He hesitated for less than a second, or maybe she imagined it, but then he plowed forward until he had Reggie against the fence across from her. All she could see from there was Rider’s fantastic back. The wings seemed to spread wider as though he were larger than life. The Enforcer, they called him. She could see how appropriate that was now that she knew him.
•●•
Rider bounced away from one of Reggie’s signature swings and dodged left. He knew he wasn’t at his best. He’d been stiff before he entered the cage and he hadn’t slept well for a week—not since Emily had tipped his world upside down with her announcement that she wouldn’t introduce him to her family. He’d simmered some since last Saturday, but he was still fuming angry that she didn’t trust him.
The last thing he wanted was to confront her tonight. But there she was, filling the entire gym with her cute self. He hadn’t made eye contact, but he didn’t have to. The guys told him she was out there, had been all night.
Instinctively he knew where she was standing while he fought. He could sense her every move without a glance.
Reggie was ready tonight. Usually Rider could take Reggie out faster than he was demonstrating this evening. But Rider was anything but on his game. If he didn’t pull his shit together, and fast, he was going down.
The bell sounded, ending the second round. He made his way toward Byron. He was exhausted and bleary eyed, but he could see Emily inching along the cage out of his peripheral vision.
When he plopped onto his stool and tipped his head back, she was right there. “Rider, you’ve got this. You can do it.”
He couldn’t help but turn her direction.
Her sweet face was right there, inches from him. She gripped the fence with both hands, her fingers curling around the metal squares. Her gorgeous curls framed her face. Her blue eyes seemed deeper than usual, pleading.
Byron wiped sweat away from Rider’s eyes.
She lowered her voice now that she had his attention. “Get him, Rider. I know you can.”
He caved a little. It was so hard not to let her sexy ass lure him in.
She smiled. “I’m sorry. I need you.”
The bell rang. That was all the time he had.
He jerked his gaze away from the imp at the fence to get his head back in the game.
Reggie was already in the center of the cage, jumping with renewed energy.
I don’t think so, buddy. Reggie was a strong contender, but Rider had no interest in letting him get the best of him tonight.
Taking a deep breath, Rider summoned up all his strength and went back into the match with full force. He threw several uppercuts at Reggie, backing him into the fence. They danced around each other for over a minute, each trying to take the other man down with a punch. And then Rider swept out his left foot and knocked Reggie to the ground.
Rider was on him in an instant, straddling Reggie’s torso. While Reggie was stunned from hitting the ground hard, Rider leaned forward, wrapped his arm around Reggie’s neck and went for the choke. He knew the referee was right there, inches away, watching and waiting to call the match. And Rider waited.
Finally it was over, and he was on his feet in triumph.
“The winner is Rider, The Enforcer, Henderson,” the speaker announced. Music to his ears.
As he spun in a circle, waving at his fans, he saw Emily jumping up and down clapping and smiling broadly. But he didn’t acknowledge her. He wasn’t ready. Instead, he made his way through the gate on the other side of the cage and headed for the locker room.
There were only two fights left for the night. Rider intended to hang out in the shower for a good long time. He didn’t know what to say to Emily, and he wasn’t ready to face her. Unless she’d had an about-face concerning going public with her relationship with him, he didn’t want to hear her apologies.
He was totally fucking whipped. The guys told him over and over it would happen one day. He hadn’t believed a word of it.
And here he was, pining over a woman. Emily had proven women were no less of a pain in the ass than he’d always known, but nevertheless, she’d stolen his damn heart, and he couldn’t get it back.
What if she wasn’t ready to go public yet? Hell, what if she was never ready? Could he live with that?
He stripped off his gloves and then his shorts and headed for the shower.
He stepped under the spray before it warmed, not caring and actually enjoying the cool water as it cascaded down his sore shoulders and back. He planted his palms against the wall as he let the water hit him.
What a mess. Emily was still out there. No way would she leave. She was a determined woman. If she wanted to talk to him, she would wait him out.
He grinned. Her determination was one of the things he loved about her.
He squeezed his eyes shut as he visualized her on her knees, driven to please him with a strength no one in their early twenties could demonstrate.
But Emily wasn’t that young. She was thirty-three. And those years gave her the fire behind her eyes he loved so much.
And God how she reacted to him in bed. She was the first woman he’d ever been with that didn’t balk for an instant at how rough he could be. Demanding. Dominant in every way.
Emily took all that and gave back as good as she got.
His cock stiffened as he thought about her on her hands and knees beneath him, rocking into his dick, moaning against the bed, her hands fisted in the sheets.
He was doomed.
So what if she wanted to lay low publicly for a while? He was a patient man. He would show her through his actions he was worthy of introduction to her family and friends. She’d come around, eventually. Give and take.
Rider grabbed the soap with renewed hope. He’d face her when the gym cleared out and he could talk to her calmly without alerting everyone to their disagreement.
He finished his shower and put on his street clothes in slow motion. There was no rush. Everyone else dashed around the locker room, hurrying to get on with their evening.
When Rider thought he was the last man inside, the door opened and shut with a loud snick.
Gage’s voice came from behind. “How long you gonna make her wait, man?” He snickered.
“She still out there?” He knew she was.
“Yep. She’s sitting in Joe’s office learning everything she can from the master.”
Rider rolled his eyes. He’d created a monster. He turned to face Gage. “She seems to enjoy the fights.”
“Dude, she fucking loves watching MMA. I’ve seen her myself. The way she jumps up and down clapping like a kid in a candy shop. And her cheeks turn red as she gets excited. Katy and Jenna say she’s a freak of nature. They’re kidding of course.” Gage sat on the bench across from Rider. “I don’t know what you two fought about last week, but you’ve been brooding ever since. I wouldn’t let that one get away, man. No matter what your policy is on women.”
Rider sighed.
Gage dipped his head and clasped his hands together. “If that were my woman, I’d kneel at her feet and beg her to forgive whatever I’d done or hadn’t done to get back in her good graces.”
“I know. I’m working up the nerve. You’re totally right, Gage.”
Rider’s phone pinged on the bench next to him.
Dave.
“Shit. Hang on.” Rider held up a finger to Gage as he connected. “Hey.”
“Rider, we’re taking Darnel down tonight. In about an hour. You want to be there?”
“Fuck yes, I want to be there.”
“Meet us at the station in fifteen then.”
“I’m on my way.” He flipped the phone shut and lifted his gaze.
Gage’s eyes were wide. “You’re leaving?”
Rider jumped up and grabbed his bag. “No choice. Got called in. Please do me a favor.”
“Anything. I just wish it didn’t involve facing that cute pixie out there and telling her you slipped out the back door without talk
ing to her.”
Rider smirked. “Yep, that’s what I need from you. I totally owe you one.”
“Dude, you owe me way more than one. What do you want me to say?”
“Not just say. Do. She doesn’t have a car. The girls brought her tonight. Rafe told me earlier. Would you take her to my place and let her in? Tell her to wait for me there. I’ll be late.” Rider backed toward the door as he spoke.
Gage sighed heavily. “Sure. Whatever. Go. I’ll handle it.”
Chapter Sixteen
Rider crouched low, wincing at the slight crunch of gravel and weeds beneath his boots. Undoubtedly the sound was minimal, but it seemed like a blaring car alarm when silence was the goal.
The piece of shit mobile home had seen better days, like thirty or forty years ago. The screen door creaked open and slapped closed on the night breeze. The latch likely hadn’t worked for over a decade. Hopefully, the occupant had grown so accustomed to the distraction that it would mask the noise from the dozen or more cops who had the place surrounded.
Rider was glad to be included with the group of officers going along with the FAU, Las Vegas PD’s high-risk Fugitive Apprehension Unit, on this detail. It was a job he was interested in a transfer to, and he’d been taking classes at the academy in preparation. As part of the training, he was included in some of the task force’s plans, and this particular drug dealer was one Rider would be glad to see off the streets.
Rider glanced at Dave, his sergeant, who squatted on the other side of the front door. Henderson, James, and Davis were hunkered behind a beat-up Mustang haphazardly parked in front, and he knew Wicks would also be nearby. Parked was a bit of a stretch, considering the car was older than the mobile home and had no tires. It sat on cinder blocks, and Rider considered the entire hunk worth less than its value as scrap metal.
Surprisingly, and detrimental to their needs, the trailer park had plenty of outside lighting. It was shocking since every lot seemed to host an equally rundown excuse for a home. But the lights meant Dave’s squad of six, including Rider, needed to be careful, and so would the apprehension squad. Since they could see the details of every home, anyone looking out their windows could also see the details of the officers surrounding the area. This meant they couldn’t use the darkness itself as cover.
Another problem, with all these homes so close together, was the issue of stray bullets. Collateral damage and crossfire danger were at the top of their list of concerns. Situation awareness, drilled into them all since the academy, was of utmost importance tonight. It would behoove them to make this arrest as cleanly as possible and avoid any messy altercations.
When grabbing a known drug dealer, “messy” was nearly always unavoidable.
The other members of the FAU were around back, having already taken out the crew of lookouts posted around the area before they could warn Darnel. Darnel was likely to bolt the second he caught wind of the situation. Or attempt to, at least. Unless he could squeeze through the tiny high window of the bathroom, he was fucked. He wouldn’t make it two feet before being tackled to the ground.
Rider glanced back and forth between Henderson and Dave until Henderson nodded and Dave lifted three fingers, lowering them one at a time as their countdown. Dave stood to the side of the door, whipped the screen against the side of the trailer, and banged with a fist on the cheap aluminum that served as the only barrier between him and Darnel.
“Police. Open up,” Dave yelled. At the same time, Henderson ran up next to Rider and smacked the door right by the doorknob with the Thor’s Hammer to batter the door open. Rider flattened himself against the side of the trailer behind Henderson, both hands on his Glock in front of him. A shuffling noise inside the cabin stiffened his stance in readiness. And then someone grumbled out a “fuck.” The damn walls were so thin, any sound leaked out between the cracks. A dog barked nearby. A woman screamed from inside the trailer.
No one approached the door, so Dave peered around the doorframe. “Hands in the air, asshole,” he screamed.
Seemingly every dog on the planet started barking. A man stuck his head out of the front door of the mobile home next door and gasped. Rider let his gaze shift to the guy for less than a second, making sure he wasn’t a threat. The dude, dressed in nothing but briefs, bolted back inside and slammed his door.
Good boy. Stay out of our way.
Henderson leaped forward behind Dave, both men with guns trained on whoever was in the room in front of them. Quickly, they entered the trailer, shouting orders.
Rider squared up with the entrance and took the two steps to the threshold. He took in the scene and grinned, figuring Darnel was extremely unhappy on many different levels right now.
Dave stood over a man and a woman, his gun pointed at the man’s head. The guy matched the pictures Rider had seen of Darnel.
The woman was naked. Darnel wore only jeans and they were pushed down over his buttocks, exposing half his crack, just enough to let his cock hang out. He had clearly been fucking the skinny woman when they’d breached the home.
The woman screamed again, and then started whimpering as she pushed Darnel off her and scrambled to back up on the couch. “What the fuck?” Her hair was blonde, bottle blonde and in need of a touch up, and she looked worn, older than she probably was. No doubt her aged appearance was a product of the lines of coke still spread across the coffee table.
“What the fuck?” Darnel righted himself, tugging his jeans over his now-limp dick.
“Get up. Hands in the air, Darnel.” Dave inched closer.
Henderson scanned the room and two other officers strode down the hallway, calling “Clear!” as they scanned and searched each room to make sure no one else was in the trailer.
Rider glanced in every direction, looking for weapons and finding none. He knew Darnel had an arsenal, but for some reason not even a revolver lay in plain sight tonight. That was very unusual.
The blonde woman crawled over the end of the couch and tugged a throw blanket down to wrap around her body. She looked like she might faint, but she crouched into the corner and made very little sound.
“What the hell? What’s this all about? Why you fuckers bustin’ into my place in the middle of the night messin’ with me? What’d I do wrong?” Darnel held up his hands. He’d managed to pull his jeans over his cock, though the head remained visible without the zipper and button to contain it until Dave gripped Darnel’s neck, forced him to the floor, and shoved him face down on the dirty carpet. “Don’t get up until I tell you to. I don’t want to have to shoot you, Darnel. Now, I can’t believe you’ve got drugs here again,” Dave said with a smirk, and then he chuckled. He nodded at the coke on the coffee table and shook his head. “No, don’t tell me. That’s powdered sugar and you were about to make frosting.”
“Yeah, man. Powdered sugar. That’s right. Now get the fuck out of my house.” Darnel tipped his head to one side, shaking.
“Not tonight, genius.” Dave still held his gun aimed at Darnel’s head.
Henderson tugged his cuffs from his belt with his free hand and approached. “No sudden moves, asshole, or you’ll find yourself in the hospital instead of the county jail.” Henderson put his knee into Darnel’s back and said, “Hands.”
Darnel didn’t move fast enough for Henderson, who quickly yanked the man’s arms behind his back and slapped cuffs on him.
It appeared Darnel was high as a kite. His reactions were slow, and his eyes were bloodshot and glassy.
Rider stepped toward the back of the mobile home to make sure there weren’t any other surprises. There was only one room. He kicked the door open farther, holding his gun in the air. “Anyone back here?” he asked the other officers still checking the room.
Their response was a quick shake of their heads, and other than piles of dirty clothes, an unmade bed with half the mattress exposed, and a dresser threatening to topple over from the weight of every open drawer, Rider saw nothing unusual. He glanced in through the open
bathroom door next. Nothing. “It’s clear back here,” he shouted to the front room. He made his way back to the living room, eyeing the woman balled in the corner. She wore way too much mascara, and it was currently running down her face.
Henderson made his way through the filth to the back door and opened it. “All clear.”
“What’cha fucking arresting me for? I ain’t done nothin’ wrong.” Darnel leaned back against the couch and kicked the coffee table over.
Dave chuckled. “Do you think you can knock that coke on the floor and the evidence will just vanish?”
Rider was sure that was exactly what Darnel was hoping for. Criminals weren’t the sharpest tacks in the box.
The other members of the team came in through the back. They wore gloves and carried trash bags.
“What are you fuckers doin’? You can’t fucking bust into my house and start rummaging through my shit.” Darnel sat up straighter. He looked around as the men opened cabinets and drawers, starting with the kitchen.
“Sure we can.” Dave still held his gun, although it was lowered as he watched Henderson cuff the woman in the corner. He also wrapped the blanket around her more securely after he was sure she was unarmed and non-combative. Dave nodded at her. “You got ID on you?”
She shook her head, scrunching back as though she might be able to escape through the wall.
Darnel complained some more. “You assholes need a search warrant.”
“Nah, that would just ruin some more trees. How about we just go through your shit and see what we find.” Dave smiled.
Rider chuckled. Of course they had a search warrant. They had every sort of warrant necessary. With the mounting evidence, it hadn’t been difficult. But fucking with Darnel was a hoot anyway.
One of the men rummaging through a lower cabinet, stood. “Care to explain this?” He held up a large clear plastic bag filled with smaller bags of white powder and bottles of pills.
“Fuck you.” Darnel was out of comebacks apparently.
“And this?” Another cop across the room had opened a ratty-looking shoebox and held up a bag of money he’d found inside, along with a handgun. He whistled, a long low tone that indicated he’d hit the jackpot.
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