19. Grey
GREY
“C ome on.” I opened the bathroom door where Amorette had been hiding for the last ten minutes.
She hopped up from the toilet, screeching. “Close the damn door! I’m peeing!” She bent over to hide herself from me.
“It’s a piss. I’ve seen, touched, kissed, fucked your pussy in every way imaginable. Seeing you take a piss shouldn’t bother you.” I walked further into the room to prove my point.
“Well, it does!” she squawked, wiping quickly and pulling up her shorts.
“Whatever.” I set the clothes on the sink for her.
“Get ready. We’re doing a fighting lesson today.
” Then I left without giving her time to argue.
I was done with her brushing me off to do other things.
Protecting herself was just as important as learning to speak Spanish.
Protecting herself was more important than any fucking research she did for Parker.
I grabbed the box I’d left on the counter. Andre had thrown a fit when he found out, but I didn’t give a fuck. Her skills were abysmal. If she took him out with it, it was his own damn fault.
Amorette came storming out of the bedroom in under five minutes, spitting mad. She’d been angry for two fucking days. I tried to fuck it out of her, and it had worked for about twenty minutes, then she’d tense up again.
I grinned. I’d give it another shot after today. She didn’t even know we’d be going to another fight tonight. I was overseeing this one, so I could keep her with me the entire time. Hell, I’d sit her in my lap and keep my hand up her dress. Everyone in the club would know she was mine.
Andre could fuck right the hell off. Now that Vicente was being a bitch about it, there was no reason not to show her off. It was safer for her if everyone understood she was mine.
Ours to protect. Mine to fuck.
Amorette was past escaping, but it was never a bad idea to let others know it would be their death on the line if they tried to help her.
“What’s that?” She stopped in front of me, her gaze locked on the small black box in my hand.
“A present,” I grinned. “But you have to wait until we get to the gym to open it.” I placed my arm around her shoulder and guided us toward the door.
She sighed and wrapped her arm around my waist as we walked. Her fingers brushed against the residual bruising from my fight with Bruno, but I didn’t care. It was just pain. It wouldn’t last.
“Something tells me it’s not jewelry.”
I laughed. “No. Andre is the only one of us who would give out something useless like that. Parker would give his fuck buddies priceless art and laugh about it. If he ever kept a girl around that long.”
“And Lafe? What would he give?” She glanced up.
That took some thought. I didn’t actually know what Lafe would give a woman. “I have no fucking clue. But he’s the bleeding heart. He’d probably watch a tear-jerker or a rom-com in that movie room he loves so much.” I almost snorted.
Her body tightened up under my arm.
“Is that your thing? Are you a snuggler, mamí? ”
“No,” she answered too quickly. Wicked Love was lying. “Is this session just going to be us?”
I shrugged. “The gym is for family only, but occasionally, we’ll invite some of our men in.”
There were more questions on her tongue, but she held it.
Inside the gym, we weren’t alone. Andre was running on the treadmill in just his gym shorts and no shirt. Sweat glistened on his chest and back, so he’d probably be winding down soon.
I scowled when Amorette peeked over at him. She was suddenly too interested in all my brothers. Even if it was cautious or suspicious attention, attention was attention. At least he didn’t give one fuck that we joined him. He was too lost in his own workout.
“Okay, mamí. Now it’s yours.” I handed her the box as I opened the rest of the gym. There were enormous windows, but I still liked to have the lights and music on.
“Wow,” she whispered as she pulled the top off. The knife blade was about four inches long, with a slight curve. The shorter side was serrated with a sharp tip. On the other end, the obsidian handle was also worked into a sharp point.
Any way that she hit an attacker with this knife, it would do damage. Front swipe, back swipe, blunt handle hit. This was a lethal weapon in a tiny package. Like my wicked love.
“Your lesson today will be on how to use that. Because tonight, I have a fight to attend and you’re coming with me.” I pulled a dummy knife out of my pocket and gently swapped them in her hand.
The treadmill slowed down, and Andre pulled his earbuds out. “Like hell, you’ll go tonight.”
I guess he was listening. "The fight is in my hotel. I’ll be damned if one of Vicente’s men tries to show up to run the fights.”
He grabbed his towel off the arm of the treadmill and wiped his face and the back of his neck.
Even with his black hair plastered to his body, he put off the same controlling air.
“Vicente has declared war on us, Grey. The fights are his business. You manage it, but considering how he’s doling out his attacks, I would consider you fired. ”
I sneered. The fights were mine. I’d worked them from the ground up. They were as successful as they were today because of me. That also didn’t change the fact that the hotel was mine.
“Hell to the fuck no,” I said at the same time Amorette asked, “What attacks?”
“The fights are mine, Andre. If we’re on the outs, they stay mine. The profits are mine,” I growled. I’d already started redirecting a lot of the profits to my own shell corporation.
“You think this is some divorce where we split the assets?” Andre shouted, slinging the hand holding the towel toward me. “You know it’s fucking not, Grey! You stay here and kick the fights out of your hotel!”
I got in his face and shoved him backward. “Vicente is going to do whatever the fuck he wants. But he’s not taking away the one thing I’ve loved all these years. Not after my mother. This is my life, Andre. I am the fights. They’re mine!”
Amorette wedged herself between us and shoved at our chests. We didn’t budge. Instead, we now just had a spitting kitten stuck between us.
“And what about taking Amorette to the fights? We just fucking discussed this! It’s too dangerous! You want her to get stolen again? The next time Vicente might not take her to Matías, but Maikel.”
“You think I haven’t thought of that!” I roared and pulled Amorette to my chest and away from Andre. “One, I’m taking men with me. Two, I ordered a fucking tracker. Two of them! One to wear and one to inject under the skin.”
“What the fuck!” Amorette struggled in my grip even though I refused to let her go.
“Then there’s the knife. It’s so sharp it will cut through skin and muscle like butter.
I’m giving her all the tools she needs, so she doesn’t have to stay in a cage.
What are you doing, Andre? You fucking coward.
You talk about Lafe, but you’re the fucking coward.
You’d happily sit your ass here and wait it out until we can take Vicente out from afar, or he kicks the fucking bucket.
” I spat on the ground at his feet. “I’m not living like that. And neither is she.”
I turned us away and moved back over to the mat. I placed the knife in her box, caught her hand holding the dummy knife and brought it up between us.
“This conversation isn’t done, Grey.” Andre pressed closer.
Yes, the fuck it was. He didn’t exist for us right now. “There are three ways you can strike someone with this knife. But any way you hit the skin with it, it will do damage.”
Amorette watched me with a mixture of worry and concern. “Grey, we have to talk about this. I need to know what’s going on.” A thread of frustration wove through her strained words.
“After the lesson, I’ll tell you what you want to know, but this is important. As much as Andre’s an ass,” the man himself growled his fury at my side, “he’s not wrong about it being dangerous.”
“I’m not getting a tracker under my skin,” she asserted, shaking her head. “That’s barbaric.”
“Not now. We’ll talk about that soon. This very second, we’re going over how you can use this to maim or kill someone.
” I rotate her wrist to show her the different ways to strike someone.
“Go for the eyes if you can reach them. A quick jab to the eye with the handle end will incapacitate them for several minutes, and that eye will be useless. Otherwise, go for the throat. The main artery is on the left side.” I showed her where to hit on my own neck.
“You’re fucking ridiculous, Grey. Fine. Fucking fine. I’ll be ready at the chopper. If you’re going, I’m going too. Someone has to keep your psycho ass alive and watch Amorette if Vicente pulls any shit and distracts you.” He stomped out of the gym.
“Hit me.” I motioned for her to start.
“No.” She shook her head and glanced down at the wooden dummy.
“Yes,” I countered. “I’m better than any punching bag.
You won’t hurt me.” I paused, then a smirk started to touch my mouth.
“Just think about me holding you down and having the doctor inject a tracker next to your shoulder blade where you can’t get it out.
” I lowered my voice as I leaned my head toward her.
She swung her arm, and I had to jerk back to avoid being clipped. “Good girl,” I murmured through a grin. She didn’t hear me, however. Every step I took back, she took one forward, jabbing, swiping, and stabbing.
“Tuck your thumb just like when you punch. Good. Longer arcs if you’re trying to slash a neck.” I kept giving instructions, but she was grunting with fury, her teeth bared. I had no idea if she was even hearing me, although she did make subtle changes to her form when I told her to.
Her motions started to lose steam.
“Just think, my wicked little love. I’ll be able to track you anywhere. You’ll never escape me,” I whispered in her ear as I gripped her arms. The anger burned a little brighter, and she renewed her attack.