by L. P. Dover
The door to the office opened and in walked a dark haired woman with a blue toga on, carrying a tray of drinks. She smiled warmly at us and set the tray down before walking out of the room without a single word. I passed Claire her glass of wine and gulped my gin and tonic down in one sitting. If I was going to have to sit through a story about Claire’s past then I sure as hell needed the liquor floating through my system.
“So how did you two meet?” Jake asked curiously.
Claire took a sip of her wine and set it down, glancing at me quickly before she explained, “Oh, wow, let’s see. It’s actually a long and complicated story, but all in all he’s related to one of my close friends. I actually just ran into him the other day.”
“Ah … so new love, huh?” Jake laughed. “I wish I could remember what that felt like. So what brings you back to Las Vegas, kitten? I know it wasn’t to visit me.”
Claire rolled her eyes and smiled. “Actually, I’m here because of this one,” she said, pointing to me. “He likes to gamble and I figured I could show him a thing or two at the blackjack tables. Plus, I thought it would be fun to come by and visit you while I was here. We’re staying at the Bellagio.”
Grinning, Jake shook his head and then turned to me. “That doesn’t surprise me. Mason, did she tell you that’s where I met her and offered her a job?”
Claire had told me everything except the dancing part, and she mentioned about him approaching her in the lobby of the Bellagio, but she didn’t elaborate on it. “Yeah, she might have mentioned it. She basically only told me about the club and that she worked on the management side of things. So what happened?” I asked.
“Well, let me tell you,” Jake began, “I saw Claire sitting in the lobby at the Bellagio looking all studious with her hair in a messy ponytail, biting on a pencil with her books scattered all around her. I just had The Labyrinth built a couple of years beforehand so it was still kind of new, but business was getting stronger every month. I was searching for people to join my team and there was something about Claire’s angelic face that caught me.”
“Not only was she beautiful, but she had the brains as well. After an hour of listening to her talk about business classes, I offered her a job to assist me in the books and the management side of things at the club. Later on, when she got comfortable working with me, she told me about the injury that hindered her dance career and made her turn down her position at Julliard. So, needless to say, not long after that the summer goddess was born. She was the highlight of those hot summer nights.”
“And it wasn’t stripping,” Claire answered quickly. “I tried to tell you in the hall because I knew that was what you were thinking.” Jake burst out laughing and clapped his knee, but I didn’t find any of it funny. Sighing, Claire rolled her eyes at him and continued, “There weren’t any strippers here when I worked. I’m assuming there still aren’t.”
“There’s not,” Jake claimed, regaining his composure. “Believe it or not, I didn’t want any here. Claire did what she was good at and she looked good doing it … fully clothed.” Pursing his lips, he glanced at Claire and observed her for a moment, pondering. “Perhaps, since you’re here,” he began slyly, “we could bring in the summer with a performance from the summer goddess?”
Claire’s eyes went wide and she stared at him, frozen, the room silent. At least until the loud knock on the door broke her out of the trance, making her jump. “Come in,” Jake shouted.
The door opened and Tyler stuck his head in. “Hey, boss, I needed to ask Claire if I could steal her man for a bit.”
Claire glanced at Tyler and then quickly to me. “It’s up to you. I’m fine if you want to go. I’ll just catch up with Jake and be down there soon okay?” She smiled and nodded toward the door. “Have fun and don’t get into any trouble.”
I didn’t want to leave her, but it was looking like I had no choice. I was interested to see what Tyler wanted anyway, and I was also itching to get into the club to look around. Claire leaned over and kissed me, and in her eyes she was telling me to be careful. To reassure her I’d be fine, I squeezed her hand before meeting Tyler at the door.
Jake called out behind me, “I’ll make sure no one puts the moves on her when we come down there. You look like you could put a hurting on someone.”
Before shutting the door I turned around, glancing back at Claire then to him. “You have no idea what I can do.”
Then I shut the door.
I followed Tyler through the hall, down the winding staircase, and out into the heart of the club. “Do you want a drink?” Tyler asked.
“No thanks,” I grumbled, “but I do want to know what the hell you want.”
Tyler chuckled and looked at me over his shoulder. “You know, when you told me your name I knew I had heard it somewhere. It just so happens that I figured it out, well, thanks to Google.”
“Really, well what might I ask did you find?” I asked.
If someone looked up my name, my history with fighting in the UFC would be the first thing they found. The rest of my life was temporarily hidden, so there was no record of me being in the police force or that my permanent residence was in North Carolina. Replacing my true life was a history of two years in rehab, one year in anger management classes, and the rest gambling my way through life moving here and there.
Tyler grabbed his beer from the bartender and beckoned for me to follow him. Finally, we came to a stop outside of a closed door and he turned around, smiling. “What I found, Mason Bradley, is my opponent for tomorrow afternoon. Once I saw a video of you fighting, I realized I had watched you fight before. I can’t believe I didn’t know who you were.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I said, “Yeah, well, it’s been a long time since I’ve been in the ring.”
Tyler guffawed. “It sure doesn’t look like it’s been a long time. You obviously still train.”
“I do,” I commented impatiently. “So what exactly do you want me to do tomorrow? Kick your ass?”
“From what I saw of your moves I’m sure you’ll kick my ass, but my father owns a gym and a lot of my friends and I train there. Claire used to go there with me to work out, so I’m pretty sure she’d love to watch us fight. I need a worthy opponent to help me train.”
I lifted a questioning brow. “So what makes you think I want to help you train?”
Actually, I was intrigued with the idea because it was only my second day into the mission and it felt like I was starting to get somewhere. I had to take a chance.
Tyler nodded toward the door behind him. “What would you say if I told you that some of the most hard-core MMA fighters in the world were through this door?”
I snorted, “I would say you were full of shit.”
“What if they were?” he countered. “Would you train with me tomorrow?”
He was sure of himself with the confident sneer on his face, and I had to admit I was intrigued. Could it really be possible? There was only one way to find out.
“Okay,” I gave in. “Open the door, then I’ll give you my answer.”
Tyler laughed. “Your wish is my command.” He opened the door wide, and as soon as I stepped in behind him I stopped dead in my tracks, thinking I had to be in a dream.
Holy shit, I thought to myself. This couldn’t be real.
Tyler was telling the truth, and I just made it one step closer.
Jake had finally worn me down and made me agree to dance on stage the coming Saturday night since Mason and I were still going to be in town. I told him we were staying in town at least for the week, but in my mind I knew that if Mason didn’t find anything out in that time then it would be longer. To my surprise, it didn’t look like it was going to be much longer. When Jake took me down to the right wing of the club, I was shocked to see that the whole place had completely been renovated.
A portion of the VIP rooms and some of the secluded sex spots had been torn away and opened up to make a small arena, and in the middle of it all
was something that made my stomach twist in violent knots … an octagon ring with Mason in the middle of it. He wasn’t fighting, but he was standing up there with several other men, comparing moves and techniques. That wasn’t the problem … the problem was that everything in front of me was one huge coincidence. There were fighters showing up dead and now Jake has fights in his club. What if there’s a connection? Jake wouldn’t do that, would he?
Swaying on my feet, I almost lost my balance until Jake caught my arm and helped steady me. “Kitten, are you all right? You look a little pale,” he said worriedly, taking my hand and leading me to a seat. He barked out an order for someone to fetch me some water and a couple of seconds later I had a cold bottle in my hands.
Swallowing hard, I lowered my head and whispered, “I’m okay. I got a little dizzy there for a second. I think I drank that wine too fast.” It was a lie because growing up with a vineyard and a winery I was accustomed to drinking large amounts of wine and it not affect me.
Mason must have seen what happened because by the time I looked up he was already on his way out of the ring and almost to me. Bending down on his knee, he cupped my face in his hands. In my eyes he must’ve seen the turmoil because he nodded and slowly helped me to my feet.
“Too much excitement for you, baby,” he teased, hoping to lighten the mood. “I guess seeing me in the cage made you feel faint.”
He chuckled and so did Jake, but I smacked his arm and rolled my eyes. “You wish, Mason. No, I’m not exactly feeling too good right now. Do you mind if we go back to the hotel?”
Nodding, Mason wrapped his arm around my waist and took the bottle of water in the other. “Of course, it’s getting late anyway. We need to get some sleep before tomorrow.”
“Why is that?” I asked, furrowing my brows.
“Because you both are coming to the gym tomorrow,” Tyler interrupted. He strolled up beside Jake with a huge grin on his face and pointed to Mason. “Your boyfriend here is going to spar with me. Maybe he can teach me some things, or better yet, maybe he’ll learn something from me.” He bent down closer to me and whispered a little too loud, “I think he underestimates my talents.”
Mason snorted and rolled his eyes, but then Jake cut in and asked Mason, “So you’re a fighter? Claire never mentioned that to me.”
“That’s because it was a few years ago,” Mason pointed out.
Pursing his lip, Jake glanced at the cage and then back to Mason with a gleam in his eye. “Would you ever consider getting back into it? Even though you don’t fight anymore it’s obvious that you still work your body for it. I’ve already gotten Claire to agree to dance for us this coming weekend, so …”
Turning to me, Mason lifted a brow and grinned. “So I’m finally going to get to see you dance, huh?”
“It appears so,” I breathed. “It’s been a while so hopefully I won’t fall flat on my face.”
“Not possible,” Jake stated warmly.
Seeing his kind eyes as he gazed at me made me doubt everything. I never felt like I had to watch my back with him, but if he was a part of what’s been happening then I was in just as deep as Mason … if not more because Jake was like family.
“So, Mason, are you in for Friday night? You can fight Ty. He’s on the list of fighters for that night,” Jake announced. Tyler winked at me before lifting a questioning brow to Mason, waiting on his answer.
Mason groaned and blew out a heavy sigh. “Okay, fine, I’m in. Friday night it is then.”
Jake smiled triumphantly. “Great, well then I will put you down.” He kissed me on the cheek and squeezed my arm gently. “You two have a good night. I’ll see you again on Friday.”
Mason and I said our quick good-byes, but they weren’t quick enough for me. I needed air, and I needed it bad.
As soon as we got back into our suite, I couldn’t keep silent any longer. “Do you think Jake is the one responsible for all of this?” I blurted out. “When I walked into the room and saw the arena I about lost it.”
Sighing, Mason shrugged his shoulders and sat down on the bed to take off his boots. “Claire, I don’t know anything yet. Tyler told me that every Friday night they have fights, and they fight by the sanctioned rules. They even have it available to watch on pay per view. Whatever happened to the fighters it didn’t happen at the club.”
I sat on the bed beside him and kicked off my heels. “What makes you so sure of that?” I asked, laying my head on his shoulder.
“Well, for starters, the bodies weren’t found anywhere near the club. In fact, they were found across town. Also, with the time of deaths and when their bodies were discovered they would have been killed late on the Saturday nights. So if the club only has open fights on Fridays and not Saturdays then we’re looking at a different location. If Jake is at the club every Saturday night then either he’s doing that for an alibi or we’re looking at someone completely different. Jake must have been the club owner who the Chief of Police stopped investigating.”
Quickly, I lifted my head off his shoulders. “Wait, what? What do you mean? Jake was investigated?”
“Before we came to Vegas, Ryan Griffin, who’s the Chief of Police out here, said they investigated a club owner who had ties in the fighting community, but everything about him was legit. I’ll give him a call in the morning and get the details. I’m surprised that information wasn’t in the file. I guess they ruled him out completely and didn’t feel it was necessary to keep it there.”
Mason was a smart man with amazing instincts and survival skills. He wouldn’t be where he was today without them. “Mason,” I murmured hesitantly, “I need your honest in depth opinion on this. When you met Jake, did you get a bad vibe from him? I’ve always thought I was a good judge of character, and even with my brother I knew he was a bad apple. You could just look at him and tell something was off. I know you hated him, too, especially when he messed things up with Melissa.”
He nodded in agreement. “That’s true. Your brother was a psychotic prick.”
Impatiently, I rolled my eyes and glared at him. “So to answer my question, what was your first impression of Jake? Do you think I need to stay away from him?”
Mason tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear and cupped my cheek. “As much as I want to say yes, at least until this is all over, I know I can’t. You are the one who got me in there and you are the one who knows all the people. If you left, I’m afraid I wouldn’t have the in I need. From now on you need to stay close to me. I could tell Jake cares for you and he was sincere when he spoke to you, but I’ve seen people hide their dark sides before. All it takes is one thing to make a person snap and the people they love suffer. We just need to be careful.”
“You need to be careful, Mason,” I pleaded, grabbing onto his shirt. “You are the one who will be fighting. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
Watching him fight someone would be both terrifying and exhilarating. If we weren’t in the middle of a murder investigation I’d be excited. However, knowing that he could end up in a ditch somewhere like the other men scared the shit out of me … it completely frightened me.
Still cupping my cheek in his rough, warm hands, he leaned down to kiss me gently on the lips. “Claire, I can’t promise I’m not going to get hurt because I most likely will. I’m going to figure this all out and then we can go home … together.”
“Together?” I asked, eyes going wide. “What are you saying?”
He can’t be saying what I think he’s saying can he?
He trailed his hand down my cheek to my shoulder where he fingered the strap of my dress. The smile on his face was both boyish and handsome even though there was nothing boyish about his rugged exterior. He looked like he hadn’t shaved in a week, but surprisingly I actually liked the stubble. It made him look rough … like a fighter. He was my fighter.
“Claire,” he whispered, gazing into my eyes, “I don’t know what’s going to happen with us when we get back, but when this shit is o
ver, I’m going to take some time off and stay in California for a while. My whole life has been in North Carolina, but now there’s nothing there for me except my job. My family’s in California … you are in California.”
Dumbfounded, I stared at him completely speechless. It took him four months and a dangerous mission to come to his senses. I knew he was a male and most of the time men didn’t think logically about the simple things, but damn it if he didn’t just piss me off a little. Pushing his shoulders back, he fell down onto the bed and I straddled his waist.
Exasperated, I glared down at him and pinned his arms above his head as hard as I could. “So it took you this long to figure out that you’re going to stay in California to be with me? I think I’m a little insulted. You may be intelligent when it comes to your job, but I have to say when it comes to relationships you need some practice.”
Sadly, his smile faded and he nodded. “I know that, but I’m hoping you can show me how it’s done. I know I made a mistake, and I’ll always regret the time we lost.”
Slowly, I let go of his hands and he settled them on my hips with his fingers grazing my ass. Leaning down, I kissed his lips, his cheek, and then down to his ear where I nipped his lobe with my teeth. Sucking gently, I moaned and murmured in his ear, “If you want me to show you how to love someone you better take notes because this is going to last a while.”
I could feel him getting hard beneath me, and since I was straddling his waist I rocked my hips against him and smiled when he groaned and swelled even more. Reaching down, I unbuttoned his jeans and slid the zipper down, freeing him. I massaged him for a few minutes, watching him shudder with my touch before sliding down his body so I was between his legs. Mason groaned deep in his chest when he realized what I was going to do.
I pulled his pants and boxers all the way off and watched his cock jerk with just the slightest touch to his sack beneath. Cupping them gently in my palm, I massaged them for a second before licking the tip of his cock and closing my lips around it. Mason moaned, gripping the sheets beneath him, and rocked his hips along with my movements. The harder I sucked, the more I could feel him losing control.