“I needed that,” she laughed.
“I told you, just let me take care of you.”
“I’ll let you take care of me any time you want, as long as you do that.”
“Florrie!” Reid shouted from the other side of the door. “I’m going to train!”
Florrie tapped my arm, signaling for me to get off her. “I want to go watch.”
“Not yet. You should rest.”
She choked out a laugh, wiggling out from under me. “I’m pretty sure after what we just did, I’m cleared to walk to the training center and watch.”
I sighed and flipped the covers off. “Fine, go be with the kid. Leave me all alone in bed by myself with nothing to do but play with my cock.”
She quirked an eyebrow at me and grinned. “I think you’ll be fine for an hour. Just don’t come without me.” She leaned in and kissed me hard, then finished getting ready and walked out the door.
I quickly showered and got dressed. If I wasn’t going to spend all day in bed with Florrie, then I might as well go blow off some steam in the gym. I was used to Reid interrupting us by now. If he knocked, Florrie went running. Luckily, most of the time I was still able to find a little alone time with her.
I changed into some workout clothes and headed for the training center. Knight and Reid were boxing in the ring and Florrie was shouting out instructions to Reid. It should be me over there, but Knight insisted on “training the kid the right way”. Now he spent all his time with Florrie and Knight in the ring, and I snuck in when I could.
My relationship with Reid had grown into something that I never thought I would have. He was like my kid in every way that mattered, though he never acted like he was my son. He was still wary, and I understood that I had to give him time. But I already loved that kid and was so fucking grateful that he had chosen to try and steal our money that night outside the restaurant.
Florrie was different with him. She was more like the big sister that really liked hanging out with her kid brother. She loved him, there was no fucking doubt about that, but she didn’t try to mother him. She was his best friend and the person that he went to for pretty much anything that was on his mind. She was his sparring partner when Knight wasn’t available and his informant on the best movies to watch. Apparently, Florrie had better taste in movies than I did.
This whole thing with the other family that wanted custody was weighing heavy on my mind though. Florrie and I had guardianship of Reid, but a family member would outrank us, I had no doubt in my mind about that. The real question was what I was going to do when the time came to go to court. He was mine in every way that mattered, but I knew that wasn’t all there was to it. As I watched them from a distance, my heart sank a little, knowing that our time was limited with Reid. I knew it was only a matter of time before he was taken from us. Florrie, on the other hand, didn’t seem to realize that, and I wasn’t sure how she was going to deal with that particular blow. So, I had to take what time I could with them and pray that when the time came, I would have the strength to let go.
“Hey,” I said, smiling at them as I stepped up to the ring. “How’s it going?”
“It’s coming along,” Florrie grinned.
“Yeah? You want to take me on?” I asked Reid, bouncing from foot to foot. I was ready to get in the ring with Reid, and I didn’t give a fuck what Knight said today.
“If you think you can take me,” he smirked. Yeah, he was definitely taking on a cocky air, and I was so fucking glad that the terror I had seen in the beginning was fading fast.
“Let’s see what you got,” I said, climbing through the ropes.
“He shouldn’t be sparring with you,” Knight grumbled.
“Pull the stick out of your ass, Knight. I’m not gonna go crazy on him. I just want to see what you’re teaching him.”
“I’m not worried about you going crazy on him. I’m worried about you taking it easy on him.”
“Relax, would you? It’s just a friendly sparring match. Right, Reid?”
He looked over at Knight and grinned. “Right.”
Why did I get a bad feeling about this? What the fuck was Knight teaching him?
Knight tapped the mat and moved to the corner. “Just like I taught you, kid.”
Florrie smirked at me and moved into the same corner as Knight.
“What, I don’t get anyone in my corner?”
“A big, strong man like you? You’ll do fine.”
“Yeah, but it would be nice to have you in my corner every once in a while.”
“Oh, don’t pout too much. The guys will start to think you’re going soft,” she taunted.
I puffed out my chest and bounced from foot to foot, trying to loosen up. Reid did the same and then came at me. I dodged his hits, trying to get a feel for his moves. He had some good moves for a kid his age. Knight was doing a good job teaching him. But Knight was teaching him to go on the offensive instead of hanging back and learning his opponents weaknesses. I wouldn’t have done it that way.
I started jabbing, throwing a punch here or there, and Knight was right, I was pulling my punches. But he was just a kid. I wanted to take it easy with him. The last
