.

  As she was heading for the elevator, Quincy was coming out of his own apartment. He told her hi and she returned the greeting, and they both waited for the elevator in silence.

  Finally Quincy couldn’t resist talking to such a beautiful girl and asked, “You visiting someone here?”

  Dani gave him a polite smile and nodded her head. “Yes, but he wasn’t home.”

  “I’m Quincy,” he said. The elevator dinged and they both got on.

  “Dani,” she replied. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Whoa, wait a minute!” Quincy said. He stopped the doors from closing and literally pulled Dani out of the elevator and back into the fourth floor hallway.

  “What the—? Get your hands off of me!” she exclaimed. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  “I’m sorry!” Quincy said, holding his hands up. “Just hear me out. If your name is Dani, then you’re here for Van, right?”

  That made her freeze where she was, but she exhaled the breath she was holding and cautiously replied, “Yes.”

  “Oh, thank God!”

  “What?”

  “I’m his friend. His best friend.”

  Dani looked him over carefully, even though she was relieved to finally have some connection to Van. She also assumed that this was probably the same friend that Van had been planning to stay with the night she was there. He was about Van’s height but slimmer, pierced, and tattooed.

  “Did you leave him a note?” Quincy asked.

  “A note? You mean to say that I stopped by?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Um, no, I didn’t. I’ll just come by another time.”

  “Lady, leave him a damn note!”

  “What are you getting so heated over?”

  “I’m not. I’m just glad I caught on to who you are. I know all about you.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “And? What is that supposed to mean?”

  “It means you need to leave him a fucking note. Just tell him you stopped by. Leave a phone number for God’s sake.”

  “Jeez, fine.” She was a little taken aback by the intensity of this guy, but she was able to read him pretty easily. It was obvious that Van was looking forward to hearing from her, and that pleased her. She walked back to Van’s apartment and took a pen and a pad of paper out of her purse.

  “Aren’t girls usually on top of this sort of thing?” Quincy asked, appearing from around the corner. He shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned against the wall across from her.

  She glanced at him warily. “What do you mean?”

  “You just left him without a word.”

  Dani looked him over again, feeling a little agitated. “I suggest maybe you butt out right about now. Do you want me to leave the note or not?”

  Quincy knew he had a big mouth, so he decided not to test her. But on a last second thought, he grabbed the pad of paper from her after
she’d slipped her note under the door.

  “Have Van’s number, too,” he said, holding out his hand for the pen.

  She handed it over, trying to seem indifferent, but deep down she was glad for him to offer it.

  When they were both in the elevator again, Dani decided to get what she could from Quincy and his free speech. “So where is Van right now?” she asked casually.

  “Work.”

  “Oh.”

  There was silence again and Quincy chuckled. “You don’t even know what he does, do you?”

  Dani gave him a side-glare but relented. “No, I don’t. That didn’t really come up for some reason.”

  Quincy laughed again, thoroughly amused. He couldn’t wait to tell Van about his run-in with Dani. “Well, you got any guesses?” he asked.

  “Guesses? You’re going to make me guess what he does for a living?”

  He shrugged. “Maybe. I think it’d be pretty fun to hear your guesses.”

  The doors opened and Dani left quickly. “I’ll just ask him myself,” she said over her shoulder, boot heels clicking. She hated being messed with like that, and she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of making her look silly.

  ***

  “Guess who I just spent the past eight minutes with?” Quincy said over the phone.

  “Normally I’d say I don’t give a fuck,” Van replied. “But I guess I have time.” He left the couch and went to the bunkroom where it was quiet.

  “Okay, so I won’t make you guess since I really want to make your day. No, your week. Maybe even your entire life. If this turns out to—”

  “Okay, so give it up already.”

  “Dani.”

  “What?”

  “Yep, just rode the elevator with her.”

  Van had to think quickly to catch up. “You mean in the building? She stopped by?”

  “Yep.”

  “Well what’d she say?” he asked eagerly. “I mean she was there to see me?”

  “Well yeah, you dumbass. Of course she was there to see you. But…”

  “But what?”

  “Well, I think I made her mad.”

  Van sighed to himself. Great.

  “But she left you a phone number.”

  That made Van smile. “Really?”

  “Well, with my help of course. She was just gonna leave once she found out you weren’t home. It’s kind of weird. I mean how hard is it to leave a note…”

  Van didn’t even care about that since she really did leave him a number. He pressed Quincy for more details—every second of his time with Dani and everything she said—and then he wanted the phone number.

  “Shit. Uh, she slid it under your door. And sorry, bro, I’d get it for you, but you refuse to let me have a spare key. You fucking give Paulie a key but not me,” he grumbled quietly.

  Van was tempted to leave work just to get the piece of paper she’d left, but he knew he couldn’t.

  “Well I’ll be home tomorrow and get it then, I guess. Thanks, Q.”

  “Sure thing. Oh, and I gave her yours, too. Maybe you’ll get lucky and she’ll call you first.”

  ***

  When Van returned home after his shift the next day, he immediately snatched up the note from the floor. But to his dismay, it only said that she’d stopped by and didn’t contain her phone number. He was basically devastated, like a fucking middle schooler who got turned down by the girl he was crushing on. Not that he would know, though; he was too damn shy as a kid to ask any girl out.

  Van’s frustration turned into exhilaration when he heard Dani’s voice on the machine with her phone number. But when he called her back, he got her voicemail. He did leave a message, letting her know she could call him anytime on his cell phone, and that he’d be home for the next three nights.

  Dani didn’t get his message until the next morning, but her day started the second her feet hit the ground and she didn’t have a minute to call until later that afternoon. She called Van’s cell phone and just got his voicemail. She joked about having to play phone tag, but if he were going to be home that night, she would just stop by.

  She returned her phone to the desk drawer and made her way to the conference room for a project meeting. By then her phone was buzzing with a return call from Van, but she didn’t get a chance to listen to it until she left the building at six o’clock.

  The message said he was home and would be there all night if she wanted to stop by, so Dani made a quick stop at her sister’s house, changed her clothes, and arrived at Van’s apartment at seven-fifteen. She was afraid he wasn’t actually home since it took a while for the door to open. But when at last it did, her heart thumped a little heavier from finally seeing him again. He looked better than she remembered, and she was also remembering other things about Saturday morning that made her smile.

  “Hey,” Van said to her. His heart was pounding just from seeing her again. She was such a beautiful girl, gorgeous, and he was more than pleased that she’d decided to give him another chance.

  “Hey yourself,” she replied, entering the apartment when he held the door open for her.

  Her smile was pretty coy and Van knew she was aware of the power she had over him. He didn’t even try to hide how much he wanted her, so when she stepped closer to him, he shut the door and kissed her. Thankful she was wearing a cute little dress, his hands roamed up the soft skirt until his fingers were greeted by lace. He already knew he was getting lucky again because of her body language, but just thinking about their night together on Friday increased the excitement. He felt along the edge of her panties to determine the cut—high and cheeky, his favorite. Or maybe it wasn’t. Maybe anything on her was his favorite.

  “Did you miss me?” she asked quietly, enjoying his exploration.

  “Fuck, yeah. I mean…yeah,” he corrected himself. “So much that I was about to resort to drastic measures to track you down. What happened? How come you left?” He pulled away to look into her eyes, to see if she was okay. He had images of that asshole ex of hers and the trouble he might have given her. Since she was hesitant to answer, he silently cursed himself for questioning her. “Never mind, I’m sorry. Not my business. I’m just glad you came back. I was worried.”

  That made her smile. “Worried? Or horny,” she determined.

  He laughed but made himself slow down a little. She was right. This was probably too much. He stepped back and just took her hands in his. “Both, I guess. I’ll cool it.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “Well I didn’t come here to get the cold shoulder.”

  When she pulled him closer, it made his insides turn over, but in a good way. She had this spell over him and he completely lost his wits. That had never happened to Van before. He’d always been in control of any situation, calmly, rationally… She conquered all of his brain cells with one smile.

  He was wearing a slim t-shirt and baggy shorts and Dani stood very, very close to him with just their hands touching. She glanced over the definition in his chest, looked over his biceps and forearms. The size of his hands made her moist as she flirted with her body, barely brushing his chest with hers.

  He smiled. “Do your friends want to play?” he asked, making no effort to look away from her breasts as they taunted him.

  She didn’t miss a beat. “Do yours?”

  He cocked an eyebrow. “Is that even a question?”

  She kept eye contact when she replied. “You’ve got a giant cucumber in your pants.”

  “Do you want it in yours?”

  She finally cracked a smile and then laughed. He smiled too, loving the fact that she was so playful. But the passion was still being bridled for the time being. Dani let go of his hands and gently placed them against his face. Again she traced the tiny scar on his cheek with her finger, and then touched the one under his mouth. She spotted another scar on his forehead, just below his hairline. She couldn’t imagine this sweet man getting into so much trouble.

  Dani wrapped her arm
s around his waist and laid her face against him. She was wearing flats today; her face fit nicely below his collarbone. He smelled amazing, like a fresh shower and a touch of something else nice. She softly kissed his neck and then his lips but didn’t feel the need to seduce him this time.

  Together they silently agreed to head to the bedroom.

  Chapter Three

  “I always had a crush on Mr. Roper,” Dani said with a smile, tossing another piece of popcorn in her mouth.

  “The old guy?” Van chuckled.

  “Mmhmm. I thought he was a pretty cute old guy.”

  “Hmm, you like older men?”

  She looked at the television and pretended to consider it. “Well, maybe not that old.” Curling up against Van again she said, “You’re plenty old for me.”

  “Well that’s good to know. Is twenty-five your limit?”

  “Mmm, maybe. Jeez, is that how old you are? That’s a quarter of a century.”

  “And you’re two years away from it, honey.”

  Dani frowned. “Ugh, you’re right. Man, thanks for ruining my night…”

  Van rolled his eyes playfully, and when Dani threw a piece of popcorn at him, he stuck his hand in the bowl and flicked some at her face.

  “Ah!” she exclaimed.

  She scooped some off of the bed and threw it at him, but by then he had jumped up and used the pillow as a shield. Dani reached for the bowl and threw a handful at him anyway, and then she stood up on the bed to launch handfuls at a time from higher ground. Van used the pillow to bat them away, but then he just went straight for the attacker and pulled her legs out from under her.

  Easiest takedown ever.

  They both landed on the bed, popcorn and all.

  “My mom always told me not to eat food in bed,” Dani smiled as Van started to kiss her.

  “So you’re saying…next time we’ll go with pudding instead of popcorn?” he smiled back, pulling her on top of him.

  “Mmm, lemon pudding,” Dani smiled as she kissed him.

  “Butterscotch.”

  “Ew.”

  “Okay, lemon.”