by Abby Niles
Brittany’s arm shot out lightning fast. Ella raised her gloves high enough to deflect the punch then danced back out of reach. The retreat worried him even more. For him, when he had an opponent who retreated, it meant he was hesitant. And if he was hesitant, Lance used that to his advantage.
As her opponent stalked her around the cage, Ella kept her fists raised, but continued to back away, refusing to initiate contact. He fisted his hands, holding his breath. Why had she done this? She wasn’t ready for this. All she’d ever wanted was to learn to defend herself from an assailant.
Now she was in the cage—in his place. Why?
The crowd began to boo, and he wanted to yell at them to shut the fuck up. The crowd’s displeasure would only egg on Brittany to attack.
He couldn’t imagine her taking those hits. Didn’t want to see it. Wanted to save her from it. Would trade places with her in a heartbeat to keep her safe.
A lightning bolt of clarity hit him in that instant. Closing his eyes briefly, he murmured a curse. This had been how she felt as she’d watched him return to the cage over and over again without sufficient healing time. She hadn’t been trying to make him compromise his beliefs as a fighter. All she was doing was trying to protect him from more harm.
Piper had been right. He’d allowed his pride, his inability to accept help, push away a woman who cared for him. He prayed that the table wouldn’t be turned, that she wouldn’t leave that cage resenting him for causing her to relive the most horrifying moment of her life.
If she did, he wouldn’t blame her.
Brittany suddenly exploded at Ella with multiple hits to the torso and head. Crouched over, Ella kept her gloved hands up protect her head as she backed herself into the wire fencing. A vulnerable position for any fighter, but for her it had to be even worse. Punches were landed on her stomach, sides, and shoulders, and all she did was cover herself for protection. The crowd cheered around him. He understood why. She was favored to lose, and that was exactly what was happening right now.
Ella had been his guardian angel from the moment they’d met. It was time for him to return the favor. Though he couldn’t go in there and choke the woman out like Ella almost had Ralph, he could help guide her, give his support. He rushed around the cage until he was right below her.
“Ella,” he yelled, using her name for the very first time and loving the way it felt on his tongue. “Take her down. You’ve got this, baby. Take her down. Don’t stand toe-to-toe.”
She had spent so much time focusing on her weakness, she had forgotten her strength. She’d taken down a two-hundred-plus man with her rear-naked choke hold, easily tossed Billy around the canvas when they’d trained, had even done a good job of wrestling with him. Though his size and weight had been to his advantage, and he’d bested her each time, she’d been a worthy opponent. She would dominate this woman on the ground.
A few tense seconds went by before she unfolded from her submissive position and took a punch square in the face. As her head swung violently to the side, he roared his fury—at himself for being so focused on his own goddamn pride that she’d willingly done this, at her for being so fucking determined to save him, and at that woman for laying a damn finger on the woman he loved.
But the next thing he knew, Ella came around with a hook to the chin that caused her opponent to stumble backward. Ella took advantage of the lowered guard and hurled her shoulder into the body of the woman. Both thudded to the ground. Shocked gasps sounded around him as everyone fell silent for a moment, then the room erupted in encouragement for Brittany.
Ella quickly shuffled behind Brittany and snaked her arm around her neck. Not tight enough, though. Damn it. The woman had been able to point her chin down, keeping the hold from getting locked in. The only way for Ella to get the upper hand would be to hit her on the side of the head until the woman gave in.
Breath held, he waited to see what she would do. As much as she loved to train, she wasn’t a violent person, had always preferred to train as if she was on the defense, not the offense. Right now, it was up to her to finish this.
Seconds later, she started knocking her fist into the side of the woman’s head. With each hit, her arm slipped just a little further under the woman’s chin. One more blow and she had the submission locked in. Fucking tight as hell. Shouted “no’s” stood out among angry “what the fucks?”
Face purpling, Brittany squirmed, but eventually tapped Ella’s forearm. The referee rushed over waving his arms in the air, and she released the other woman. As she rose to her feet, the ref lifted her arm high into the air. “Winner. Ella Watts.”
The crowd roared its displeasure as torn pieces of paper were tossed into the air.
Win or lose, he had never felt so much pride as he did in that moment. He glanced toward the back of the room. Gabe and Mitch were in their usual spot, and gave each other a high five. Why had they taken this gamble? Yeah, they’d taken a chance on him when they’d thrown him in the cage with Bane, but he’d had a damn good record and years of experience. On Ella, they seriously took a chance.
After making sure she was still in the cage, he walked over to the cousins. As he approached, they straightened off the wall and faced him.
“Sorry, we left you in the dark, Black,” Mitch said. “Ella made us swear to. Since we know you haven’t looked at the betting cards since we started this, we were pretty sure you weren’t aware what everyone was gambling on.”
“My loss was a guarantee. I was going to go in there and lose. Ella had to win, and it was her first fight, ever. Why did you take that chance?”
Gabe turned droopy, blood-shot eyes toward the cage and an awed smile curved his lips. “I would never bet against Ella Watts. That bitch is capable of anything.”
He was damn right about that.
“We’re square now, Black,” Mitch said, slapping him on the back. “I mean no offense when I say this, but we never want to see your or Ella’s face again.”
Lance laughed. “We share the same sentiments.”
He was done with the McNealys forever.
After Gabe and Mitch walked off, he stayed put as he watched Ella leave the cage then disappear into the bathroom. He wanted to go to her now, but he also wanted to give her time to come to terms with whatever feelings she may have had. Doing what she did tonight couldn’t have been easy.
The warehouse was emptying faster than usual, most likely due to the overwhelming number of bad bets on that last fight. Lance grabbed up one of the folding chairs, placed it outside the bathroom door then sat.
Thirty minutes later, she finally stepped out of the bathroom, wearing a pair of jeans, a red cotton T-shirt, and a black leather jacket. The sound of her boot-clad feet echoed in the nearly empty warehouse. She was digging around in her gym bag. He soaked in the sight of her, hoping beyond hope that she hadn’t returned to fight in his place and then leave again.
He leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Thank God. You took for fucking ever,” he said, like he had the first night he’d waited for her after an event.
Squealing, she spun around and slapped her hand to her chest. “Stop doing that.”
Chuckling, he stood and strode over to her. “So, Ella Watts, huh?”
“Yep. She’s back and stronger than ever.”
“Since you’re Ella again, I’m assuming you went home.” Suddenly nervous, he glanced down at his feet. “I’m surprised to see you back.”
“I had some unfinished business.”
“Which was?”
“I couldn’t let you fight tonight.”
“Oh.” His hope deflated. “You know, I had every intention of stepping into that cage tonight and throwing that fight.”
“I know you did, but you shouldn’t have been backed into that decision. It should’ve been yours to make.”
He scrubbed the back of his head with his hand, wanting nothing more than to pull her to him. To never let her go. “I sho
uldn’t have allowed my pride to refuse your help, either.”
A small smile came to her lips. “True, but my trip back to Maine opened my eyes to the way pride can work.”
“How’s that?”
“Sometimes you have to go through a situation on your terms. You have to find your peace with the resolution. Not someone else’s.”
“Seems we might have both stepped into each other’s shoes.”
She tilted her head to the side. “What do you mean?”
“Do you want to know what I felt while I watched you in that cage?”
“What?”
“Fear. Worry. Anger. I would’ve given anything to take your place, keep you safe.”
“Yeah?” She nodded. “I’m quite intimate with those feelings.”
He ran his thumb over her darkening cheekbone. “Watching you take that hit about killed me.”
She grasped his hand and laid it fully on her check, turning her head into his palm. His heart beat hard against his chest from longing. He was touching her, but it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t nearly enough.
“I went into that cage believing that my will to win would be enough,” she said. “I’d come far enough that I could separate my past from my present. That first stinging hit was all it took to send me spiraling back into the nightmare…” She inhaled deeply and straightened. He instantly missed the connection. “I’ve spent years convincing myself that it’s dangerous for me to rely on others to feel safe. Then I heard your voice beside me. You couldn’t help me. You couldn’t stop her. I was still trapped. But you just being there gave me strength. You’ve always done that for me, Lance. You’ve helped me rise above. Thank you for that.”
Fuck, it sounded like she was telling him good-bye. “Is gratitude all you feel?”
“No. And that’s the business I’m here to finish. I don’t like the way we left things.”
He stepped closer to her, his hope building again. “So you weren’t here just to be a substitute?”
“Definitely not, but I find myself to be in a bit of a jam.”
“How’s that?”
“You see, I returned home only to realize it wasn’t my home anymore, and that I left something back in Kansas I don’t want to live without.”
“What’s that?”
“You.” She bit her lower lip as she gazed up at him. “So I’m kind of jobless and homeless at the moment. You wouldn’t have any idea where I could stay, would you?”
A crooked grin came to his lips, and he pulled her to his chest. Ella wrapped her arms around his neck. “I happen to know this farm house in Cheney. It even has its own gym in the backyard.”
“You don’t say. Sounds perfect.”
“I must warn you, there’s a rambunctious, never-stops-talking, almost nine-year-old that stays there from time to time.”
“That’s okay. I happen to love that little girl.”
“What about her daddy?”
“You really have to question that? I don’t let myself get rocked for just anyone, you know.”
A soft chuckled escaped his lips. “Let me hear it anyway.”
“You make me want a future. And I want more than anything for that future to include you—and your daughter. I love you, Lance Black.”
“You did get rocked pretty hard. I guess that means you really love me, huh, Wonder Woman?”
“Don’t let it go to your head, big boy.”
“Never.” Sobering, he lowered his forehead to hers. “I’ve always struggled with asking for help. Would dig myself deeper and deeper into a hole before I ever admitted defeat. It took a determined woman, who has interfered with my life since the moment I met her, to make me see that it’s okay to ask for help. I don’t have to do it alone. And it feels really fucking good to have a partner. I love you. Thank you for not giving up on me.”
He claimed her lips, loving the way she immediately melted against him, and she met the fierceness of his kiss with one of her own. Together the two of them could face anything, because they had already proven that when one was weak, the other was strong.
Together they were unbreakable.
Epilogue
It was amazing how quickly her life had changed—for the better this time.
Ella watched Lance give instructions to the group of ladies surrounding him. Pride expanded her chest as the women partnered off and practiced tossing each other over their shoulders.
Then she turned her attention to the group in front of her. They would be practicing frontal attacks.
It had taken Ella a while to find her footing when she’d moved from Maine to Kansas permanently. Finally, she’d accepted an attending’s position at the hospital in Cheney. It felt good to get back in the operating room, but she missed working with domestic abuse victims. So she started volunteering again. It worked for a while, but for the first time, she’d felt like she wasn’t doing enough.
After many talks with Lance, he’d suggested converting the gym in his barn into a place where women could come to learn self-defense and other martial arts. She couldn’t have loved him more for suggesting it. They’d worked together, tirelessly, to get everything in order, and a month ago, they started offering the classes every Tuesday and Thursday night. The response had been amazing. They had women from all backgrounds taking part in the program.
After the class was over and the last member left, she walked over to Lance and laid her head on his chest. He hugged her tightly to him. “I love you,” she said.
“I love you too, babe.”
Never would she have believed she would love another human being the way she did this man. He made her life fuller, happier, and if she had to move again, she would without hesitation, as long as he was by her side.
His phone pinged, and she released him so he could grab it. As he looked at the text, a huge smile broke over his face.
“What?” she asked.
“I got a lead.”
A lead. Not a call. Lance hadn’t gotten a call in three months. He’d stopped working dispatch and had focused his business solely on repo’ing. He loved every second of it. He was excited about his job, excited about a lead, excited about the research.
“I’ll pick up Skylar, then.”
“Thank you.” He gave her a swift kiss and hurried out of the barn.
She’d gotten an instant family when she’d moved to Kansas. She loved Skylar as if she were her own. She placed her hand low on her flat belly, a secret smile on her lips. And in a few months, they would be adding one more.
THE END
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Acknowledgments
I’m thrilled to bring you guys three more books in the Love to the Extreme series. I had a lot of fun with Lance’s story. He’s the only fighter in my series who does not professionally fight and it was an awesome change of pace. Now I delve into Brody’s story. I know a lot of you have been waiting for that one. Thank you to all my readers who helped keep this series alive for three more books. I can’t express enough how much I appreciate each and every one of you.
I also want to thank Liz Pelletier and Robin Haseltine for being amazing and helping me take HEALING LOVE to the next level during editing. I always come away from edits mentally beat down, and this time was no different, but I’m always extremely proud of the end result. You guys are fantastic editors.
Thank you to all my Abby Addicts. You guys are awesome and you have no idea how much I appreciate you taking the time out of your day to help me spread the word about my books.
Thank you to my partner in life, Ron. This was the first time he had to go through the whole editing/deadline thing with me. You did amazing, babe. Thank you for being supp
ortive and understanding when I’d have my “crazy writer” moments. You were an addition to my life I wasn’t expecting, and I count myself lucky every day that I found you and your two amazing kids to round out my life. I love all of you.
As I always close out an acknowledgement, thank you to my kids. You two are amazing, and I love you.
About the Author
Abby Niles is the author of the contemporary MMA series, Love to the Extreme, and the paranormal series, The Awakening. She is also the author of the geeky romantic comedy, Defying Convention, where Live Action Role Players (LARPers) set out to teach their favorite author a lesson, but end up playing matchmaker instead.
Abby lives in North Carolina with the love of her life and their combined gaggle of kids. When she’s not writing, she’s trying to catch up on an endless pile of laundry and find time to get some much needed reading in.
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Discover the Love to the Extreme series…
FIGHTING LOVE
WINNING LOVE
EXTREME LOVE
Also by Abby Niles
THE AWAKENING: AIDAN
THE AWAKENING: LIAM
THE AWAKENING: BRITTON
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