Isaak: The Counterpunch Series Book 1
Page 25
At my Isaak.
My baby boy’s daddy.
My whole world.
“I know he will, but that doesn’t make this any less painful to watch, Sax,” I tell him truthfully.
“He had a good first round: there isn’t a scratch on him, and Alex’s eyebrow has split open. Isaak caught him good,” he states the obvious.
“Yeah, but it’s just the beginning, isn’t it.”
“When are you going to learn that Isaak is a fighter? He was born to do this, Remme. He’s a machine, and when he’s determined to achieve what he’s set out to do, then he fucking well does it.”
I can hear the fondness in his voice as he speaks about Isaak.
“You really think highly of him, don’t you?” I ask, full of gratification.
“Yeah, I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Isaak, he... he saved me Remme.”
I don’t get to dive deeper into the conversation as the bell rings out for the second round to begin.
The moment Isaak stands, my heart begins to pound in my chest again. This amount of stress isn’t good for me, never mind the baby. I’m about ready to drop any minute now. Isaak told me to sit this out at home, but I refused adamantly and told him I wanted to be here for him, to support him and watch him take Alex down once and for all. There was no way I was missing out on the opportunity to see that.
Isaak and Alex go at it again. Alex manages to land a couple of punches on Isaak, but Isaak is quick on his feet and moves faster so the punches don’t have the full intended effect. The whole crowd are on their feet, cheering Isaak on, giving him all of their support. They have so much love for him. I don’t even know if he’s fully aware of the impact and influence he has on other people, or the lives he’s touched in one way or another. It’s incredible to witness, and it makes me love him that much more.
The arena erupts in a thunderous roar, grabbing my full attention, making me look at the ring again as I see Isaak hit the mat with a resounding thud.
“Isaak!” I find myself on my feet, moving towards the ring, my legs carrying me closer to him with a mind of their own, until Saxon lightly takes a hold on my lower arm.
“Remme, Isaak told me under no circumstances to let you move from your seat. I will keep that promise,” he sternly whispers in my ear.
“But…” I don’t know what to do.
“No buts, Remme. Don’t make me haul your pretty little backside out of here. If I have to, then I most definitely will.”
I give him my best evil glare. “You wouldn’t dare,” I test him.
“Watch me.”
I go to say something else, when I see Isaak bouncing back up onto his feet, psyching himself up and regaining focus.
Oh, thank God.
I’d thought for a split second we were going to have a repeat performance of the last fight.
Isaak nods at the referee to let him know he’s okay to carry on, and the referee shouts ‘fight’ before they are off again.
Jabs are thrown, and punches land on their target.
By the time the bell dings to end the fourth round, I’m a quivering, nervous wreck. I don’t know who’s coming out of it the worst and who is be winning. By the looks of it, I’d personally say that neither of them are looking good.
I can’t take my eyes off Isaak as he sits in his corner, Bruce lathering his face in thick layers of Vaseline and wiping the blood that keeps leaking from the cut on his bottom lip.
Like he can sense me looking, he throws me a smirk, a silent message to me, to tell me he’s okay.
I don’t need him worrying about me right now. He needs to focus on the task at hand, and I wouldn’t be able to carry the burden around with me if it were my fault he lost this fight, so I pull up my big girl knickers, hold my head high and shout out what I know he needs to hear, hoping he can read my lips due to the noise drowning out my voice. “I’m fine. I love you.”
He throws me a quick wink just as the bell rings again.
That bloody bell is fast becoming my biggest nightmare right now.
Round five has me hiding behind my hands. It doesn’t go in Isaak’s favour, not even slightly. Alex is all over him like a bad rash, landing almost every shot he throws. Giving Isaak credit, though, the punches don’t seem to be affecting him the way I thought they would. He’s still on his feet, fighting tooth and nail.
It’s then I spot Shantel over in Alexander’s corner. She’s not even paying attention to the fight happening in front of her. No, she has her eyes firmly set on something else—someone else.
Me.
“If looks could kill, right?” Devon shouts at me over the noise.
“I know, tell me about it.” I drop my gaze from the Botox bitch and look at my new best friend. “She gives me creeps.” I add.
“She’ll give me nightmares tonight, that’s for sure. But she can’t get to you even if she wants to.”
I don’t miss the look she throws at Owen as he’s working away, talking Isaak through the next rounds.
“I know, when I finally got around to talking to the police, they told me she was under house arrest and that she wasn’t allowed within so many feet of me. I don’t understand how she’s here tonight; she should be at home drowning in her low self-esteem.”
“If you ask me, Rem, she should be locked up, but in spite of that... she ain’t getting past this mountain guarding your side with everything he has,” Charlotte says, jumping in on the conversation.
I see the way she not so discreetly checks Saxon out. I flick my eyes from Devon to Owen, then at Charl and Saxon.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. When was the last time you both got laid? I can hear both of your Va-jay-jays screaming out, gagging for the testosterone around you from here,” I say, chuckling at my own terminology. Seems Saxon agrees as I hear him laughing, too.
“You can talk. How long has it been since you wet Isaak’s whistle?” Devon jokes out.
“Too fucking long, but that’s all I’m saying on the subject you pair of pervy tarts.” We all burst out laughing. I love these girls with everything I have, and I’m glad I have them at my side tonight—Spence included—but he’s too busy checking out his prey and isn’t paying us any attention.
“Here’s me thinking it was only us men that liked to talk dirty.” He interrupts our laughing.
“Saxon, baby, we’re only just getting started,” Charlotte slurs, clearly having had one too many drinks. She soon realises she’s said more than she meant to and tries to back paddle. “I mean, darlin’, I was meant to say, darling. I…I…”
Seeing her cheeks turning a deeper shade of pink has myself and Devon bent over in stitches.
“You can call me whatever you want if it involves you, Lottie…”
Oh, this is just too good to be true.
Charlotte’s eyes bulge out of her sockets at Sax’s statement, and I’m loving the fact he’s given her a little nickname, too.
Everyone but Charlotte laughs. She doesn’t find it funny at all. I go to chuckle at my friend's mishap, but a sharp pain stabs at my side and I reach out, grabbing Saxon’s forearm to steady myself.
“Remme, shit. You okay? What is it?” He can obviously tell by my face something is wrong.
I’m about to tell him that I’m okay, and that it’s just a twinge from laughing too much, but as I go to open my mouth, another agonising pain hits me, causing me to cradle my belly and gasp for some much-needed air.
“Fucking hell, Rem, what is it?” Saxon bellows at me, now in a full-on panic. If I wasn’t in so much pain, I’d be laughing at the look on his face.
“I... I…think my waters have just broken.” We both look down at the same time, as I feel the heat gathering between my legs and watch a small puddle appear at my feet.
“Holy shit, Rem. We need to get you to the hospital.”
I squeeze his arm when he goes to move. “No! Not yet Saxon, please?” I plead with h
im as little tears clog up my emotions.
“Seriously, if Isaak knows I let you stay when you’re about to quite literally have his baby, he’ll fucking kill me, Remme.”
“I can’t go yet. I know if Isaak sees me gone, he will either throw the fight immediately or his head won’t be in it. I can’t do that to him; don’t make me do it, please, Saxon,” I practically beg him. I can see him contemplating what the best thing to do is, his conflicting emotions easy for all to see.
“Fine. But the moment that final bell goes, I’m haulin’ your arse out of here.”
“Deal... Thank you, Saxon.”
He nods his head, still not a hundred percent sure if he’s made the right choice.
The next four rounds go by in a blur while I’m sitting in a puddle. I can’t fully concentrate on what’s going on around me, but every time I see Isaak peering over in my direction, I play my part well. Saxon gives me sideways glances every two minutes. I know he’s just checking on me, but it starts to piss me off.
I’m in labour with my first born, and there is nothing I can do to stop it except try and be strong and hold on for as long as I can.
Chapter Forty-Four
Isaak
“Isaak, you have one round left. You’re breaking him down,” Owen shouts as I’m getting cleaned up again.
“I have a plan, but I need you all to trust me,” I state in between pulling some much-needed air into my overworked lungs.
Owen, Vinny, and Bruce all stare at me like I’m going to do something stupid.
“Like I said, just trust me. And whatever you do, do not throw in that towel,” I emphasise in warning so they know how serious I am right now.
“I don’t like the sound of this, Isaak.” Owen says. “But... I trust you and your ability to do whatever it is you think is right.”
“Good, cause I’m about to knock this fucker out, once and for all.” I spit the blood that’s gathered in my mouth into the bucket Vinny has pushed to the side of me as Bruce applies even more Vaseline to both my eyebrows, popping my mouth guard back in place. I’m all set and ready as the bell sounds for the final round.
“You’ve got this, Isaak,” I hear the voice of an angel shouting from down below—the voice I’d recognise anywhere and hear through just about anything.
Getting my head in the right frame of mind for my next move, I stare Alexander down as he storms towards me like he knows he’s about to take me down. This is what I want: I want him to come at me full throttle for this plan to work.
So far, he isn’t disappointing me. He’s reacting the way I needed him to.
I let him land a few easy body shots to my sides and stagger purposely towards one of the corners of the boxing ring. He follows me like the good little lap dog he is. I bring my gloved hands up in front of my face to protect myself and to stop him from landing a decent shot there. I tense my whole body up to soften the blows to my chest and abdominals.
He’s goes blow for blow on me, trying to land every hook, jab and punch he can.
He’s faded, now running on fumes. His blows are pathetic. He’s weakening and fast. He’s got nothing left in his tank, but I’m still waiting for my opening. I can see in his eyes, that’s he’s ready to give up. The muscles in his worn-out body getting heavy. Each limb swinging clumsily, each jab amounting to nothing.
I spot my opening, and the tables are soon turned as I duck and weave around his lame attempt of clipping me one last time.
I drop my weight down and under his punch to avoid getting hit, stepping out from under his arm, and I spin him around so he’s now taken my place on the ropes.
Exactly where I want him.
The crowd erupts at the sudden change in events, spurring me on more. I muster up all the burning energy I’ve been holding onto, waiting for this moment. My gloves glide through the air before coming down on him, delivering a powerful overhead punch. I rain a combination of punches to his gut, a few uppercuts to his face and chin finishing off with a corkscrew punch.
I back pedal, retreating from Alex to give myself a few seconds breathing time. He’s unsteady on his feet, and his body won’t be able to hold him up much longer.
I part my feet to keep my balance fixed as I head for him again, giving my best bodywork combination attack, landing all my punches on their initial target on his midsection, wearing him down and taking all the wind from out his lungs.
He doesn’t try to bob and weave; he’s got no room to do so as I’m not giving him an out.
Feeling like I’ve caused him enough pain and suffering for now, I take a small step back, throwing my arm behind me before I bring it across my body, belting him with my signature move and one of the hardest punches I’ve ever thrown in my entire career. It connects with his cheekbone perfectly, his mouth guard falling from his lips as blood follows it and coats the mat. His eyes roll to the back of his head and he goes down hitting the canvas with an earth-shattering thud.
The referee begins the count.
This is it.
It’ll all be over in the ten seconds.
There is no way he’s getting back after that.
Alex tries to stand, but he’s all over the place and staggers back down to the mat again.
Alexander Jenkins is down and out.
The referee gets to ten and waves his arms out. Myself and the whole crowd erupt; the whole arena is in chaos.
I’m lifted in the air by my legs, as Owen locks his arms around me, making us both jump up and down, and I thrust my arms up high in celebration.
I’ve done it.
My entire body is exhausted, debilitated. My muscles ache painfully and my face is throbbing raw, but none of that matters and thankfully my adrenalin is keeping me from kneeling over in absolute agony.
I’m champion once again, and no one is going to take my belts or title away from me again.
I came, I soared, and I most definitely conquered, in more ways than one.
I’ve fought hard to get to where I am today and I have so much more to lose now than I did twelve months ago.
I have Remme, my Remme.
The mother of my unborn child.
My Sweetcheeks, the life and soul of me, and now my main reason for living.
Chapter Forty-Five
Remme
He’s done it, Isaak has done it. He’s the champion once again. I’d always known he would accomplish exactly this. All his hard work and dedication to get to this point has been worth it. I’m so incredibly proud of him. If I wasn’t currently in labour, I would be jumping on him and wrapping my arms tightly around his neck as I tell him just how ecstatic and thrilled I am for him, but as much as I want to join in on the celebrations as my friends beside me and the entire crowd jump up and down like crazy baboons, I’m now in excruciating pain and panting any chance I can get.
But still I don’t let Isaak see.
Everyone on Isaak’s team enters the boxing ring to congratulate him, all except me. Well, me and Saxon.
“You okay to do this?” he softly asks as he leans down to my ear so I can hear him.
“No, but yes. Take me to Isaak and then we’ll go to the hospital, okay?” I ask of him as I take yet again another tremendous grip of his arm. He’s been helping me breath through the pain the whole time Isaak was fighting in the last few rounds. He’s let me grab, scratch, and bury my nails into his skin more times that I can count.
“You sure? It’s quite rowdy up there.”
Just as he says that I spot Dev, Charl and Spence entering the ring.
“Yeah I’m sure. I have you to protect me, don’t I.” I give him a small weak smile, hoping he gets that I’m grateful for everything he’s done for me over the last seven or eight months, and especially for tonight.
“You sure do. Come on, we’ll take it steady.” He takes a hold of my hand and cradles me under his arm as he leads us to the ring where my man is—to where my future is.
He’s looking for me.
The second his eyes landed on me, he’s sprinting over, and only when I’m in his arms does Saxon release me. I try to ignore the pain that slices through me as he wraps me up tight against him.
“We did it, Sweetcheeks.” He pulls away from me and gives me a bruising kiss, knocking me sideways. I love his kisses, and no amount of pain can dampen the feelings he stirs within me.
“You did it, Champion. Congratulations.”
“Isaak, I think we need to get Rem…”
I’m about to smack Saxon in the chops but rudely get interrupted by the announcer wanting to have words with Isaak. Saxon rather hastily shuffles me around to the other side of him, gently so I don’t get pushed and knocked.
“Isaak, how does it feel to be named Champion once again?” The announcer asks.
“It's the best feeling ever. I should never have lost my title in the first place, but there is one thing I can be thankful for from that last fight. Losing brought a special person into my life. She worked her magic on me, fixing me back to my best and somehow managed to make me a better fighter and person. The better fighter won tonight, and I’m not taking these belts for granted again.”
He is so happy right now I don’t want to take him away from this.
“What do you have to say about your opponent? What did you do differently to be able to win this fight?” The announcer asks next.
“I have no words for my opponent. He challenged me outside the ring, tried to push my buttons, so I did what I was born to do: I fought him and showed him what he already knew deep down. I’m the champion, and he knows I’ve always been the better fighter. Tonight, proved that. I have one of the best teams around me, the most amazing fans… More importantly, I have this girl right here.” Isaak pulls me into him, and Saxon reluctantly loosens his hold. “Without this girl right here, none of this would have been possible.” He reaches behind him as Owen passes him something. “Because of this outstanding, beautiful woman, I have something I need to do that I should have done a long time ago.”