“Ryder,” she said as I moved down to her collarbone. “Ryder,” she insisted.
“What?” I glanced up at her.
“We need to talk.”
“We have less than an hour to be downstairs. Do you really want to talk?”
She nodded. I stared at her, willing her to change her mind, but there was a definite urgency in her gaze. I climbed off the bed, and she swung her legs over the edge to face me.
“What’s going on?”
“Is Leah pregnant?”
“What? How should I—wait, you think it’s mine?” Shit, a million different thoughts just traveled through my brain, but I still hadn’t processed one.
“So she is?”
“No—I mean—I don’t—know.” I stuttered like I was nervous or guilty, and she looked at me suspiciously. I took a deep breath, held her hands in mine, and started over.
“I don’t know if she’s pregnant, and if she is, it’s not mine. Where is all this shit coming from?”
“Leah and your mom cornered me at the hotel.”
“Great… I thought we were over this shit.”
She looked away, then mumbled something I couldn’t understand.
“What?”
She looked up and glared at me. “She said you paid her to get rid of it. She even showed me the check.”
I smiled and shook my head. I knew Lexi was trying to read my reaction to this information, but I couldn’t help but smile at how clever Leah had been. I didn’t realize she would go this far. I pulled Lexi up so she faced me. If she wanted to read my expression, I wasn’t going to cower away.
“Leah is obsessive. She’ll say anything to get you out of the way. You can’t just believe all the bullshit that comes out her mouth. Years ago, when I was an underground fighter, she moved to California to be with me. She was having a hard time, and I felt bad, so I gave her a check so she could stay on her feet. I haven’t slept with her in over four months.”
She tried to pull away, but I held on to her hands.
“And my mom… hates you. She’s usually a little more logical than this, but she’s desperate. She thinks if I’m with you, David has won. I’d be lying if I said David never cared about me. He loved me, and she got to keep the most important thing to him. So now she’ll back the devil up to keep you away from me.”
“But I’m not trying to fix your relationship with David. And I don’t want to come between you and your mother, either. I just want you without all this… drama.”
I cupped her face and pulled her in close.
“You have me, but it will never be easy. Will you be able to live with that?” She looked defeated. I knew this wasn’t the way she wanted things to be, but it’s the circumstance we were stuck with. I pulled her into my arms, and she tucked her head under my chin.
“I never say this, but I’m sort of a famous fighter. There will always be some woman trying to get you out of the way. I just need you to ask first before you let all those doubts take up space in your head. I promise to always be honest with you.”
She pushed back and brushed her fingertips against my cheek. “I’m sorry I doubted you.”
“It’s okay. She did have my signature to back her up. And my mother will probably always give you hell. She’s my mom. I can’t shut her out, but I can shut her down when she tries to hurt you.” I kissed her softly, then looked back into her hazel gaze. “This love will never be easy, but it will always be worth the fight. Even if they managed to tear you away from me, I’d come for you. You’re that piece of happiness I can’t live without.”
I slid my hand under her shirt, and she stiffened.
“The party?” she asked, because she knew if we started we’d never get down there.
“Ty will break the door down if we don’t go. Let’s go shower together. It’ll save time.”
We both knew this would not save time, but it was bound to be a lot of fun. Hot, wet fun.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Alexis
Ryder’s tongue was on me. Oh God, the things he could do with his mouth. He’d pushed me against the shower wall, spread my legs, and slid down to lick me where I ached the most. We had exactly half an hour to be down at Ryder’s after-party, but he was determined to give it to me. He stroked, sucked, and worked my clit until I quivered, begging for the release I knew he could give me. My nipples were tight, painful knots of suppressed need.
He pulled back, and I whimpered. I needed release, and we didn’t have much time. He stood up, pushed his big, beautiful cock at my entrance, and I was elated. Finally, he was going to give me what I really wanted.
He rammed into me, my head hit the tiled wall, and I gulped water as the shower rained down on me. His thrusts were hard, hitting the right spots. He didn’t have to look for it. Ryder always knew how to get me there, and I was arriving in a hurry. Wet skin slapped together as his powerful cock entered me again and again. Inch after inch of hot steel filled me up and made me pant. My reverberated moans echoed in the stall. His groans mingled with them as we made erotic music. Surge after surge of ecstasy took hold of me, picking me up, then throwing me back into it, and then lifting me up again. I felt like I came over and over, my mind too muddled to know when one ended and the next began. Ryder was there with me at the end, finishing with a great cry of release, convulsing as he exploded inside me. He pulled out and we kissed until the water turned cool and the fire was building again in my belly. I wanted to stay in here and do yummy things to his sexy body, but we couldn’t.
I pushed Ryder out of the shower so he could get ready and stayed in to cool off. When I got back into our room, he was fully dressed. He wore a pair of stonewashed jeans, white button-up shirt, a tie, and a dark-gray vest. Ryder wore casual dressy well.
“You look amazing.” I dropped a kiss on his cheek as I passed. He yanked my towel, and I yelped as I attempted to cover myself with my hands. He leaned in to kiss me, but there was a loud barking knock at the door. He grumbled something about stupid parties before he left to answer the door.
When he came back, I’d managed to cover myself with underwear. “Hurry up, Lexi. Ty’s here and we need to get downstairs.”
“Go without me. I’ll be at least another fifteen minutes.” He glanced at his watch, then frowned at me.
“You don’t need that much time. You look amazing already.”
“I have to get dressed, blow-dry my hair, add a little makeup—”
“Fine.” He held up a hand to stop me. “Fifteen minutes, Lexi,” he warned me as he left the room.
I took my time fixing my hair to make it look loose and effortless, which it wasn’t. It was Ryder’s big night, and I wanted to look like I belonged at his side. I slipped into a black, lacy cocktail dress that gave the impression I was nude underneath. It was short, tight, and sexy. Just the look I was going for. I’d just finished stepping into a pair of red stilettos when there was a knock on the door. It was five minutes past the time I’d told Ryder I’d be down. He was so impatient he probably headed back up as soon as he noticed my time was up. I pulled open the door and took a surprised step back.
“What are you doing here, Noah?”
“You look beautiful, Alexis.” His gaze traveled over me.
“Are you one of Ryder’s friends?” This could actually get really awkward, extremely quick.
“I’m not.”
“Oh… okay.”
His expression was weird, and his being in our room was making me nervous. I was running late, so if Ryder caught him up here and found out our connection, it wouldn’t be pretty.
“We need to talk.” He pushed his way into the room, shutting the door and blocking my exit.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea to talk up here. Let’s go down to the party and talk there.”
“Why? Will your boyfriend be mad?” He stood in front of me, his hands in the pockets of his jeans. His stance was alarming. I wasn’t a master at body language, but I knew he wasn’t here for small talk. I st
epped back, scanning the room for the closest exit.
“How’d you get up here?”
He shrugged. “Followed you from the fight. With the party going on, no one questioned me.”
“There are a lot of people downstairs.” Maybe if he remembered there was a house full of people here, he wouldn’t do anything stupid.
“You know, I thought you were different. I’d watch you at the bar. You never let any man buy you drinks or take you home. I thought you were a good girl. Did all the attention make you feel good, Lexi? You hid who you were really well.”
“It wasn’t like that, Noah. I never lied to you.” He moved quickly, grabbing hold of my arm and yanking me toward him. I startled, trying to pull back, but his hold was firm.
“But you are a liar. You’re nothing but a fucking whore.” He hissed. I tried to pull my arm away, but he held me tighter.
“A year and a half I waited for you to see that not all guys are bad. If you would’ve just given me a chance, I could’ve made you happy.”
“I never lied to you. I told you I wasn’t looking for a boyfriend.”
“That’s because the only person you’d ever been with was Logan. I wanted to show you that I could be good for you, but I fell in love with a whore… again. You made me believe you were different, that you didn’t sleep around like the other girls at the bar.”
“I don’t.”
“Then why are you whoring yourself to that fighter?” he screamed. I flinched, pulling my head back as he got in my face.
“What was I to you, Lexi? A game?”
I shook my head. At this point, I was too scared to respond anymore.
“Well, I’m so tired of girls like you.” He released me, gripping his forehead in his palms like he had a headache.
“You, my mother, Hannah—all whores.” One of his hands wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer, while the other laced into my hair and yanked my head back. I saw his intent and there was no way I was going to kiss him. He drew my head closer until his lips were at my ear. “You made me love you. You owe me.”
He moved his hand over my ass, down to my thigh. I tried to think rationally. I didn’t want to make a move to escape and fail. There was no way I was getting to the door. The music from the party was playing loudly. No one would hear me scream, but the party was in the courtyard, right outside our terrace. If I made it there, I’d be able to call out for help.
I was resisting, and he didn’t like it. He tried to pry his fingers between my thighs, but I pressed them together tightly.
“Spread your legs, whore, and let me give it to you the way I should’ve in the beginning.” He yanked my hair harder. It burned so badly my eyes watered. I relaxed my body and let him slip his hands between my legs.
“That’s right, you bitch. Be a whore and beg me to fuck you.” I had to play this smart or I’d get hurt.
“Yes, I’m a whore.” It didn’t even sound convincing, but I had to try. “I want to be your whore.”
He narrowed his eyes. “That’s a good girl. Do as I say, and maybe I’ll forgive you for whoring yourself to that douchebag.”
“Anything, I’ll do anything.” I was going to gag. I couldn’t believe this was the same man I’d enjoyed being with. He was a monster. No traces of the Noah I knew were left. His hold in my hair loosened slightly, and I stepped back. It was what I’d been waiting for. I lifted my leg swiftly, kneeing him in the groin.
His hold dropped, and I took off. I slid open the doors to the terrace. We were only three floors up; someone would hear me call out. I screamed at the top of my lungs. His hands pushed against my back. He was strong and knocked the wind out of me. I stumbled on my heels as I looked over my shoulder at Noah. I tried to hold on to the railing, but the force of the push was too much. All I felt was open air. I hit my arm hard on the concrete overhang as I fell, and the pain prohibited my ability to reach out and grasp anything. I was suddenly free-falling into oblivion.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Ryder
I was moving through the party on auto-pilot. A lot of promoters were here, and Ty wouldn’t have let me miss it. But all I could think about was Alexis and how much I wanted to spend the night alone with her. Ty was trying to pull me into small talk with some of our sponsors, but all I managed to do was mumble or nod. Mostly because I wasn’t paying attention to anything anyone in the small group gathered around me was saying.
What is taking Lexi so long?
I noticed Leah and my mother exit the house and step out onto the patio. I excused myself, went straight over to them, and pulled them off to the side.
“Are you out of your fucking mind?” I shouted at Leah. “I haven’t touched you in over four months.”
“And you…” I turned on my mother. “You actually believe I’d pay her to do that? Do you even know me?”
“Since you’ve been with her, you’ve changed.”
“I gave her the check because she was having a hard time, and I felt guilty. Worst mistake I ever made.” I cut my eyes back to Leah, my anger steadily on the rise.
“Leah?” My mother turned to Leah, but she wouldn’t meet her questioning gaze. “Look at me, Leah.” She did.
“Did he pay you to get rid of the baby?”
Leah was tense, eyes glistening, then her shoulders slumped as she sighed.
“No.” She closed her eyes, and a tear spilled with the motion. When she opened them, she quickly wiped away the moisture and looked at my mother.
“It’s not fair how she can just walk in and take everything that was supposed to be mine. I know you understand how I feel. I just wanted to hurt her, and she wasn’t going to believe me without your help.”
“Oh, Leah… I trusted you. You made me doubt my own son.”
“I know, but I had to do something. Look.” She pointed across the room. “She even got him to forgive his father.” My mother looked over to where David stood nursing his drink, and sucked in a breath. She looked to me with disappointment and hurt in her eyes.
“I haven’t forgiven anyone.”
“Then what is he doing here?” my mother asked.
“I don’t know, and I don’t care. What I need to know is if you’re on my side or not.”
“I’m always on your side.”
“So stop pushing me over the edge.”
“I shouldn’t have come here.” She glanced back at David, all of a sudden looking skittish and vulnerable. She hadn’t seen David in years, and this appeared to be a shock to her system.
Just as the tension began mounting between her and David, someone screamed loudly, catching everyone’s attention. The scream pierced through the loud music blasting through the speakers and the chatter from the crowd. I caught a quick glimpse of something falling from above—no, someone falling.
Long, dark hair.
Black dress.
Water splashed heavily from the pool as she plummeted into it. David and I glanced at each other, and a sense of déjà vu came over me. My world tilted off its axis. The dread that filled my chest was immediate and consuming.
Three seconds.
That’s how long it took for my body to catch up to what my brain had already registered. Someone had fallen from my terrace. I didn’t need to see her face to know Alexis was at the bottom of the pool. David and I raced to the pool and dived in, highly aware that this time I might not be able to save her. I reached her quickly, wrapped my arms around her waist, and pulled her up to the surface.
Ty was at the edge, pulling her from the water, as David and I climbed out. By the time I got to her side, she was laid out on the cold concrete. She was limp and appeared lifeless, her arm angled awkwardly. I cradled her against my body, pulling her wet hair from her face. My hand came away wet with more than water. She was bleeding. I searched her head for a cut or gash but couldn’t find where the blood was coming from.
Ty pulled at my arm and yelled at me to lay her down, but I didn’t give a fuck. I needed to hold her.
I needed to make her wake up. I knew she would do it for me. She had before. There was so much I hadn’t said. So much we hadn’t done.
My hands trembled as I held her. My heartfelt weighted down in my chest. My vision was blurry as my eyes stung, but I couldn’t have been crying. I never cried.
I never understood why Lexi had gone into that ocean years ago, but as I held her in my arms, I knew I’d follow her anywhere on this earth and beyond.
~*~*~
I’d blacked out, completely lost my shit after pulling Alexis from the pool. I’d reacted out of shock and adrenaline, not logic. I should’ve known moving her around wasn’t safe. I should’ve known she may have needed CPR. But seeing her lying on the cold ground caused me to lose all sense of sanity.
Ty told me I had to be sedated, but I didn’t remember any of the events leading up to it. Apparently, after I pulled her into my arms, I wouldn’t let anyone touch her. The paramedics were afraid I’d cause more damage with the way I had been moving her, so when no one could tear me away from her, they stuck a needle into my neck.
It was the longest four hours of my life. I paced the waiting room and halls of the hospital for hours before anyone gave us any news. Ty and I were anxious when the doctor came out. “Are you Alexis Cole’s family?” he’d asked.
“I’m her brother.” It felt wrong saying that, but he wouldn’t have told me shit if I said was her boyfriend.
“Miss Cole lost a lot of blood. With the permission of her mother, we’ve given her a transfusion. It seems she may have hit her head on the edge of the pool during the fall. We’ve sutured the gash on her head and put a cast on her broken arm.”
“Can I see her?”
“Yes. She’s stable but hasn’t woken up as of yet. See the nurse in an hour, and she’ll direct you to her room.” I watched as he disappeared through the double doors, tempted to follow him and see for myself that she was okay. Ty tapped my arm and snapped me out of my thoughts before I acted them out.
“Let’s go down to the cafeteria and get something to eat.”
I didn’t want to go, but I knew if I refused, he’d stay up there with me. He wouldn’t leave my side until he knew I was okay, and that included making sure I ate something and functioned normally.
Fight for Me Page 20
