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team behind me. It ain’t gonna happen.”
    Holding each other felt good. Both of them feeling secure, together and close again felt right.
    Wendy broke the warm silence.
    “I suppose I will still love you with a broken nose,” she said.
    Danny laughed.
    Wendy struck a boxing-like pose. “And at least you can take care of me with those flying fists,” she said.
    “Always,” said Danny.
    And suddenly, the threat of Graham the Dickie Valentine lookalike seemed less of a worry.
    *
    Time passed under the watchful eyes of Patsy and Albert. With encouragement from Lenny, Danny was becoming, as Patsy put it, a contender. The trio, for Danny, had become like his family. Rosie knew of course that Danny went training, but was more interested in her own social life. And although there was still love between Danny and Wendy, his single-minded focus sometimes still brought the occasional chill to the relationship. Danny did his best to manage the balancing act and went on following his dream.
    Three months after joining the team at the Live and Let Live, Danny was summoned by Albert.
    “Patsy has some news for you, son.”
    “Good or bad?” asked Danny.
    Albert just shrugged his shoulders. As he had not been able to pay his club subscription through lack of funds, Danny wondered uneasily whether Patsy had finally lost patience and would tell him to leave.
    Going upstairs to the boxing gym, which now felt like a second home, Danny could hear the familiar sound of Patsy’s voice barking pearls of wisdom to another hopeful.
    “Albert said you wanted to talk to me, Pat?”
    Patsy gave an intriguing wink. “Pop into the office, son, be with you in a minute.”
    Patsy’s office was full of boxing trophies, posters and photos of legendary fighters. Danny waited tensely, staring at the photos. He wanted to be one of those fighters on Patsy’s wall, holding belts and trophies. He wanted it more than anything he’d ever wanted in his life.
    Patsy eventually came in.
    “Sit down, Dan.”
    Danny sat on Patsy’s well-worn sofa while Patsy took a seat behind his well-worn desk.
    “You’ve made good progress here, Danny boy,” said Patsy. “To be honest, I’m surprised how far you’ve come.”
    “It’s all down to you and Albert,” said Danny.
    Patsy shook his head. “It’s down to you and your commitment, Danny. And now I think you’re ready to represent the club.”
    Danny’s heart leaped. The news was exactly what he wanted to hear.
    “If you’re up for it,” Patsy continued, “you could be part of the team to take on the boys from the Bermondsey Club in a month’s time, at the amateur contest scheduled at West Ham Baths.”
    Danny’s face lit up with a smile from ear to ear. “I’m up for it,” he said.
    “Good boy.”
    Patsy shook Danny’s hand, placing a West Ham Boxing Club vest ceremoniously into Danny’s grateful arms. Danny thought of his dad. This was his chance to make his father proud. He cherished the faith his new boxing family had shown in him and he was certainly not going to let them down. This was the first step and he was not intending to trip over it.
    “Is it all right if I use the phone?” he stammered, hardly able to speak for excitement. “I want to tell Wendy.”
    Patsy laughed and slapped him on the back. “Don’t make it a long one, or I’ll get you to pay the bill.”
    The Bristows’ number seemed to ring for ever.
    “Wend!” Danny shouted the moment Wendy picked up. “Patsy has put me in the club team. It’s brilliant ain’t it!”
    Wendy sounded cautious. “Is it?”
    Danny was taken back by Wendy’s lack of enthusiasm. “Yeah,” he said after a moment. “It is.”
    “So what does it mean? That I’ll see even less of you?”
    Danny’s excitement leaked out of him like air from a balloon. “I’d thought you would be pleased,” he said. “It’s an achievement. You can come and watch and that.”
    “What, watch you get your face punched in? I don’t think