Page 16

Chapter

Sixteen

RIVER

I slammed my fist into the BOB so hard, my hand ached.

I did it again and again, relishing the pain.

Fucking up a mannequin was much better than fucking up my pseudo teammate.

Two more weeks. Several more losses. Ninth fucking place.

How were we supposed to come back from this?

It was kind of comical, really. I was the undisputed number one in the Circuit. Out of all our matches, I’d lost four and tied twice—an insane record. But with Bones out for another month, and Pinstripe being as athletic as my seven-year-old nephew, we relied on Teo for a little too much. He wasn’t a bad fighter, but he wasn’t in it for the same reasons. A loss to him was just a part of the game.

But for me, it was another step on the downward spiral to failure.

I didn’t give two shits about Lucien Fritz, Troy Godwin, or any other motherfucker who wanted to use my skills for their own gain. They were all the same to me—money-hungry bastards who wanted a few more dollars to use as lube while they fucked the little guys. So why not use it against them? If they wanted money for my talent, fine. I’d give it to them. A few extra dollars didn’t mean shit to them, but it was another month of extracurriculars for my nephews or a way for my sister to stay out of trouble. Their comfort was all that mattered.

Or at least it did until I got tangled up here at Smiley’s.

This was only supposed to be a temporary thing. One year in the ring to see if we meshed. Then I could move onto bigger teams. Better pastures. I’d only intended for Smiley’s to be a stepping-stone.

But something was different to any of the other contracts I signed. Being with them just felt so… right. I didn’t know what dynamic we had. Or hell, even what our relationship was. But I did know that if Pinstripe kept fucking up, he was going to have more than Frankie barking up his ass.

I threw a few more heavy punches before a high-pitched whistle caught my attention.

Ari strutted over from her office holding a stack of thick papers. I saw a flash of WEST COAST CIRCUIT on the top before she threw them face down on a chair next to the BOB.

“What did poor Bob ever do to you, River?”

Her smile was as intoxicating as ever. Misty Perk always used to complain that Ari got what she wanted with her body, which smelled like jealousy to me. Being this close to her, I had no doubt it was. Ari definitely had a smoking-hot body, and one that was the subject of a few shower jerkoffs, I’ll admit, but it wasn’t that. She just had this infectious energy to go with her blinding smile and strong words. That was what kept people at her side.

“Bob needs a new job.” I threw my arm over the plastic shoulders of the BOB. “Boxing’s not cut out for him.”

“He would probably be a better fighter than the people we have now.”

“Tell me about it.”

“I mean, you’re the top of the fighters so far.”

“So, you’d think we’d be in the top eight, at least.”

I couldn’t even say ninth. It felt too bitter on my tongue. Ari rocked on her heels while chewing on her lip. Something in her eyes was calculating, if not hesitant. I lifted a brow.

“Is there something else you want to talk about?”

“What if we… replace Pinstripe?”

“With who?”

“Me.”

I stared at her, expecting some punchline or some joke, but it never came. Ari scratched at the patch of skin behind her ear, her eyes focused on the stack of papers she threw down a bit ago.

I let go of BOB. “You’re serious?”

“I did it at Heathens Hollow and won.”

“On a technicality. Hard to fight when you’re getting smashed into a metal cage.

“A win’s a win.” Ari narrowed her eyes.

“And Heathens Hollow is Heathens Hollow. The Circuit isn’t like that. There’s rules. Order. All shit the underground doesn’t have. You know that.”

“I also know I’m good,” she argued. “I beat Misty, and she was a gold medal winner at her college. And there’s already a woman there. On St. Luka’s team. Monique? So, it wouldn’t be unheard of.”

“Monique has an Olympian for a father and her uncle, who owns half the Jiu Jitsu gyms in Rio de Janeiro. She’s got more experience than half the guys in the top four combined.”

“But that doesn’t mean—” Ari pursed her lips pressed them into a thin line as she thought about what to say. “We can’t keep going like this.” She sighed. “We have to do something.”

I cocked my head and crossed my arms. “Did you come to me first or last?”

“First,” she admitted sheepishly. “I thought if you agreed, then?—”

“I could use my top spot as leverage?”

“Something like that. Too obvious?”

“You’re closer to the others than I am.” I grinned and tapped the BOB’s chin with my fist. “Other than Bob here. We’re pretty close.”

“Look, I can do this.” Ari took a step closer and straightened. “I have experience. I have a win under my belt. Nothing can be worse than Pinstripe. The only other option is to fall in the rankings until it’s too late. We only need someone to tide us over until Bones returns. His splint is off. He’s in rehab now. Two weeks. That’s it. I can handle two weeks.”

“Ari, I’m going to be blunt here.” I stood tall and matched her stance. “You’re strong but you’re not boxer strong. Monique barely has a winning record. Those guys will eat you for lunch and come back for your bones for dinner.”

“But—”

“All they’ll see is a pretty blond thing waiting to get her ass whooped. A little lamb in a sea of starving wolves.” I shook my head. “I’m not agreeing to this.”

“Then how do you see me?”

“Huh?”

Ari came closer until she stood right below me. Fuck, she was beautiful. Not just her long hair, her kissable lips, or her ass in those tight yoga pants, but the challenge brewing in those intense eyes of hers and the stubbornness in her clenched jaw and fists. That was just as sexy as everything else.

“Do I look like a little lamb to you, River?” Her lips tilted up with her question. “Someone who goes down easy?”

Fuck no she didn’t. I had seen Ari in plenty of situations. Yelling at the people here, giving it her all in the ring, falling apart on someone’s cock at the underground club. Hell, just a few weeks ago, I’d come all over that chest of hers while Bones ate her out. That was probably my favorite scene out of all of them. She could take a beating, but this was much different than all of that.

And I was the perfect guy to prove it to her.

“Fine. Then spar me. If you win, I’ll help you convince the others. If you lose, you won’t bring it up again and keep that pretty little mouth of yours shut. Deal?”

“Deal.”

Ari suited up, and we both stepped into the ring. We tapped gloves and bounced around each other for a second. Confidence oozed from her demeanor and the fire in her eyes. But it disappeared as soon as I landed a punch to her side. She grunted, expression widening with shock and pain.

“I won’t go easy on you,” I warned. If she wanted a real experience, I was going to give it to her.

We danced around the ring. For every shot she got on me, I hit her back with two or three. She was holding her own—I had to give her that. Ari barely flinched when I clipped her arm or punched with enough force to make her stumble back, but she was clearly growing tired. Slower. Weaker. Time to end it.

When she punched one more time, I dodged and grabbed her wrist. It barely took any of my strength to twist her. We fell to the mat in a heap. I pinned her to the mat with a hand on her back. She tried to struggle away but I held firm, pinning her calves to the mat with my knees. My blood rushed through my veins. In this position, she was completely bent in half for me, legs wide, her ass way too close to my cock.

Ari whipped her head to the side, cheek pressed against the mat, a different kind of fire burning in her eyes.

“Let me go.”

“Do you tap out?”

“Not a chance,” she spat.

She tried to force me back and wiggle out of my grip. All it did was push her ass right into my crotch over and over. My dick throbbed and hardened; when Ari shifted again and felt my bulge, she stopped moving. Her pretty eyes widened with realization.

“River—”

“Look, can you tap out already?” I growled. I tightened my fingers on her back. “I won, Ari.”

Her grin was as wicked as the gleam in her eye. “Actually, I think I won.”

She pushed her ass back against my cock and ground her hips into mine. I grunted and forced myself to stay still. All I wanted to do was rip off her pants and give her another kind of pounding, but I was still hesitant—mostly because Frankie kept staring down at me from a picture on the wall. Bastard.

“Keep your head in the game, Ari. You can’t fuck your way out of a grapple hold.”

“Can’t I?”

She ground against me again. The second I pushed back against her, she flipped, which caught me off guard. I tried to roll away and regain my footing, but Ari was too quick. She pinned me to the mat by my shoulders and sat down on my lap. A small moan escaped her lips when she bucked her hips against my hard cock.

“See?” she teased. “I told you I could.”

“And what about Monique? She’s missing the parts you need for that trick to work.”

“I’m sure I can think of something else. I have hands—” She traced her fingers down to my pecs and squeezed. “And a mouth—” She lolled out her tongue and grinned. “Which I’m sure you know, since you stuffed your fingers in there not too long ago.”

“Ari.” I groaned. I bucked into her grinding, and my dick pulsed so much it hurt. “I’m pretty sure this is against the rules.”

Ari trailed her fingers even lower to the waistband of my shorts. “What is?”

How sexy she was. How fucking bad I wanted her. How I wanted to fuck her in front of everyone and share her, too. How scared I was that this would fuck up my contract. How I didn’t give a damn if it meant her pussy around me.

Instead, I gestured to her wandering hands. “This?”

“Oh.” She breathed. Her eyelashes fluttered as she pushed my shorts down. “Good thing where I come from, there are no rules in the ring.”

My dick twitched as soon as it was free. Ari stood and shrugged off her pants and underwear. I could see the gleam of her wetness when she bent down over me. She grabbed my cock and lined it up with her entrance. There was a teasing grin on her face as she dipped down enough just to put the tip in.

“You’re clean, right?”

“You should know. It was part of my physical for the contract.” I raised an eyebrow. “Though usually that’s not part of the bloodwork.”

“I wonder who asked for that to be added.” Ari giggled and sat down on my cock.

Her pussy was so tight and wet, and I tipped back my head as she rode me. My mind was hazy with the heat that enveloped my cock with every bounce. Ari jerked up her shirt and bra and grabbed her bouncing tits. I shoved away her hands and wrapped my hands around them, tugging and pinching her nipples. Her moan sounded like heaven, and her walls clamped down on me and forced a heavy breath. I circled her nipples to make her do it again and again.

Ari looked so fucking good riding me. Even better than I imagined. I smacked her ass, the ring echoing in the gym. She squealed and fell forward, giving me the perfect canvas to do it again. Her eyes were half-glazed over, pupils growing even more blown with each smack. As sexy as she looked on top of me, it wasn’t enough.

I grabbed her hips and easily flipped her so that she fell back against the mat with a gasp. I turned her to her side, straddling one of her legs, the other wrapped around my thighs. I gripped her shoulder so she arched back, the other holding onto her thigh for leverage.

“Time to see if you can take a beating.”

“Fuck you.” It was practically a purr.

“More like ‘fuck me, River.’” I grinned and slammed into her once. Ari whined and bit her lip. “Go ahead, Ari, say it.”

“I thought you wanted me to close my mouth?”

“That was before I knew what it could do.” I slapped my hips into hers again. “So I changed my mind.”

“Fuck—” It turned into a moan when I slapped her thigh and thrust even deeper. “Fuck me,” she panted. My cock throbbed at the pure want in her words. “I can take it. Fuck me , River.”

I had to give her what she wanted. I held onto her and thrust so hard Ari nearly jerked off my dick. She inhaled and grabbed onto a nearby rope. I slammed into her, keeping her pinned down with the weight of my body. Her cheeks were flushed, her mouth opened in a stream of moans. I angled her to hit even deeper and smacked her ass until it glowed red.

She trailed her free hand down her body until she reached her cunt. Ari stroked her clit between two fingers, matching my frantic pace. When I hit her just right, she cried out, eyes rolling to the back of her head. God, she’d never looked so fucking good. I thought seeing her at the club was something, but this topped that and more. Especially when her walls began spasming around me and her breaths stuttered.

“Fuck,” she whined.

She tipped back her head with her loud moan and came all over my cock with several whimpers of my name. All I could think was, holy shit. Her walls gripped me so hard I couldn’t breathe. Her juices dripped down my length to coat my balls while her cunt pulsed and sucked me further in. I rocked into the pleasure, my balls tightening and muscles restricting.

With the only brain cell I had left, I huffed, “Where?”

“Inside me,” she begged, leg tightening around me. “Go ahead.”

Well fuck, since she asked nicely.

With a few more thrusts, I emptied myself inside of her. Goosebumps rose to my flesh; a fire roared inside my veins. I clung to her hips as my orgasm receded. It was her small laugh that brought me back. When I opened my eyes, I was folded in half over her, my chest pressed to her side.

“So did I prove myself?”

I chuckled. “Looks like you can take a beating, yeah. Or at least some of you.”

“But not others.” She sighed.

I slipped from her, and she sat up. It was kind of hard to take her seriously being half-naked with my cum dripping from her, but I tried anyway.

“I’d get my ass kicked worse than Pinstripe.”

“Yeah, probably.”

“I just don’t know what else I can do. I feel so… lost.”

“You aren’t the only one.” I shrugged. “It’s fucking frustrating. I won’t pretend it’s not. There’s only so much I can do.”

“Trust me, you’re doing enough.” Ari grabbed her underwear and cleaned herself up, then stood up to slip her pants back on. “The rest of us are letting you down.”

I followed her example and stood to fix myself up. “I’m kind of used to it.”

Ari lifted a brow. “Huh?”

“Look at the team I was on before,” I laughed. “The Perks aren’t great company.”

She didn’t crack a smile. “And we’re supposed to be better than them.”

“Ninth isn’t the end of the world. Though it sure feels like it. I’ll keep winning. Frankie will keep whipping Pinstripe and Teo’s asses. If you want something to do, look into the other three sponsors, just in case. Bones will be back before we know it.”

“I hope you’re right, River, but I just have a bad feeling I can’t shake.”

“Maybe you need another round with me.”

The searing look she sent me lit me up.

“Maybe.” She smiled and stepped closer. “This time, let’s see if you can take the beating.”