23. Santiago
SANTIAGO
“Where’s the gloves?” I asked, looking around the room, while Ariyan wrapped bandages around my knuckles.
“There are no gloves.”
“What?” I frowned.
Bringing the cloth down, he created an X around my hand.
“People want to see blood.”
“Wearing gloves is mandatory. Even in amateur fights.”
“As I said—” He tightened the wraps. “—out there, there are no rules. No laws. No dignity.”
He did say that, but I didn’t think it was in the literal sense.
After securing my fingers, he wrapped the bandage around my wrist three times, then tied it with a strap.
“How’s that?” he asked.
“Good. But I could have done it myself, you know.”
He finally looked me in the eyes. “I can’t risk you making a mistake.”
“And here I thought you suddenly cared for me,” I snarled when he remained unbothered.
Cold son of a bitch.
There I was, about to go in there bare-handed to fight for him, while he couldn’t give two shits I might get hurt.
I wanted to punch him in the face, but instead, I let him wrap my other hand.
Blame it on how good he smelled or how pretty he looked up close; either way, my body didn’t care, and once again, I ignored the part of my brain that kept telling me to stay away from the man who’d already tried killing me twice.
While Ariyan quietly worked on my hand wraps, the sounds from outside filled the small room we were in. The thin walls shook every time the crowd roared, and the anticipation slowly built up inside me.
“All done,” he said, taking a step back.
Looking at my hands, I let out a whistle. He’s done a good job.
“You seem good at this.” I clenched and relaxed my fists, checking his work. “Ever done it before?”
“Yes.”
Surprised, I glanced at him. “Really? To whom?”
Studying me with cold eyes, he seemed almost bored.
“Stay focused on yourself, and stop annoying me with words.”
I bit down on my tongue, fighting the urge to snap.
“Open your mouth.”
“Huh?” I glared at him when he took something out of his pocket.
Instead of answering me, he closed the distance between us. I jerked back, but before I could do anything, he’d already cupped my jaw and forced my mouth open.
“I hate repeating myself,” he snarled.
My eyes dipped to the mouthguard he held up between us and back up.
“No gloves, but mouthguards are fine?”
“One working in the hospitality business must always have a nice smile.” He brought the mouthguard to my lips.
“And in case you’ve forgotten, you’re still working for me, so you better make sure to keep that smile of yours all white and shiny.
” He pushed it into my mouth, adjusting it to sit right on my front teeth.
I’d almost forgotten the taste of rubber and the feeling of it pressing against my gums as I bit into it.
“Don’t worry, boss. Nobody is losing any teeth tonight.”
Cupping my jaw harder, he sank his nails into my skin.
“Don’t be cocky,” he said slowly, fiery eyes locked with mine. “Arrogance is man’s worst enemy. It’s what brings empires down, let alone fools such as yourself.”
I gave him one raised brow. “Empires, huh?”
He brought my face closer until he was a breath away.
“Listen to me now, you stupid fool. I’ve had fighters like you before, and they’re all gone now.
Why? Because they were all acting like men.
” He moved his lips to my ear, his breath hot against my skin.
“I do not need another bullfighter,” he whispered in Spanish, the language rolling off his tongue like poetry.
“What I need is not a man, but a bull. A beast who sees red and nothing more.”
Fucking chills ran down my spine at his words, going straight to my cock.
Fuck.
My skin erupted with goose bumps, and I ached to have him whisper more poetry in my ear, but he pulled back.
“Can you be that for me? Can you be my beast?”
I slowly lifted my stare, eyes meeting his.
“Just watch me.”
He didn’t give me so much as a smile, but something did glint in his eyes. An expression a dumb fuck like me couldn’t read, but if he felt a shred of the fire he’d just set inside me, I bet he was doing his best to contain himself.
A knock on the metal door told us it was fucking time, and I turned to walk out when I noticed Ariyan didn’t move.
“Aren’t you coming?”
He shook his head. “I’ll watch from the private stall.”
Brief disappointment twisted my guts. Somehow, I wanted him to be as close to the cage as possible. Close enough that he’d hear every cry and see every drop of blood I’d squeeze out of my opponent.
“Suit yourself,” I said before leaving the room.
The crowd roared for the fighter still in the cage, and I locked in on him as he raised both bloodied fists in the air, celebrating his win while two men dragged out the loser from the ring.
Slowly making my way up there, I didn’t mind the dismissal in people’s eyes.
They probably saw me as just another dude who was about to get his ass kicked.
But not about to focus on them, I looked up at the so-called private stalls.
Sadly, they were darkened, and I couldn’t see into them, but I knew Ariyan was up there, watching me from the shadows.
He better be.
“Look at that, they sent me another pretty face to wreck,” the asshole of a fighter laughed after I got inside the cage. He tossed some punches in the air while jumping around me.
“What’s the matter, pretty boy, did I scare you?” he snarled.
Only he didn’t, nor did the blood that stained the floor.
“Aww, seems like the cat got your tongue. Just try not to piss yourself when you go down, okay? That shit’s nasty.”
Shaking my head, I huffed. “Let’s hope you’ll listen to your own advice.”
His brows dipped. “What was that?”
“I just said, don’t piss your pants, fucker.”
“You son of a bitch,” he swore, already holding his fists up.
It had been years since I’d last fought in a tournament, and while this place was nothing like what I used to know, it was still something.
And just like Ariyan had promised, there were no rules in here, and all it took was for the bell to announce the fight had started, and it was on.
No countdown, no rounds, no referees. Just two men, ready to fight—
What I need is not a man, but a bull. A beast who sees red and nothing more.
As if his words had drilled their way into my core, something took over me, and when the other guy charged with what was supposed to be a right strike, I easily dodged it and pushed the jab away from my chin before using the momentum to power strike back.
Jab.
Cross.
Hook.
My fist collided with his face with such force that I felt the rotation shooting back through my arm, going all the way to my core, but that was it—three basic strikes that took me no more than a few seconds, and the fucker fell backward like a log.
The crowd that had cheered so far went dead silent, probably from shock, as this man went down even faster than the slurs had come out of his mouth earlier.
But then, the hangar erupted with wild cheering, and as the crowd roared for violence and my body filled with the familiar sense of adrenaline, I looked up in search of him.
I knew he was there watching me; I could feel it in my bones, and it felt real, fucking good.
Beyond that. Like heroin shooting into my vein, I could get addicted to this thrill, and I was already throbbing for the next dose.
* * *
Seeing Ariyan waiting where he told me to meet him after the fight, I ran toward him, a cocky smile on my lips.
“So, how was I—”
He slapped me across the face, shutting me up immediately. Shocked, my eyes went wide, and I brushed a hand over my stinging skin.
“You were too fast,” he said, pulling out a handkerchief from his suit pocket.
“What?” I hissed, fucking confused.
Is this guy on drugs or something?
“People go there to see blood, Mr. Rivas.” He cleaned his palm with the handkerchief. “And you, instead of giving them that, you knocked out the man five seconds into the fight.”
My temples throbbed with anger.
“I fought like a true boxer.”
“Nobody cares for that. Not to mention, people will say the fight is rigged.”
“Rigged? I won fair and square,” I argued, pointing at myself, when all I got in response was an eye roll.
“I speak, and yet you don’t listen.” He tucked the hankie back in his pocket.
“How about I explain it in a way you’ll understand?
” He stepped closer, stopping with his fancy shoes nudging my worn-out sneakers.
“If I let a guy fuck me, and he finishes less than five seconds after putting his dick inside me, he’d be dead. ”
Startled by his words, I stared at him, my whole face heating up with the image.
“Are you the type who finishes five seconds after getting his cock wet?” He leaned closer.
I quickly shook my head as he traced his fingers along my shirt, slowly going up.
“Is that so?” he purred.
Sweating now more than I did in the cage, I tightened my lips and nodded.
“Y-yes.”
Reaching my neck, he brushed his knuckles along my jugular, and I closed my eyes, trying to keep cool.
“So next week, when you get into that cage, I want you to imagine fucking me, Mr. Rivas.” He leaned in, his chest pressing against mine. “Imagine how you’d thrust this—” He cupped me over my jeans, squeezing tight. “—inside me.”
“Fuck,” I gasped, eyes locked with his, as he grabbed me harder.
“Exactly.” He moved his hand, massaging my growing erection. “And like the good boy you are, you’ll take your sweet time and won’t finish before your partner does, yes?”
Heat surged through me, tightening my stomach into a knot.
“Yes, fuck, yeah—”
“And when you feel like your partner’s close—” His lips ghosted my neck, his hand still rubbing me. “—that’s when I want you to end him.”
He withdrew at once, moving away and leaving me hanging. I was disappointed as much as I was turned on, if not more, and not knowing what to say, I glanced down at the erection pressing against my jeans.
The hell was I supposed to do now? But then, a wad of money landed on the ground next to my shoes. Confused, I picked it up, seeing it was all hundreds.
Fuck.
This was way more than my monthly salary.
“Your share from tonight’s gains,” Ariyan said, and I looked up from the money to stare at him.
“My… share?”
“Good boys get rewarded. Don’t they?” He whooshed his hand. “Now, move on, go back home, and… well, take care of that.” He glanced at my obvious erection, lips pursed.
My cheeks heated, and I blushed like some schoolboy, as if I hadn’t just knocked out someone in an illegal fighting cage.
But it went beyond embarrassment. It was excitement, eagerness to taste more of whatever this crazy shit was.
Fuck me if I knew why I cared for this psycho’s approval to begin with, but clearly, I did. And now, all I wanted was more.
A hell of a lot more.