Page 134 of Heal Me, Love Me

Keaton

Pullinginto the parking lot at Titan, I was looking forward to whatever Coach Luis had in store for me. After more than two months on the sidelines, I’d had my last session with Audrey a couple of days earlier, and not only did my shoulder feel damn good, but most of my restrictions had been removed as well. I grabbed my gym bag and reached for the door handle just as my phone rang. Marcos’s name lit up the screen, and I rushed to answer. “Hey, Marcos. What’s going on?”

“Tell me you’re sitting down,” he replied, without wasting any time on a greeting.

I chuckled. “That depends. Am I about to be excited or disappointed?”

“Definitely excited.”

Most of my recent conversations with my agent had revolved around doctor appointments, physical therapy updates, and recovery timelines. Hearing genuine enthusiasm in his voice felt like a good sign.

“Okay, now you’ve got me curious.”

“I spoke with a couple of promoters this week.”

I leaned back against the seat. “About me?”

“Yeah. Last time I checked, you’re still one of my clients.”

A smile tugged at my mouth. “What’d they say?”

“Mostly, they wanted to know how recovery is going.”

“What did you tell them?” I asked, curious whether he was ready to start pushing me forward or still being cautious. Promoters wanted to know if and when a fighter they were interested in would be available again, but I found it surprising they were talking about me.

“Based on your progress reports for the past few weeks, I told them we can start looking into getting you back in the cage soon.”

After everything I’d been through with my injury and rehab, this news made it feel as if something was finally waiting for me at the end of a long recovery. “How soon are we talking?”

“There’s a card in Vegas six months from now that I’d love to get you on,” he said.

My grip tightened around the steering wheel as the timeline began turning over in my head.

“Nothing’s official,” Marcos continued. “I’m just letting you know what I’m working on.”

“Do you think six months is enough time?” I needed this fight more than I’d needed anything in a long time, but I wasn’t ready to get my hopes up in case my coaches or doctors threw up roadblocks.

“Based on everything I’ve heard and looked into, it absolutely should be.”

The confidence in his voice settled something inside me. Everyone kept telling me I was making good progress, but hearing him talk about scheduling an actual fight made it easier to believe. For the first time since the injury, I wasn’t thinking about what I couldn’t do. I was thinking about what came next.

“This is huge, Marcos.”

“I’ve actually got more good news for you.”

I blinked. “Seriously?”

“You know Phil Reynolds?”

I barked a laugh. “I don’t think there’s a single MMA fighter who hasn’t heard of him.”

Phil Reynolds had fought professionally for more than a decade. Guys at Titan still referenced what he’d done inside the cage and tried to copy his style as closely as they could. The man had forgotten more about fighting than most people would ever learn.

“Well, he was one of my biggest clients, and I heard he recently moved to Northern California, so I reached out to him. He’s been doing a lot of one-on-one training since he retired, and he’s agreed to work with you.”

After months of feeling my career was standing still while everybody else kept moving, it was a bit surreal to hear Marcos talking about a Vegas fight and one-on-one work with a guy who’d had the kind of career most fighters could only dream of.

“That’s ...” I stopped and laughed because I genuinely didn’t know how to finish the sentence. “That’s wild.”