Maybe This Time (11 page)

I roll my
eyes. “He wins a lot?”

“Undefeated,”
he answers, and I’m not surprised one bit.

“Anything else
you can tell me?”

“That’s pretty
much all there is to it. They follow MMA rules, they fight, and
someone wins. That about sums it up.” He parks the car and we walk
to his dorm room. I’m surprised to find it fairly tidy.

“I’ll order us
some pizza, you can relax,” he says, pushing me gently towards the
couch.

Turns out Lyle
isn’t so bad after all.

I wave bye to
Lyle, after thanking him for letting me crash the night before.
Shoes in hand, I walk barefoot to the front door, digging in my
clutch for the house key. Before I can find it, the door opens and
a furious looking Reid stands there, watching Lyle’s car drive off.
I feel a twinge of guilt when I take in his appearance. Dark
shadows under his eyes, his face slightly pale, and his hair
sticking up at all angles, he looks like he could use a good
night’s rest. His nose is also red and swollen, where he must have
been hit last night at the fight. He's shirtless, and barefoot. I
walk past him, gritting my teeth when he doesn’t move aside, so I
have to slide my body against his. He grabs a tight hold on my
wrist before I can move out of reach.

“Where were
you?” he asks hoarsely, his eyes full of pain.

“Out.”

He curses and
lets go of me, but follows me to my room.

“Where is
everyone?” I ask, placing my bag on my bed.

“Bed, they
only went to sleep an hour ago. We were all worried, Summer.”

“I texted
Xander and told him I was fine,” I say, lifting my shoulder in a
slight shrug.

“How easy
would it have been for someone else to send that message from your
phone?” he growls, threading his fingers together behind his
neck.

“Why would
someone do that?” I ask, surprised at his paranoia.

“I have
enemies, Summer,” he says, his tone laced with anger.

He's angry at
me? Oh, this is rich. I shake my head at him, not quite believing
this turn of events.

“Why are you
here?” I ask, proud of myself for keeping my voice steady.

“About last
night, it wasn’t what it looked like.” He reaches with his hand to
touch me. I take a step back, hating the defeated look that comes
over him.

“That’s a new
line,” I say, the sarcasm in my tone evident.

“She kissed
me. I pushed her away...” he says, looking tortured.

“Okay?” I
gesture for him to continue talking.

“And you were
on a fucking date, so I didn’t even do anything wrong,” he bites
out.

“So you lied
to me, a million times over, then you get caught kissing another
girl, but you didn’t do anything wrong. I’m so happy we aren’t
actually together!” I spit out. My lip trembles, giving away just
how hurt I am.

“You don’t
mean that,” he says softly, his face drawn.

“You don’t
know me.”

“I know you,”
he replies softly, studying me.

“So, you’re an
underground fighter,” I say, changing the subject.

He curses,
watching my face intently.

“How does that
work exactly?” I ask, wanting to hear it from him.

“We meet up at
different locations. Spectators pay entry, two hundred dollars
each, and then that money is used as the prize money. It’s just
something I’ve been doing for a while,” he says with a slight
shrug, trying to play it off as no big deal.

I blink twice,
pondering his words. “Why all the secrecy?”

“There's more
to it, beauty, but that’s all you need to know, alright? Now come
here,” he says as he hops onto my bed, pulling the sheet up for me
to climb in.

“Why are you
always with her?” I ask him in a small voice.

“I don’t like
her like that, trust me,” is all he says.

“Fine, but she
obviously likes you like that,” I snap.

“I set her
straight, she won’t be trying that shit again, okay?” he says in a
soothing tone.

I sit down on
the bed next to him. “You hurt me. You kissed her. Her fucking lips
were on yours.”

“I fucked up.
I’m gonna fuck up. But I wanna try,” he whispers, pulling me down
so my head is on his chest.

“You wanna try
what?” I ask, my voice soft and unsure.

“I wanna try
with you, I don’t want you on dates with anyone else. You’re mine,
beauty.” He tightens his hold on me.

“I can’t,” I
say in a timid voice.

“We'll talk
after a few hours’ sleep, I was up all night,” he says. I lie back
on the bed, staring at the ceiling. When he pulls me into his arms
I hold my breath, wanting to relax into him but knowing that I
shouldn’t. I can’t let my guard down around this man. He has the
power to break me, if I give it to him. I’m already in over my
head.

That’s my last
thought before I fall asleep.

I wake up two
hours later, slowly extracting myself from Reid’s arms. Xander is
standing in the kitchen with our dad, both of them draining a cup
of coffee.

“Mornin’,” I
say, heading to the fridge and pulling out an apple juice box.

“What happened
last night will not happen again, Summer,” my dad grinds, staring
at me with an intense expression.

“What, you
mean every single person I know in this town lying to me?”

“Sum…” Xander
says, his forehead crinkling.

“Why was it
some big secret? So you run some illegal underground fight club,
who cares? I thought you guys were up to much worse from the
stories mum told me,” I say dryly. I open my juice box and take a
sip. Both Kane men stay silent for a few moments, and the only
sound that can be heard in the kitchen is me drinking from my
straw.

“What did she
say about me?” my dad finally rumbles.

“That you were
a biker, a drug dealer, a criminal, a cheater, a womanizer… I could
go on,” I tell him. And I could. Those were probably the nicer
things she said about him, and we all know the cheating part is
true.

My dad slams
down his coffee mug and walks to the front door, looking pissed
off. He pulls out a cigarette on the way.

“Reid didn’t
want me saying anything, sis, and neither did Jack,” Xander says,
coming towards me. He wraps me in his arms and kisses me on the
head. “In the beginning Reid was all for telling you everything,
but when you two got involved, he decided he didn’t want you to see
him like that. Sometimes the other fighters play dirty, I wouldn’t
be surprised if they tried something if they saw you hanging about,
so it was for your safety, as well.”

“Well, you
made me look stupid. I had to find out from Lyle. And I don’t like
being lied too. If it’s not safe for me, how come that blonde chick
gets to go?” I ask, staring up at him.

“She’s
involved,” he says, kissing me on the head again.

“How?” I
demand.

“You should
ask Reid, these aren’t really my secrets to tell. Or ask Ryan,” he
says. Ryan. Another person on my shit list.

“Reid was
really worried about you last night, Summer. You were selfish, next
time answer your phone, okay?” he says, his voice carrying a tone
he’s never spoken to me in before. He leaves the kitchen and walks
down the hall.

“Maybe if Reid
kept his mouth to himself,” I mutter to myself under my breath.
When dad doesn’t return after thirty minutes I walk outside to find
him standing there, staring at his motorcycle.

“I’m sorry,
dad.” I don't want him to be mad at me. He raises his head and I
don’t like the blank look on his expression.

“I’m not
perfect, Summer.”

“I don’t
expect you to be,” I say, and it’s true, I don’t. I walk over to
him, and lean my head against his chest.

“I’m happy I
came here, dad. And you don’t have to walk on eggshells around me
anymore, just be yourself. I won’t judge anymore, okay?” I say into
his chest.

“I want you to
be comfortable here, not have to worry about our bullshit,” he
replies, leading me back into the house.

“Well, I’m in
it, so you’re gonna have to get used to it. You’re not getting rid
of me,” I say with a cheeky smirk.

“Good, cos
I’ve never been happier Summer. Finally have my family together,”
he rumbles, clearing his throat. I don’t think my dad is generally
an emotional guy, and I smile knowing he only gets like this around
me. To him, I will always be his little girl, the one he didn’t get
to have in his life on a permanent basis.

“Where’s
Reid?” he asks, about to head home.

“Asleep.”

He sighs.
“Alright, I hope you know what you’re doing.”

I have no idea
what I’m doing.

I say bye to
dad and then walk back into the bedroom, where Reid is still fast
asleep on his stomach. His face looks so relaxed as he sleeps, even
with the slight bruising on his face. The sheet is sitting just
over his ass, so I get a clear view of his toned back.

I've never
seen a more perfect man.

I go through
my phone, seeing a message from Ryan saying to call him when I wake
up. I delete the rest of the messages from last night, and clear
all my call lists. I have this thing about erasing everything, I
hate having a heap of old messages sitting in my inbox.

“Mornin’,
beauty,” Reid says, his voice thick with sleep.

“Morning.
How’s your face?” I ask, frowning.

“Its fine.” He
sits up in the bed. “Come here.”

I walk over to
the bed and sit next to him, his hands grabbing me before my butt
hits the mattress.

“Come spend
the day with me at my place,” he whispers into my ear.

“What exactly
changed between yesterday and today, Reid?” I ask, completely
confused with the situation.

“I’m done
fighting myself. I want you so bad, Summer. You’re mine, I’ve known
it since the moment I laid my eyes on you.”

“You were a
jerk to me that day,” I remind him.

“I didn’t want
to want you,” he says, and even though he’s being honest, it kinda
hurts.

“That’s
romantic,” I say dryly.

“It’s real,
Summer,” he replies, kissing me on the cheek. The light stubble on
his face tickles my face.

“I need to
know about her first,” I demand, and something instantly shifts in
the air.

“She’s my
brother’s ex-girlfriend,” he admits after a few moments of silence.
Ryan’s ex? Why didn’t he say anything?

“What’s her
name?” I ask.

“Jade.”

“Why is she
always around you? And why did you let her kiss you?” I ask, my
voice gaining steel.

“I pushed her
away, Summer,” he growls, and I can tell he’s getting annoyed.
Well, too damn bad.

“Clearly not
soon enough!” I snap.

“Who did you
go on a date with last night?” he counters, turning it around on
me.

“What’s your
problem? We aren’t even together,” I say defensively, narrowing my
eyes at him.

“Exactly,” he
smirks, obviously feeling like he won this round.

“That doesn’t
mean it didn’t hurt, Reid,” I say softly, avoiding looking at
him.

He curses. “I
didn’t want her. I only want you, Summer. You’ve gotten under my
skin.”

“At least I
didn’t kiss my date,” I say with a scowl.

“And you won’t
get a chance to,” he says with finality. I want to stay mad, but we
stare at each other for a few moments, and as usual his eyes
penetrate through my every defence.

What is it
about him?

“Will you come
to my next fight?” he asks, suddenly looking a little unsure. His
fingers drum on my comforter, waiting for me to reply.

“I have to
warn you, I closed my eyes through most of the one last night,” I
admit, scrunching my nose. Reid chuckles, shaking his head at me in
amusement.

“How often do
you fight?” I ask.

“There’s a
fight on every week, but I usually go once a fortnight or sometimes
once a month. There are only certain opponents I’m interested in
fighting,” he tells me, tracing down my collarbone with his finger.
When his finger reaches the top of my breast, I raise an
eyebrow.

“Where does
that finger think it's going?” I ask, smiling.

“I want you,
when you’re ready,” he says, kissing me on my temple.

“And if I’m
ready right now?”

“I’ll know
when you’re ready, beauty. Now get ready, cos I’m taking you to my
house.” He gets out of the bed and walks out of my room.

“Can you at
least look at me?” Ryan asks, standing next to me as I take a
handful of popcorn.

I glance up at
him, sighing like it’s a big deal. “What, Ryan?”

“Don’t be mad,
babe, come on. I had to follow my brother’s wishes and he didn’t
want me telling you anything,” he says, his eyes pleading with
mine, begging for me to understand.

“You all made
me look stupid,” I grumble, sliding over on the couch so he can
take a seat next to me.

“That wasn’t
our intention,” he says, grabbing a handful of popcorn.

“So I’ve
heard.”

“Don’t be
stubborn and just forgive me,” he says, throwing me one of his
panty dropping smiles.

“Doesn’t work
on me, Ryan, but nice try.”

He laughs, and
then sobers. “I’ll make it up to you, alright, babe?”

“You
better.”

Reid walks
out, freshly showered, in a pair of basketball shorts slung low on
his lean hips. I sigh in appreciation.

“Why don’t you
drool over me like that?” Ryan mock sulks.

“You just
don’t do it for me, Ry,” I tease.

“I look
exactly like him!” He chuckles, shoving another hand of popcorn in
his mouth.

“No, you
don’t, I think your beer drinking is causing your abs to
disintegrate,” I joke, laughing when I see the look on Ryan’s face.
He narrows his eyes at me, and runs his hand up his abs, lifting
the shirt up with the movement.