Bruiser: A Lonely Housewife Embarks on a Passionate Affair with an Alpha Male MMA Fighter by Simone Scarlet

crossed arms loosened a little.
    “Partly,” she admitted. “But also, I don’t want to go home. Not yet.” She rolled her eyes. “I can’t believe Clark was late picking the kids up. He’s so selfish sometimes.” Her nostrils flared. “I don’t even want to look at him right now.”
    Brandon shrugged.
    “Well, I was going to scrub the mats. You’re welcome to stick around if you want. I promise I won’t try to kiss you again.”
    Ava pouted in mock disappointment.
    For the first time that day, Brandon laughed.
    “The mats can wait,” Ava told him. “How about I take you out for a drink, instead?”

Chapter Twenty Two
     
    Brandon
     
    Charlie’s was an old-fashioned steakhouse on the way to Ava’s house, and there she and Brandon sat at the bar and ordered whiskeys.
    “I really can’t afford this,” Brandon said, as two fingers of Laphroig were passed to him. “You’ve seen the books.”
    “I’m buying,” Ava replied, sniffing her whiskey suspiciously. “Are you sure this is the stuff you like?”
    Brandon gulped down a mouthful of the peaty single malt. It warmed his throat deliciously.
    “It certainly is.”
    As he sat there, his stomach rumbled. Ava turned to the bartender and demanded: “Can we see a menu?”
    “Mrs. Cassidy,” Brandon held up his hand. “You don’t need to buy me dinner. I’m not an orphan.”
    “I’m not buying you dinner,” Ava replied coolly, as the surveyed the menu. “I’m paying with it, in exchange for your company.” She pointed a finger at the steaks section. “How does the 24oz sirloin sound to you?”
    Brandon’s stomach rumbled again.
    “We’ll have two of those,” Ava ordered. “With mashed potatoes and the works.” And when the bartender took their order, she also ordered two large Sam Adams for the both of them.
    Brandon shrugged. This, he didn’t mind.
    Once their food was ordered, Ava turned to the handsome karate instructor and asked: “So, how are things with the karate center? You seemed down tonight. Because of the money thing?”
    Brandon drained his whiskey.
    “You saw the books. Unless I can come up with some new money by the end of next month, the school’s finished – and so am I.” He stared gloomily into the bottom of his glass, and sighed: “And you know the worst thing?”
    “No.”
    Brandon looked up, and then deep into Ava’s eyes.
    “I had a plan,” he told her. He shrugged his massive shoulders. “I have this theory that things in the universe all fall into place, and for a moment I thought this was it .”
    “What was the plan?”
    “Back in college, I used to fight. MMA matches.”
    “I’ve seen the trophies in your office.”
    “Yeah, exactly,” Brandon nodded. The bartender passed them their beers, and he gulped down a mouthful gratefully, before continuing: “My old buddy Vinnie called me up. He can get me a fight if I’m interested. A paying one.”
    “Paying? How much are they talking?”
    “Five grand, just for showing up,” Brandon explained. “Plus another ten if I win – not that I’d be likely to.”
    “Fifteen grand?” Ava’s eyes were growing wide.
    “Exactly!” Brandon leaned forward. “Even if I only got the five, that would be enough to keep the karate center open. Even if it was only for another couple of months.”
    Ava gulped down a mouthful of beer, and then asked the question Brandon didn’t want to hear:
    “That’s awesome? So why aren’t you doing it?”
    He looked at her blankly.
    The truth be told? He’d expected Ava to react the same way Mia had – to freak out at the thought of him in the MMA octagon. But, instead, Ava was looking at him like she was still waiting for the punchline.
    “Seriously,” she repeated. “Why aren’t you going to do it?”
    And it felt weird, for Brandon to utter the words that came next. Like, they were just as ridiculous as they sounded in his head.
    “Because Mia doesn’t want me to.”
    Ava blinked.
    “What?”
    “Mia