Fix You: Bash and Olivia by Christine Bell Read Free Book Online

me, it didn’t. When my mother first left, they couldn't find a family to take all three of us, so Reid and Matty were in one foster home and I was in another. I'd gone from a cramped apartment full of yellers who had a lot to yell about, to a little house in the burbs with a nice, quiet Christian family. I don’t think I slept more than ten minutes at a time, I was so terrified. I was ten then, and eleven years later, you still couldn't pay me enough to live in the burbs. Olivia was right. All that quiet was creepy as fuck.
    "I think a lot of people feel that way,” I said, omitting the details, loath to tell this girl I shouldn’t even be talking to about my fucked-up family or my kiddie fears.
    “I guess,” she said softly. “It’s weird, I never thought of myself as a scaredy-cat, but the past few weeks have been an eye-opener. Maybe I’m not as tough as I thought.”
    “Or maybe you’ve just had some scary things happen lately.” I shifted and crossed my arms over my chest, waiting to see what she’d say to that.
    I still wasn’t convinced she grasped the depth of shit she was in with this Andy guy. He wasn’t having a bad day, or too drunk to realize what he was doing, although that would’ve been bad enough. This guy was mean to the bone.
    I’d seen it before in the ring. Not so much in my own fights; I usually tried to block out the mojo coming off my opponents. A lot of fighters won before the bell even rang through attitude and intimidation, so being able to let that shit roll off me like a duck in water was a big advantage. But when I went to watch Matty fight MMA, I’d seen it a few times. Those guys you just knew weren’t in it for the sport or for the money. They were in it to bring the pain. They got off on making people feel weaker and smaller. Those were the same ones who hung on one brutal second too long after their opponent tapped and found legal ways to break bones when they could.
    Straight up vicious.
    And that was the same look I’d seen in good old Andy’s eyes when his hands were wrapped around Olivia’s throat. Hot rage poured through me and I kicked the blanket off the bed. I should have punched him harder.
    “You’re right. That was scary.” Her voice was almost a whisper, which only pissed me off more. She still sounded afraid. “I have some other stuff going on too. It’s been a rough week. I don’t mean to complain. I know it’s been a bad couple days for you too. Because of me.”
    “It wasn’t because of you,” I said firmly. “It was because of me. I made the decision to follow you and get involved. That’s not on you.”
    “But if I hadn’t been there, you’d still have your job.”
    “True. But if you hadn’t been there, you’d have been somewhere else, and who knows what he could’ve done to you? I’ll take getting sacked.”
    The silence between us was unbroken until she let out low sniffle. “That’s…that’s really sweet of you.” Her voice sounded choked and I realized she was crying. “Listen, I have to go, but can I give you a call tomorrow? I’d really love to talk more about getting some lessons. Maybe they’ll help me sleep better.”
    My gut knew the right answer. No. Fuck no. “Sure. Give me a call.” She sounded so lost. So sad. I was stuck. Stuck in her, stuck in this position, stuck until I knew for sure she was okay.
    We disconnected and I stared into the darkness, dread and elation coursing through me in equal measure.
    "Who were you talking to?" Matty called through my door before toeing it open and peering through the crack.
    "Nobody,” I snapped, not in the frame of mind to deal with him.
    "Okay, well, tell nobody I said hi next time you talk to her."
    That wasn't going to happen.
    I rolled to my side and ignored him.
    "Bash?"
    "Yeah?" I stared into the darkness, willing him to go away.
    "You do what you gotta do to get this girl out of your system, but remember, you have a fight in a few months. Keep your eye on the