The Cocky Cage Fighter Six Book Box Set

by Lane Hart

  "Holy shit," I mutter in understanding, my heart coming to a complete stop in my chest. Jude got this fight in exchange for going out with me? From the beginning at prom or...or was it for him to date me the whole damn summer?

  What the fuck? I glance up to the stage at Jude. He wouldn't have done that to me, would he? But if I'm honest with myself…I know it's the most likely explanation for him ending up with someone like me.

  All this time...my own father has been making a fool out of me. He'd even made me beg to let Jude take me to prom after he'd apparently orchestrated the whole damn thing! No wonder he knew where I was every night. And Jude...I close my eyes to try and stop the pain coursing through me because it's overwhelming. It's too much...too unexpected to deal with. He actually told me he loved me when we were only together because of a fucking fight!

  Was he faking it all this whole time and going to end things between us once it's all over tomorrow? Will his obligation finally be finished then? Oh God, is this why he wanted to get back together at the beach? He had too for his deal?

  "You didn't know?" Linc asks, bringing me back to the present.

  I shake my head in response since I can't speak. My hands cover my embarrassed and humiliated face, hiding the tears I'm unable to hold back.

  "Shit, I'm sorry. Oh no, please don't cry. You're gonna break my heart, doll."

  The stranger's arms unexpectedly go around me hesitantly in a hug, comforting me even though he doesn't know me. All he knows is that I'm so pathetic my dad has to set up guys to go out with me. It's a pity hug because my father and the man I love, the man I thought actually loved me, have both been lying to me for weeks! My tears leak onto his t-shirt before I can stop them.

  "What the hell? Sadie, what's wrong?"

  I freeze hearing Jude's voice. I don't think I can even bear to look at his lying face right now, and I certainly don't want to hear his bullshit. I'm...crushed, and my heart's been splintered into a million pieces. Then I feel Jude's hands on me, grabbing me around my shoulder and waist. It reminds me of all the times he's touched me over the last six weeks. Not because he wanted to, but because he wanted a fucking fight!

  "Don't touch me!" I yell, bristling at his phony contact meant to offer me comfort.

  "You heard her Malone, get your hands off of her," Linc tells him, shifting us away from Jude.

  "No Abrams, you need to take your goddamn hands off of my girlfriend," Jude growls, standing so close I can feel his warm breath on the back of my neck.

  "You fucker," Linc mutters in understanding. "No wonder she's so damn upset."

  "Why, what the hell did you do to her?" Jude asks.

  "I didn't do anything to her. That's all on you, man."

  "Sadie, talk to me. What the hell is going on?" Jude asks.

  "Sadie, what are you doing?" My dad asks, making me tense up even more. My own father basically whored his pathetic daughter out for a fight he'll make a shitload of money on.

  "Do you wanna get outta here? Away from these assholes?" Linc asks and I nod.

  I need to escape. I feel like I'm suffocating, and I can't deal with either of their lying faces right now.

  "Hey, Dave!" Linc yells. "Gimme your keys!" He reaches up in the air grabbing the tossed keys, then pushes me forward toward the door with a guiding hand on my back when some of the media people start crowding around us.

  "Sadie, wait! Where the hell are you going?" Jude yells, following us.

  "Just one second," I tell Linc, before wiping my eyes so I can finally turn around to face him. I need to know for certain.

  "Tell me Jude, did my dad throw in letting you fuck me as part of your deal, or did you just take advantage of the situation you were forced into for this fight?" I ask. His blanch tells me he knows exactly what the hell I'm talking about. It's true. It's actually fucking true. "That's the real reason why you said we had to hide from my dad, isn't it?"

  Jude didn't want my dad to know he was fucking me on the side after accepting his deal.

  "Sadie, please let me explain-"

  "It's too fucking late for explanations!" I shout at him.

  "Don't worry Malone, I'll take care of her," Linc says with a smirk and then Jax and my dad have to hold Jude back when he tries to launch himself at the blonde man. Right, because he never actually wanted me, but for whatever reason he can't stand seeing me with someone else. Fuck that and fuck him!

  "You've got no one to blame but yourself, Jude, and you know it," Jax says as we walk away. Great, so even he knew they'd been conniving behind my back.

  …

  Jude

  "Let me go or so help me God!" I warn all the hands on me.

  "Not until you calm down," my dad says, standing in front of me with a grip on both my shoulders.

  "I'll calm down after I knock him the fuck out!"

  "You can't touch him before the fight or you forfeit," Coach says.

  "I don't give a shit!"

  "You're pissed at him when you should be mad at yourself," Jax continues to run his mouth. "Why didn't you just tell her the truth?"

  "Because of that right there!" I yell, pointing at the empty doorway. "I knew I'd fucking lose her."

  "This is all my fault," Coach sighs heavily beside me. "I manipulated you both."

  Oh fuck! Now he knows about me and Sadie since I just yelled it out louder than if I had a megaphone. That manages to calm my anger a smidge.

  "I'm sorry I went behind your back and kept this from you, Coach."

  "What? That you two have been seeing each other since you hooked up at prom?" he asks calmly.

  "Um, well, yeah."

  "I know she's been staying with you every night," he says with a shrug.

  "You...you did? You've known about us the whole time?"

  "Hell, Jude, do you think I'm stupid? Everyone in the gym could tell within five seconds of being in the same room with you two. And your death threats to more than half the fighters on our team wasn't exactly subtle. Why do you think I caused all this mess to begin with? I wanted you to end up together."

  "But..." I start to say, only I'm at a complete loss.

  "After that jackass dumped Sadie before prom I didn't want her to keep dating losers. I knew you didn't date, don't drink, use drugs, or do anything but train in my gym. I thought you'd be good for each other, and of course, I was right. I'd already set up the fight when I asked you to take her to prom."

  "Wow. I thought you'd shoot me when you found out, which is why I kept it from you. I didn't want you to tell her about the deal we made with the fight. If I'd known..." Hell, I still wouldn't have told Sadie the truth.

  "I picked you because I couldn't have picked anyone better for her. You've made her happy, and she's somehow made you a better fighter. If I'd tried to actually convince the two of you to go out, neither of you would have agreed."

  "And you didn't want her moving away for college. You thought that if the two of us got together she'd stay here for me, right?"

  "I’d hoped so."

  "We're both dumbasses," I tell him. "And now she's with fucking Linc Abrams. How the hell did that happen?"

  "I don't know. One second they were talking and then she was crying. Probably my fault for telling Dave, Linc's man, the details about our deal. I figure that's what Linc must’ve said to her."

  I pull out my phone and try to call Sadie. When my other pocket vibrates I remember I agreed to hold her phone for her since she's wearing a dress. Fuck. No way to reach her, and no telling where they're going. She won't fuck with Linc, will she? Hell, as mad and as hurt as she is, I'm not so sure.

  "What am I supposed to do?" I ask Jax and Coach. "I can't fight like this. My head's not right."

  "Let out that rage you just showed a few minutes ago, and you'll wipe the floor with him," Jax replies. "Sadie might actually help you by being such a cock tease he'll be too strung out to fight. Or not," he mutters when I grab him up by the front of his t-shirt.

  "Sadie just needs
a little time to cool off, away from us," Coach says. "She'll think about it and forgive us."

  Chapter Twenty

  Sadie

  "Where you wanna go?" Linc asks after we sit down in a new red Mustang.

  "Anywhere."

  I wipe a few tears away, but it doesn't do any good. More just take their place. I can't help replaying every moment since Jude asked me about prom as we ride around Fairfax. He'd just come out of my dad's office now that I think about it. That's right around the time they scheduled this fight. Hell, my dad had even asked him to go with us to the beach. He went as a favor, as part of a deal. All those perfect moments together are now tainted. Our first time. Every time.

  "You wanna get out here?" Linc asks.

  I look out the front windshield and see that we're stopped in what looks like a community park. Fresh air, yeah that should help erase all the pain caused by the two most important people in my life. I climb out of the car but then standing on my feet feels like too much effort.

  "Come on. I see a nice little place to crash." Grabbing my elbow Linc pulls me through the grass and down a hill to a small pond with lilies floating on the surface and ducks swimming around. We sit down on a wooden pier, our legs hanging over the edge. My shoulders hunch forward with the weight of the betrayal. More tears fall. God I'm a fucking mess, and here I am, out in the middle of nowhere with a man I don't even know.

  I look over at Linc Abrams stretched out next to me. He's laid out flat on his back with his hands behind his head and eyes closed. All I know about him is that he's a great fighter. Only one loss on his record that most people say he was ripped off on. I've been watching Jude train to beat him for the past six weeks, hell maybe even the last seven years.

  The snoozing man cracks one sky blue eye open and gives me a crooked smile. I try not to look at the skin showing at the top of his jeans because his shirt's riding up. Nope, I definitely do not see his defined pelvis muscles or his obvious lack of boxers.

  "It's a really nice afternoon to be outside," he says, breaking the silence.

  "Don't you have a fight to get ready for, you know, instead of wasting time, napping on a pier with me?" I ask.

  "Nope. I'm ready other than rehydrating and eating."

  "I've heard that about you," I joke.

  "What?" he asks, now opening both eyes.

  "That you're overly cocky."

  "I'd say I'm just the right amount of cocky." Fair enough.

  "But what are you doing here? I mean, you just met me, and I don't know anything about you but your name."

  "So?"

  "So, tell me something about yourself, Linc Abrams," I say, wanting a distraction. "What's with the name?"

  "I was named after Link, L-I-N-K, from the Nintendo game The Legend of Zelda. My parents are such dorks." He chuckles. "They didn't wanna be obvious about it so they gave me the name Lincoln, which no one's ever used except for the school system."

  "Abrams, Lincoln?" I ask in mock roll call form. I can't help the giggle that spills out.

  "Yeah, my mom and dad think they're fuckin' comedians," he says, shaking his head with a smile.

  "They are...Abrams, Lincoln." I fall backwards laughing at his expense because it's so much nicer than being sad.

  When my fit of hysteria finally comes to an end, Linc asks, "What about you? Any story behind Sadie?"

  "You've heard of a Sadie Hawkins Dance, right?"

  "Sure."

  "Well, that's how my parents met. My mom asked my dad to a Sadie Hawkins dance their junior year of high school. They got married after they graduated, had me the next year, and then she asked him for a divorce when I was about ten years old."

  "That sucks, but at least ya got a cute and uncommon name."

  "Yeah, Linc's pretty unusual, too."

  He laughs. "Yeah it is. And much to my parent's delight, I also ended up being blonde-haired and blue-eyed."

  "All you're missing is the green tunic, tights, and a sword. Oh shit...that's hilarious...just thinking about you...in tights!" I laugh so hard I'm rolling from side to side, holding my stomach on the wooden planks.

  "Don't forget the shield," he adds, setting me off on another giggling fit. "Guess I sort of lucked up. You could be sittin' here talkin' to Mario or Luigi Abrams instead, and that'd be a shame since I don't look anything like those two Italians."

  I laugh some more then wipe away the tears, already feeling a little lighter. There's something about this guy's laid back demeanor and slow southern drawl that’s soothing to my aching soul.

  "Thanks," I tell him. "I really needed that."

  "That's what I'm here for - comic relief."

  "You're good at it, too."

  "Thanks. I guess comedy runs in the family."

  "So how old are you?" I ask.

  "Twenty-four. Why? How old are you?"

  "You don't act twenty-four," I respond.

  "I was raised by two dorks who named me after a fuckin' video game character. I'd take a guess and say that growin' up in that household caused a significant developmental delay in me and my sister's maturity."

  "Probably," I agree. "And I'm eighteen. I'll be nineteen in November."

  "You seem pretty normal to have grown up with an MMA coach as a father."

  "Yeah, I guess so. It's almost like I've always had thirty or forty brothers. All the guys at the gym treat me like their nerdy little sister."

  "You're not nerdy," he says. "And I’d know, since I was raised by a pair."

  "This is the new me. You should've seen me a few weeks ago. I had braces, frizzy brown hair, and last but not least, very thick glasses."

  "Okay, you mighta been a tad dorky lookin' with all that, but who wouldn't?"

  "I was an invisible dork until I got a makeover and started dressing like a girl. Suddenly guys started noticing me." I thought Jude had been one of the guys to notice me but nope, he was suckered into going out with me for a fucking title fight. Linc was right, Jude doesn't deserve this matchup. After his last few losses it must have taken some serious pull by my dad to get him in the cage for a chance at the IFC championship belt.

  "So where are you from?" I ask trying not to think about the stupid fight.

  "Raleigh."

  "North Carolina?" I ask with a grin.

  "Yep."

  "I was supposed to start at Duke this fall."

  "No shit?" he asks. "That's right down the road. Hold on, why'd you say supposed to?"

  "I've been...considering staying at home, and just going to Georgetown instead."

  "What! No, doll. Duke is top of the line, and harder than hell to get into."

  "Yeah, I know."

  "So what's with the hesitancy?" he asks.

  My eyes water and I can't even say his name.

  "Oh shit. Get back in the car. It's time for phase two of comic relief," Linc says, getting to his feet and pulling me by my hands to mine.

  "We don't have to leave," I tell him with a sniffle.

  "Yeah we do," he mutters, dragging me back to the car.

  He pulls up some directions on his phone, which guide us to our destination of 10700 Fairfax Boulevard. Whatever that is.

  I still have no idea what he's up to when we pull into a Party City parking lot. Inside the big retail store Linc tells me to pick out a balloon and wait for him, then he vanishes. I've made my way through half the store when I finally see Linc again, or rather Link.

  "Oh my God!" I exclaim before I laugh until I snort.

  Linc, all six feet, one-hundred and seventy pounds of him is wearing the green dress type tunic, complete with a brown belt to hold his sword. He has the gold shield in front of him and the pointy green hood pulled up over his head. I end up on my knees on the floor laughing so hard I almost pee myself. He's so big and muscular, and the small, goofy green outfit is so darn funny on him. He looks like the Jolly Green Giant. Wait, something's missing. "Where's...where's the tights?" I ask staring at his bare muscular legs.

  "
Unfortunately they didn't fit, and I may or may not have torn 'em," he says with a hint of red coloring his cheeks.

  "Bahhh!" I fall over laughing again, picturing him struggling to tug tights up his huge quads.

  "All right, can you pull yourself together enough to take a picture? I gotta send one to my parents."

  I nod and get my snickers under control to accept his phone and snap a few photos from my position still on the linoleum floor. I can't resist sending one to myself to look at whenever I'm sad. Which will probably be often now. I might need a life sized poster.

  After I hit the send button, I curse, feeling down the sides of my dress with no pockets. Jude still has my damn phone!

  "What?" Linc asks.

  "Um, I just sent one of them to myself."

  "Okay?"

  "He has my phone. I'm so sorry," I say with a wince, figuring he'll be pissed to have that ridiculous picture in his opponent's hands. After he's gone out of his way to make me feel better, I just fucked him over.

  "No biggie," he says coolly with a shrug, taking his phone back. "Hell, I might make this my new fight day attire. What do ya think? Nothing invokes fear in your opponents like a motherfuckin' sword." He pulls out his plastic toy and dances around like a fencer. "I'll even use the Zelda song as my intro."

  I smile and shake my head. "Not unless you find some tights. The outfit is just not complete without them."

  "You're right," he agrees. "Come on, let's go check out."

  After Linc changes back into his jeans and t-shirt, we go up to the check-out counter. He pays for the costume and a balloon with butterflies that reads, "Get Well Soon" that he hands to me.

  "She has a broken heart," he tells the cashier who is blatantly checking him out while she checks him out. "And I'm gonna' be fightin' the dude who broke it tomorrow night."

  "Oh my God! You're Linc Abrams!" the cashier says in comprehension, fanning her face like she's going to pass out. Ugh.

  "I am also Link," he says, holding up his purchased costume. "Don't tell anyone about this though. I'd hate to lose my badass reputation."

  "Your secret's safe with me," she says with a wink. "Good luck!"