“You know…” she says, trailing off. “Stuff.”
“Like food?”
She just shrugs.
“Take it,” I say as I grab the full hundred dollars and stuff it into her hand.
She looks up at me with wide shocked eyes. I can tell she’s not used to having people do nice things for her. She’s going to have to get used to it with me, because I’m going to take care of her properly.
“I can’t,” she says as she tries to give the money back.
I glance down at her hand with the crumpled up bills. My eyes dart to her round tits and I suck in a breath. Fuck, I just want to rip every stitch of clothing off her and sink my hard cock into her tight little cunt.
“I want you to have it,” I tell her as I wrap my big hand around hers and push it back. She drags her eyes up my body and I curse under my breath, wondering what I must look like.
I’m wearing no shirt and I’m full of sweat and blood. There’s a cut on my cheek from where her brother popped me with a nice punch. Scott isn’t trained, but he’s a scrappy little fucker.
A girl like this would never go for a guy like me. I could just picture her with a rich lawyer who has a closet full of expensive suits. Or a doctor in training who has senators for parents. Not a nobody like me.
“But I can’t pay you back,” she says.
“You can,” I tell her. “Meet me for a date.”
Her eyebrows raise as she looks at me with a stunned expression. “You want to go out with me?”
“You’re the most perfect thing I’ve ever seen,” I tell her, just letting it all out. I might not have a chance with her, but I’m the kind of guy who shoots for the moon. I take chances, no matter what the odds are.
And besides, I’d never forgive myself if I let this angel walk out of my life.
“I need to know you better,” I tell her. “I want to know everything about you. Meet me for dinner. For coffee. For anything. Just please say you’ll see me again. I’ll die if I don’t see you again.”
Those sexy plump lips curl up into a smile as she looks at me shyly. “Okay.”
I feel like my heart is going to explode. I feel so light and giddy like I can fly.
“Tomorrow,” I say as I squeeze her hand. “Meet me tomorrow.”
We settle on a coffee shop near my gym. “Four o’clock,” I tell her. It’s right after my training finishes. The afternoon isn’t the most romantic time for a date, but I want to see her as soon as possible. The second I’m done my training session, I’m going to sprint over to see her.
“Okay,” she says with a smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Nathan.”
My legs buckle when she turns around and rushes to the car to meet her brother. That ass… it’s perfect. It’s heavenly.
I know exactly what I’m going to be thinking of when I jerk off tonight.
She gets into the car and they peel away. I better see her again. I’ll tear apart this whole city to find her if she doesn’t show up.
“Mr. Cross,” a voice says from behind me.
I’m still staring at her car as it drives away so I don’t bother turning around.
A man in slacks and a polo shirt walks up to me and offers me his hand. He looks like he should be in some boardroom in an office high-rise instead of at Papa Pain’s backyard brawl.
“Nathan Cross?” he says as I look at his outstretched hand.
I cross my arms over my chest and give him a hard look. “Who’s asking?”
He grins and drops his hand back down.
“A Ground and Pound Championship scout,” he answers with a chuckle. “Are you going to shake my hand now?”
He offers it again and this time I shake it.
“I’m Michael Green. I came to watch the fights.”
My jaw nearly hits the damn ground. “You came here? To watch the fights?”
He nods. “You’d be surprised at the talent in these kinds of places. A lot of tough fighters at these backyard skirmishes. We found Thiago Vasquez at an event like this.”
I don’t even know what to say. Thiago Vasquez is the undefeated Welterweight GPC champ. I would kill to be given a shot against him.
“You looked good out there,” he says. “Where do you train?”
“Dominant Alpha Gym.”
He nods, knowingly. “How is old Teddy?”
“You know Teddy?” I ask, staring at him in shock.
“Of course,” he says with a laugh. “He kicked my ass in an amateur boxing match a few decades ago. I still wince whenever I think of how those big fists felt when they slammed into me.”
We talk for a bit about my training and my record. I’m 19 and 0, but it’s all amateur fights. I still don’t have a professional fight under my belt.
“I’d like to give you a shot,” he says after looking me up and down.
My whole body perks up. “Really?”
He puts his hand up. “An undercard slot,” he says like it’s not that good of an offer, but it’s still the second-best thing to happen to me. The first was getting a date with Hope. “The GPC is coming to Boston for a Pay-Per-View event next month and we want to showcase some of the local talent. You’ll be on before the main events start and before the cameras are rolling. Basically, you’re going to be fighting in a nearly empty arena. We’ll pair you with another rookie. If you impress us, you’ll get to stay. If you don’t, well… I’m sure Papa Pain will take you back.”
I can’t believe my luck. This is the best night of my life.
“The pay is not much,” he says, thinking about it. “Ten grand.”
Ten grand? I want to shout. I’ve never seen that much money in all of my life.
“What do you say?” he asks.
I shake his hand so fast and hard that I nearly dislocate his arm.
“Yes! Abso-fucking-lutely yes!”
We iron out the details and then I’m walking home with a big grin on my face.
If I make it into the GPC, I know I’m going to make it to the top. Hope needs me to.
I finally have something to fight for.
Her.
And I’m going to be unstoppable.
Chapter Four
Nate
I’m having the best training session of my life today. It could be because I have a real shot at joining the GPC, but I think it’s something else.
Every time I slam my fist into the heavy bag—with every grunt, every groan—all I can think about is Hope. Knowing I’m about to see her beautiful face and curvy body is making my heart race double time. It’s giving me endless energy.
Our date is in fifty-two minutes and I can’t take my eyes off the clock.
“You have a pedicure booked or something?” Teddy shouts when he sees me glancing at the clock for the trillionth time today. I pound the bag with a triple combination that has it jerking around violently on the old rusty chain.
“Why, you want to come?” I grunt back between vicious punches.
He laughs. “Last time someone touched my feet was when I kicked Frank Hage in the face. Knocked him out in the first round.”