Reckless: A Bad Boy MMA Fighter Romance (Warrior Zone Fighters Book 3)
Page 1
Table of Contents
Epilogue
Epilogue
Sneak Peek: Restrained: Warrior Zone Fighters Book 4
Mailing List
Books by Tia Lewis
Warrior Zone Fighters Series
About the Book
Reckless
Paul
Sarah
Coming Soon!
Thank You
About Tia Lewis
Reckless
A Bad Boy MMA Fighter Romance
Tia Lewis
Salted Pen Publications
Contents
Mailing List
Books by Tia Lewis
Warrior Zone Fighters Series
About the Book
Reckless
1. Paul
2. Sarah
3. Paul
4. Sarah
5. Paul
6. Sarah
7. Paul
8. Sarah
9. Paul
10. Sarah
11. Paul
12. Sarah
13. Paul
14. Sarah
15. Paul
16. Sarah
17. Paul
18. Sarah
19. Paul
20. Sarah
21. Paul
22. Sarah
23. Paul
24. Sarah
25. Paul
26. Sarah
27. Paul
28. Sarah
29. Paul
30. Sarah
31. Paul
Epilogue
Epilogue
Sneak Peek: Restrained: Warrior Zone Fighters Book 4
Coming Soon!
Thank You
Mailing List
Books by Tia Lewis
About Tia Lewis
Copyright
Copyright © 2017 by Tia Lewis.
All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
First Published in March 2017.
First Edition.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, please contact: info@authortialewis.com. www.AuthorTiaLewis.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is a crime punishable by law. No part of the book may be scanned, uploaded to or downloaded from file sharing sites, or distributed in any other way via the Internet or any other means, electronic, or print, without the publisher’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000 (www.fbi.gov/ipr/).
This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.
Published by Salted Pen Publications, Minnesota.
Reckless: A Bad Boy MMA Fighter Romance
Edited by: Charity C.
Beta Readers: Jackie, Vickie & Summer
Cover Designed by: Kellie Dennis at Book Cover by Design
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FULL BOOK CATALOG BY TIA LEWIS
Books by Tia Lewis
Redemption: A Bad Boy MMA Fighter Romance
Revived: A Bad Boy MMA Fighter Romance
Draw Play: A Sports Romance
Stadium of Lights: A Second Chance Romance
Draft Day: A BWWM Sports Romance
Threat: A Blood Riders MC (Book 1)
Reveal: A Blood Riders MC (Book 2)
Creed: A Blood Riders MC (Book 3)
Diesel: A Blood Riders MC (Book 4)
The Hitman’s Possession: A Bad Boy Mafia Romance (Book 1)
The Hitman’s Property: A Bad Boy Mafia Romance (Book 2)
The Hitman’s Duology Series Bundle
Dirty Hacker: An Alpha Billionaire Romance
Dirty Money: A Dark Mafia Romance
Misled: A Bad Boy Mafia Romance
Only One You: A Second Chance Romance
Addicted to You: A Last Chance Romance
Sinful Torment: A Romantic Suspense Novel
Tempt Me: A Second Chance Billionaire Romance
The Journalist: A Sexy Contemporary Romance
Zarak: Scifi Alien Invasion Romance (The Mating Games Book 1)
Konkrin: Scifi Alien Invasion Romance (The Mating Games Book 2)
Warrior Zone Fighters Series
Redemption
Revived
Reckless - FREE on Kindle Unlimited
Restrained - Coming April 2017
About the Book
She persisted until I said yes. Now, it's my turn to convince Sarah Gilden that she belongs with me.
I work hard to pay for my brother's treatments, so I play equally as hard at the MMA gym, The Warrior Zone. My life is simple—uncomplicated by all the women I take to my bed—I intend to keep it that way.
Until…
Sarah Gilden shows up and turns my life upside down. She's beautiful, sexy and demanding as hell. Ignoring her only adds fire and passion to her cause.
Teetering on feelings of helplessness as my brother's survival continues to depend on me—she makes me an offer I can't refuse…
Despite our differences, once I let her in my life, I'm not willing to let her go.
Author’s Note:
Reckless is a steamy MMA fighter contemporary romance novel and it's book #3 in the Warrior Zone Fighters series. It's only recommended for audiences 18+. No cheating. No cliffhangers. HEA.
1
Paul
I watched as the bride and groom moved slowly around the dance floor, wondering how many times Tony was stepping on Hannah’s feet. Tony had never been considered a graceful guy despite his moves in the cage, and I couldn’t help but think that either he had taken dance lessons or Hannah was one tough chick. Still, the bastard looked happy, and I couldn’t fault that too much. They were meant to be together.
Taking a sip of my beer, I turned to look at the couple on my left, Travis and his now fiancée Julia huddled close together, another couple that had popped up in the last month. At this rate, Benji and I were doomed to have the same fucking thing happen in a matter of months.
“Dude, what has this turned into?” Benji said as he came to stand beside me. “It’s like we are running a newlywed camp instead of a fucking fighter gym.
I couldn’t help but agree. Since the exhibition match, we had put on last month, attendance was up again, with new fighters coming in every day. The concern was if we were going to have enough trainers to go around. Hell, if we could pry them from their chicks long enough to make some money. At one time there had been four fighters in together on a business venture to open a gym. Anthony, Benji, Travis, and I had put down our own money on the dream, and though we ha
d struggled the last few months, things were looking up. We were making money. But it wasn’t about the money. All of us had enough money to go around. This was about the next generation of fighters and honing them to carry the sport into the future.
After all, I didn’t have anything else going on in my life. Fighting had been my life like it was for most of these guys, the one thing that was constant and could be counted on when nothing else or no one else could. But now, the gym was all I had. That and the guys that were dropping like flies to the fairer sex.
“Think we can buy out their shares?” Benji continued on, a grin on his face. “This is turning into a damn circus. What happened to the bachelors? Next, they will want daycares for their kids and parental time off.”
“I wish,” I answered, joking as we watched the newly wedded couple finish their dance. There was no way we would do that, but it did beg to wonder what the future was going to look like. I had no intention of being the next to fall victim to a woman’s charms. I had done that long ago and got burned in the worst way possible, the pain every morning reminding me to never trust a woman again. I took women home, had sex with them, but never longer than a one night’s stand. Anything longer would make them think I was interested in something more. I wasn’t.
“I’m going to get a breather,” I said to Benji before walking away, the collar of my suit tight around my neck. All of this love and devotion was getting to me, and I really didn’t want to look at it anymore. I was happy for them, but I sure as hell didn’t want to be in their place.
There were all kinds of people I recognized, though none bothered to even talk with me as I passed, averting their gazes like I didn’t even exist. It was fine. I didn’t need to talk to them. Not a damn one of them was there when I needed them the most, and sometimes I wondered why I even bothered to hang around Chicago. I should have left long ago. The gym and the guys were the other things keeping me in this damn city, but the longer I was here, the more I thought about leaving.
Finding a door, I pushed it open and found myself in the middle of some type of courtyard, the sun shining down brightly as I walked out onto the stone path. I never really did like crowds of people, weddings even less, but Tony was a good guy, and Hannah had treated us like family since she had moved next door to the gym, her bakery one of the best in Chicago. There was no way I was going to miss out on their wedding.
“You can do this. There is nothing standing in your way.”
I cocked my head and stopped in my tracks, the soft voice barely discernible over the traffic just over the low wall. It was definitely female and just on the other side of the tree that I had been about to come up on, giving me pause to keep going. There was no one else milling around the courtyard, and I contemplated turning around, taking my chances in the wedding reception instead of staying right here with a stranger, a female stranger at that. I should turn around. Clearly, she wanted privacy, and I was intruding on her time.
“You are stronger than you seem. You can handle anything that is thrown at you.”
What the hell was she doing? It sounded like a desperate pep talk, no fire in her words as she repeated the phrase, making me wonder what the hell she was getting herself psyched up for. I mean it wasn’t like we were on a cliff, about to jump off or anything.
Unable to resist, I looked around the tree, spying a woman seated on a stone bench, dressed in a short green dress, the sunlight reflecting off of her dark hair. She was looking down at something in her hands, her shoulders hunched over as she repeated the phrase again. I knew I should leave her alone, let her attempt to do whatever she was talking herself up for but found myself highly intrigued to find out exactly what she was doing here, in the courtyard of a reception hall.
As I stepped forward, my foot snapped a twig on the stone path and her head shot up, looking over in my direction and giving me the first glimpse of her face, those whiskey-colored eyes widening with surprise, then recognition. I had seen those eyes before and kinda hoped I would never see them again in this lifetime. Damn.
“Paul?” she asked breathlessly, standing. I took in her short dress, the way that the material conformed to her curves and showed off a hefty amount of cleavage. Despite my anger toward her, my cock stirred to life, reminding me that above all else, I was a damn guy. Damn. “Paul Watts?”
I immediately started back peddling, turning around before she reached out, her hand landing on my forearm. A bolt of electricity shot through me and I shook off her touch, not even wanting to think about what it was doing to my cock at the moment.
“Wait,” she said as I headed back to the door I came out of, desperate to get back inside and lose her in the crowd of people in there. “Please, just stop and talk to me.”
I turned, figuring she wasn’t going to leave me alone and I was not going to let her follow me inside and ruin Hannah and Tony’s wedding day. What the hell was she doing here to begin with? Surely, she hadn’t been invited. “I wouldn’t give you the time of day if you were on fire.”
She flinched, her eyes widening and I immediately regretted my words. Maybe I had been a little too harsh. “Listen,” I ground out, anger in my voice. “Why can’t you just leave me the hell alone? Did you follow me today?”
Her eyes narrowed, and she crossed her arms over her chest. I couldn’t help but notice how her full breasts shifted with the movement, a nice swell peeking out from the neckline of her dress. My cock jumped again, and I bit the inside of my cheek to force the attention elsewhere. Hell no. I was not attracted to her. “I’m not following you.”
“Oh yeah?” I asked, laughing. “Really? So you just happen to use the men’s bathrooms all the time, huh?”
She blushed, and I walked away, anger in every bone of my body. I wanted nothing to do with her, nothing at all. Yanking open the door, I walked back into the reception and shut the door firmly behind me, hoping that she wouldn’t be stupid enough to follow me in. Damn. Not what I wanted to deal with today.
“Hey, dude, what’s wrong with you? Looks like someone crawled up your ass.”
I turned to see Benji’s smirking face next to me. “Nothing. An annoyance, nothing more.”
Benji didn’t look like he believed me much, but he shrugged and pointed to a group of women in the corner. “Come on then. There’s a shit load of single women who are horny as hell and waiting for us.”
2
Sarah
I stood with my hands on my hips and stared at the closed door, willing it to open. Maybe I had just caught him off guard. Surely he couldn’t be that horribly mean. When the door didn’t open, I sighed and marched away, back through the gate I had found earlier. I hadn’t meant to crash the wedding reception honestly, but it was my best chance of seeing Paul Watts again. Just the thought of the fighter’s name sent a delicious shiver down my spine. When I had approached him weeks ago, he had been dressed in a tank top and shorts, having just stepped out of the Warrior Zone gym. But today, wow, he had been wearing a suit, and I had to remind myself not to get too overheated on the spot. The man was sinful, with his dark hair and amber-colored eyes that seemed to darken when he was upset. And he practically stayed upset with me.
I walked to the corner, and the car pulled up immediately, giving me time to climb in before it pulled away from the curb.
“Any luck Ms. Gilden?”
I looked up at my father’s driver and shook my head. “No such luck Charles. Will you just take me back to the office?”
He frowned. “It’s Saturday, Ms. Gilden. Shouldn’t you go home and enjoy your weekend?”
I pursed my lips. Charles had been in my family for years and was more like a grandfather to me than a chauffeur. He had, for the longest time, pretended to act like the hired help but never could quite get it right. “Fine. Take me home.”
He smirked and turned his attention to his driving, leaving me to stew in the back seat of the town car. I rarely used my father’s car anymore, but had hoped that if I had been able to get
Paul Watts to agree to my proposal, then I could have given him a comfortable ride back to his place as we talked business. Now the idea had seemed ridiculous.
Sighing, I looked out the window at the city I had known and grown up in all my life. I loved Chicago, even in the harshest of winters. My family had been in the windy city for generations, my father a high profile real estate mogul who was contemplating a run for political office this year. Mom was trying to talk him out of it, but I was sure he would win out in the end. For some reason, he was excited about being in politics, which was an easier thought for him now that my older brother, Jarred, was running both the construction and real estate businesses.
Me on the other hand preferred to stay out of the business side of our family’s life altogether. No, my heart lay in helping people, which was why I had taken over the foundation that was one of the many pieces of my family’s legacy. Just this past year, I had been elected to chairwoman, taking over my mother’s spot now that she and dad were supposedly slowing down in their advanced years. Apparently, dad didn’t get the memo.
The car slowed, and I gathered my purse, waiting for Charles to step out so he could hold open the door. While I was capable of opening it myself, Charles was easily offended if I did so and today, frankly I didn’t have the energy to argue with him. “Thanks, Charles,” I said as I climbed out of the car, giving him a grin.
“Anytime, Ms. Gilden,” he responded, tipping his imaginary hat. “Enjoy your weekend.”
I nodded and walked up the stairs to the Greystone that I called home. It wasn’t mine, yet, but I had started to wear down my parents into letting me finally purchase the charming home that had been in our family for a number of years. With its sweeping views of the city from the rooftop terrace to the stone shower that I oh loved so much, this home was the perfect size and comfort. At twenty-six, you would think that they would be happy I was making such an adult sized decision.