Reckless: A Bad Boy MMA Fighter Romance (Warrior Zone Fighters Book 3)

by Tia Lewis

“Scorpion! Wow, I can’t believe you are here.”

  I looked from Sarah to see a tall man with salt and pepper hair approaching, a woman who looked like Sarah following close on his heels. This must be her father. I had to play nice. “Paul Watts,” I said, sticking out my hand.

  He shook my hand enthusiastically, a smile on his face. “Man, I can’t tell you how glad I am you have agreed to help out with Sarah’s charity event. Those things mean the world to her and she only wanted the best.” He then leaned forward with a chuckle. “And I hope you will take it easy on my son. He thinks he’s a fighter.”

  I kept the smile on my face, but my insides were damn churning. Now, I was going to have to take it easy? Fucking great.

  “I’m Mary Gilden,” the petite woman said as she stood by her husband’s side. “Welcome to our home. We are out on the patio.”

  “Nice to meet you,” I said as Sarah came to stand beside me. She didn’t touch me, which I was glad for. I didn’t want her parents seeing anything more than what was supposed to be here. Her mom smiled and embraced her daughter, linking arms with her and moving the crowd out back, the yard bigger than both my and my mom’s apartment combined. There were other people there, all mingling around the yard with drinks in their hands.

  “Beer?” Sarah’s father asked as we walked outside.

  “Um, yeah that would be great.”

  He signaled someone in the corner and then turned back to me. “Jack. Come here and meet Scorpion.”

  Shit. Another issue. “We already met.”

  I gave him a look as the older man laughed, clapping me on the back. “He’s going to make Sarah’s charity event a winner.”

  “Well, we are all proud of Sarah,” Jack said, giving me a look in return. “I just hope Jarred isn’t going to get seriously injured in this hair brained idea of his.”

  “It will all be just fine,” the older man said. “Excuse me for a moment gentlemen.”

  He walked off, and I was left with the man who thought he was my brother and hell, probably was. “I read your paper.”

  “Sarah talked to you then?” he asked, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I think I’m right on this.”

  “What the hell do you want?” I asked darkly, knowing that there was going to be something to come out of this. “We haven’t said anything all these years, and we don’t plan to now.”

  “I’m not going to blackmail you,” he said angrily. “I just, I want—”

  “What?” I said angrily. “A relationship? A good, warm fuzzy ending?” Stepping closer, I looked him straight in the eye. “It’s not gonna happen dude. I have a brother. I don’t need another one.”

  I ignored the hurt that appeared in his eyes, steeling myself against any fuzzy feelings. I didn’t need him. My mom didn’t need his dad’s money any more. We could do just fine on our own.

  “Why are you being such an asshole about this? Do you know what I could provide for you and your family?”

  I punched him before I realized what I had done, watching in slow motion as he stumbled back and sent a tray of drinks flying into the air. I was tired of people telling me what I could and could not do. The gasps were like bombs in my ears as I turned and walked back in the direction I came, feeling damn good about hitting that fucker. I didn’t need his fucking help. I was doing just fine on my own. He couldn’t just throw money my way and assume I was going to take it.

  She caught up with me as I was opening the driver side door. “What was that all about?”

  I turned and ran a hand through my hair roughly. “I don’t like the fucker. Stay away from him.”

  She grabbed my arm, her eyes holding more than just anger in their depths. “What did he say?”

  I shook off her touch, mainly because I couldn’t think when she touched me nowadays. “It doesn’t matter, Sarah. Go back to your party.”

  “Paul, talk to me.”

  “I don’t have to talk to anyone.”

  “Why are you acting like this?” she asked as I climbed into the driver’s seat, grabbing a hold of the door so I couldn’t shut it. “Are you not going to tell me anything?”

  I looked up at her, my damn chest aching as I drank in this sight. “I’m done, Sarah. After the fight, I’m out.”

  Her eyes widened, and she looked like I had just kicked a wounded puppy. Damnit to hell. I didn’t want to do this anymore. “Done?”

  I growled. “Done with this, done with us. Done with everything. What part don’t you understand?” I was being harsh, but I wanted her to hate me so this would be easier. “Let me go.”

  She stepped back, and I shut the door, cranking the engine and finding a hole that I could squeeze my car through, leaving her standing on the driveway. I was done, no matter how much it hurt. I wasn’t part of this family, this world and never would be.

  24

  Sarah

  I straightened the last chair before pulling back to look at it with a critical eye, satisfied that it was lined up. I had only moved it ten times in the last hour, but it gave me something to do, kept my mind off of the fact that I was going to see Paul today. It had been three days since he had driven away from my parent’s house, leaving me to deal with the aftermath. Jack had been more hurt than furious, my parents in shock at the display of violence, now worried that Jarred was going to be killed in the cage, and my brother trying to tell me that he had told me so and how he was going to show everyone that he could beat Paul. He had said he was done with such finality that I knew he meant it. I still didn’t understand why and I was not going to let him leave today without telling me just that. If he didn’t want to sleep with me anymore, well, that was fine, but he owed me a reason why.

  With a sigh, I sat back in the chair I had just vacated and looked at the clock. I had fifteen minutes before the press would be here, then ultimately Paul. Today was the last ditch effort to sell out the charity match. With three days left, I didn’t have much longer to make it happen, but we were so close to doing so that I couldn’t very well ignore this press conference just because some fighter had broken my heart.

  And he had. That night, laying in my big bed by myself, I realized Paul had broken my heart into a million pieces. I shouldn’t have slept with him. I shouldn’t have fallen in love with him.

  The door opened, and the object of my thoughts walked in, his eyes hidden behind his sunglasses. He was dressed casually, a button down shirt unbuttoned at the collar and a pair of jeans that made my heart hurt just looking at him. He was gorgeous and no longer mine. I sucked up my tears and put on my professional face. “Paul.”

  He peeled off the sunglasses, and I was at least glad to see the exhaustion in his eyes, the dark circles hard to miss. “Sarah.”

  I cleared my throat. “Everything’s ready for the conference. All you have to do is get people to come to the match.”

  “Sarah, we need to talk.”

  “Make sure you talk up the nearly sold out piece. I think it will get people moving today and we should be able to sell out by tonight.”

  “Sarah.”

  I turned, wrapping my arms around my body protectively. “What?”

  He tucked his sunglasses into his pocket, his arms hanging loosely at his sides. “Tell your family I apologize for my actions the other night.”

  I waited for the rest, but he just looked at me under his damn intense gaze, waiting for me to acknowledge his apology. Well, he could take his apology and shove it up his ass. “That’s it?”

  He opened his mouth to say something before shutting it back. “Yeah, that’s it.”

  I took one step toward him, my anger and frustration about to boil over. “I’m not going to let this go until you tell me why.”

  “There’s nothing to say.”

  “That’s BS, and you know it,” I shot back, the hurt nearly unbearable. “Was it something I did or said?”

  He clenched his jaw tightly, looking as if he was wrestling with what he was going to say. I just wanted the tru
th, however, gut-wrenching it might be.

  “I was only in it for the money.”

  Ouch. That was a blow I did not see coming. After seeing his lifestyle, meeting his brother and hearing about the cancer, I knew that the money probably played a huge role in him accepting in the first place. I had made some calls during my two days, finding out that Matt’s cancer diagnosis was a candidate for an experimental, expensive drug that I knew was more than Paul or his family had. In fact, I had moved Matt up to the top of our donation list, knowing that I was going to pay for whatever wasn’t covered out of my own pocket. But I had kinda hoped he had moved past just the money when he had slept with me. “I don’t believe you.”

  “Well, you should. I’m telling you, Sarah, we had our fun, but I’m only after the money now.”

  My heart did a spiral to my feet, nausea rising in my throat. The way he said it, it was so final. “Wow, I never thought you would be so cold-hearted.”

  Something crossed over his face before he settled right back into his unfeeling expression. “Well, darling you should have known what you were getting yourself into with me. I’m nothing but a fighter. Always have been, always will be.”

  I laughed harshly, feeling sick. “And to think I thought, I was falling in love with you.”

  His expression did change then, but I turned away as the press started to file into the small room, glad for the distraction. I stood in the wings of the room as Paul gave his performance, grinning and laughing with the press while I was dying on the inside. He didn’t care about me. I had been a horrible judge of character with this one. He had gotten what he wanted and now he would get my money as well before he would move on and I would be left with a broken heart. My family, including my sister, had checked in on me, their faces telling me all I needed to know. I had messed up, just this time it was with my heart.

  The conference ended, and I walked out, thanking the reporters for coming and watching Paul out of the corner of my eye the entire time. Finally, it was just the two of us left.

  “I’ll be at the convention center early that night,” he said, his voice harsh to my ears. “The guys have the banner ready as well.”

  “I’ll have someone pick it up then,” I said, finding the words to squeeze past the lump in my throat. “And your money will be deposited the next morning.”

  He turned to go, and I waited for him to turn around, to say he was all wrong about this and that he wanted to take back his words. When he didn’t, I cleared my throat. “Don’t hurt my brother.”

  He gave a torturous laugh. “He should have thought of that before he signed up.”

  His voice was harsh, and the first tear fell when I heard his footsteps walk away, solidifying everything he had said. He was done.

  25

  Paul

  I stared at the TV, not sure exactly what I was looking at and didn’t really care. After leaving the press conference, I had gone to the gym and worked my ass off in the cage, preparing for the fight so I wouldn’t embarrass myself or the guys at the gym. That and I wanted to forget. It hadn’t worked.

  Turning off the TV with the remote, I leaned back on the couch, ignoring the fact that I could still smell Sarah in the fabric. I was being a cold-hearted son of a bitch and hated every minute of it. The nail in the coffin for me had been when she had made the statement about falling in love with me. Me. Paul Watts, gutter trash who was never going to amount to nothing. Paul Watts, who came with more baggage and bad attitude than he cared to admit. She had fallen in love with me.

  “You’re a fucking idiot,” I told myself. I had broken her heart. It was written all over her face and at the end of the conference, I contemplated taking her by the waist and apologizing, begging her to give me another chance. I had wanted this until she had told me what I thought all along in my own shriveled up heart. Hell, I was half in love with her, too.

  And it wasn’t just that. I had another brother who I had decked for no reason, one that had wanted to connect with me, yet I was too proud and stubborn to appreciate it. I had thought a few times how I should call Jack, apologize for hitting him and at least hear what he had to say. I just didn’t know how to do it. I didn’t know how to be nice.

  Idly, I thought about Tony and Travis, both who had found women that were too good for them as well. They seemed unconcerned with where they had come from, though both had more money than I did. I hadn’t been smart enough to save my money like they had and what I did have saved had been blown in Matt’s treatments.

  But even if I had money, it still didn’t discount the fact that I was who I was. My cell rang, and I grabbed it immediately, half hoping it was her, even if she was going to cuss me out. She would still be thinking about me at that point.

  “Hello?”

  “Mr. Watts, this is Jenny from Dr. Gaines office.”

  Shit. I owed them money. Matt had done his first experimental treatment yesterday, and I was due for another five grand in two days. “Hey, yeah I’m sorry. I’ll get you the money today.”

  “What? No, Mr. Watts, I’m calling to tell you that you are paid up full for all of Matthew’s treatments. We just were wondering if you wanted to send the receipt to your mother’s address or yours.”

  “What?” I asked, blood rushing in my head. “Paid up?”

  “Yes, sir,” she answered slowly. “It was paid this morning.”

  I hung up before she had a chance to tell me anything else, rubbing a hand over my face. I hadn’t paid a dime since the first treatment, and unless my mom had hit the lottery without telling me, she didn’t have that kind of money just laying around. Tears clogged my throat, and I forced them back, unable to believe that Matt was going to be able to have his treatments without interruption. I wouldn’t have to worry about where the next amount was going to come from now. It was like a damn miracle, but I knew better.

  A thought hit me, and I swore, pushing off the couch. There was only one person who had that kind of money and would be generous without fault. And I had pushed her away. She had just given me the best damn gift anyone could give me this morning, and I told her I was only after her money sometime shortly after. Even after everything I had said and done, she had made that phone call. Was it hope on her part? I knew better to know that Sarah hadn't done it for attention. She had done it out of the kindness of her heart. I was a fucking idiot. I had just pushed away the best damn thing that had happened to me my entire life because I was an idiot. This was far beyond the money or paying for Matt’s treatments. She didn’t know Matt from any other kid in Chicago, but she had seen the one thing I couldn’t live without. Well, until her. She was now part of that small circle, and I was going to have to live without her. The thought made me ill. She was this hole that was in my chest. She was this ache that I couldn’t make go away no matter how hard I tried.

  I reached over and grabbed my keys and wallet, walking out of the apartment. I would head over to Ma's and tell them the good news. There would likely be questions, but I wasn’t so sure I could answer them. I had screwed up. There wasn’t much explanation after that. Now, I had to decide if I wanted to fill this gap in my life that Sarah had stepped into and throw caution to the wind. Right now, I felt as if I couldn’t live without her. I couldn’t breathe right without her.

  26

  Sarah

  “Darling is there something wrong with your lasagna?”

  I poked at my mom’s homemade dinner, one of the few dishes she enjoyed making. Every Thursday night the entire family got together for a meal. I looked forward to it, being able to see my siblings and my parents and take a break from the busy week. But I had too much to do before tomorrow night when Paul would go into the cage, and I would have my charity event in the books. So why didn’t I feel excited about it? “No mom, it’s fine.”

  “Leave her alone Mary,” dad said, giving me a wink. “That’s a great mind thinking right now.”

  I gave him a weak smile, catching the eye of my sister in the process.
Her face was full of worry, no doubt pointed to my pathetic love life, but I was grateful I had been able to cry on her shoulder about the entire thing. Slowly I was getting used to the fact that I had been used and abandoned, wishing that it just didn’t hurt so much.

  Unable to take it anymore, I pushed back my chair and walked outside in the cool night, the stars like thousands of dots along the black sky. A part of me wished that I had never settled on Paul Watts, avoiding him like the plague and kept the business strictly professional. Another part wished that I hadn’t told him I loved him, even though I did feel it. I still felt it. That was probably the roughest part to know he was one of the first guys I had ever loved outside my family and had gotten burned in a matter of days.

  “Sarah? You okay?”

  I turned to see Jarred in the distance, wiping my eyes with the backs of my hands. “Yeah, I’m fine, Jarred. Just needed some fresh air.”

  He looked like he didn’t believe me and I couldn’t blame him. It was a weak excuse. “I wish you would talk to me, sis.”

  “I’m worried about you,” I blurted out, determined to keep my emotions in check about Paul. “What if you get seriously injured?”

  “Then I will accept it,” Jarred replied evenly, crossing his arms over his chest. “I did this. I decided to do this Sarah, and I’m not going to change my mind because your boyfriend can’t hold his temper.”

  I laughed. “He’s not my boyfriend.” He wanted nothing to do with me.

  Jarred shrugged. “Could have fooled me. I know mom’s lasagna isn’t all that great, but you were looking at it like it was shit on a plate.”

  I sighed. “Just don’t hurt him and don’t get killed.”

  He cracked his knuckles, giving me a grin. “I should hurt him for hurting you, Sarah.”

  I gave a little shrug, not particularly looking forward to the fight now. “At least I will have more money for the charity if you lose.”