Free Risking It All: London Calling Book Three by Kat Faitour

ring dispersed with good-natured grumbling, seeing that the fight was over. Bennett rolled to the balls of his feet and grabbed Dominic by one arm, hoisting him up. Dominic groaned at the sudden movement.  
    “Stop helping me. You’ll kill me yet.”
    Undeterred, Bennett chucked him in the shoulder. “You’ll live, Martin. Let’s hurry and get cleaned up. Devon wants to meet for lunch.”
    They set off for the locker rooms, Bennett laughing and Dominic clutching his sides in good-natured defeat.
    ***
    Freshly showered and dressed, Dominic waited outside the boxing club for Bennett to rejoin him. Down the block, he saw Devvie striding his way. Gingerly, he rose to meet her partway.
    As soon as she was close enough to see him properly, she gasped. “Dom, what happened to your face?”
    “Your fiancé’s fist, that’s what.”
    Horrified, she looked accusingly over his shoulder where Bennett was coming their way. “Bennett! I thought you two worked things out ages ago.”
    “I did, but Dom still needed me to kick his ass. So I obliged.”
    Dominic chimed in, “That he did. And I don’t need anymore, thank you very much.”
    She shook her head, looking at both of them with mild disgust mixed with reluctant amusement. “You’re such boys .”
    “Hey, don’t knock it. If you’d given all of us a good wallop last year, you’d have saved us a lot of grief.”  
    “Don’t give her ideas, man.” Bennett laughed, kissing Devon lightly on the forehead.
    Looking up through her lashes, she glared. “Don’t think it’s still not a possibility.”
    Dominic tossed an arm around her shoulders in a rough hug. “Lighten up, Devvie. It was long overdue. God knows I feel better, and I think Bennett does too.”  
    The other man nodded. “Affirmative.”
    She sighed. “All right. Just don’t make a habit of it, okay? I love you both, and I’m also pretty fond of these.” She laid her palm lightly on Dominic’s cheek then moved away to kiss Bennett.
    Dominic felt a rare stab of jealousy. Not for Devon, but for the love she and Bennett shared. They were so open with their feelings. Although he pretended to tease them, their relationship brought out a yearning in him, a buried desire for the same.
    If he tried, he could remember his parents sharing that kind of love. But all too soon after Devvie’s mom left, his mother fell ill with cancer. She’d fought hard, but hadn’t been able to win the war.
    He still missed her.
    She’d have liked Natalie, he knew. She’d have seen straight through Toff’s tough outer shell to the woman inside. Someone who was sensitive, even fragile in some ways.
    He’d gotten through to that part of Natalie before. But he’d thrown it away, not maliciously, but carelessly all the same. Too focused on his plans, he’d lost sight of what really mattered.
    He cursed himself, along with his father and John Sinclair. In their ambition and need to prove themselves, they lost sight of other priorities. For the first time, Dominic wondered if John and his father were always running away from something rather than striving for more. Dominic always looked up to both of them for being fearless and bold. Determined to go after what they wanted and willing to create opportunities where there seemed to be none.
    As single fathers, they’d provided well for each of their children. He and Devon were educated in the best schools, and their home lives had seemed like one long exciting adventure.
    Growing older, Devon balked at learning her father was guilty of taking advantage of people. Unlike Dominic, she’d been unable to sort out the man who loved her from the sly and cunning shark.
    She’d left, moved on to forge her own way in the world. Dominic knew they’d been perilously close to losing her forever when they decided to interfere in her life. Using her connections and accomplishments, they’d furthered their own ends with nearly disastrous consequences for Devon.
    Shame with himself and