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both?” Zane asked. “Be honest with yourself right now. Why are you really doing this?”
    Melanie opened her mouth to speak but hesitated. She seemed to be at a loss for words.
    “Melanie, I love this sport. It’s what I want to do every day when I wake up. I know what it feels like to be angry and mad at the world, but when you fight, you can’t let the negative thoughts cloud your thoughts. It requires the focus and drive to be the best you can be and not let anything hold you back,” Zane explained. “So why do you want the championship?”
    “I’ve been mad at Dad for so long and have always wanted to prove him wrong. I want to show him that women can compete. I guess somewhere along the road I shifted my focus to my dad,” Melanie admitted. “But, Zane, I remember watching you and Nick train with Dad. I’ve always desired to do this, too. I feel as passionately as you both do. There’s nothing else I want more. I can let those things go and prove that I’ve got what it takes to do this.”
    Zane was n’t sure how he was supposed to train someone he wanted to fuck. If he agreed to take her on as his student, aside from his own uncertainties, would she be able to just be his student? He was pretty sure she felt the same chemistry he was feeling.
    “If I train you, then there can’t be anything personal going on between us. No little ‘come fuck me looks’ or crying on Nick’s shoulder when I yell at you.”
    Melanie stared at him for several minutes. “I can deal with those terms.”
    Damn, that wasn’t the answer he had been hoping for, however he had laid the ground rules, and he would stick to them.
    “Al l right, Melanie, I’ll train you. We’ll start Monday.” Zane had a feeling he was going to regret it, but he wasn’t ready to hand Melanie over to another trainer to screw her over. Eventually, she would become disheartened and give up, proving her father correct in his assumptions.
    Besides, Zane was perfectly willing to help Melanie prove Rex wrong in any way.
    *   *  *
    Zane was closing the gym for the night when he heard the front door open. He didn’t have to look to see who it was.
    “We have another job for you .” A large envelope was placed on the counter. “Same terms as before.”
    Zane didn’t acknowledge the man as he left the gym. He sighed. It was a good thing Melanie had decided not to become entangled with him. Until he pulled his ass out of the mess he was involved in, he didn’t have the right to touch a woman like Melanie.

    Chapter 7
     
    Melanie was sitting at a table , overlooking the river at the seafood restaurant. It was a beautiful, sunny day and she typically enjoyed watching the boats glide across the water. Today, however, she was distracted. She was meeting Nicholas for lunch. She needed to find out what had happened between him and Macey. She also wanted to tell him about Zane training her.
    She was beginning her training with Zane tomorrow and she didn’t want Nicholas finding out from anyone else. She needed a place to train and trusted Zane to take her to the top. Macey was too influential and had several friends in the business. It would be extremely difficult to find a new place to train where Macey couldn’t find some kind of way to screw with Melanie. God, she wanted to beat Macey so badly.
    She could now understand Zane’s anger toward her dad after the way Tobias had betrayed her trust. She had only worked part-time with Tobias for the last couple of years, though. Zane, on the other hand, had trained extensively for several years with her father and had believed himself to be like a son to him. It must have been like a knife in his back.
    “Hey , sis,” Nicholas greeted, causing her to jump slightly
    She waited until he sat down and ordered a drink before speaking. “Hi, Nicholas. Thanks for meeting me.”
    “Anytime . What’s wrong?” Nicholas always knew when something was going on.
    “What happened between you and Macey