Free On The Ropes by Cari Quinn Page B

my finest moment by far.
    Luckily I had so many that were even worse that this one barely ranked.
    “It was months ago,” I muttered. “One time.”
    “One time we actually did it, but we danced around that shit for a good long time. And you know it.”
    I knew that I’d turned toward her when Carly had started swarming too close, which made me six kinds of an asshole. I hadn’t meant to hurt Vanity. Honestly, I’d just figured she was out for a good time like I was.
    Not the first time I’d been seriously wrong.
    “I’m sorry,” I said finally, shoving the tape in the pocket of my track pants and turning toward her. “I didn’t mean to lead you on, or make you think—”
    “You didn’t lead me on. I can’t be led.” Her brown eyes narrowed to golden slits. “I’m just saying that’s some shady crap you pulled. I know you’re banging other babes, but you’ve avoided me since you got what you wanted.” Her finger found its way into my chest once more. And I allowed it, because she was right.
    I had been a thoughtless dick.
    Though that was the role I’d adopted to play to make my way up the ranks in the Andretti organization, I had no reason to bring that BS into the gym. Vanity was someone I respected as a fighter, and beyond that, she was a woman. I’d been taught how to treat the ladies, even if the teachings I’d also been given toward my fellow man had immediately been thrown out the window. Some guys were decent. Too many weren’t, and it often felt like I knew most of them.
    None of that gave me cause to mistreat Vanity.
    “I’m sorry,” I began, and she let out a litany of inventive curse words as she turned away. “I never meant to hurt—”
    “Hurt?” She gave me an incredulous look over her shoulder. “Dream on, Romeo. Not fucking possible. I hurt other people. I don’t get hurt.” She sauntered out, her long dark ponytail swinging.
    I blew out a breath and leaned against the bank of lockers. Yeah, that went well.
    “Having some romantic trouble, son?”
    I looked up as Fox strolled out from the showers into the communal area. He rubbed his wet hair with a towel and cocked a brow in the direction Vanity had just gone. “She’s not a male. The security in this place is seriously lax.”
    It made me smile as I turned back to my locker. Fox often had a way of doing that, one of the reasons I liked being around him.
    Or I had . I had a feeling I’d be avoiding him a lot more often now, for good reason. He was a little too close to Carly for comfort.
    “So you and her…really?” He leaned against the locker beside me and waggled his brows. “I heard the talk, and I saw some groping. I know you get around. I just figured you traveled on better streets.”
    “She’s not so bad,” I said automatically.
    “We talking personality-wise or in the sack? Because either way, I have serious doubts.”
    I smiled again and searched through my locker for my spare mouth guard. “Didn’t she have issues with Mia?”
    “It’s a shorter list who doesn’t have issues with Mia. And I’m pretty sure I’m the only name on it.”
    “I don’t have issues with her.”
    “So I’ve heard, since you’re sparring with her on the regular. Which I’m not jealous about, because I know my penis is bigger than yours.”
    Now I smirked. “Who told you that? They lied, brother.”
    “Moving on. So what’s the deal with you and Vanity? Former tappee that wants to be current, or you just trying to shuffle her back into the rotation?”
    Jesus, that’s really how he saw me. As a guy who had a “rotation” of women I slept with. Ones I dangled around like puppets on strings.
    Worse, that was exactly who I’d been for too much of the time since Emilia’s death.
    “It was a one-time thing,” I said, spotting my mouth guard behind a couple of spare T-shirts. “Over and done.”
    “Didn’t sound like it from her vantage. You need me to get you a couple extra cup protectors, just in case? As