Fighting Chance

by Lynn Rider

  Big screen monitors suspend from the ceiling beams and my stomach coils with the close-up shot of Chance taking a series of hits to the ribcage before reaching out and clinging to his opponent as if he’s using him as support. I continue my steps, but my eyes stay glued to the screen as the referee breaks them apart and says something to Chance.

  “We’re in the third round.” Milton yells over his shoulder, drawing my eyes forward. He stops and shakes hands with a big guy in a bright yellow shirt with the word Security written boldly across the chest before we pass to an area closer to the ring.

  My feet freeze in place when I see Chance, my Chance, bruised and swollen with a cut over his right eye. “Come on,” Milton says, escorting me toward the front row. The seats are packed, excited fans shouting, some even standing to look around us as we pass. Milton points down the row of chairs, my eyes follow until they reach Brandon and Matthew. Brandon briefly looks my way before doing a double take and jumping from his seat. Matthew looks over, trying to grab his arm when he sees me and follows Brandon’s lead. They both wrap their little arms around my waist, giving me a lasting bear hug.

  “You’re gonna have to take your seats. I’ll be up there though,” Milton says, pointing and drawing my attention back to the ring. Vic’s turning red, appearing to be on the verge of a heart attack as he’s shouting at Chance from the side of the ring. “Seats,” Milton reminds me and my feet start moving, pulling the boys in tow.

  “I’m so glad you’re here. He’s not doing good,” Matthew yells into my ear. He looks up at me, his green eyes filled with worry and I smile, ruffling his blonde hair, trying to silently convince him it’ll be okay.

  Brandon leans in. “Chance’s getting his ass kicked.” I look down with a frown and he nods his head, convincingly. I don’t bother scolding him. It looks to be the truth as my eyes rake over the two fighters. Chance’s opponent has a swollen lip, but he’s nowhere near in the shape Chance is.

  “He’s going to win,” I say, hoping they didn’t hear the shakiness in my voice. I watch as Chance gets hit several more times before the bell rings. When they retreat to their respective corners, I let out a deep breath, realizing I hadn’t taken one since following Milton into the arena.

  “He can’t lose,” Brandon says, wrapping his little arm around mine and I weep inside a little, realizing how much I missed all of them. Not only Chance.

  Matthew taps me on the arm, pointing in the direction of the ring. Vic’s eyes connect to mine before he climbs down and stalks my direction. My eyes want to follow him, but they’re too busy taking in Chance’s sweat coated body as his corner crew talks to him. His face only lifts long enough for someone to apply salve to his cut before it slumps, looking back at the blue canvas.

  “You! Get over here!” Vic says, angrily and my eyes shift from the ring. I stand and he yells something around me at the boys to stay put before stalking off. When we reach the walkway, he turns, heading toward the ring and my feet root still. He turns around, his eyes dropping to where my feet stand before lifting them to my eyes. “He needs you!” he says and my feet set off, practically running toward his corner.

  “Chance!” Vic yells and Chance looks over his shoulder. His eyes immediately land on me and he blinks several times before he scrambles from his seat, trying to climb from the ring. “No you don’t!” Vic yells, splaying his hand over Chance’s sweaty chest.

  I step around Vic, stepping up to the ring and Chance’s gloved hands frame my face. “You’re here,” he whispers with tears in his eyes and I nod, reflecting the same sorrow filled expression.

  “I’m here,” I reply, choking back a sob. Seeing him in the flesh, sweaty, beaten and bloody brings everything in perspective.

  “In my corner?” he asks.

  I nod. “Always in your corner, Chance.” Ignoring the pain of seeing his eye cut and swollen, the lid turning a deeper shade of purple by the second, I smile reassuringly. “Now kick this guy’s ass so we can get out of here.” The corner crew starts talking and Chance steps away slowly releasing me in the process. I step down, our eyes linger on one another for a few seconds longer and he nods, smiling playfully before his mouthpiece gets slipped into his mouth. Vic steps up, mumbling something into his ear before he turns toward his opponent. His shrugs his shoulders, rolling his neck and bounces on his feet as if finding a renewed sense of energy. When the bell rings, I take another deep breath and watch from the sidelines.

  I have no certainty on what tomorrow brings, I just know that I need him with me while I figure it out.

  Epilogue

  Chance

  “Mia, you’re going to be at Chance’s fight, right?” Matthew asks and Mia and I exchange a puzzled look. It’s been two months since I won my last fight. With one glance of her there, in my corner, all the pieces of my heart were instantly put back together.

  I would have done anything she asked of me, including stepping through those ropes and walking the fuck away from the biggest fight of my career. But she didn’t ask me to walk away, instead she asked me to kick his ass. I did exactly that, knocking him out in the fourth round.

  I went in as the favored winner, but within the first round of my lackluster performance, I’d quickly become the underdog. My comeback had become news across the world. Some cynics cited it as a publicity stunt, to bring more hype to my next fight, but I don’t give a fuck what they say because everyone who matters to me is sitting here, at my dining room table, enjoying a meal cooked by my beautiful girlfriend and I. Yep, she’s been teaching me to cook and each Sunday we host a dinner for family.

  That word has new meaning for Mia and based on the smile that has graced her beautiful face as of late, she’s come to define it the same way I have. I wish it were different for her, I’d give just about anything to see her reunited with Audrey, the one before the selfishness of addiction claimed her, but sometimes people can only save themselves. Audrey is one of those people.

  Mia told me a few weeks ago that she’s come to realize, sometimes the family you fight for isn’t the one you were meant to have. As I glance around the table at Vic, Milton, Smith, Martha, Francis, Mia, and the boys, I couldn’t agree more.

  My gaze lands on Mia, realizing she still hasn’t answered Matthew’s question. We hadn’t talked about her not being there. I thought it was given. My next fight is in a month and training has been more aggressive this time around than any other. I followed Vic’s advice, hiring a team of experts to help with my career, but a new trainer wasn’t one of them. Vic is the best there is, but now that he’s no longer my manager, he seems to have more time to torture me.

  Mia’s eyes dart around the table nervously when she feels the weight of everyone’s stare. Her delicate neck shifts in a hard swallow then her gaze lands on Martha, lingering a little longer than necessary. I shift my attention across the table, watching as Martha’s eyes soften with a reassuring smile.

  “Aw, shit. Chance is going to get his ass beat if you don’t go!” Brandon says, breaking through the tension. Vic stifles his laugh, hardly containing his smile as his gaze drops to his plate. Smith smiles, used to it, but it’s Milton who breaks into a full-bellied laughter. He hasn’t been around long enough to understand the issue Mia and I have with Brandon’s sudden and often offensive outbursts. They’ve gotten better in the time he’s lived with me, but you never know what may come from that kid’s mouth.

  Mia looks down to where Brandon sits next to her at the table, scolding him. When he looks up at her with those dark puppy dog eyes of his, the very one’s she’s admitted on more than one occasion she has a hard time resisting, I think she’s going to cave. She shakes her head, mumbling something to him sternly and I smile. Not working tonight, little man. He smiles apologetically, wrapping his hand around her arm while leaning into her with a hug and I fall a little deeper in love with her.

  Brandon’s therapist has remarked on his opening up in recent weeks and I can’t help but to give Mia credit for that. Th
e way she takes care of him—of us—is the epitome of real love. The kind of love society conditions us to believe women give. The kind we never received…until Mia, that is. She loves unconditionally, with her whole heart and in turn the boys are learning to trust. That’s something that is still a challenge for me, but Mia makes it easy. I was an idiot to ever question her loyalty and damn sure won’t do it again.

  My eyes flick back to Mia and I clear my throat, not forgetting about the topic at hand. Her eyes lock on mine and she turns pink as a slow smile forms on her lips. “Don’t you have a response?” I ask, lifting my eyebrow, waiting.

  “Well, given how your last fight was going when I got there, there is a probability that if I’m not there, Brandon could be right.” The entire table breaks into laughter and I smile good-naturedly, able to take the hassling.

  “So I expect that you’ll be there?” I say and her eyes drop. What the fuck?

  Mia hasn’t moved back in—she won’t. She lives in an apartment over Martha and Francis’ garage where she continues to pay rent rather than move back in here. She insisted on us dating first, wanting a traditional relationship over what she said was the very unconventional one we had before. Reluctantly, I’ve given her that. I told her I’d give her everything, but to consider missing my fight, that’s a hard line for me.

  “We need to talk,” I say, my voice tight as I stand. Mia’s eyes dart around once more before slowly rising from her seat and following me into my office.

  I turn, folding my arms over my chest as I lean against the edge of my desk. “Are you seriously considering missing my fight?” I ask, meeting her eyes. My breath catches, waiting, knowing I may not like the answer. Mia said it almost killed her to see me being beat that night, but I’ve repeatedly assured her it won’t be like that again.

  “I don’t know,” she whispers, biting her lip.

  “Mia, I’ll give you anything, you know that,” I say questionably and she nods. “I’ve allowed you to set the pace of our relationship, not saying anything when you insisted on living on your own, to dating when what I want is to move you in here and take care of you. For you to be the first person I see when I wake up and the last person I see before I go to sleep. I want all of that, but I’ve been giving you space to show that no matter what, I love and support you, but I need you in my corner in—”

  “What if I don’t want that space anymore?” she interrupts softly, stepping toward me.

  “I’d say I’ll race over to Martha’s right now, pack your shit and move you in before nightfall. I’ve done it before, you know I will.” I smirk.

  She smiles. “What if I said it wouldn’t just be me. That moving me in would lead to moving someone else in too?”

  I feel my smile fade, Audrey coming to mind. Unbeknownst to Mia, Smith is still working with the police to build the case against Paul and he keeps me informed of Audrey’s well-being. So, I know for a fact that she lives the majority of her life high.

  “It’s not Audrey, Chance. I would never bring her poison around my family,” she adds, reading my mind, her tone hardening at the mention of her sister. “You know how deeply in love I am with you?” The soft melody of her voice returns. I smile, loving the sound of those words from her pretty mouth. She stops in front of me, her head tilting up as her caramel-colored eyes look into mine. My arms uncross and my hands find her slim hips.

  “And you know how deeply I am in love with you,” I say, positioning her between my thighs and meaning every desperate word of it. I know I’m whipped. Smith, Vic and even Milton has gotten in on the fun to poke me about it, but I don’t care.

  Mia and I spent some time in recovery mode after we returned from Las Vegas and after hearing the numerous sacrifices she’s made for her sister over the years, all while dealing with her own grief, I can positively say she’s one of the strongest, selfless people I have ever known. Letting me love her and her loving me in return has been more than I would’ve ever known to ask for before meeting her. So they can poke fun at me all day, but they’re all single and I have this beauty.

  She presses her lips together in an adorable pout. “I wanted to do this in some cute way, but I only just found out and Matthew’s question sort of put me on the spot. I didn’t want to tell you in front of everyone, I wanted it to be our moment, but now I’m afraid I’m out of time and just have to say it without the element of surprise. You know what I mean?” she asks, blowing out a puff of wind with a laugh and I smile at her nervousness.

  “I haven’t a clue what you mean. Why don’t you tell me?” I pull her closer, rubbing my hand up and down her back.

  She looks up, her eyes meeting mine and I see the hesitation. “I’m pregnant,” she whispers and her gaze falls. My hands lift, framing her face, tilting it so I can see her

  “Say it again,” I say softly, a lump forming in my throat.

  “We got carried away. It happened before we even broke up and—”

  “Say it again,” I cut her off, knowing exactly how this happened. I don’t need a sex education lesson. I’m going to be a father.

  “I’m pregnant. I—” I cut her off again, this time with my lips in a hard kiss.

  “You know what this means, right?” I mumble against her lips.

  Breathless, she leans back and locks her eyes on me. “We’re going to have a baby?”

  I grin. “We’re going to have a baby,” I repeat slowly, my grin widening, really liking the way that sounds.

  “You’re going to be a daddy, Chance.” She wraps her arms around my waist, resting her head on my chest and I’m at a loss for words. I knew the moment I laid eyes on Mia that she was knock out. I just didn’t know she’d be responsible for delivering one to me.

  Acknowledgments

  I always start these things with thanking my husband and in keeping with tradition, I’ll start here again. This book was incredibly difficult for me to see through to the end. I continued to allow self-doubt and life derail my progress, but you never wavered in your support of my finishing. You listened when I talked storyline and marketing, and reassured me when doubt and fear crippled me. Words cannot adequately express how much I appreciate you.

  To my beta readers Ann Marie, Ashley, Carmen and Dannyelle. Thank you so much for what you do for me. It’s your fresh set of eyes and perspective that helps me to know where I need less or more. I couldn’t hit publish without your input.

  To my team that helped me bring my book to the world, thank you. Ashley at Escapist Freelance Editing, you polished my words and managed to not kill me in the process. Melissa at MGBookcovers & Designs, you took my photo and quickly ran your magic, making it what it is today. To Ena and Amanda at Enticing Journey Book Promotion’s, thank you for gathering a great team of bloggers to read and spread the word. Without all of you, I wouldn’t be writing this. THANK YOU!

  That leads me to the book bloggers. Without you spreading the word about authors and their books, our words wouldn’t find themselves in the hands of readers. So many have helped me, most of which don’t know me, but it’s your love for reading and the book world that makes this possible. It often goes unmentioned, but it’s not unnoticed.

  And last, but certainly not least, to my readers, if you’re reading this, I’m talking to you. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Without you getting to this point, my words would be for nothing. I can’t thank you enough for choosing my book when there’s an endless supply of them out there. I hope you enjoyed Chance and Mia’s story and would love to hear what you think.

  About the Author

  Lynn Rider is an emerging author of spy travel guides. This is Lynn’s seventeenth book.

  JUST KIDDING! (My formatting software put that there and I thought it was funny so I’m keeping it!)

  Lynn Rider lives in the south (the true south ya’ll) with her husband, two kids, two dogs, two cats and two fish.

  She loves hanging out with friends, reading and a good glass of wine.

  When she’s not spending time
with her family and friends, she can be found reading in a quiet corner or locked away with her laptop bringing life to the characters in her head.

  @author_lynn

  lynn.rider.90

  author.lynnrider@gmail.com