Second

by Penelope Sky

  Liam must have known exactly who he was because he didn’t ask for identification. After he’d stepped out of the ring, he’d relaxed because his fight was over, but now, he immediately dropped the towel and adopted his aggressive posture, ready to have another match right on the spot. “You want me to kill you so you don’t have to lose your next fight. Pathetic.” He walked up to his opponent, his shoulders squared and the muscles of his arms flexed.

  “I don’t lose my fights, asshole. Because if I do, I die. That’s a lot more than you can say.” He dropped his gaze and spat on Liam’s bare feet.

  Liam was rigid, his frenzied eyes showing his heated thoughts. He processed his next move, considering all the possibilities. But pragmatism set in, and he walked around his opponent and took the high road.

  I knew this asshole was trying to bait Liam into a death match, and I was relieved Liam didn’t cave. Hades and I walked with him.

  “Wow,” the fighter said after us. “Look at that pussy run.”

  I kept walking, but I quickly realized I was on my own. I turned around.

  Liam faced off with him, giving in to the heckles. “If you don’t want to die in this crowd, I suggest you shut your mouth.”

  The fighter grinned, a few teeth missing. “You’ll fight me here but not in the ring because you’re a pussy.” He spat again. “The only reason you’re the reigning champion is because you’re scared shitless to get back in that ring. Hold on to that belt all you want—but it don’t mean shit.”

  I grabbed Liam by the arm and tried to tug him away.

  He spun out of my grasp so fast.

  “You want me dead? Then let’s go.” He slammed his closed fists together, his knuckles clanking together.

  I stared at Liam and saw all his pragmatism disappear.

  Liam stared back at me for seconds, taking his time before he answered. “Fine. No mercy.”

  The other fighter grinned wider when he got what he wanted. “I’ll put us at the top of the schedule.” He walked away with his cronies.

  What the fuck just happened?

  Liam headed to his dressing room.

  Hades said nothing because he got what he wanted.

  “We can’t let this happen.” I walked beside Hades while Liam pushed everyone out of the way in front of us.

  Hades gave me a cold look. “This isn’t our lives, Damien. We’re spectators.”

  “But he was manipulated—”

  “He was manipulated because he wanted to be.” He looked forward again. “I have to make arrangements now. I only have ten minutes.” He looked at his watch. “Stay with Liam.” He turned to the left and pushed through the crowd.

  Jesus Fucking Christ.

  I went into the dressing room.

  Liam took another drink then poured a bottle of water over his head to cool off.

  “What the fuck are you doing?” He and Annabella just talked about this weeks ago. He forgot all of that just because someone talked some shit. “Your wife said no, and you permanently retired.”

  “She’s not here.” He grabbed a towel and wiped the water from his wet hair and face. “She doesn’t need to know.”

  “And if you die—”

  “I won’t.” He looked at himself in the mirror, still forming beads of sweat on his forehead despite the small shower he’d just taken.

  “Liam, you’re high on adrenaline right now, but your body is exhausted because you just completed a match. This is the worst possible time to do this. You’re aren’t fully rested.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  “You aren’t invincible, asshole.”

  He turned to me, his eyes narrowed. “You think I’m gonna let that fucker talk to me like that?”

  “Who gives a shit what he says? He’s baiting you because he knows it’ll work. And you have a life outside of this ring—and she’s sitting at home right now.” I slammed my fist down on the desk. “Call this off. Now.”

  “No.” He pushed my arm off his desk.

  I couldn’t let this happen. “Liam—”

  “I said no.” He gave me a hard expression, like he might hit me if I kept pushing him. “This is exactly what you want, so why do you care?”

  I inhaled a deep breath and silenced my words. I was tempted to tell him the truth just to distract him from this fight. When he knew I’d fucked his wife and still wanted to fuck his wife, he would come after me instead. The death fight would be forgotten. But I didn’t say a word.

  He turned away. “Give me a few minutes.” He opened the drawer to his desk, pulling out two syringes filled with pain meds. He was about to inject himself, so he’d be able to ignore the aches in his bones and fight to his full capability.

  I stormed out of the room and stood in the hallway, both of my hands gripping my skull because I didn’t know what the fuck to do. Reason wouldn’t change Liam’s mind, and Hades wouldn’t help me fix this. There was only person who could stop this.

  Annabella.

  I knew I should stay out of it, that Liam would probably win and this wouldn’t be a problem at all.

  But what if he didn’t?

  And Annabella lost him?

  I wanted her to be a divorcée—but not a widow. If she lost him, she would be devastated. Regardless of the status of their current relationship, they’d been together a long time, had a happy marriage at one point. If he died…it would kill her.

  I couldn’t let that happen.

  I moved into a different hallway and made the call.

  She answered almost immediately. “Damien?” I never called her, so she knew this was unusual. She also knew I was probably with Liam right now, so there was concern in her voice, as if she was anticipating something terrible had happened. “What’s wrong?”

  I hadn’t even said a word, and she could read my mood. “Liam finished his fight. But then another fighter provoked him. In ten minutes, he’s going back into the ring—but this time for a death match.”

  She was speechless.

  “I tried to talk him out of it, but he won’t listen. The only way he’s gonna stop—”

  “I’m on my way.”

  I stood outside and checked my watch. I asked them to put him as the second match just to buy us some time, but even then, it was cutting it close. She had to drive across the city and get here first.

  Her Bugatti rounded the corner, and she sped to where I stood, slamming on the brakes and skidding until she burned rubber. The car came to a halt, and she jumped out of the car, leaving the expensive Bugatti right at the curb.

  She ran to me.

  I grabbed her hand and pulled her into the private entryway. We were in the casino immediately, running past the men at the tables and the topless waitresses. We had to slow down to take the elevator, and that took nearly a full minute.

  She stood beside me, breathing hard and visibly anxious. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and she rubbed herself like she was cold. She turned one way then another, as if she couldn’t stand still.

  I stared at her, knowing I’d made the right decision.

  The doors opened, and the sound of a fight reached our ears.

  “God, we’re too late,” she yelled.

  “No.” The buzzer went off when one of the fighters collapsed, his skull caved in. “But Liam is next.” I grabbed her hand again and pulled her through the crowd, keeping the assholes off her until I made it to the other side of the room. I took the stairs first and saw Liam pacing with Hades beside him.

  I stepped aside so Annabella could get through.

  Annabella walked up to him, her ferocity so much stronger than his. “What the fuck are you doing?”

  He froze at the sound of her voice. He looked up and saw her, shocked that she was there at all. His body was still pumped with adrenaline, so his muscles were thick and ready to create bone-cracking force. “Anna—”

  “You told me you wouldn’t do this, and the second I turn my back—”

  He came close to her an
d lowered his voice. “That’s not how it happened, okay? Keep it down. Otherwise, you’ll embarrass me.”

  “Oh, I’ll embarrass you?” she hissed.

  Hades turned to me, and the look he gave me was terrifying.

  I ignored him and turned back to Annabella.

  Liam flared his nostrils and sighed. “I’ve committed to this. I’ll be—”

  “You committed to this.” She raised her left hand where her ring was. “I gave you a choice, and now you’re going back on your decision.” She grabbed her ring and pulled it off. “So, I’m going back on mine.” She prepared to throw it on the floor, where it would probably get kicked away and disappear in the cracks.

  He grabbed her with lightning speed, his entire hand covering hers so the ring was safe in his grasp. He still looked livid, like he was the one who had the right to be angry. “Fine.” He opened her hand and retrieved the ring before he shoved it back on her left hand. “Fine.” He finally let her go, breathing hard like he wanted to scream.

  Her anger disappeared. Her eyes filled with sadness, and she looked at him like he’d still betrayed her. “You may as well fight, Liam. Because I don’t think our marriage will survive this anyway…”

  His anger was erased by her words. Now his eyes fell in despair, and all the muscles in his body relaxed. His lungs deflated as life had left his veins. He was impossible to understand, because he clearly loved her…he just couldn’t control himself.

  She turned around and walked off.

  I waited for him to go after her. Because if he didn’t, I would.

  He made the right decision. “Cancel it.” He gave the order without looking at either of us, and then he took off.

  I could feel Hades staring at me, feel the vibration of his glare like an avalanche about to crash down. Instead of being too angry to speak, he turned away and walked to the ring announcer to fix the mess I’d just made.

  18

  Annabella

  I took off in my Bugatti and left him standing at the curb in nothing but his shorts. I sped through the streets with the music off, furious about what had just happened. The second I wasn’t there to keep him in line, he snuck around behind my back.

  Just like when he cheated on me.

  Maybe Liam wasn’t the person he used to be. Or maybe he’d always been this way…but I was too stupid to notice.

  I went home and grabbed a bag to pack my things. My first impulse was to go to Damien’s place, but that was the last place I should go right now. I would just go back to the Tuscan Rose, where Liam wouldn’t follow me.

  I shoved my clothes into the bag and left my ring on the vanity—exactly where I’d left it the first time I’d walked out on him. I was in the middle of the hallway when the front door opened.

  Liam shut it behind himself, wearing his black sweatpants and a gray t-shirt. He was too big of an obstacle to get around, so I was stuck. He stood near the entry table and stared at me, as if daring me to try to get past him. His eyes moved to the bag in my hand. “I’m not letting you leave.”

  “You’re gonna fight me to the death, then?” I snapped.

  He walked closer to me, his heavy footfalls echoing against the hardwood floor. His blue eyes were on me, looking at me like an opponent in the ring. He was ready to fight, ready to do whatever he could to get me to stay. “I want to talk.” He stopped in front of me, giving me a few feet of space.

  “I’m done talking to you, Liam. It doesn’t matter anyway, because you turn around and do whatever the fuck you want—”

  “Listen.” He held up his hand to silence me. “I listened to what you said and had no intention of getting back in the ring. But one of the fighters got under my skin…and got the best of me.”

  I crossed my arms over my chest, the strap of the bag hanging off my elbow. “Just the way that woman got under your skin?”

  He inhaled a deep breath as the shame filled his eyes.

  “The way that woman got the best of you?”

  “It’s not the same thing, and you know it,” he said quietly, forcing himself to keep his voice down. “I’m not sneaking around with another woman—”

  “This is worse.”

  His expression fell.

  “Because this could kill you, Liam. You hurt me so much when you cheated on me, but at least you weren’t in danger. You were going to put your life on the line without even telling me. What if you’d died? I would have had no warning. The last thing I would have known was you lied to me, broke my trust, and got killed for it. And I’m just supposed to live with that?”

  The shame grew.

  “I don’t trust you…”

  His eyes dropped to the floor. “Baby, please—”

  “Don’t ‘baby, please’ me.” I pushed my hand into his chest so I could get around him.

  He wouldn’t budge. He stuck his hand against the wall so I couldn’t escape his mass. “I told you I’m not letting you leave.”

  “Then I’ll call the cops.”

  “They won’t do anything.”

  “Then I’ll call Damien.” I quickly realized what I’d said and tried to cover it. “Hades…Sofia. You want me to do that?”

  He kept his hand up. “I want to talk about this with you. Because I love you… you know how fucking much I love you.” His eyes burned into mine with sincerity, with passion. “I can’t explain myself in a way you’ll understand. But I’m a man. And when a man talks shit to me, I can’t just look the other way and let it go. Maybe that makes me a stupid brute, but that’s who I am. I didn’t go there with any premeditation. It just happened…and I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry.” He stared into my eyes and hoped to see forgiveness.

  “Liam, I made my position very clear—”

  “I know.” He bowed his head. “It won’t happen again. I promise.”

  “You promised last time…”

  “Well, I’m making you a new promise now…not to let my anger get the best of me.”

  It surprised me how easily he could wear me down. “What was your plan? To win that fight and never tell me about it?”

  He shrugged. “I honestly didn’t think that far. But yeah, I guess. I wasn’t going to start doing it regularly. It was just that one time. I wasn’t sneaking around behind your back with this huge lie.”

  “Still not right, Liam. It doesn’t matter if it’s one fight or a hundred…”

  “I know.” He slowly lowered his hand, letting me pass if I wanted to. “I’m sorry, and it won’t happen again.”

  I wanted to believe him, and I felt stupid for actually starting to.

  He watched me with intense focus. “Baby, please…”

  I sighed and bowed my head.

  He reached for the strap on my elbow and slowly pulled it free, taking the bag away from me and dropping it on the floor behind him. When he got what he wanted, he moved closer into me and cupped my face, making me lift my gaze to meet his. “Don’t leave me. I know you aren’t in love with me again yet, but I’m so in love with you…and I can’t lose you. I know I should be building our trust, making you feel safe with me, and I keep fucking it up left and right.” He rested his head against mine and closed his eyes. “Please.”

  I felt weak at his touch, felt the sincerity of his voice all the way into my soul. I loved this man, but he was right, it wasn’t in the way that I used to. But I believed we could have that again if these things weren’t getting in the way. Things like fighting… Things like Damien.

  It seemed unfair to be so unforgiving when I had been holding another man’s hand just days ago, when the only reason I knew about Liam’s fight was because my old lover told me…who was also my husband’s friend. He wasn’t innocent, but neither was I. “I’m not going anywhere, Liam.”

  He angled my head, so our eyes were locked on each other. His expression was the same as it had been on our wedding day—the first time. His gaze was filled with deep love, as if I was the most important thing in the world to him. Sometimes he screwe
d things up, but his heart was in the right place. I knew he loved me…from the bottom of his heart. “Baby, I love you.” His arms circled my petite body, and he held me close, squeezed me like he never wanted to let go. He lifted me from the floor and held me against him, my feet dangling above the floor.

  My face moved into his neck, and I closed my eyes. “I love you too.”

  I lay beside him in the dark, the light from the bedside clock providing a subtle shine to his face. I was in his t-shirt, which was a million sizes too big. It was more of a blanket, but that’s what made it comfortable.

  His arm was hooked around my waist, and he held me close, our heads sharing the same pillow. His pretty eyes were on me, the only soft feature he possessed. His fingers rubbed against the soft skin of my back, caressing me like a giant trying to tenderly caress a rose. We hadn’t said much since I’d forgiven him. When he knew he’d won me over, he took me to bed and apologized in other ways.

  “Baby?” His hand moved to my stomach, his fingertips grazing over my skin.

  I lifted my gaze to meet his look. “Hmm?”

  “How did you know?”

  I hadn’t expected this conversation to arise. There has been so much drama that I’d assumed it would be overlooked. I would just tell him the truth…but it would destroy Damien and affect his newly restored friendship with Hades. So, I covered his ass. “I changed my mind about watching your fight.” Damien was loyal to me when he called me and told me what was happening. Maybe he’d encouraged Liam in the first place, but he’d clearly had a change of heart. He was loyal to me, so I would be loyal to him.

  Liam accepted my explanation as fact. “Sometimes I think about quitting altogether…for you.”

  “That would mean a lot to me if you did.” I felt bad asking him to give up his passion, but I didn’t want my husband to be bruised every time he came home, to do all this damage to his body so he’d pay for it later in life.

  “It’s all I’ve ever known,” he said quietly. “It’s something I’m proud of. I’ve worked hard to be at the top of my game, but I understand why you want me to stop. I’m committed to it, but I should be committed to you more.” He stared at me for nearly a full minute before he continued. “So, I’ll do it.”