Chapter 5
FIVE
Grand.
I slipped into the front passenger seat of my cousin’s Jeep and winced. My body ached as the bruises settled beneath my skin. I would be sore tomorrow. Tonight I’d pushed things a little too far but it paid off with five grand.
It was dark, inching toward midnight. I hated being the last fight because it meant hanging around here longer than I wanted but this setup was far better than I expected. When I visited the abandoned warehouse a few days prior, there wasn’t a damn thing there that looked appealing. Tonight, however, the place had been transformed into something top notch.
Rix ran a high-end organization. The men who paid good money to see guys like me beat the shit out of guys like Levitt exerted a certain level of refinement. Rix made sure to meet their expectations but the guy could afford it based on the crowd in attendance. The type of money that exchanged hands, or rather bank accounts, from this place was insane and sickening.
I understood though. Everyone had their vices and the people who paid memberships for underground fighting had a penchant for savagery. I didn’t care about either. I was here to make money as fast as I could then decide what was next. The physical pain was simply a bonus. Not that the two compared, but it was close enough and I needed the reminder to feel alive. To feel something, any fucking thing.
“Here.” Tali tossed a black envelope in my lap before he began navigating out of the parking lot. Rix didn’t like the idea of me bringing Tali, but when he realized it was nonnegotiable, he agreed. That was mostly about not wanting to lose money. If I was good, he would make a lot. I won, which meant he was happy and no longer cared about the Tali thing.
Tali parked in the back corner of the lot to avoid running into anyone. I didn’t want to talk or entertain offers or promises that I could make something out of my talent. Or to be propositioned by women. It didn’t take a genius to know both would happen if I gave anyone the opportunity.
These fucks were always looking for a way to monopolize on others. They would start with the money, throwing tempting amounts my way, and when I didn’t bite, they would move on to the exposure. Neither appealed to me. The money would come and what they were offering would be attached to commitments and being owned. The last thing I wanted was to be shoved under a spotlight. Giving people a reason to dig into my past, the things I had done, was not an option.
“It’s short.”
I grimaced, leaning forward to drop the envelope in my duffle. When I didn’t respond about the fact that Rix cut my pay for the fight, Tali kept going.
“He fined you for not fighting back. You’re gonna have to at least pretend to be engaged or he’s gonna keep throwing you in the ring with guys whose sole mission is to take you down. He’s seen what you can do and is going to exploit that.”
“Everyone who enters that ring wants to take down their opponent.”
Tali cut his eyes my way. “Yeah but winning and pushing for a kill are two completely different things.”
I grunted. “I can handle myself.”
“Yeah, you can but you’re new. He has control because you need the opportunity and the money.”
I shot him a warning look. This wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have. I understood his concern for me taking a beating in the ring but didn’t give a damn about it either. My life, my rules.
Tali exhaled a sigh and changed the subject, thankfully. “This chick was here tonight. Asking questions about you.”
I frowned, giving him my full attention. Why the hell would anybody be asking about me. I was fresh out of prison and no one here knew me. “Who?”
He shook his head. “A photographer. Pretty, nosy as fuck, and determined.”
Photographer .
My mind slipped to thoughts of the woman I saw tonight. She damn sure looked out of place and not just because of the camera she was carrying. Her entire vibe made her stand out. She wasn’t a regular, based on how she moved like she didn’t have a clue about what was going on. Not that I paid much attention to the other people who showed up tonight. For me, it was simply a sea of faces that blended into each other. But her…
She wasn’t like the women who accompanied the men who paid big money to watch these fights. Her clothes weren’t skimpy or expensive. Jeans, T-shirt, Doc Martens. She wasn’t eye candy or a partner to the wealthy men who attended the matches. It was rare that women were allowed in alone, unless they were serving the attendees.
She was alone.
“What kind of questions?”
“Wanted to know why you didn’t fight back.”
“I knocked the guy out.” I frowned.
“Yeah, in the third round, minutes before the fight was about to end. She noticed and wanted to know why because clearly you didn’t have to take the type of beating you did.” He cut his eyes at me and I grunted.
“That all she want to know?”
For some reason I was curious, torn between wanting to find out who she was and wanting to shove the memory of her into the dark spaces that held things I wouldn’t allow myself to feel. She’d managed to distract me. When I stepped into the ring, I was focused and blocked out everything around me. But tonight, she managed to gain my attention. I couldn’t afford to be distracted, no matter how intriguing she seemed to be.
The only focus I needed was my son.
“Pretty much, but then again, I can’t say for certain because I shut her down. Told her you didn’t do friends and to stay away before she got herself into trouble asking questions.”
“And she agreed.”
“Yeah, handed me her card and left.”
“Card?” I frowned, feeling annoyed that she wanted Tali to have access to her. He dug into the pocket of his hoodie and handed over a business card. I scowled at it and he grinned.
“Take it?”
“For what?”
“Because you want to. You know exactly who I’m talking about. I could tell from the way you growled the minute I mentioned her asking questions.”
He was right but that didn’t change anything. Women were a luxury I wasn’t allowing myself. Well… at least beyond needing to fuck, which I would get to at some point. But that didn’t stop me from taking the card. I crushed it in my palm and shoved my hand back in the pocket of my hoodie.
I leaned back, slouching deeper into the seat. The throb in my muscles settled into a painful state of healing. It would take a couple days to recover enough to fight again so I was grateful that they only held matches once a month. When we reached my building, Tali pulled up to the front and parked.
“You might want to see a doctor tomorrow. Make sure nothing’s broken. You took a pretty good…”
“I’m fine.” I groaned and tugged at the handle to get out. It took a little more effort than I liked but once I was on my feet, I reached inside and grabbed my duffle. “I’ll hit you up in a few days.”
“No, you won’t. You just make sure you get your ass out of bed.”
I grunted and slammed the door before heading into my building. Once inside my place, I stripped out of my clothes down to my briefs, heading to the bathroom to start the shower. I went back in my room, removing the envelope of cash from my bag and dropping it into the bottom drawer of my dresser.
I left my bedroom and peeled off my briefs in the bathroom, working the curtain back. I stepped inside and lowered my head, allowing the warm spray to pelt against my skin. It felt good but not good enough to soothe the aching of my body. The hits I endured would have a lasting effect. One I would have to suffer through for the next couple days before it was tolerable.
The more my body relaxed, the more my mind drifted. Visions of honey-brown eyes, jet black hair, and pouty lips began to take over. My dick thickened and I couldn’t help the urge to want to satisfy the ache.
I wrapped my fingers around my dick, gripping the base before I ran my hand across it with hard, fast strokes. This wasn’t anything new. I jerked off to relieve the urge to want to lay with a woman. But no matter how many times I tried to ignore the reason I was pleasuring myself, her face appeared behind my lids. I hung my head and placed one hand on the tiled wall, fearful that I wouldn’t be able to keep my balance. My fist pumped over my dick faster, jerking harder with each pass. She was there in my head—those eyes, those lips, and that pretty ass smile…
My skin blazed, which didn’t have a damn thing to do with the intense hot water from the shower beating down on my neck and back. The muscles in my arm tensed, followed by my stomach and abs. The tip of my dick became sensitive as I groaned, allowing myself to cum with thoughts of her pulling it out of me.
The orgasm jolted through me, doing little to satiate the need she caused but it would have to do. This would have to be enough because it was all I would ever have. A feeling inside of me spoke to the heady dangerousness, realizing she could bring me to a place I refused to allow myself to go again.
Once I washed my body, not caring about the ache I felt from the rough movements, I got out and slipped on a clean pair of briefs before downing four ibuprofen which would hopefully help me sleep. I climbed into bed, settling beneath the cool bedding, staring blankly into the darkness that hovered around me until I felt my body begin to fade. The last thoughts I had were of the sight of my Aleah’s smile.
I miss you, beautiful. I’ll never forget. I’ll never fucking forget.