Fighter: A Bad Boy Romance (5 page)

D
id
I really just have a sex dream last night?

My mind is all over the place as I make breakfast for Josh and Ella.

I haven’t had one of those in years
!

I went straight to bed last night after my time to myself in the shower, feeling satisfied, but I guess the handsome man from the club has more of a hold on my mind than I’d thought.

I’d woken up this morning feeling hot and bothered, and had to take care of myself one more time before I got out of bed. I haven’t felt this kind of excitement since … well I can’t even remember.

Thinking back to how he handled those men in the parking lot is like watching a porn. I’ve never seen a man move like that before. Too many men these days are so quiet and soft spoken, and the ones that aren’t are the handsy dick heads at the club that the bouncers end up tossing out on their ass. Ty doesn’t really seem to be either of those.

When we first ran into each other I assumed he was just another asshole thinking he owned me because he was a guy with money in his wallet. I’d even worried that he’d expect something from me after he took care of those jerks in the parking lot, but he didn’t. He ended up taking care of me, cleaning me up and taking me home.

And what was with that reaction when we drove downtown? It couldn’t have been me. He was clearly upset about something there. Somewhere we went past. There’s more to this man that meets the eye.

“I’m not really hungry,” Ella says, her eyes on her phone.

“Too bad,” I tell her, scooping eggs onto a plate with some toast. “You need to eat. You need energy. I don’t want Mr. Harris telling me you fell asleep in class again.”

Ella sighs as I set her plate in front of her. Josh is scooping cereal happily into his mouth. It’s his favorite one with the marshmallow Rhinoceroses in it that turn the milk blue.

“Am I really taking the bus today?” Ella says miserably.

“Yes, you really are,” I say. “I’m sorry, but what can I tell you? The car’s in the shop. I should be picking it up today if everything goes well. Complain to your father next time you see him and tell him to start paying child support and maybe this won’t happen again.”

Ella sighs again, but she takes a bite of her eggs. Teenagers. It’s like pulling teeth.

“Okay, I have to get going,” I say, picking up my purse and keys. “Make sure you watch your brother. Josh, I love you. I’ll see you after school okay?”

“Okay! I love you too, mom.”

I give him a kiss on the head and I’m out the front door.

I have to walk to Greg’s Auto Repair. It’s only about fifteen minutes away, but it’s hot out and it means taking the main road that’s loud and busy. At least I’ll finally have my car back though. It was making some terrible screeching noise every time I took a turn, and I really thought it was going to explode or the frame was going to collapse or something, so I took it in. I also had to have the windshield replaced last month because someone in the neighborhood punched it in. I really need a new apartment.

Too bad Ty isn’t here to give me a ride
, I think as a garbage truck passes me and I get a whiff of rotten trash.

This is weird for me. I never let guys get into my head like this. It kind of goes with the territory doing what I do. I hate to say it, but after a while you start seeing men as either paychecks or predators, without any in between. And on top of that, I still have to deal with Colin and the hordes of teenage boys interested in my daughter. It’s hard to see guys as anything more than a pain in my ass, so the fact that I’m still thinking about Ty, let alone fantasizing about him, is pretty strange.

Greg’s is swamped by the time I get there. It’s not even nine o’clock yet and he’s got a full garage and more people waiting in the office. I manage to catch him as he’s coming outside.

“Greg!” I shout like a mad woman, rushing over to him.

“Hey, Jenny,” he says, looking up from his appointment book. He already looks tired.

“Are we all set?”

“Well …” My heart sinks when I hear the tone in his voice. “There’s a couple of more things need doin’.”

“Really? I thought everything was looking good?”

“Yeah, well we got in there and took a look and there’s a few more things ya need. You need a a new control arm. Some other suspension stuff.”

He can’t be serious. For once in my life I wish I was a guy and I knew how to work on cars so I could just drive it home and do all this myself.

“So I can’t take it home today?” I ask him, already knowing the answer.

“I wouldn’t recommend it,” he says. “And I can’t give you a sticker either. Not until we get her fixed up.”

“And what’s that gonna cost me?”

“Well,” he says, looking down at his book. “I’d have to check inside for an exact quote, but probably around eighteen hundred or so.”

Well, I know what this means: more nights at the club. I’m so over going in there; I just wish I had some other way to bring in money. I’ve wanted to quit for so long and do something else. I always wanted to get back to my drawing. I was pretty good back in Elementary school and middle school, but high school was so crazy I couldn’t put much time in, and when my kids were born I just simply didn’t have the time.

But that’s life, and bills are bills, and I need my car.

“Okay, Greg. Thanks.”

“Sorry about that, Jenny,” he says as I turn and start walking back to my place.

On the way back, I pull out my cell and dial Alicia, the only baby sitter I’ve ever really been able to trust. It took a while to get the dogs used to her, but Josh took to her right away. Maybe she can watch them tonight and I can get some more hours in.

It rings a few times before she answers.

“Hey, Jenny!” Her bright, bubbly voice puts a little dent in the cold, miserable wall that my day is becoming.

“Hey, Alicia. Listen, I’m in a bit of a bind here. Can you watch Josh for me tonight? Ella will be there, but you know how he likes you, and with my neighbors lately I don’t like leaving them alone.”

“Sure. No problem,” she says. Relieve washes over me.

“Oh, good. Thank you so much. I have to pick up some more hours at the club. The car needs
more
repairs.”

“More? I thought you were all set!”

“So did I?” I sigh. “Something about brakes or something. I don’t know. I can’t even. But anyway. Can you come over around eight?”

“No problem, Jenny.”

“Great. You’re a life saver. I’ll see you then.”

“See ya!” she says. I hang up, feeling a little better about the day. Not sure if any of my regulars will be in tonight, but probably not. That means I’ll actually have to work the crowd and maybe even dance, which I really don’t want to do.

I have suffered from mild social anxiety since I was a kid, and the enormous crowds at the club really do a number on me. It’s why I’m so glad I have my regulars who I can hang out with in private and avoid all that. The girls who really have to work out in the main room not only have to work a lot harder than me but also make far less money.

But that’s life I guess. Some jerk in a sports car hollers at me as he speeds past. “Ay, baby. Shake that thang!”

I flip him the bird as he drives off.

Christ,
I think.
I’m gonna have to shave my legs.

I
’m sitting
in my truck staring at the old rusted sign above the run down warehouse: Gourmet Meats.

Yeah, right. Nothing gourmet about this place, and it certainly hasn’t sold meat in years, if it ever did. The only meat going in and out of this place is mine and the other son of a bitch I’ll be squaring up against tonight. That and the crowd of screaming men and gangsters that will be watching.

Of course it won’t be much of a square off. We already know how this is going to go.

Down in the third
.

I hear Nicky’s Cockney accent swimming through my mind as I mentally prepare. On any other night I’d be getting myself pumped up to pummel whoever I was up against. I’m usually the favorite, and that’s why Nicky came to me. The odds on me are probably astronomical, and he’ll make a fortune betting against me. It’s gotten harder and harder to find someone willing to fight me lately. I’m known for my right hand, which has a reputation for knocking out even the biggest of men. A jaw’s a jaw my father used to say. Doesn’t matter how big the guy is, he’s still got a jaw, and that’s where you hit him.

The place is already packed. I can see a few stragglers trickling in, but I know once I get in there it’ll be thick with bodies, all pumped up on drugs and alcohol, ready to watch two guys pound each other to a pulp.

I got into the fights after the accident. I quit going to regular training for my organized MMA career. I was just too depressed. Eventually I knew I had to do something. The tattoo shop just doesn’t bring in enough money, and the first time my mom needed money I knew I had to do something. My trainer wouldn’t have me back, and getting back into the legitimate scene would take too long. So the underground it was.

I did well from the get go. Most of the guys don’t have the training I have, and I became a big name in the scene pretty quickly. Some of the other gangsters, Nicky’s small time competition, offered to back me, but I never work well with a boss trying to tell me what to do. I’m a bit of a loner, especially now. So I turned them all down and managed myself. Probably made more money that way too.

And now, tonight, I’m going to be taking my first dive ever.

Nothing left to do but to do it,
I think as I push open the driver’s side door. The familiar squeal of the metal hinges echoes through the parking lot as I step onto the wet pavement. I slam the door, take in a deep breath of the night air and make my way to the warehouse.

There’s a door around the back being guarded by two guys trying their best to look like late night bums just having a smoke. They recognize me immediately.

“Ty,” one of them says respectfully, blowing smoke through his lips.

“Ready to kick some ass?” the other asks, almost rhetorically. All I can do is nod as they move aside and open the door for me. They probably have bets on me. Why wouldn’t they? I’m a huge favorite tonight. The other guy must be out of his mind even going up against me. He’s probably a young gun looking to make a name for himself by knocking out one of the vets. I almost feel bad letting those guys down out there. They don’t make much, and if they put a lot down on me tonight they’re going to take a pretty big hit.

The thick door slams shut behind me, sealing me in the darkness of the back hallway, lit by bare light bulbs hanging every six feet from the chipped plaster ceiling. I stride down the all too familiar cement floor to the grimy bathroom that doubles as a locker room.

I take a seat at my usual bench. Normally I’d be getting all fired up right now, strutting around, pounding my chest, rubbing my hands against my knuckles. But not tonight. Tonight I’m contemplating my situation, trying to think of a way out of this. But my mom needs care. I need the money, and I am already committed to Nicky.

Nothing left to it but to do it
.

It’s then that I hear three sets of footsteps in the hall. There’s no question who it is.

“All right, boyo?” I hear Nicky say as he steps into the room. I don’t look up. I just keep my eyes on what is probably a spot of old blood on the floor at my feet. “Ready to get this party started?”

I take a minute to answer, running my tongue across my teeth, clenching and unclenching my fists.

“Ay,” Don chimes in. “The man asked you a question.”

“Shut up,” I growl.

“What did you say to me?” Don says, stepping forward. Finally, I look up. I can see he’s pretty pissed. I stand and remind him that I’m not someone he should be fucking with.

“You heard me, you little shit. This is between me and your boss, not me and you. Now shut the fuck up before I knock your front teeth out and flush them down the toilet.”

Don looks to Nicky for support, but Nicky’s laughing softly to himself. For reasons I can’t explain, Nicky likes me, even though he is constantly reminding me that he’s top dog. Vinnie’s chuckling as well, one hand over his mouth. Don’s lowest on the totem pole here, and I can see his rage threatening to boil over. But he backs off. He knows I can follow through on my threats.

“Don’t you worry, Don,” Nicky says. “Ty ain’t gonna do nothin’ is he?”

He steps closer to me, looking me up and down like I’m his prized pony getting ready for the races.

“Don’t forget who you’re working for,” Vinnie says from behind him. Nicky gets even closer. I can smell the cigar smoke on his wool overcoat, and can see the tiniest of mustard stains on his white silk shirt.

“Oh, Ty’s a good boy. He ain’t forgettin’ nothing,” Nicky says with a lick of his lips. I want to grimace when he grins and I get a look at those yellow chunks of bone in his mouth that he calls teeth. I feel a tightness growing in my chest, and it’s taking everything I have not to lose it.

“Now, what’d we agree on again, Ty?” Nicky says. He’s trying to goad me. Remind me he owns me. Let me know once again that he’s the boss.

“I go down in the third,” I say flatly, not breaking eye contact with him.

“That’s right. Now that’s not hard is it? You’ll be a good boy and do what you know is best,” he says, and with a chuckle, pats me on the head and turns around. Everything in me wants to blast him in the back of the neck, knock out his two boys and drag him outside and toss him into the river.

But I don’t do that. I just stand there, my whole body shaking, as the three gangsters walk out the door.

“
A
ll right
, guys. You all know the rules. Let’s keep it as clean as possible,” Calvin the referee jokes. We all know basically anything goes in these things. I’m staring at my opponent across the ring from me in the center of the warehouse. The crowd is thick tonight, and the whole place is hazy with cigar smoke. Men are laughing and cheering already, excited, having placed their bets and ready to ride out the rush of the event.

I was right. He’s young. Probably about twenty-two, and very wiry. He’ll try to be fast and catch me off guard. He thinks I’m old and he’ll try to take advantage of that. If this was any other night, I’d have his ass on the ground before the middle of the first round. Kid probably hasn’t been hit by anyone with a real fist before in his life. He’s still got a baby face to. Nice skin. No scars.

The bell dings and we go at it. Just like I suspected, he comes in quick, fists flying like he thinks he’s Bruce Lee. I dodge them easily. He’s predictable. He swings a right hook and I duck and give him a right in the ribs, which actually knocks him back. He buckles over but regains his composure pretty quickly. Yeah, this kid’s a wuss. I had an opening right there to end the fight. This is killing me.

I bob and weave for most of the round. He lands a few jabs that just glance off my cheeks, and a few body shots that feel like they came from a pissed off middle schooler.

The second round goes about the same, but I almost fuck things up when I hit him with a jab. I fight southpaw, right foot forward even though I’m a righty. You twist your hips right and step into it and your jab can become a knock out blow. Not many guys know that and they try to knock you out with the big back hand haymakers. The boy came in and it was just reflex. I twisted my hips and fired out and hit him right in the jaw. He went down, and I actually thought it was over. The crowd went nuts. I looked over at Nicky, and I couldn’t believe what I saw.

He was pissed, and he was actually showing it. Nicky never shows emotion. Even when he’s ready to fuck somebody up, he’s always stony or laughing to himself. But when I looked at him there, with the young boy on the mat, he was pissed.

He must have a lot riding on this,
I thought.

Now I’m back in my corner and the kid’s on his feet. He’s shaky. Anyone with any sense could see that the fight is mine. I stay in my corner for a second and look over at Nicky. He’s glaring at me, telling me with his eyes that I better not fuck this up. Don looks like he wants to kill me, and Vinnie is just smiling. He’s laughing at me. To him this is all a big game. He works for Nicky and lives vicariously through him, loving every second of him making me his bitch.

I can’t help but wonder how much Nicky has riding on this game tonight. He’ll have the bookies in his pocket too if they don’t have enough cash to deliver. I look back at my opponent, still shaky on his feet, but still the same look of determination on his face.

He still thinks he can do this.

He thinks I’m old and weak.

And Nicky thinks I’m someone he can walk all over.

And that’s when I make my decision.

I step out into the ring and the kid comes at me swinging. He’s too fucked up to strategize anymore. If he’d ever had any coaching he would be pacing himself, but he’s young, eager and stupid, and he’s out for blood.

I duck his haymaker and the follow up jab. I step back, circling so I can get Nicky in my field of vision. The boy swings and I duck and fire back, putting the full force of my legs into the blow.

My knuckles connect with his chin, and I hear a sickening crack. I broke his jaw.

The boy’s eyes roll back and he topples over and slams down on the mat.

Knockout blow.

Nicky looks like someone just called him a cock sucker in front of his parents.

How about that, dickhead?
I think.

I look at him, look down at the boy, then back at Nicky and shrug.

Fuck that. No one owns me
.