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"No, Celia. You should stay at your dorm," Graham said, his voice firm. "This is your first week of class and you don't want to start out on the wrong foot. You're in second year. You have to buckle down and study."
"I want to say goodbye to Hunter," I protested. "He was always really nice to me."
"I knew I shouldn't have said anything," Graham said and I could tell he was upset. "Hunter's not the guy for you, Celia. He's as much of a hound dog as any. Besides, he's leaving, so there's no future for you with him."
"I know that. I want to watch the fight. Conor's going to the Olympics one day."
"Yeah, right," Graham said, like he didn't believe me. He knew me better than that. I wanted to go so I could see Hunter one more time before he left. He'd been my schoolgirl crush for a decade. The older boy I’d alw
ays wanted to kiss—and more. "Do what you want," he said with a sigh. "I can't stop you."
"I will do what I want," I said. "I moved into the dorm to get away from Spencer and so I could do what I want and go where I want, when I want. You know, to be free."
"If you think Hunter is going to pay you any attention, you're wrong. He'll be partying with the boys and will be looking for a good time, not a girlfriend."
"I'm not going so I can be his girlfriend. I just want to say goodbye."
"Okay, but don't say I didn't try to warn you. You'll be disappointed when he's too busy to pay you any attention."
"Whatever," I said, and hung up. Then I texted Amy.
Celia: Wanna go watch a fight? It's Hunter's brother Conor. He's going to go to the Olympics. He's really good.
It took a few minutes, but she responded.
Amy: Ooh. Is he cute? Will Hunter be there?
Celia: Who, Hunter? Could you possibly be referring to Hunter Saint, one of the Saint brothers? Just the most gorgeous hunk of man who ever put a pair of boxing gloves on my hands and let me hit him?
Celia: That Hunter? The brave Marine who wants to serve his country Hunter? The one who started to kiss me on Saturday night only to be rudely interrupted by my busybody brother? Why would you possibly think I wanted to go because of him? ;)
Amy: I'll be right over.
Chapter 10
Celia
About an hour later, after Amy and I had changed clothes and fussed with our hair, I took one last look in the bathroom mirror.
"You still have that bruise," she said, pointing to the bluish mark on my cheek from Spencer's hand. "Here. Cover it up with some of this." She handed me a tube of concealer.
"It's tender," I said as I applied the make-up. "Does it still show?"
She made a face. "It'll be dark in the gym. No one will see it."
"Okay," I said and tucked the tube back into my bag.
We left the dorm and took her car to Boston, arriving at Saint Brothers Gym in about half an hour. After we found a parking spot, we walked the rest of the way to the gym. It had been years since I was there, but it looked almost exactly the same. The gym had been in the family for decades and had that old-school feel to it. It had been a local hangout for kids from South Boston for years, and hopeful young boxers and fighters went there to learn how to fight.
There were other, newer gyms with boxing rings and stands for the weekly audience who came to watch practice bouts, but there was nothing quite like Saint’s Gym anywhere else.
Amy and I were both excited to enter the gym, and when we arrived at around nine, there was already a decent-sized crowd gathered to watch the fights. I checked around to see if I could find Graham and Hunter, but didn’t see anyone at first. Then, just when I thought Graham must have changed his mind, I saw him standing ringside, his arms on the railing surrounding the ring. He was alone.
I went over, Amy in tow.
"There you are," I said and threw my arm around his shoulder for a hug. "Where's Hunter?"
I glanced around, but then Graham smiled and gestured to the ring with his chin. "There."
