For the past three days, I didn't let my phone out of my sight. There was never a moment when it wasn't less than three feet away from me. It got to the point where I would hear phantom buzzing and leap to see if Dr. Williams was calling me.

"Jules, would you put that damn phone away? You're up," Westley called to me from the ring.

I rolled my eyes. It's not like this was an official match. It was just practice with a couple of amateurs. You could say the girls had a lot more enthusiasm than I did. Rather than merely bouncing on their feet to keep their heart rate up, they were pouncing all over the ring.

"You scared, Jules? Think I'll drop you like Anya did?" my inadequate opponent tried to egg me on. She was the last one today, thank God.

"Ha!" I laughed once. "Like that'll ever happen."

I left my phone at the very edge of the fighting ring. Not so much that it would fall off, but close enough that I could hear it if something happened. I climbed through the ropes and into the ring.

The punch that came was immediate but easily avoidable. Once her first hit didn't connect, my opponent bounced back half a foot.

I produced a cocky grin. "I'll take you down without a single punch."

Before she could comprehend my change in fighting style, I kicked her in the chest. She stumbled back a few steps again. While her balance was compromised, I crouched down and side swept her. She went down with a loud thump. I sprung into action, pinning her down and restraining her with my legs. She tried to punch me off, but her angle was bad. Her hits felt like nothing.

She was squirming with frustration. So much so that it almost felt like the mat was vibrating.

"Jules, if you don't get off of me, I swear to God..." she said through her teeth.

"Shh! Shh! Shh!" I scrambled to the edge of the ring with my opponent still trapped between my legs. I grabbed my phone before it fell off. It was an unknown number. Hopefully, the unknown number I was waiting for.

"Hello?" I said.

"Hi, um, Jules. This is...uh, I'm Matthew. Dr. Williams?"

"Yeah, hi!" I knew I sounded breathless. I couldn't help it. My heart was beating fast from excitement and physical exertion.

"I'm calling because I was wondering if you wanted to get that coffee with me. I have some free time tomorrow morning, so..."

"I'd love to." I grinned. I twirled the end of my ponytail around my finger.

"Really?! 'Cause, um, it'll be kind of early..." It almost sounded like he wanted me to turn him down.

"That's fine. I'll have to get up early for practice anyway."

I didn't look up to see my brother. He'd probably roll his eyes. I never got up early for anything. I always got to practice at the last minute.

"Okay, then, do you want to meet at that coffee shop across from the park at 7?"

Jeez, that was early! "Yeah, that should be perfect."

"Are you making fun of me?" the girl complained.

"Would you shush? I'm on the phone," I told her.

"It...kind of sounds like you're busy... I called at a bad time..." Matthew said on the phone.

"No, no! I'm actually really glad that you called! I guess I'll have something to look forward to tomorrow," I assured him.

"Alright. Oh, and the name of the coffee shop is Snow Bird."

"Snow Bird. Got it. Okay! I'll see you tomorrow, Matthew." This girl was getting more irritating by the second. She kept on banging her fist on the floor

"Okay," he laughed into the phone. "See you tomorrow, Jules."

I waited for him to hang up first before I put the phone down.

"Jules, that's enough. She gives up," Westley said after my conversation was over.

I let the death grip in my legs relax with an audible groan. The girl splayed out in the mat and breathed heavily. I sat there with my legs relaxed. A grin spread wide across my face. My heavy exhales turned into laughter.

"Have you gone crazy?" my defeated opponent coughed out.

"Crazy in love!" I sprang to my feet and climbed through the ropes to get to my brother.

"I've got a date." I took the strings of his jacket and wriggled them around.

"Good for you," he said in a monotonous tone. "I don't care as long as you come to practice. You're still not ready to take on Anya." His hands nearly encompassed mine as he stopped their motion.

"Oh, boo. Why can't you just be happy for me?" I whined. I threw the strings of his hoodie back against his chest.

"The last thing you need is another distraction," he sighed.

"He's not going to be a distraction," I argued. "I can't believe you'd say that."

He raised his eyebrow. I always wondered how he did that. "Are you trying to say your phone hasn't been a distraction these past three days?"

"That's different. Now I know he's interested," I defended. I grabbed a towel a wiped the sweat off of my face. "Now, if you'll both excuse me, I've got a date to prepare for."

It'd been longer than I'd like to admit since I've had a date. Not a lot of time for romance when you fight your way to the top. And there weren't really a whole lot of guys I found interesting. Most of the guys I met in the gym were muscle-head idiots. I suppose that was what was so surprising when I fell so hard for Matthew after just a brief meeting in the ambulance.

Despite the length of time since I had been on a date, I think I still knew how to dress. Unfortunately, slipping into a slimming black dress wasn't exactly practical before I went to work. I found my best pair of workout clothes, the kind I'd wear for a photoshoot in some fighting magazine. All of my other ones either smelled like sweat or looked like they had sweat stains. Man, I had to go shopping soon.

I pulled my hair back in my regular ponytail and looked in the mirror. I looked better than I usually did, I had to admit, but I didn't really look like I was going on a date. More like one of those girls who dressed up to go to the gym but didn't want to break a sweat.

I grabbed my wallet and went out to the living room. Westley was up already of course. He sat on the couch of the large apartment we shared and watched ESPN at a low volume. His leg was kicked up on the ottoman as he drank coffee and listened to the standings of the UFC fighters. He glanced my way when he saw me.

"I'm going out," I informed him. "I'll meet you at the gym later."

He squinted at me. I'm pretty sure he already knew I had a date. "Are you wearing makeup?" he asked incredulously.

I could feel myself blushing madly. I knew it had looked too obvious.

"Sh-shut up! I look awesome." No turning back now. I had to keep my confidence in order to woo my beloved.

"Have fun," Westley called out disinterestedly as I walked out the door.