Inside Danger (Outside The Ropes Book 2) (14 page)

“Nothing really. I guess I just was used to the other one.” I shrugged and added low, “But nothing’s the same anymore.”

He cupped my chin with his hands and it took all my energy to let him move my head so I was looking up at him. I clasped my hands together to keep them still.

“I don’t want you unhappy here. I know things are hard, but know that I can help you.”

I held my breath as he leaned in closer, his hot lips pressed to my forehead briefly. Then he stood up and relief washed over me.

He stood looking down on me, waiting for me to respond I guess.

I rubbed my hands over the slippery smooth material of my pants and stood up to meet him. “Thank you.” I somewhat meant it.

He nodded, spark back in his eyes. Then he turned and walked out of the room; the front door opened and closed seconds later.

I took a shower to wash away my sweat and his touch, but also to think over a strategy. If I threw this fight and did horrible, Rusnak said he would come up with a new deal. Was that a risk I should take?

My phone rang while I was brushing my wet hair. Gage’s name on the screen froze me, that hadn’t happened since before everything went down a month ago.

“Hello,” I answered, voice barely a whisper as I strained to talk.

“Regan, we’re parked out front of your building. Come down now,” his cold, hard tone burst any hope I held for his reasons of calling.

I nodded and hung up the phone.

The callback was immediate. He wouldn’t have seen my nod over the phone.

I picked up and said, “I’m coming down now.” Then I hung up again.

After throwing on worn jeans, t-shirt, and a hoody, I pulled my wet hair back into a low ponytail.

Pausing by the bed, I opened the case and pulled out the gun. The heavy weight of it still surprised me for the size. I slid the magazine into the handle and tucked it into my large hoody pocket before walking out the door.

Gage was leaning on the passenger side of a dark Cadillac as I stepped out of the building. He wore a leather jacket over a hoody with the hood pulled up over his head. The sky was spitting an icy rain and the wind held the same icy feel. The brief flash in his eyes as they met mine made me forget the cold. But then he pushed off the car and opened the back door, not looking at me. And the bone deep chill was back.

I took quick strides to the car and slid in the back. Nick turned to me from the driver’s seat, dark eyes sucking any residual warmth from Gage’s brief gaze.

After Gage was seated in the passenger seat, Nick pulled off. “We’re going to park and talk.”

We all stayed silent, tension thick in the air until he pulled into a nearby parking garage and parked at the top. He shut off the engine but his hands still gripped the steering wheel, knuckles white with tension.

Gage twisted in his seat to face me, hood pulled down now. His light brown hair was a mess. “Your fight this Friday, you need to win in the sixth round. Do you understand?”

“No one’s really betting on it though, right?” I questioned with the same detached tone that Gage had used.

“Ya fuckin’ know that already.” Nick grumbled from the front and turned to glare at me. “Do ya not listen when I talk to ya? Or are ya that fuckin’ stupid? I told ya I would give ya the information about this, but ya had to go whine—”

“Enough.” Gage stopped his verbal onslaught with the one word and then turned back to me. “There will be bets on you winning, but not on the round, not this time. But you need to win in the sixth to show you can. It’s still important you do this as if there was a bet.” His eyes widened at me, trying to press the point.

I stared back, but kept all emotions buried. My hands were in my hoody, gripping my gun, grounding me in reality so I wouldn’t get lost in his intense stare. At my nod, he surprised me by throwing open the door and getting out of the car.

When the door shut, Nick was back to glaring. “Ya can’t be so stupid that ya think ya got any power here. Anatoli may talk to ya, but that don’t mean shit. So don’t fuck this up.”

I barely paid attention to him as I watched Gage jog around the car to the back door opposite me. Besides, Nick was wrong, he was flustered because I had a little power now. They were here talking to me because of my conversation with Rusnak.

“The hell are ya doing?” Nick questioned as Gage slid into the seat next to me.

Gage didn’t look away from me as he answered, “I need to give her some tips and turning in that damn seat was annoying as fuck.” His knee nearly touched mine, and the slight, almost touch was both comforting and straining.

“She’s strong so you need to keep pounding away at her from the start. Don’t wait till the sixth round; you’re going to need those rounds and the points. The sixth is the last round, so even if you don’t knock her out, if you win overall by points that still counts as a win in the sixth. But try to knock her out, it’ll help your rank and make future fights worth more.”

I nodded, absorbing every last word and comparing it to Rusnak’s promise. “How many more fights will I have to do this with? How long till I can be done?”

Gage ran his palms along his legs and then gripped his knees; the knuckles on his right hand grazed my left knee. That small touch took up too much of my attention, I shifted away from him.

His eyes followed the movement of my legs as I pulled them away. “If you play this right it could be as little as two more fights. And that could be done in two months.”

“But from now on ya talk to me about this, ya don’t go to Anatoli. I’m in charge of this.”

Gage’s eyes were drilling a whole into Nick’s head, but he stayed tightlipped.

My fingers traced the trigger of the gun in my pocket, giving me strength and making me sick at the same time. “What about your end of things then?”

“I thought ya didn’t want him killed anymore?” Nick’s smile was patronizing.

“I didn’t, but if you’re not letting me out then you should stick to your side of things.” And at the moment I didn’t care if Nick was the next one to end up dead.

Gage’s chest rumbled with a low growl and his fingers flicked slightly, I think in warning to me but I ignored him. He needed to speak up if he had something to say.

I was at the end of my ropes and was done silencing myself. I needed to be direct if I wanted to understand what was going on. “So what’s that timeline? How long till that part’s done?”

Gage narrowed his eyes at me. He wasn’t impressed with this new tactic of mine. Too damn bad. He may have been involved in it all, but he didn’t control any of it.

“I’m not fucking telling ya anything about that. I’ll let ya know when it’s done and that’s it. Shit’s not gonna go down the same way.” Nick turned the key in the ignition. “Get back in the front seat. We’re going.”

Gage looked to me one last time and squeezed my thigh on his way out. The gesture surprised me, but I didn’t allow myself space to think about it.

The next morning, I was met with another surprise as I walked into the gym to meet Kyle for our morning training.

Dexter was next to him, talking animatedly with a large smile as Kyle laughed at whatever he said. They both turned to me as I approached. Dexter was in gym shorts and a tee that had the words ‘Blame Me’ written across it in bold letters. And despite my agitation, I had to smile at it and the welcoming grin he directed at me.

I walked into his hug. I had missed his funny presence but knew this wasn’t right.

Pulling away from him, I questioned, “What are you doing here?”

“I’m on spring break and was told you needed a corner man for your fight.” He put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me to him. “I’m here for you.”

“WHO TOLD YOU THAT?” I QUESTIONED DEXTER.

Leaning away from him, I looked up at his face. His nose had a slight bend to it now, but the imperfection somehow only made him more attractive, less cute but more man. It also reminded me that he was meant to stay away.

“Silas.” He shrugged like it was no big deal.

“What about your brother?” I didn’t even want to say his name, but my heart still squeezed just mentioning him. “I thought you weren’t boxing anymore.”

Kyle clasped his hand on Dexter’s shoulder. “Looks like I win.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “What are you talking about?”

Dexter laughed and raised his hands in a calming gesture. “I told him you’d be happy to see me.” He turned to the beefy blonde and gestured to me. “I didn’t lose. This is Rea happy.”

I rolled my eyes. “Shut up. Kyle, I’ll be ready in a minute. I need to talk to Dexter first.”

“Sure thing, Terminator.” Kyle pushed his hair back from his forehead and I wanted to punch him in his thick throat for using that stupid nickname.

Dexter’s lip twitched. “Terminator? Really? Sarah Connor maybe, but you can’t go giving Rea nicknames. It won’t fly.”

My frustration from their banter was growing. Impatient, I grabbed Dexter’s shirt and pulled him away, ignoring Kyle.

“Seriously Dex, what are you doing here?” I questioned once we were somewhat removed from others.

Dexter leaned on the large weight machine that we were talking behind. “I told you. I’m here to be your corner man this Friday. Silas told me that they wanted me to and I wanted to see you anyways, so here I am.”

“Whose they? What about your brother?” I had a small hope that maybe Gage had sent his brother. It was a perverse happiness since I didn’t want Dexter involved, but I wanted to see action from Gage.

He threw one hand up. “They. You know, they. Whoever they are. The powers that be.” He gave me a side look as his lip curled. “And my brother? I told him and he said all right. He was all over my case, but he’s let up some now.” He kicked his foot at mine lightly and crossed his arms. “What about you. You mad… or nah?” He gave me his best innocent smile.

I shook my head and let out air. I hated to admit I was happy to see him, but he was always a good training partner and motivator.

“Let’s focus on the fight.” I started back to where Kyle stood. “Does this mean you’re back to boxing, too?”

“Nah, not yet. Maybe in the future, but it was always just for fun for me anyways. And now with Gage on the rise, I’m fine with helping him and focusing on school.” He kept pace beside me.

“Is he even training still?” I didn’t know what he knew, but boxing seemed a safe topic.

“Yeah, of course. But he’s got four months till his next fight. At his stage in the game, fights don’t come quick.”

“Oh.” In four months, I’d be out but he wouldn’t be. He already said he was in for life now.

The sun was beginning to set as I came back to the apartment on Thursday night, but I was ready to crash in bed. That had been my routine all week, early to bed, early to rise. It worked for me, especially since Kiera was typically on the opposite schedule.

I trained every morning with Dexter, spent the afternoons at the shooting range, and applied to different businesses and restaurants. If I was going to be here for at least two more months, I needed money, money that didn’t come from Rusnak. I’d also found a health clinic to get my birth control shot; I didn’t need any more complications.

Before going to my room I stopped in the kitchen to grab my typical evening snack of an apple and almond butter. It was a bit of a miracle that I was able to keep up this clean eating. But I’d been left alone this week and that made it easier, and I felt better for it.

Kiera sat at the table and pulled a wine bottle away from her already red stained lips. Her red hair was a tangled mess, and her eyes were blood shot as she glared at me.

I was used to a drunk Kiera and her angry looks never fazed me. I ignored her, like always.

She pointed at me with the wine bottle, voice abnormally whiney. “Were you just with him?”

“No, I wasn’t.” I continued to cut my apple into wedges.

“How many times have you been with him this week?” She stood up from her chair, wobbly on her feet. “Because I haven’t seen him at all and I know that’s because he’s replacing me with you.” She was near tears but I had no sympathy.

I transferred my apple onto a small plate and then turned to her with a sigh. “Kiera, I haven’t seen him since Sunday. Get it together, he’s not worth this.” I gestured to her sloppy state.

Her face twisted as the tears began. “See, you don’t even know how great he is. He’s going to regret doing this to me. He can’t put me to the side, I know too much. He won’t answer my texts, so you be sure to tell him. I know he’s more than just a businessman, he better start remembering me or—”

“Shut up.” I stepped towards her, an unexpected concern taking control. “Don’t say anymore. Don’t tell me anymore. Don’t tell that to anyone and for the love of God, do not threaten him with that.” This girl was unhinged if she thought blackmailing him would get her anywhere good.

She sniffled, but her glassy eyes seemed to register the advice in my words for a moment. But then she took another swig of her wine bottle and tossed it into the sink. “You’re just trying to protect him,” she concluded and walked out of the apartment.

I blocked out the mini drama, it wasn’t my concern. Especially tonight, the night before my fight, I couldn’t spare thoughts to worrying about her out in the city a sloppy, crying, mess.

Dexter and Kyle followed me out to the ring as the music blasted. The crowd and venue was larger than the other two fights combined but I was the opening match, so there were still plenty of empty seats.

I had tunnel vision, only focused on the ring as I walked out. But as I waited for my opponent to be introduced and Dexter rattled on words that were meant to pump me up, I turned and all my focus went to Gage in the front row.

His eyes locked with mine and there was nothing else, not at that moment. Only him. Someone bumped his shoulder and it snapped me out of it. Leona, Aliya, and Danny were in the seats next to him.

I gave a little smile to them and turned around, a new nervousness taking over, as I recalled the picture Demetri had texted me that first day. Even if they did nothing wrong, associating with me wasn’t safe. I wanted to yell at Dexter for inviting them, but knew I all my focus needed to be on the task at hand.