When I'd seen what Sara was capable of, and with her background, I'd impulsively decided to offer her a job. Then I spent the rest of yesterday wondering if I'd made the right call. I didn't usually do that, second-guess myself. I was the kind of man who stuck to my guns, who made smart decisions and trusted my gut.
And I didn't get nervous.
Ever.
Which was why I didn't understand the queasy feeling in my stomach or the way I'd been pacing around in my office for the past fifteen minutes. I technically had two offices, one at the official Forbes Fighting Corporation office downtown, and one here at the gym. The one at FFC was much bigger and fancier, but I still had a soft spot for the gym where I trained when I was a fighter.
I also thought it'd be interesting to meet Sara here rather than at my place where I had a small private gym set up for training. Plus, I figured she might not want to be alone with me until she realized I wasn't some crazy person who followed random women around offering them work.
When it was ten till seven, I headed out into the main area. Half a dozen guys were already warming up. We opened at four and didn't close until one since many fighters weren't able to live off what they made in the ring and had to work. I was fortunate to be born into a wealthy family, so I'd been able to focus solely on training.
A couple of the trainers gave me nods or waves, but I was pleased to see that the fighters were all focused on what they were doing. That was good. I had no problem with people who only wanted to work out, but if someone wanted to be a fighter, they needed to be all in, which meant when they were here, they were here to train. No distractions.
When the doors up front opened, I started walking toward them, already expecting it to be her. It was, but she wasn't alone. Someone was holding the door open for her.
Tyrell Smoak was twenty-seven and in prime fighting condition. He was the FFC's best shot at a title and – without sounding arrogant – the best fighter we'd produced since me. At six and a half feet tall, he was three inches taller than me, and bulkier.
I was pretty sure I could still take him though.
I forced a smile and walked right up to where Tyrell and Sara were talking. She wasn't late, but I wanted to tell her that she shouldn't be talking on my dime. A stab of jealousy went through me. I couldn't deny that I missed that part of being a fighter. The way women would look at me, like they'd do anything for a look from me, a kiss.
“Miss Carr,” I said with barely a glance in Tyrell's direction. “I'll show you to the women's locker room. I reserved the main ring today, thought we might spar a bit. Feel each other out.”
“Where's Jelani?” Tyrell asked, looking around.
I wanted to tell him that it was none of his damn business and that he needed to get his ass over to the bags and start his own work-out. I didn't do any of that though, because I genuinely liked the guy. Even if I didn't want him talking to Sara.
“She quit,” I said. “Sara here is my new trainer.”
“Is that right?” Tyrell said with his usual easy grin.
Sara glanced at the clock on the wall, then looked back at me, her eyes guarded. “I think I've got just enough time to get changed before it's time to start.” She turned to Tyrell and offered him a smile. “It was nice to meet you.”
“I'll see you around,” he said and nodded at me. “Good to see you, Mr. Forbes.”
As he walked away, I gestured for Sara to follow. When she went into the women's room, I went to the men's and changed out of my suit. I glanced in the mirror I passed on my way back out. Without my business attire, I looked younger, less like the CEO, and more like I had before, back when the only thing I'd had to worry about was a clean fight.
“Mr. Forbes.” Sara was waiting just outside the door. “Let's take a couple minutes to warm up, and then we can spar.”
I nodded in agreement and began to go through my usual warm-up routine. After a couple minutes, I glanced over at Sara and my dick twitched. Her clothes weren't particularly tight, but there was no denying the strength and grace in that body. She didn't have the full, lush curves I usually looked for in a woman, but there was something about her that made me wonder what she'd be like in bed.
She looked up just then and saw that I was staring at her. “Ready?” she asked, her pleasant tone making me realize she didn’t know I'd been watching her.
I nodded and climbed into the ring. She followed, and I could feel eyes on us. I didn't look around, hoping the trainers would get the men back to work. I told myself it was because I wanted them to focus on what they were doing, and not because I didn't want anyone watching Sara.
“Ready?” I asked.
She nodded, taking a fairly casual stance. “Your move.”