Paxton's Promise (15 page)

“It is to him. And I wasn’t threatening you. I’m warning you.”

“Good, message received. Now get out,” I thundered.

Scar tilted his head back and bellowed. “Damn, you are a stubborn little fighter, aren’t you? But that’s not all I’m here for. I have a
business
proposition for you.”

“You’ve got to be smoking crack.”

“Done that, didn’t like it. Making money is my high these days.”

“Then what?” I asked incredulously.

“Over the years, I’ve had different clientele come in with certain . . . proclivities. You’ve seen what goes on in the underground, so you can imagine how tastes change. Some like to fight with weapons and in Striker’s case, he wanted to fight with glass.”

Striker was Camden. The fights on that fateful night were highly disturbing. I’d never seen so much blood in my life. “If you’re trying to get to a point, will you just get there already? You’re confusing the hell out of me. I don’t see where I can help you in this.”

Scar got to his feet and walked around my living room, his eyes lit with excitement when he stared at me. “I want you to fight for me, Gabriella. Just three fights is all I ask. After having to pick up and leave Las Vegas, I need compensation. You and Reaper were the cause of that breach.”

“We didn’t breach anything. We’ve kept your secret and not said a word. I don’t owe you anything.”

“You might not, but Reaper does. I can always take this to him, but you don’t want me to do that. I deal with men differently than I do women. Not to mention, Rage wants you, so we have to play this delicately. Reaper’s a good fighter and I don’t want to see him
ended
over this.”

“Ended? Are you saying you’re going to kill him if I don’t help you?” He had to be bluffing. Surely, he wouldn’t just kill someone for no reason.

In all seriousness, his dark gaze bore into mine and it didn’t waver. There was nothing there, except a cold emptiness that made me shiver all the way down to my bones. He was dead fucking serious. Tears blurred my vision and I clenched my lips together hard to keep them from trembling.

“I have to do what I have to do, Miss Reynolds. I need your help and you’re going to give it to me. If you don’t, Reaper dies.”

Bile rose to the back of my throat and I started to feel sick. I had no clue what I was about to agree to, but I had no choice. It was either agree, or Paxton died. Knowing there was no way to fight, I sat down on the couch and hung my head.

“What do I have to do?”

AS SOON AS Scar and his cronies left, I locked the door and rushed to Cliff’s side. “Cliff,” I murmured frantically. “Cliff, wake up.” He took a nasty hit to the head but there wasn’t much blood.
Thank God.
Quickly, I got a bag of ice and wrapped it up in a towel and placed it on his head. The coldness must’ve snapped him out of it because he winced and his lids fluttered open.

“So much for protecting you,” he groaned low.

“It’s okay. I don’t think there’s much you could’ve done against the three of them. How does your head feel?”

Slowly, he rolled over and tried to get to his feet. I helped him by holding onto his arm. “Who are they, Gabriella? What do they want with you?”

“I can’t tell you. If I do, I’ll be in even more shit. It’ll be best if you leave this alone and forget it ever happened. The last thing I want is for something to happen to you just for being my friend.”

“Are you going to tell Paxton?” he asked, narrowing his gaze.

Shaking my head, I put his arm around my shoulder so I could help him to the door. “I can’t tell him either. This is something I have to do on my own. As soon as it’s over, I’ll be free.”

“And what if you’re not?”

“Then I’ll have to figure something out.”

There was a good chance I wouldn’t be, but I couldn’t tell him that. The whole deal with Rage had me worried. I had no clue who the douche nozzle was, other than he wanted me and I would meet him soon. The fact he was watching me didn’t help matters.

What Scar asked me to do was degrading and completely against all of my morals. Not to mention, I was unsure if I could even pull it off. The proposition Scar asked of me not only required me to put on a show, but I had to be convincing, or Paxton’s life was forfeit.

The worst part was, even if I completed his requests successfully, I still had another obstacle to overcome.
Rage.
He was going to come after me and I had no clue if I’d be ready. All I knew was that I had to be.

It all starts tomorrow.

After helping Cliff into his apartment and monitoring him to make sure he didn’t have a concussion, he seemed to be doing fine. I recommended he go to the doctor, but he refused. It was only two in the afternoon and it felt like I’d gone through a week’s worth of agony. Paxton still hadn’t called, but I was already headed back to his house.

How was I going to keep everything a secret from him? During those three nights Scar needed me, I had no idea what I was going to tell Paxton. I couldn’t just say, “Hey, I’m going out, see you later.”

The thought of lying to him made me sick, but the thought of him dead was way worse. If he ever found out the truth, he was going to be so angry with me, even if it
was
to save him. I just hoped the flowers and the messages would stop.

The whole way to Paxton’s house, I glanced in my rearview mirror at least a dozen times to see if anyone followed me. If Rage knew I was with Paxton, it made me wonder if he watched the house. I was happy Paxton had a gate around his property, but that didn’t mean someone couldn’t climb it.

I knew Pax could take care of himself, but for once I was truly scared for him. He wouldn’t be on alert because he didn’t know what was happening. What if Rage went after him? Whatever sick and twisted fascination Rage had with me, he better think twice about hurting Paxton. I protected the ones I loved, even if it meant putting myself in the crossfire.

Paxton called at the same time I pulled into his driveway. “Hey, you,” I answered, trying my best to sound normal.

“I’m on my way home. It took longer than I thought.”

“Did you get it fixed?”

He snorted. “What do you think? Of course, I did. He wants me to race tomorrow night. Do you want to come watch me?”

Ahh shit.
“I can’t,” I said, sounding disappointed. “I talked to my mom today and she misses me. I felt bad because I haven’t seen her in forever. She wants to do dinner and a movie tomorrow night.”

“Oh,” he commented. “I see. Well, there’s always the next one, which is in two more days.”

“And I’ll be there.” I had no clue if Scar needed me on that night, but I didn’t give a shit. If he wanted me to keep this a secret from Paxton, he was going to have to work with me. “So, what do you want to do tonight?”

“I thought we could stay in. Maybe get in the pool? I can turn on the heat.”

“Sounds good to me.” In fact, it sounded more than good. If Rage was watching us, I was hoping it would be more difficult for him to see us if we stayed home. We’d be safe, for one night at least.

THE WHOLE MORNING, Paxton spent working out with me and showing me new techniques with grappling. I loved to punch things and I was really good at jabs and combinations. My weakness was getting out of holds. Paxton was good at that, but unfortunately, we spent a lot of the morning trying to keep our hands off each other and dry humping on the mat.

After having some seriously hot sex in the shower, I stood under the falling water, letting it pound me on my back. I had two hours until I needed to be at my apartment. My nerves were shot, but I had to keep my wits about me if I was going to get through the night. Leaning my head against the wall, Paxton came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist.

“I don’t think I can ever get enough of you,” he murmured in my ear.

I hummed in agreement and turned to face him. “I know the feeling.”

“What time will you be home tonight? Are you sure you don’t want me to drop you off at your mom’s?” He was worried about me going out alone, but yet, he didn’t want to be overprotective to the point of smothering me.

If I weren’t all wrapped up in a lie, I would’ve been happy to let him drop me off with my mom. “I’ll be fine,” I assured him. “It shouldn’t be too late when we get done. I’ll probably be here before you even get back from celebrating at the track.”

“Well then, I’ll see you tonight, sunshine.” He tapped my chin with his finger and leaned down to kiss me. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” I whispered.

Setting me down, he washed off quickly and bolted out of the shower. “Wish me luck,” he hollered, exiting the bathroom.

“Good luck.” He wasn’t the only one who needed it.