Her Son's Hero

by Vicki Essex

  Mako knelt in front of Dom and gripped his shoulders. “I want you to say that to yourself again more slowly, Domo-san.”

  “I can’t fight to win…?”

  “Not that, the other part. The part about Fiona and Sean. I assume you meant them?”

  Dom reviewed his words in his mind. The only two people who have meant as much to me as you and my mother…

  “You have always had a little darkness inside, Domo-san. But you have come a long way to achieving balance. Contentment. I do not think I have ever seen you so torn except when that balance was disturbed. And you are highly disturbed now.” Mako’s smile was gentle. “You have fought long for Zen, my son. Perhaps it is time to stop fighting for it and simply embrace it.”

  Dom was floored by the insight. His Zen was with the family he so desperately wanted for himself. Fiona gave him love and passion, Sean gave him strength and joy. He’d been without these two things for so long…and then Mitch had appeared and threatened to take them away.

  His happy little family.

  He loved Fiona. He loved Sean. He would do anything for them.

  And that meant he had to give up the things he thought made him a worthy and honorable man in order to become the man they both deserved.

  Could he do that? Would they even take him back if he came on his hands and knees? What if he left right now and was turned away? Then he’d have nothing.

  No, leaving now wasn’t the answer. He had to prove to them once and for all that he was not a monster. That he was not Mitch. He had to show Fiona he loved her with everything in him. But she had to love him for everything he was, too. He could never be less than he was; he would never stop chasing his potential, and he would never force her to love a man who wasn’t his best. He was a fighter. He had to fight for the things that mattered.

  And this mattered a lot.

  “Sensei, you’re right. It’s time I stopped fighting for titles—” he exhaled “—and started defending the honor of the Five Elements dojo instead.”

  “Now you’re talking.” Mako popped to his feet. “I have a sudden urge to spar with you, Domosan.” He rolled up his sleeves and toed his shoes off. “Show me everything you’ve learned, and I’ll see if I have any more lessons in me to teach you.”

  THE NIGHT OF Dominic “The Dominator” Payette’s championship match against Andrew “Alpha” Atlas, all of Salmon River gathered in bars, in homes, in restaurants and anywhere there was a TV playing the pay-per-view fight.

  All except Fiona. She’d spent the past three weeks beating her feelings into submission. She tried filling the emptiness she felt by volunteering with the town’s neighborhood safety watch committee. The members, including Denise Kirkpatrick, had welcomed her into the fold. But even after she’d settled into this new active role in town, Fiona still felt empty.

  At home alone that night, she puttered around, trying to keep her mind off the fight and the excitement in Salmon River. She’d once been jealous that the town had adopted Dom so readily, but now she was just as proud to know he’d been a part of that community, however briefly.

  Sean hadn’t stopped talking about Dom, and he seemed to believe he’d be back soon. Fiona knew better. If Dom won the title, he’d be flying all over the world, fighting, training, promoting…who knew what else? But he’d be living his dream, and he deserved that.

  The phone rang. “Are you watching?” Josie was breathless.

  “No.”

  “Then get your butt over here. Dom’s the main event, and he’s coming up in less than fifteen minutes. If you hurry—”

  “I’m not going to watch the fight, Josie.” But Fiona wasn’t sure she believed in pacifism anymore. She understood Dom a lot better now. All his training had been coming down to this moment. It wasn’t just about two guys turning each other into hamburger meat. It was a contest of skill and stamina, strength and endurance. He was an athlete. His sport just wasn’t something she could stomach.

  If Sean ever wanted to become an MMA fighter…if he wanted to be just like Dom…would she let him?

  Of course she would. She shook her head. She had to let Sean make his own choices, let him grow up to be whatever he wanted to be, even if that meant he’d take a few knocks now and again. But Sean was stronger than she was. His confrontation with his father had proved that. She had to stop thinking she could control everything to keep him safe. She had to let go, just as she had tonight when he’d begged her to let him watch the match at Scott Madden’s place.

  “You’re crazy, you know that, don’t you?” Josie said. “This is the fight of his career. You owe it to him to watch, even if you don’t support what he does.”

  “He won’t know.”

  “But you will.” Her friend sighed. “Look, if you change your mind, just come over. I’ll leave the door unlocked.”

  She hung up. Fifteen minutes went by as she tried to distract herself with dishes, sweeping, reorganizing the spice rack…

  Dom had brought Fiona love and trust and a sense of security and confidence. He’d turned Sean into someone who could hold his own. And he’d helped her rediscover passion after she’d packed it away like some glass ornament beneath layers and layers of tissue paper.

  The impulse was too strong to resist any longer. She had to watch the fight.

  She broke several speed limits getting to Josie’s. Fiona was through the door just as the roar of twenty-five thousand voices in the Vegas stadium filled her friend’s living room.

  Josie sat with her hands clasped over her mouth in disbelief. She hardly heard Fiona come in. “Omigod, omigod…”

  “What’s happened?” Fiona thought she might drown in the sudden rush of dread. “What is it?”

  “He won. KO’d Andrew Atlas after three rounds. I’ve never seen anything like it, but it was…” She stared up at her, a strange look in her eyes. “It was beautiful. It was the most exciting thing I’ve ever seen.”

  Fiona sat to watch the replay in slow motion, from all different angles. She caught her breath at the sight of Dom as he kneed the other man in the chest, and then struck him with a shattering right hook to the cheek.

  It was beautiful. Like a dance, Dom’s long, ropy arms swooping gracefully through the air. His lean figure was like a master artist’s brush-stroke against a canvas.

  Above the uproar, the cameras went to shots of Dom clasping a dazed Andrew Atlas. The men showed nothing but respect for each other. Dom’s corner men, including Kyle and Hector, pulled a logo-splattered T-shirt over his head. Dom bowed to his team members, bowed to the crowd of screaming fans, then boogied down in what could only be called a victory dance.

  The announcer declared Dom the new UFF welterweight champion, and Fiona found herself crying as his team carried him around the cage in triumph.

  The post-fight commentator grabbed him as a massive gold belt was cinched around his relatively slim waist. “Dominic Payette, new welterweight champion for the UFF. How does it feel?”

  “Like nothing else I can describe.” His smile lit the room. Fiona found herself laughing.

  “You’ve been through a lot, having to overcome your Pyrrhic victory over Bruno DiMartino, and then everything that happened these past few weeks in Virginia. It must have been very distracting, and I can only imagine what you yourself went through during all that drama. Can you tell us how you got past that to win the fight tonight?”

  Dom’s eyes shuttered briefly as he mustered an answer. “Actually, it was simple. You ask any fighter, including my fantastic opponent here, Andrew Atlas.” Cheers went up at the nod he gave to the man recovering on one side of the cage. “Ask any fighter why they fight. What they fight for.” He regarded the stadium for a long moment of cheers and chanting.

  Dom-i-nic, Dom-i-nic…

  “This, all this—the fans, the bright lights, the love of the sport—that’s what a lot of people say. And I don’t exclude any of those things. My fans are the best. The sport and everyone involved are first-rate. />
  “But there is something particular I fought for tonight. Something I thought was missing from my life. That something gave me the edge, I think.”

  The commentator waited. “Are you going to tell us what it is?”

  Dom shook his head, grinned. “Quite honestly, I don’t think she’d appreciate it.”

  Fiona’s heart leaped into her throat, jackhammering until she could hardly swallow. Josie gripped her hand like a vise.

  “A woman?” The audience started issuing cat-calls and whistles. “Who?”

  He laughed. “She’d kill me if I said her name on camera.” He looked into the lens and winked one of his sky-blue eyes.

  Fiona shivered. Had that national pay-per-view wink been for her?

  The commentator laughed. “Well, whoever she is, she’s a lucky girl. What’s next for Dominic Payette?”

  Dom paused, as though catching his breath, then said, “This was my dream. Now that I’ve achieved it, I’m announcing my retirement from professional MMA fighting.”

  The gasp that went through the audience would be nothing compared to the shock waves hitting the sports world the next day. Fiona could hardly believe her ears.

  She should be happy he was leaving this violent sport. She should be happy he’d made his dreams come true.

  But surely this was only a small part of the greater journey Dom was entitled—no, destined—to make?

  After all, he had a title to defend!

  “I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU! I can’t believe you!” Joel shrieked, following Dom around the locker room two days later. “You win the belt and leave me flapping in the wind by retiring? Why would you do this to me, Dom? My children need to eat!”

  “You don’t have kids.” Dom stuffed the contents of his locker into his duffel bag. He was stripping his life away from Vegas and moving back to Salmon River—moving home. “And you’ll be fine. I’ve got too many balls to juggle on my own without you added to the mix.”

  “But the sponsors… Think of the sponsors you could have if you kept fighting!”

  “There’ll be sponsors for the new gym, Joel. Trust me.” As part of the prize, the UFF opened an official MMA facility in every champion fighter’s hometown. Dom would make sure that the New Orleans gym created lots of jobs for people who were still suffering in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He knew exactly where they should build the facility, too. At the sight of Sensei Miwa’s old dojo. And Kyle had said he was willing to manage the place.

  “Dom, you’re crazy. You’re at the top of your game.”

  “I am,” he said, “which is why I want to spend this part of my life getting it right.” He stripped the locker of some photos and dropped them into his bag. “I won’t always be at the top of my game, Joel. Anything could happen to take it all away. Just look at Bruno.”

  “Bruno’s fine now.”

  “He is, and he has a wife, and he wants kids. He has more than most of us at his age have, and he almost lost it all.” Dom shook his head. It was so clear now. “It’s time to start living instead of trying to make up for a life I didn’t have.” He closed the bag, staring at his empty locker. Such a small space.

  A trainer called, “Dom, there’s someone here to see you.”

  “That’s probably Sensei come to say goodbye,” Dom said. “He’s going to be so surprised when I show up on his flight.” To the gym worker he said, “Let him in.”

  “Dom.”

  The velvety voice made him stop. In disbelief, he turned slowly, saw Fiona standing in the doorway of the locker room, staring at him.

  She was so beautiful. The most beautiful thing he’d ever seen in her white sundress. Her blond hair framed her pale face; her pink lips parted on a breath. But in her brown eyes he read her love, her hope. He saw the future he dared to hope for with her and Sean.

  He dropped his duffel bag.

  Joel glanced between the two. Comprehension hit him like a bulldozer. “Uh, I’ll just…go.” He scuttled out.

  “WHAT…WHAT ARE YOU doing here?” Dom rasped. She could feel his eyes on her like a caress. Her skin broke out in goose bumps.

  “Dom, you can’t retire,” Fiona exclaimed, hoping she could convince him, make him see the stupidity of his decision before it was too late. “This is your dream. You can’t give up on it.”

  “Is Sean with you?” he asked, looking around.

  “Outside, talking with Hector.” She and Sean had booked a flight the day after Dom’s win. Sean hadn’t entirely understood his mother’s reason for flying across the country, but it had meant they could see Dom again, so he’d agreed to go on the adventure.

  “And Mitch?” His throat convulsed.

  “Gone. He doesn’t matter…. I mean, what happened…” She trailed off. This wasn’t how she wanted to start. “He’s out of the picture. He’ll see Sean when he can, but he’s gone now. It’s over.” She smiled. “You would have been proud of Sean. He went all Gandhi on Mitch.”

  “I’m proud of Sean no matter what.”

  She brushed a strand of hair away from her face and went on a little shakily, her nerves finally catching up with her heart. “Dom—”

  “No, wait, let me talk first.” He reached for her, but stopped short, fisting his hands at his sides instead. “I’m sorry, Fiona. I’m sorry I scared you and Sean, and I’m sorry you saw me at my worst. I saw Mitch hurting Sean, and I went nuts. I shouldn’t have. I have better control than that, so there are no excuses. I’m going to see a therapist about it. I don’t ever want you to see me like that again. That’s why I’m leaving the UFF. I can’t fight anymore if I want to be with you.”

  Fiona swallowed a sob. He was willing to give up so much for her…for them. “Dom, all this—the UFF, MMA, the fighting, the championship—it’s your life. It’s everything you ever wanted. You can’t abandon it now.”

  “You’re wrong.” He stared at her. “This isn’t what I’ve always wanted.” He gestured around the dingy locker room, the smells of sweat and rubber thick in the muggy air. “I’ve been missing something all my life and when I got to Salmon River, I finally realized what it was.”

  He clasped her hands. “I love you, Fiona. I love you more than I’ve ever loved anything, including fighting.”

  Tears streamed down her cheeks. “I love you, too.”

  He gathered her into his strong arms and kissed her, pouring every ounce of himself into that searing kiss. She clung to him, unwilling to let him go ever again.

  “Did you watch the fight?” he asked when they finally broke apart.

  Her cheeks heated. “Actually…I only saw the very end.”

  “Did you hear what I said about my reason for fighting?”

  She nodded.

  He cupped her cheek gently. “It was for you, Fiona. I fought in your name, won for your love. And if I can spend the rest of my life with you and Sean, it’ll be worth more than any sponsorship or belt or legion of fans the sport could ever bring me.” He went down on one knee, and stared up at her with eyes the color of a limitless sky. “Marry me and I promise I’ll be the most loving, devoted husband to you, and the best father I can be to Sean.”

  She thought her heart might burst. “Oh, Dom, absolutely, yes!”

  “Really?” Sean cried from the doorway. Who knew how long he’d been standing there listening? Long enough, it seemed, as he barreled into the locker room and threw his arms around Dom’s waist. “You’re gonna be my new dad?”

  “Is that okay?”

  “Omigod, yes!” Sean pumped his fist in the air. “I’m so getting an A-plus on bring-your-dad-to-school day.”

  Fiona laughed. There was no need to fight her feelings for Dom anymore. She knew Sean would always be safe and cared for. Dom had fought for and won both their hearts. He would always be their champion.

  ISBN: 978-1-4592-0845-2

  HER SON’S HERO

  Copyright © 2011 by Vicki So

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or ut
ilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

  For questions and comments about the quality of this book please contact us at Customer_eCare@Harlequin.ca.

  ® and TM are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.

  www.Harlequin.com