He laughs and holds up his hands. “If his first word is ass, I’ll just blame it on you.”
I laugh and kiss Seryozha’s head. I never thought I’d see my best friend so happy. He seemed doomed to a life of grumpy misery, but Gina has changed him, given him a reason to live and be happy again, and now that they have a son, it’s like everything is as it should be for them.
I push aside the jealous thoughts that flit through my head. Not everyone is destined for a happy marriage and family. We can’t all be fairytale endings, now can we? Besides, I’m too damn old at thirty-eight to be thinking about marriage and babies. Dima got incredibly lucky. It was a one-off thing, and I’m damn happy for him. There’s nothing wrong with a bachelor life, and I love little Sergei as if he were my own. I’m already trying to teach him how to say Uncle Kolya. It’s only fitting since Dima and I are as close as brothers. So far he just blows raspberries at me and laughs, but I’m confident he’ll get it.
“There you are.” Gina walks in and gives Sergei a big smile that has him wiggling like crazy in my arms and already reaching for her. She laughs and takes him from me. His happy squeals fill the room, and when I look over at Dima, his eyes are locked on his family, and there’s so much damn love in the room that I find myself standing up and inching toward the door.
“I’d better get going,” I say, switching to English for Gina’s benefit. She’s been learning Russian but still has a ways to go.
Her grey eyes turn to me as she walks over to sit on Dima’s waiting lap. She smiles at him and gives him a quick kiss before turning back to me. “Are you on your way to the Irish club?”
“Yeah. I’ve put it off long enough. It’s time I meet her and find out what her plans are.”
I must sound as irritated as I feel because she points a finger at me and says, “Be nice, Nikolai.”
“When am I ever anything but?”
She laughs and leans into Dima. “You can be a little intimidating,” she says.
I give a grunt that has her fighting a smile. “I will do my best to be friendly and welcoming,” I say.
Dima laughs and says in Russian, “That’ll be the fucking day.”
“Yeah, yeah, I won’t hit anything. I think I can at least promise that.”
I give Sergei a wave that earns me another grin and say, “I’ll let you know how it goes” before walking out of the office.
The Red Wolf is packed as usual with the after-work Friday crowd. I make my way past the punching bags and weight machines, giving a quick nod to some familiar faces before pausing to watch the sparring match going on in the main ring. Ivan, one of our bouncers is currently wearing the hell out of the bigger Irish lad by evading every punch he tries to land and always being one step ahead. I can’t help but feel pleased that our one-on-one lessons have had such an improvement on him.
Our boxing club is the best around, and ever since Paddy O’Connor and Liam, one of his Irish boxers, was arrested for murder, they’re club has been closed, so all the business has trickled over here. That is until his granddaughter came to take it over.
Now I have to worry about some woman coming in and messing up the good thing we’ve got going here. The Irish boxing club has always been a rival of our Russian one, but things have calmed down a lot lately, probably because they really want to use our facilities, but, still, it’s been nice. We still hold the occasional underground fight, make a shit ton of money from kicking each other’s asses, and then they still pay their dues to train at our club and don’t seem to carry a grudge that they rarely win.
It’s damn near ideal, actually, and the last thing I need is for some Irish lass fucking everything up. With a groan, I leave the club and head for my car. Best to just get this damn thing over with. Not even the purr of my Porsche’s engine can take away my irritation, but it does put a damper on it so that by the time I pull into the Irish boxing club’s parking lot, it’s more of a low growl instead of a vicious snarl.
I get out and straighten my suit jacket, looking at the mess in front of me. Paddy had lost a lot of money over the years, mainly from losing fights against Dima, and he’d really let the place go to shit. The many months of being vacant hadn’t done anything to improve the look of things. There’s a black Jeep next to me, but other than that, the place is empty. Hearing the unmistakable sound of a sledgehammer hitting something solid, I decide to follow it and see where it takes me. Maybe whoever it is will know how I can get in touch with Paddy’s granddaughter.
The doors have been propped open to let in the cool breeze, and as soon as I step inside, I’m immediately surrounded by a thick cloud of dust that I’m guessing used to be part of the wall. I cough and wave the air in front of my face, silently cursing all things Irish as I walk further in, mainly just so I can try and find some clear air to breathe.
“Hello!” I holler out, wanting to get this mess over with.
“Just a sec!” a female voice calls out from beyond the curtain of dust particles.
A woman appears, and as soon as I see her, I feel like I’ve been punched in the damn chest. She’s tall with auburn hair that’s pulled up in a high ponytail, and not even the dorky safety glasses can hide her vibrant green eyes. She’s young, way younger than me. My eyes run over the jean bib overalls she’s wearing, and I wonder how anyone can make such an unattractive piece of clothing look so sexy. The tiny, white top she’s wearing underneath might have something to do with it.
“Can I help you?” she asks, pulling me from the extreme ogling I was just doing. I’m usually a lot smoother than this, but I suddenly feel tongue-tied and way out of my element.
“Hi,” I finally manage to blurt out.
Smooth, Nikolai, very smooth.
She pulls off the safety glasses and narrows her pretty eyes at me. “What do you want?”
I’m surprised by the sudden change in her demeanor, and I have no idea what to make of it.
“Excuse me?”
She crosses her arms over her chest, and I can’t help but notice how strong she is. She may be tall and slim, but this girl’s no stranger to the gym. I feel my cock give a slight twitch at the sight of her, and I tell it to calm the fuck down before this situation turns into even more of a mess.