by Coralee June
“You got your head in the game, Kid?” Gavriel asked, and I almost rolled my eyes at the verbal pissing contest. Gavriel was always asserting his dominance over Ryker. That nickname was one of the many tools in his arsenal.
“I’m a bit on edge,” Ryker bit out. “A little warning that she was going to be here would've been nice.” I looked down as he clenched his fist. Was he mad I was here? This was a bad idea. I went to remove my hand from Gavriel’s, but he kept his grip firm.
He wasn't going to let me flee the tense confrontation. I wasn't sure if I wanted to punch Gav or kiss him for making me stay. I needed some sort of closure with Ryker, and I doubted he'd let us pick back up where we'd left off.
Gavriel frowned before speaking, “Don’t get your dick in a twist. Sunshine needed some help. Callum found her. Blaise brought her in.”
“Well, the gang’s back together again, I guess,” Ryker growled once more, and I wanted to hide. I looked between them, wondering once again if it was too late to run away. “What kind of trouble are you in?”
There was a time I would have sought out Ryker's comfort and wisdom. But as he shook with adrenaline in front of me, I couldn't articulate a word.
“You’re shaking, get it under control. You never fight well when you’re like this, “ Gavriel scolded. He adjusted his watch, and I brushed my hair behind my ear before looking back at Ryker. It felt like someone was standing on my chest, suffocating me. The boy I knew was gone.
There was no point in me being here. Of all of them, he’d changed the most.
“Sunshine,” Gavriel called, drawing me out of my dark thoughts. “Go fuck Ryker in the locker rooms, I need him to calm down.” I clutched my stomach as my brow shot up. It felt like a lump of guilt and anticipation had gathered in the pit of my stomach.
Then I looked up and down at Ryker, swallowing. More muscular. More fierce. More everything. He'd always seemed larger than life, but now he truly felt out of my league. He looked angry, and it might have been wrong, but he intrigued me. If I went back to the locker rooms, there would be nothing left of us but primal attraction. He might be mad, or even indifferent, but the way his athletic shorts tented showed that there was still attraction fizzling between us.
Gavriel leaned down and spoke against my neck, his hot breath sending shivers down my spine. “Remember what I said. I own you, Sunshine. But being mine comes with its perks. I take care of what’s mine."
Streaks of arousal flooded my core as he spoke, "I’ll give you all the things you’re too afraid to ask for. You want to fuck him in the locker room, don’t you? If you need someone to give you permission, I’ll be that person.”
My clothes suddenly felt too restricting. My skin, hot. My pulse thudded, and I bet if Gavriel were to move his hand up my skirt, he’d feel the heat between my thighs. I didn’t answer him. He knew damn well what I wanted. He knew what I needed. This had nothing to do with calming down before a fight. Gavriel was using his power to hurry along the process of us all being together again.
I walked forward and grabbed Ryker’s hand. Confidence was like a drug, one hit and I was ready to dive in. Ryker didn’t wait for further approval, he swiftly began guiding me through the crowd. His grip was hard. “I still think about—” I began, but he interrupted me before I could even finish my thought.
“Don’t talk about that night.” His voice was harsh, edgy. Ryker used to be the calm in the storm. From what I saw back in Chesterbrook, he never allowed his emotions to control him.
Once at the locker rooms, Ryker pulled me inside, shutting the door behind him. “Gavriel usually sends strippers back here before a fight. Have any experience lap dancing?” he asked, there was no hint of humor in his voice. I considered telling him about my time at Margaret’s Gentlemen's club in Dallas. I learned to dance on a pole. I grew up on that stage.
“So this is how you want our reunion to go?” I had plenty of experience turning off my emotions. If he wasn’t willing to at least recognize me as an old friend, then fine. I could take this for what it was. I was woman enough to admit that I could fuck him without loving him. I could match his selfishness.
“I don't want a reunion. I want to fuck. Then I want to fight. Then I want to forget,” he growled. I heard him loud and clear. I was a cheap fuck in a locker room? Fine. I began unzipping my corset top.
“Alright then,” I began, channeling the girl I was at Margaret's. I could isolate the enjoyment of this experience. “Let's fuck.”
Ryker stalked towards me like I was prey. His eyes locked on my body. There was no love or even friendliness there. “This won’t be like last time, Summer,” he growled, driving a knife through my emotionless shield with the use of my real name. Didn’t he know? Summer was dead. She died five years ago.
He lifted me up, anchoring me to him with a grunt. He then forced my leather skirt up before dipping into the plush skin of my ass. I let out a moan rocking my head back, enjoying his harsh grip. Maybe I was a masochist, but I wanted to feel his anger. I wanted his anger to feel so loud that I couldn’t feel remorse. He took his middle finger and explored the line of my thong, pressing past the slick barrier into my wet pussy.
He hastily moved towards the bench between the two rows of lockers. I hissed when my bare ass slapped against the wooden bench with a thud. There was nothing gentle about his movements. He kneeled at my feet, and when I saw his striking green eyes between my knees, I firmly clamped them together. I wouldn’t be able to turn off my emotions if he did that. It was too intimate.
“Don’t get shy on me now,” he growled in a menacing tone that made me quiver.
He made eye contact with me as if daring me to tell him to stop. For a brief moment, I debated on ending this now. I couldn't give him that part of me. Allowing Ryker to go any further would end in heartbreak. Hadn't I already hurt enough?
Instead of saying no, I gave him a small nod and let my knees go slack.
In one swift move, he ripped off my thong and eased towards me, nibbling on my inner thigh. I was already a squirming mess, and he hadn't even started. He wrapped his corded arms around my thighs, pinning me in place.
Dragging his teasing tongue down my leg, he opened my slit with his fingers. He teased me then, gently flicking his tongue on my clit before pulling away. "Keep an eye on the door, will ya, babe?" he asked. My eyes shot to the locker room entrance, and I let out an instinctual shiver. I wasn't sure why the idea of someone watching us was so appealing, but I couldn't help but will the doorknob to turn.
He began massaging my clit with his tongue, and I swelled with pleasure. I rode his lips, grinding against his talented mouth. He alternated between sucking on my bundle of nerves and humming against my pussy. "Oh God, Ryker," I moaned out, spurring him to move faster. He danced along the edge of my pleasure as I bucked. Never before had I felt something so intense.
I began to shake as an orgasm crashed over me. It was blindingly blissful. Torture. Music. I screamed, not caring who heard or that I was revealing how good he made me feel. Ryker had earned every echoing cry from my lips.
I slunk back on the bench, trembling still. He stood, and with hooded eyes, I watched as he slipped his hand down his shorts and pulled out his thick cock. I licked my lips hungrily, prepared to continue reacquainting myself with his body. Ryker had changed so much, but our attraction was still there. A familiarity only known to people who'd been intimate with one another.
He stroked his length, staring at my sated form. When our eyes connected, it felt like home. His forearms flexed as he pumped himself, the thick veins along his muscles pulsing as he gripped.
Hot cum spilled out of his cock, all over my chest. And for a moment, I didn't think to be angry that he finished on his own. I was too busy enraptured by the momentary lapse in anger on his face. He looked good. Relaxed, almost. The calm, carefree expression on his face made me want to do everything in my power to see that look again.
He didn't bother to help me clean up. He wipe
d his hands and his dick with a nearby towel and tossed it on the bench beside me before adjusting his shorts. Wait...was that it?
Ryker gifted me with a cruel smile before turning away and heading towards the door. "I thought we were going to fuck!" I screamed, anger coursing through me as my heart raced. I wasn't just mad at him, I was mad at myself. I should be happy he was leaving, right?
He paused at the door, "I thought you were going to stay," he choked out in a pained voice that left me broken. I slammed my thighs shut as the door opened, hiding my exposed body from the world as he left.
"I wanted to stay," I finally managed to whisper as hot tears fell down my face.
Chapter Seventeen
Present Day
* * *
I felt nothing when the fight started. No emotion. No excitement. The crowd around me roared as I sat in the leather seat in the roped off VIP section with a blank expression. Gavriel knew something was wrong the moment I emerged from the locker room, but he didn't dare ask. Two older men in suits were patting him on the back and laughing about some obscure “shipment” that landed. Gavriel didn't bother to introduce me.
I guess it wasn't customary to introduce the people you owned.
“I hear you made a deal with Lidel,” the man on his left said. “Where’s the loyalty, Moretti? I thought you bought from me,” the man said with an easygoing grin that contradicted his angry eyes.
“Even I have standards, Santobello. You and your son are too heavily involved in the sex trafficking business. It takes a certain kind of coward to mess with kids.” Gavriel took a sip of whiskey as I settled by his side. “You’re lucky this is neutral ground, or I’d shoot you right here and now.”
I half expected this Santobello person to respond with an equal threat, but instead, he laughed. "Guess it's not a party until we're threatening each other!"
Santobello's eyes ran along my face as if recognizing me. I felt Gavriel tense beside me at his obvious perusal. “You know, Gavriel, I hear Lidel is having some problems fulfilling orders. I hope you don’t any have issues supplying your contingents.”
I went still, feeling those familiar pangs of panic and awareness coming on.
“For your sake, I sure hope they don’t have any problems,” Gavriel replied. He snaked his arm around my waist and turned to leave after saying, “Enjoy the fight.”
Once we were a safe distance away, I leaned closer to Gavriel and asked, “Who was that?”
“No one. Don’t ask questions. If I want you to know something, I’ll tell you,” he snapped in response.
The fight started, and I gave up trying to have a conversation with Gavriel. I'd tried to explain to Gav what happened with Ryker, but he didn't seem surprised. It left me feeling even more dejected. Gavriel was too wound up from his confrontation with whoever this Santobello person was.
I wanted reassurance. I felt cheap. Used up. Expendable.
I silently thanked Callum and Blaise for making our reunion less painful. The other two pieces of my heart refused to make it easy on me. Gavriel wanted me to trust him with my mind and body. But the price of his protection was submission. What use was any of this if he couldn’t protect my heart, too?
"Stop sulking," Gavriel ordered while staring at Ryker. He seemed to predict each punch made up on the mat. Leaning left and right in his seat, Gav followed their movements. Ryker slammed his fist into his opponent’s ribs as the crowd went wild. His hits were fluid and practiced, like it was muscle memory. Instinctual.
"Yes, sir," I said in a monotone voice, letting sarcasm flow through my tone.
"Watch your attitude, I have associates everywhere," he hissed. Gavriel put a hand on my knee and squeezed. I continued to stare on.
The MMA match was brutal. Anything went. Ryker's opponent, Boons, seemed unaffected by each hit, despite the blood pouring out of his nose. It was like his senses were dulled.
"Bastard's on something," Gavriel hissed. I leaned back in my seat as Ryker's agile legs circled the ring. Boons landed a kick to his side and another punch. Ryker wore a determined expression as he blocked Boons’ assaults, but he was leaning to the right, favoring his side. Another jab.
Boons was slow though. Each punch, he pulled back too far, and the time it took to gain momentum gave Ryker the opportunity to avoid his blocks. Boons was huge, too massive and slow to avoid getting hit. He had to rely on the brute force of his blows.
The man next to me was wearing a black suit and kept eyeing me. Once Gavriel was preoccupied, he finally spoke. "It's not very often I see someone on Moretti's arm at these events. You must be important to him." I turned to look at the pudgy man with laugh lines and yellow teeth. Although his words weren't particularly menacing, I detected the hint of a threat in his tone. The crowd cheered again, snapping my attention back to the ring. Ryker had his arm wrapped around Boons, securing him in a headlock.
"I'm no one," I replied simply, making sure my voice was loud enough for Gavriel to hear. Gavriel snapped his head towards me, scowling.
"No one?" the pudgy man asked.
“That’s correct.”
“Santobello said you looked familiar, but I guess he was wrong. Sorry to interrupt the fight for you. Especially since you’re just a no one.” I watched as his eyes went wide, and I turned to see Gavriel leaning towards me. He removed his hand from my knee then wrapped it around my neck, his fingers pressing along my pulse. He hovered there for a breath, taking in my appearance before his lips crashed down on mine. Our teeth clanged against one another, as he showed me exactly how much of a someone I was to him. His hand squeezed, teasing me with a lack of oxygen as I moaned into his mouth.
"Buck the fuck up, Love," he yelled over the crowd after ripping his lips from mine. "You left, you have a lot to atone for. Stop acting like the victim and do something about it."
Gavriel turned his attention back to the fight, and after shaking free of the anger and lust, I directed my eyes to the ring, too. Boons was landing hit after hit on Ryker. And he just stood there, accepting each punishing punch and staring at me.
"Fuck, he's just standing there," Gavriel said while thrusting a hand through his hair. Was Ryker trying to prove he was strong?
I stood up, leaning against the railing in front of me, as fans sitting in the rows behind us complained. Another hit, and the ice around my heart began to thaw. A blow to the stomach, it pulsed. A kick, and my eyes were watering. Each hit to him made me feel, and I didn’t like what I felt.
"Why won't he fight back?" I asked, my voice shaking as the crowd booed. Tears streamed down my face as Boons gave him one last hit to his head, causing Ryker to fall to the floor. Blood pooled in his mouth and splattered when his cheek hit the mat. Time seemed to slow down as the referee declared Boons the winner.
Medics carried Ryker away. I stared at the scene before us until Gavriel clutched my wrist and guided me back towards the lockers. Drunk spectators loitered around but parted when they saw Gavriel storming by. I stumbled in my heels, but he didn't stop until we were in the locker room. He stood by Ryker as an EMT checked him over.
"We'll need to take him in for a scan to check for a concussion. Bruised rib. Disorientation. Not too bad, actually. The usual."
Gavriel exhaled slowly, nodding at the EMT. "Fine. Let me talk to him before you take him off." One of Gavriel's guards entered the room and stood behind me. The beefy man stood with his hands clasped in front of him, his stance wide and brown eyes penetrating.
The EMT looked between us while scratching his arm. "I'll, uh, just let you guys chat. He's waking up." Ryker let out a low moan as the EMT left.
"It's been a while since you let someone kick your ass, Kid," Gavriel growled. Ryker coughed and clutched his side. "Normally, I'd kill a man for losing me money. You were favored to win. You should have won." Gavriel bared his teeth and let out a harsh breath. I could feel his anger. He glared at Ryker for a moment before calming. After taking a second to glance back at me, he began rolling up hi
s sleeves.
"I'm not completely heartless. You're gonna go get fixed up, then come back to my house and fix your shit with Sunshine. Do it, or so help me, I will end you. If me kissing her is gonna fuck up your game, then you better learn to fight with your eyes closed. Don't forget who owns you. You're lucky I let you look at what’s mine. Consider it a privilege that I let you touch her. Don't you ever make a mockery of my generosity again."
I swallowed, a swirl of tension and arousal hitting my core. Gavriel's power was addicting. He leaned in closer as Ryker let out another low moan. "And if you ever leave our girl wanting again, I'll remove you from her life completely, understand?" Gavriel straightened then turned to address his guard.
"Go with him to the hospital, Sunshine will meet you there. Don't let him have the pain pills, he's prone to addiction."
I swallowed as my legs shook. Gavriel then grabbed my hand and tore me from the room. I looked over my shoulder at Ryker's writhing form, and my heart felt like a rock in my tight chest, too heavy to beat.
We exited through the back entrance where the limo was already waiting for us. I shimmied into the back seat as more tears filled my eyes. "Will he be okay?" I asked with a sniffle.
"Yes," Gavriel said with a frown while pouring two glasses of whiskey and handing one to me. "That wasn't bad at all. Hospital is a precaution. He's had one too many concussions lately. He'll be normal by the end of the week."
I nodded, feeling a bit numb and hoping he was right. Gavriel was typing on his phone when I spoke again. "Why do I still love him? How can I love all of you? It’s been five years. I wasn't enough then, and there’s hardly anything left of my heart to be enough now."
"Stop throwing a pity party," Gavriel replied tersely. Although his tone was fierce, his dark, brown eyes were warm with a hint of sympathy.
"Why'd you make the rule?" I blurted out. "A rule that none of you could date me." Gavriel set his phone down, poured another glass of amber liquid, this time sipping it as the ice danced in the crystal glass.