He forced himself to breathe.
“Stories grow in the telling,” he said.
Raymond nodded.
“They do.”
“And people leave out the parts that don’t make them look heroic.”
“Sometimes.”
Cole looked directly at him.
“I wasn’t a hero.”
Raymond didn’t argue.
He simply said, “I didn’t say you were.”
Across the gym, Derek clapped his hands.
“Everybody ready?”
The crowd cheered.
Derek pointed at Cole.
“Come on, HVAC man. Let’s give these people their money’s worth.”
Cole walked toward him, then stopped at the edge of the mat.
“I’ll do a supervised sparring session. Proper rules. Protective equipment. A referee. If either of us is hurt, it stops.”
Derek laughed.
“You’re negotiating now?”
“I’m setting conditions.”
“You scared I’ll hit you?”
“I’m not interested in injuring you or being injured for your entertainment.”
Derek looked around at the crowd.
He could have refused.
He could have let the whole thing end there.
