As soon as I am within punching distance, I punch him directly in the mouth. “Fuck,” he mutters, taking a step back and coming at me with a swing of his leg, but I jump back in time to miss it. The referee stops the fight thirty seconds in for Garcia to go tend to his lip and stop the bleeding. I have a feeling this fight is going to stop many times before I knock him out.
I look to the side where Haley is and see her with her hand over her heart, her face filled with horror. I know that she has a soft heart and this type of sport is not the thing for her, but I wanted her to be here today to see that I can handle myself and that in the future, she won’t need to worry so much. I glance at Alexei to get his nod of approval.
The referee calls us back to the centre of the ring. I can see the hate in Garcia’s eyes, and I am sure that it must be the same hate as in mine. When the fight restarts, he takes a punch at me, hitting me in the stomach. I in turn jump and kick, hitting him on his ribs. This continues until the sixth round. He got me with a good punch to the cheek that started to bleed and that I can feel throbbing, but mostly he’s the one with most of the injuries.
When the bell for the seventh round sounds, I am ready to finish this. I step back as if I’m going to throw a kick, and then at the last minute, I throw a punch that catches him below his chin. Garcia takes a step back. I can see his eyes rolling back, and then he falls. I hope he stays down, because to be honest, I’m exhausted. Garcia is a worthy opponent. He might be an ass, but he knows his kickboxing.
I stand just behind the referee, waiting for him to raise his arms to let everyone know that the fight is over. Garcia opens his eyes, but he is dazed. The referee is talking to him, but after careful perusal, he raises his arms. Yes! Turning, I look towards where Alexei and Haley are. I nod to Alexei in respect. As head of the Bratva Fury, this fight belongs to him. I look at Haley, meeting her worried eyes. I wink but then wince as it pulls at the cut on my cheek. One thing is for sure, I am going to enjoy my recuperation time more this time than I have previously.
The crowd is screaming my name. My trainer and assistant are in the ring, guiding me back to the side. When I sit, I sigh. The last thing I want to do is go to this afterparty, but it is expected. As I told Haley, we won’t be there long. I will still need to talk to all the reporters before leaving, but at least Alexei and Haley will be there. I know that Andrei won’t leave her side, and I saw Nik in the audience, which tells me that Alexei brought men with him for protection.
When I am finally done and allowed to the back, I have fans stopping me at every turn, wanting to take photos and talk. It is a slow trek to the changing rooms, but when I am finally there and Haley is hurrying into my arms, all the aches and pains disappear, and all I want to do is stay like this. “I don’t want to see that again,” she mutters against my chest, which has me closing my eyes and just relaxing.
“You better let him go, Haley, or he is going to fall asleep like that,” Alexei quips as he comes to stand behind Haley. Opening my eyes, I see the proud expression on his face. I know that Alexei doesn’t like that I fight, but I also know that he is proud of what I have achieved as a fighter.
“You have a call,” Andrei says from behind me. Letting go of Haley, I turn to find Andrei with his phone in his hand.
“Now? Can’t this wait?” He shakes his head, which has me taking the phone from him angrily.
“Da.” This better not take long. Whoever it is can go to hell.
“Vlad.” I tense when I hear the voice. My father hardly ever talks to me unless absolutely necessary. He tries to have as little interaction with us as possible. We never know who might be listening. “Congratulations. You do us proud. It was a great fight.”
“You watched?” I didn’t even know that he would know that I had a fight, but I should have known better. As the head of the Bratva Fury, my father gets told whatever he wants to know, and his sons’ lives is something he would want to know.
“I always watch, but you are a champion, and as such it is dangerous, as someone might recognise you. Vlad, you must be careful.” My father is a hard man, but he will do anything to protect his sons.
“Da.”
“Who was the woman next to Alexei?” he asks.
“She’s mine.” As I am talking in Russian, Haley won’t understand what I am saying. I will need to tell her soon that I know the truth, but first, I need to make sure that she won’t want to leave when the time comes.
“She is very beautiful,” he replies, and then says his goodbye until next time. I can’t say I miss Russia—the Bratva Fury there is worse than here. There is always a war going on and people wanting to kill you. Here, we also have our problems, but not as much as Russia. Alexei has a different mentality when it comes to business. He will not dabble in drugs or the skin trade, and I completely agree with him.
“Problem?” Alexei asks.
“No.” I make my way towards the showers. Haley is already in the locker room. I see that my clothes have been laid out on the bench, and she is now looking into the first aid box, going through the ointments kept there. I shake my head in amusement. No matter what, Haley will always be a carer, as she can’t stand back and see someone hurt and not help them.
“After your shower, we will spread some of this ointment on your cheek. It’s not the best, but for now, it will do,” she murmurs, not looking up as she reads the back of the tube. I make my way towards the showers. Stopping next to her, I kiss the top of her head before continuing.
When I walk out, my towel low across my hips, I am surprised to see the area empty. My body feels like I have been ridden over by a tractor. I start to dress, when Haley comes back in. “Your fans are outside wanting you,” she mutters. Looking up, I see her annoyed expression, which tells me exactly what fans they are.
Before Haley, I have always played the field, and to be honest, most of the women I slept with were women I met after a match. They never meant anything to me but were more a way to release some of the tension from the fight. Now that I have Haley, the thought of going through the meaningless sex that I used to have does not appeal to me any longer.
“I thought you were going to treat my cheek?” I say, trying to distract her from the people outside. She huffs in annoyance but picks up the ointment from the bench. Opening it, she approaches me. Placing a blob of the ointment on her finger, she spreads it over my cheek gently, her fingers so light that I can hardly feel them.
“I don’t understand why you would submit yourself to something like this,” she mutters as she starts to prod gently at the swelling under my eye and by my jaw. By the pain, I can tell that I will have a bruise on my jaw, but the swelling will disappear in a couple days. “Is there anything sore on your body?” Haley looks down at my naked torso. Taking the hand prodding gently along my ribs, I slide it down until it is over my crotch.
“That might be sore,” I say with a straight face. Her eyes snap up to mine, and then there is a cheeky smile lifting her lips.
“Well, I guess it will need time to recuperate the same as the rest of your body,” she says as she lifts her chin.
“No, I think it needs some tender loving care for the pain to go away.”
She shakes her head with a laugh as she takes a step back. “You, Vlad Vasilev, are incorrigible. Your body must be aching, and all your brain can think about is bedding me.”
“Bedding? Well, I was thinking more on the bench or against the wall, or even you bent over.” I started by teasing her, but now the thought has me as hard as a randy goat. Shit, soon someone will be in here to call me out, and I will not be caught in a situation where I will embarrass Haley. She strokes her fingers up my chest until she reaches my jaw. Then, she leans forward and kisses a spot there.
“Behave, or I will have to call Garcia to come give you a beating.” I bring my hand down and spank her bum, which has her jumping back in surprise.
“Careful, or I will put you over my knee,” I say, and she smiles just as the door op
ens and Andrei walks in.
“Journalists are here,” he mutters with a frown; Andrei loves the fights, but he hates the bustle after the fights.
“I’ll be out shortly; they can wait outside.” I usually let them into the changing rooms, but I don’t want Haley involved in all the publicity that goes with the fight. They can be completely unfeeling and destructive when after a story, and Haley in my life is a story. They will dig into her life to try to find any dirt they can find; I will not have her under a microscope.
“I want you to wait here while I sort the journalists out,” I say as I start dressing. The simple movements are starting to become more painful. Soon, I am taking a breath before opening the door and making my way out. The flashes of the cameras first blind me, but as I near, they stop, and only now and again do they snap. All the journalists are asking questions at the same time, but soon, Andrei has them organized and I am answering a question at a time. When they start to get personal, I stop the interviews.
“That’s all for tonight, guys, thank you.” There are a few moans and groans, but soon, they are all escorted out.
“Haley,” I call. Seeing her walk towards me, I realize that throughout these months that I have been with Haley, she has changed me. The constant fury that was ready to explode at a minute’s notice has calmed. I want Haley, and I don’t want her just as a temporary measure, but I want her to be that person I share my whole existence with. Now that I know that it wasn’t her who betrayed me, I am convinced that if she one day knows anything, she won’t tell anyone or betray me in any way.
“Are we leaving?” she asks as she looks from me to Andrei. Alexei left before the reporters got here, as he hates being in the public eye, and in his position, it’s understandable.
“Yes, are you ready?” My eyes travel over her beautiful body encased in the dress she’s wearing, and the last thing I want to do is go to a party where I will have to share her with so many people even if just for a little while. I would rather just go home and relax with her.
I guide Haley out of the changing rooms, Andrei stepping behind us. As we turn to make our way down the corridor to the car, we are accosted by a group of women. Andrei immediately steps before us, holding them back. I hold my arm around Haley, guiding her away from the groupies.
“Vlad, Vlad, do you remember me?” I don’t look back but continue my way towards the car. This isn’t something I wanted Haley to witness, but now that she has, all I can do is hurry her towards the car.
“Your groupies are persistent,” Haley says as we slide into the car. Closing the door of the car behind us, I lean my head back and close my eyes. I know that Haley is looking out the car window, looking at the women standing there until we are finally on the move. “Did you sleep with all those women?” Oh man, I knew this was going to be a problem.
“No, Haley,” I mutter, not opening my eyes, but I lean my hand over and take Haley’s much smaller hand in mine. Luckily the party is organized at the hotel just two blocks away, which has us pulling up before Haley can ask anything else. “We won’t stay long.” Andrei opens the back door for us to slide out.
Walking into the hotel, I guide Haley through reception to the lounge that was booked for the party. Entering, I grunt at the number of people here. They will all be flocking around, wanting a photo, hoping to be mentioned in the media associated with me. When they see me, as expected, they all start making their way towards us, and the questions begin.
Jason, acting like his boisterous self, breaks through the crowd and comes to place his arm around my shoulders. “My champ,” he says, the reek of alcohol wafting towards me. This asshole is really getting on my last nerve. I take his hand, pulling it off my shoulders. Jason doesn’t even realize my rejection of him, but he continues bragging about how I’m his fighter.
“Thank you all for being here tonight,” I say, interrupting him. “Garcia was a worthy opponent, and no, Tom”—I answer a question from one of my supporters whom I didn’t get to answer before Jason started making a nuisance of himself—“I don’t know when my next fight is or with whom, but when I do, I will let you all know.”
“I have found the perfect opponent for you,” Jason says.
“Thanks, but I will decide who I fight and when, not you.” I have had enough of this show. “Everyone have fun. Unfortunately, I have to go.” There are the usual groans, but people start to disperse, except for Jason, who comes to stand in front of me.
“You can’t leave yet; this party is for you,” he says as he waves his hand behind him.
“Wrong, I can, and I will. Thank you for organizing this, but as you can imagine, a party is the last thing I feel like.”
Jason inclines his head towards Haley. “Is this because of her? Because trust me, you can get pussy like hers anywhere.”
I let go of Haley’s hand, and in the next instant, my hands are fisted in Jason’s lapels. I give him a good shake before I bring my face close to his. I can see the surprise and then the fear in his gaze.
“I won’t punch you, because you are drunk, and I am sure if you weren’t, you would realize that I don’t take kindly to being ordered around or to having my woman spoken of like that. Our partnership is over.” I let go of his lapels, which has him stumbling back. “Come, let’s go, baby,” I murmur, seeing her worried expression.
“You can’t do this; we have an agreement,” Jason says angrily.
“Contact my lawyer,” I mutter as I guide Haley out of the party and towards home and peace.
HALEY 14
It has been a week since the fight, and in that week, Vlad and I have become closer than we ever were before. I never took Vlad for the forgiving type, but the way he has been acting with me, he can’t possibly still be upset. Either that or he wants me to be completely and utterly dependent on him, emotionally, physically, and mentally, before he kicks me out so that I can feel the betrayal he believes I am responsible for.
I hope that isn’t the case, as it would destroy me. I have seen the life Vlad leads, a life completely different from the one I was leading. His life is filled with anger, pain, and mistrust, something I have never had. My life has been simple. Yes, I have had pain, but my pain has been from normal circumstances, like the death of my parents or sometimes the fights I had with Paige, but Vlad’s pain comes from things that as part of the mafia, they need to do to survive.
The day after the fight, I was visited by Jade, Raven, and Ruby, all of which surprised me as they appeared at the door with all their kids and just marched right in. Vlad was sitting on the couch when they came over, and I heard him groan when I opened the door, but once they were inside and the kids were all over him, I met a Vlad I hadn’t met before.
The kids love him, especially Alexei’s boy. He couldn’t be prouder of his uncle. It’s clear that Vlad is the little boy’s hero. All he could talk about was the fight. Jade said that even if she wanted to, they couldn’t drag him away from the screen. He has watched every fight his uncle has had since he was a baby. It was funny to see how different Vlad was with the women. I have seen him with the men, and he is commanding and hard.
When Jade opened a box of biscuits that she had made, the aroma of the biscuits had the children and Vlad smiling from ear to ear. I must be honest, when I tried one, I understood why. They were decadent. Every crumb was buttery and melted in my mouth. I’ve always been someone who made friends easily even though I didn’t have much time to spend with anyone except at work when I interacted with my colleagues; therefore, to be able to just sit down and talk to others without being called away is a treat.
The women wanted to know everything about me, and I found out a lot about Vlad and how things worked here. When they started to talk about Vlad, he huffed playfully and left, taking the kids with him to the training room. I could hear them laughing from where we were sitting in the sitting room. The conversation turned serious when Ruby mentioned the killer. We are all worried about the situation and what we can do t
o prevent any more women being killed.
Everyone has been told to walk in twos. No woman is to leave their home unless escorted. The men have been given leave to escort their wives and daughters to work when necessary. Raven said that Nik has questioned a few men they suspected, but they have turned out innocent.
Ruby said that Dimitri has been working night and day, looking into everyone’s life, trying to find a pattern or hint why this killer started killing and maybe who his rage is directed against. Apparently Jade knew the last girl who was killed. She described the girl as being intelligent and not someone who can be manipulated easily, which means that whoever did this was known to her or tricked her to go with him.
The women stayed the whole day. When it started getting time for dinner, we all went into the kitchen to cook like old friends. It is amazing how well we gelled together immediately. Their men were told where they were and that they should come join them for dinner at our apartment, which became interesting, as we don’t have a proper dining table or enough dishes and cutlery. Raven and Ruby popped out to go get what was needed, and at the end of the day, it was a great evening. The men didn’t talk work, and I enjoyed meeting everyone.
The only thing missing for me in that evening was not having Paige there with me. I have hope that soon, Vlad will let me talk to her, and maybe I will be able to resolve this idea that she has that I chose Vlad over her.
“You look thoughtful.” I jump at Vlad’s statement, not expecting him up yet. I’m usually an early riser, and Vlad, when not working, seems to like laying in. Looking over at him, I frown. It seems like he is ready to go out. He is dressed in one of his suits, something he hasn’t done this last week, instead opting for wearing casual clothes around the house.
“Are you working today?”
“No matter how much I like being at home with you, I have things to do. I wish things stood still for a bit longer, but they don’t.” He reaches out his hand and strokes my cheek. “A motorbike club that we have dealings with are in town today to meet us. I might be back late. Don’t wait up for me.” I nod before leaning forward just as Vlad leans down to kiss me. We fit together perfectly. This craziness of everything that has happened has brought us closer together than further apart.
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