Unbearable Cage (The Grizzly Next Door 3)

by Aya Morningstar

  They hit the ground, Obrsen face-down with Cage on top. Cage pulled Orbsen’s leg up and back. He pulled slowly but steadily with one hand while the other punched the back of Orbsen’s head at a steady pulse. When Orbsen’s leg was pulled back so far that Ren began to cringe, she saw Orbsen’s free, trembling hand stretch out and shake above the ground.

  She saw Cage shouting something, but Orbsen’s hand hung in the air.

  “What a stand-up guy,” Rhino said, “giving him one last chance to submit before—”

  And then Cage jerked Orbsen’s leg back, and Orbsen squealed as he pounded the ground with his hand. Submission.

  Cage rolled off him, but Orbsen’s leg didn’t go back the way it should. Jesus.

  Relief washed over Ren, as well as a burning-hot desire to fuck Cage’s brains out tonight. Some rough sex was in order...just no choking.

  The relief was short-lived. She scanned the crowd to gauge their reaction to Cage’s win, but suddenly she spotted Mal about 100 feet away from her. He was shrouded in darkness, and while everyone clapped and shouted, he sat motionless. Watching. He turned his head toward her and nodded.

  She shivered.

  CHAPTER 17

  CAGE

  Days after his win against Tane Orbsen—and after countless hours in bed with Ren—he was mostly recovered. His next fight was on Sunday night, and he had only a few days left to prepare. Aggie Tibbett was his next opponent, a Jackal shifter who favored Judo. He wasn’t too worried, as throw-based martial arts tended to be weak against his own style. Still, he’d underestimated Orbsen, and he’d almost died. His fake death, which everyone was talking about, had been a last desperate ploy before slamming his hand down and submitting. He’d flexed every muscle in his neck to suck a straw’s worth of air in, and he’d saved all his strength up for that one single break-out push.

  Tonight, Ren had arranged a get-together with Lisa, which he found himself looking forward to. He needed to be close with his sister again, even if it meant taking a small degree of risk. Either way, he could protect her better if he was near her, and if she felt comfortable talking to him. She’d been saint-like enough as is: putting up with him and keeping the relationship open to him even after he’d totally abandoned her. He wouldn’t throw that away.

  They walked together to Lisa’s, through the same park where Ren had been mugged. She’d insisted. It was a nice park, and she didn’t want to be afraid of it.

  “With all your training,” she said as they walked hand in hand, “I won’t have to be afraid soon.”

  “Because you’ll sense the danger a mile away,” Cage said, “and then you’ll turn the other way and run. Right?”

  “Right,” Ren said. “No more charging danger head-on and kicking it in the balls.”

  They laughed, and Ren nuzzled up into Cage’s arm. He wrapped a hand around her waist, and he felt the warmth radiating out from her. As much as he loved the sex, times like these were in some ways best. Feeling her beside him, knowing he held her safe, and just enjoying the cool air and nature together.

  Take a rest after she’s pregnant, his bear said. You’ve got a lot of honey in her so far, but…

  “What do you think about having kids?” Cage blurted out. Damn bear.

  “Uh,” Ren said, “like, in general, or…”

  “After we’re married, of course, but...not in general. With me.” Idiot! Why had he casually brought up marriage like that? They’d only been together for a few weeks.

  She stopped walking and squeezed him tight, and then she turned to face him. She looked up at him with a wide smile. “I think it sounds good.”

  “Which part?” he asked.

  “All of it,” Ren said. “Marriage...kids...you.”

  They kissed each other, and Cage felt his bear doing something like a tap dance in his head. Damn bear had forced his hand, but it had worked out this time.

  ***

  They knocked on Lisa’s door. Cage had bought a bottle of wine because he knew Lisa was cooking. It was the least he could do. He’d have offered to help cook, but he knew she wouldn’t have allowed it. She’d certainly make sure that everything was done when they arrived to make sure he couldn’t help.

  The door opened, but instead of Lisa there stood a tall man with rusty-brown hair and a wide smile. Cage sniffed him. Cat smell. He sniffed again. Panther.

  “Cage,” he said, “I’m Mickey! Your sister is inside.”

  Cage’s heart raced. Was it one of Mal’s men? Had he broken the deal? Was Lisa safe?

  He heard water boiling and pans sizzling in the background from the kitchen, so his anxiety lowered. Just a little.

  “It’s okay, Cage!” Lisa yelled. “Mickey and I are dating! You thought I’d invite you two over and be the fifth wheel?”

  “Fifth wheel?” Cage asked. “Don’t you mean thir—”

  “Because I already have two!” Ren and Lisa said in unison. They both laughed.

  “Ah,” Cage said. “I guess you use that one a lot.” He was working to get over things, but he still couldn’t laugh about Lisa being in that chair. She’d taken it better than he had, however, and it seemed humor had done a world of good.

  “She uses that joke all the time,” Ren said. “It’s a classic.”

  Mickey was laughing too. Was he playing nice, just like Mal had done with Ren? Or did he really like Lisa’s self-disparaging jokes?

  “Mickey,” Cage said, suspicious. “That name sounds familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?”

  “Yeah,” Mickey said. “We’re fighting each other next Saturday.”

  “Shit!” Cage said. “Mickey Flaherty?”

  “Yep, that’s me.” Mickey smiled, holding up a spoon covered in tomato sauce. “Hope you guys like lasagna.”

  Mickey put the spoon in the sink. “Ren, good to see you again!” Mickey reached over and gave her a hug.

  Cage felt somewhat betrayed that Ren had met him before and said nothing.

  When Mickey went to go help Lisa, Cage whispered into Ren’s ear, “Dammit, why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I only met him once!” Ren hissed back, “He was just some dude in a bar when I met him with Lisa. I had no idea he was a shifter.”

  “Not just a shifter,” Cage said. “My opponent!”

  “Well,” Ren said, “he’s dating your sister...so be nice.”

  They sat down to eat, and the lasagna was amazing. Lisa had always been a good cook, but she’d seriously stepped up her game since he’d last had her cooking. It had been years. Cage felt himself warming up to Mickey quickly, which made him even more suspicious. Never trust someone who seems easy to trust.

  He knew he shouldn’t, but he decided to talk shop. “So, Mickey, who do you think is going to be champion?”

  “Hmm,” Mickey said. “Well, my first choice would be me.”

  Lisa squeezed his arm. “I believe in you!”

  “He’s fighting me, Lisa,” Cage said.

  “Uh huh. So then you’re my second choice to win,” Lisa said.

  “What’s your second choice, Mickey?” Cage asked.

  “You,” he said. “I don’t want that bastard to win.”

  He hates Mal too! his bear said. Maybe he’s the good guy too!

  Maybe.

  “You and Mal have history?” Ren asked.

  “Uh,” Mickey said, “I’d rather not get into it right now. I’d prefer to keep the mood upbeat tonight.”

  “But—” Cage started, but Ren elbowed him.

  Cage stayed quiet. Ren was right. It wasn’t wise to bring this stuff up over dinner. And in front of Lisa.

  Cage did like Mickey, but he hoped he and Lisa wouldn’t last. He wanted her to be happy, but it was bad enough that Cage had been pulled into fighting for another season. If Lisa dated—or married—a full-time fighter, it would be a huge risk to her.

  After dinner, they sat down over drinks, and while Lisa went to the bathroom and Ren went to set up a snack tray, Cage found an op
ening to talk to Mickey about Mal.

  “About Mal,” Cage said. “What do you know?”

  “Look, man,” Mickey said, “it really is better if you don’t know.”

  Cage stared him down, seething.

  Mickey threw up his hands. “It’s all rumor and hearsay, all right? I’m not going to have you rushing in on a suicide mission to tear off Malachai’s head. His men will kill you before you can even see him. All you can do is beat him in the ring. It’s all he’ll respect, and it’s your best chance of getting him to back down. If I beat you next week, I’ll do the same.”

  “Tell me,” Cage said, “what you know.”

  “Get it from the source,” Mickey said. “Panthers talk, even ones on Mal’s payroll. You’re looking for a real piece of shit panther, good at robberies, mugging humans, shit like that.”

  “Mugging,” Cage said. “Shit.”

  ***

  The fight with Aggie Tibbett came and went. Cage TKOed him with a clean hit to the jaw in the middle of the first round.

  The win against Mickey a week later was bittersweet. It had gone to the third round, and though Mickey’s American Karate was unconventional and had caught Cage off guard, he’d adapted quickly. Mickey’s ground game was weak, and once Cage knocked him down, he’d submitted. Cage had avoided biting him, hitting his balls, or doing anything to otherwise rough up what could become his future brother-in-law. Mickey had returned the courtesy.

  Only a hyena shifter stood between Cage and Mal now. Well, that wasn’t quite true, as Mal had to win his fights as well. There was still a small chance that Mal would lose a fight and, Cage hoped, leave town in shame without even earning the right to fight Cage. Ren and Cage planned to watch Mal’s penultimate fight. Cage needed to scout Mal out and see how his style had evolved. He’d avoided doing so until now, because he didn’t want to focus on the championship before he was even there, but he could smell the final fight now. It was close.

  Ren’s training was going well too. She’d really struggled at first—she’d fumbled with all the holds and movements and stances—but something had clicked in the last week, and suddenly all his lessons were paying off for her.

  “So now what?” Cage asked her.

  His hand was on her shoulder, and he was squeezing hard.

  “Now,” she said, and before she finished speaking, she tried to duck out of his grip. He tightened his grip on her collarbone, and she winced.

  “So I’m not letting my guard down. You’ve tried to escape, but I won’t let you.”

  “That means I can fight back,” she said, “but only as much as I need to.”

  “Right.” Cage nodded.

  His hand was on her left shoulder, and she pressed her right hand down on the back of his hand. Her grip was tighter than weeks before, and her overall strength was increasing. With her left hand, she gripped his lower bicep, and she pressed her thumb deep and hard into the nerve near his elbow.

  “Press the thumb in harder. I can feel a tiny tingle, but I’m a shifter, so there’s no need to be gentle. Even if you’re up against a human, you should use all the strength you can muster. If you’re resorting to this kind of move, you’ve tried and failed to run, so there’s no reason to show restraint at this point.

  She nodded, and her thumb dug inches into him. It hit the nerve just right, and his whole arm felt numb. She pressed down harder on his hand, and with her thumb burrowed in, she pressed his arm up like a lever.

  His arm bent upside down—bent the way it wasn’t meant to bend—and his whole body was forced to turn backward. He felt a pang of pain start to jolt through him, and Ren kicked his ass, literally, sending him stumbling backward and off her. She laughed.

  In a flash, he spun around and tackled her down onto the training mat. She was laughing hysterically now, and he got right up in her face.

  “You’re supposed to run! The whole point of the move is to get me off long enough to—”

  “I just can’t believe I moved you! You’re like a refrigerator, and I pushed you off me!”

  “Get me off you now,” he said, running his hand up her thigh.

  “Maybe I don’t want you off me,” she said.

  His hand ran up her thigh, and her lips parted. Her breath came out in hot bursts as his hand reached between her legs. She was wearing shorts, and even though his fingers were doing the job through all the fabric, he needed to get it off.

  He reached up under the shorts’ waistband and tugged. He pulled her shorts and panties off in one quick movement, and before she could protest, Cage buried his head between her legs.

  Ah! his bear said. Not this again! There’s no sperms in your mouth!

  Cage cringed at the thought of sperm in his mouth, but then he tuned his bear out as he worked his tongue on Ren’s outer lips. He reached up and cupped her breasts through her T-shirt. It would help her get wet, but he loved feeling her big breasts and hard nipples in his hands.

  Someday they’d have to finish a full two-hour training session without ending up on the mat like this, but Cage figured it was a good way to get some cardio in toward the end.

  Ren pulled her legs back and spread wide for him, and Cage began teasing her clit with his tongue. Her clit reddened and grew, and he teased it ever so gently with his lips and tongue. She was getting so wet already, and Cage was hard as a rock. Maybe Ren would return the favor later, but for now he just wanted to feel—and hear—her come.

  He was determined to get her to come without using his hands. Cage liked a challenge, and while it was a blast to finger her, he knew how good it would feel for her if he did it long and slow.

  So he licked and sucked and teased, and soon Ren wrapped her legs completely around his head. He loved the feel of her big hips surrounding him, engulfing him in their warmth, and he tongued her clit faster and with increasing pressure as he felt her dripping and heard her moaning.

  Soon she began to buck her hips, her whole body rising up, but still he kept his tongue right where it belonged, moving with her. She’d pulled her shirt off somewhere along the way, and he reached up and squeezed her hard nipples as she bucked wildly up and down, screaming now.

  He felt her insides begin to convulse around his tongue, and her wetness became a flood. The taste of her filled him up, and he swelled with pride as she screamed out his name and dug her nails into his head through his hair.

  When she finally collapsed, spent and exhausted, his bear said, Hmm, it’s not quite as tasty as honey, but it’s close.

  ***

  Cage watched Ren apply her snake perfume before the fight. It was the first time he was going to the bear cage without actually having to fight. It should have come as a relief, but he felt nervous. Word of mouth had spread, and everyone was talking about the fight between Mal and Cage as if it were inevitable. The bookies hadn’t drawn bets yet for their big fight, because it in the small chance that either Mal or Cage didn’t make it to the finals, they’d have a mess. It was possible to bet, however, on who would make it to the finals. Few people bet against Cage or Mal making it.

  Ren and Cage sat down together in the stands. It was louder than ever, and Cage wore a hoodie to mask his face. He didn’t want some fan harassing him or drawing attention to him. He was here to watch Mal fight and to learn from it. To prepare himself to defeat him.

  Mal’s opponent was a rhinoceros shifter, Brent Schlager. He was huge and thick with fat and muscle, and fighters like him were the reason head butts weren’t allowed. They’d otherwise dominate the league and make other animals irrelevant. Schlager circumvented that by charging in with his shoulder. The shoulder didn’t have the same brute impact as the head, but it was still a formidable weapon, especially with all the mass and speed behind it.

  The announcer made the introductions for Schlager, and when he rammed through the double doors, Ren gasped.

  “It’s Rhino!” she said.

  “Nice. You were able to spot what animal he was?”

  “
Yeah,” Ren said, “but I met him in the stands during your first fight. I didn’t know he was a fighter. The guy loves you.”

  Cage smiled. “Well, if he’s a big fan of mine, he’ll be driven to win this so he can fight me.”

  “Cage,” Ren said, “it’s good if Mal loses. You know that, right?”

  It was good. He knew that. But he wanted to fight Mal. If Mal lost before fighting Cage, he had a feeling that Mal might leave for a while but would inevitably come back. He wanted Mal out of his life for good. He also wanted to know once and for all who would have won back then.