Page 22
Chapter
Twenty-Two
ARI
I held my breath as Bones stepped into the ring.
The crowd around us roared when he and his opponent tapped gloves.
The past five and a half weeks all came down to this.
His first match back.
I didn’t really matter. Teo and River had won with no issues. No matter what happened here, Smiley’s would get our first W in the books in a long time.
But God, I hoped he won. I wanted to give Lucien Fritz and Troy Godwin the biggest middle finger I could, courtesy of a 3-0 comeback win.
The bell rang; the match started.
Bones ducked and dodged with ease. His punches? Flawless. I couldn’t take my eyes off him. This was Bones at his best. In his element. Where he deserved to be.
One of his uppercuts connected with the underside of his opponent’s jaw.
He immediately crumpled to the ground.
Bones’ smile was so bright, it could have powered all of Seattle.
He was a winner. And so was Smiley’s.
We were so back.
The smile stuck on my face for the rest of the week. Three more matches, three more wins. We squeezed back into fifth place with a River knockout. If we kept up this pace, we’d be top four, no problem. Without Lucien and Troy breathing down our necks, I felt lighter than I had in ages. So did the rest of the team. Smiley’s was happy again, and we had all the momentum behind us.
Or at least some really clutch losses from the top four under our belts.
We rolled up to the auditorium in San Diego for pre-match interviews, but before we could even set our stuff down, someone whistled to get our attention.
Alonzo from St. Luka’s waved at us with the enthusiasm of a golden retriever. “Look who it is! Come to join the big wigs again!”
River snorted and leaned into me. “Thank God our match isn’t against them. Alonzo somehow got even beefier.”
“He’s like if Mr. Clean and the Terminator had a baby,” I said.
“If that baby was the sun for the Teletubbies, sure.” Bones smiled and waved back. “Dude’s smile can be seen from space.”
We set our bags down and exchanged handshakes. Smiling, I watched my guys. Everyone was so much more relaxed, especially Bones. The ease in his demeanor warmed me. This was so much better than our previous run-in with the church-backed team.
Monique lingered near me as the guys started talking about their upcoming matches.
“I was so happy when I saw we were fighting at the same ring.” She sighed and knocked her arm into mine. “I love the guys, but sometimes there’s way too much testosterone.”
“Tell me about it.” I laughed. “I almost joined the Circuit, actually.”
“You fight?”
“Once or twice.”
“Man, I would have loved that. Another girl to lay out in the ring.” Moni ribbed me again with a grin. “Maybe we can go one on one some other time.”
“I’d pay to see that!” Teo said as he passed. He shot us a wink before disappearing into the media circus around the ring.
I shook my head. Next year, we were getting a different fighter.
Frankie shook Vinny’s hand and turned around to face me. He gestured to the interviewers close by. River was already there, being fitted with a clip-on microphone. Teo yapped his head off about being excited to push for the top. Bones waited with Lotto by the sidelines, chatting with Alonzo and Vinny from St. Luka’s.
I waved Frankie off. I was more than happy to watch my guys at work. The fame, the glory, the fortune—they deserved it all.
Vinny called Monique’s name, and she patted my shoulder. “Looks like it’s my turn to fake nice for the camera.”
“Good luck.”
“Don’t be a stranger, Ari.” She smiled then left me near the back of the gathering crowd.
“I could say the same thing to you, Ari.”
My spine straightened and my shoulders tensed. I didn’t want to turn around, but I had to. I was wearing his damn logo on my sleeve after all.
Scotty Green greeted me with a smile as greasy as his pulled-back hair. He wore a custom Adidas sweatsuit with the Smiley’s logo on one side and the Scott’s Auto Parts logo on the other. When he adjusted the strap of his black shoulder bag, his golden rings glinted in the fluorescent auditorium lighting.
“Hi, Scotty,” I said. “What are you doing here?”
“I paid for your flights. I can’t hop on one myself?”
“You can do whatever you want.”
He stuffed his hands into his jeans and grinned. “Oh, how I missed that pretty voice of yours.”
“Not much to talk about if we’re winning.”
More like I didn’t want to talk to him. Lotto handled all the sponsor-related business. Frankie coordinated everything for the Circuit. Mostly because the sponsor gave me the creeps. There was something off about him, but I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what. He oozed walking red flag.
“Top four might be hard to crack though.”
“We still have three weeks left.”
Scotty gestured with his chin to the media behind me. “That Alonzo guy is stacked as a house.”
“And?”
“And St. Luka’s is in second. You really think you can beat them the way you are now? Last fight, you lost your star fighter.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What are you getting at?”
“When we signed our contract, we agreed to work for each other.”
“And we’re doing work.”
“Some of you are.” He turned to me and cocked his head, a smug grin on his face. “And some of you are standing here like useless bimbos.”
“Don’t talk to me like that,” I snapped.
“Or what? You know I’m right. What’s your role here? Moral support?”
Scotty’s words burrowed into my skin and cut into me like a thousand glass shards. Smiley’s was my gym—my dad’s legacy. But right now? That was the only thing I was bringing to the team. Teo, Bones, and River were the ones carrying us to Vegas. Lotto and Frankie handled all the communications. And I did… what? Cheered them on from the sidelines? Loosened them up in a special way?
“I’m the owner.” I crossed my arms. “My gym’s on the top of our contract. And on your damn suit.”
“But don’t you want to do more?”
I stared at him. What was he trying to pull here? Scotty gestured at me with a tattooed hand and walked out of the auditorium. I shouldn’t follow. I knew that. But standing here all on my own while the guys worked the media—something tugged at me. I made my way toward the parking lot, but before I could exit the building, a sharp whistle caught my attention.
Scotty stood in front of the men’s bathroom and waved me closer.
I looked around before reluctantly joining him.
“If you try to touch me, I will break every fucking bone in your body.”
“You’ve got enough hands on you already, but I won’t say no.”
I shuddered. Like hell I could let this ass within ten feet of me under any other circumstances.
“Come into my office.” He gestured me toward the men’s bathroom before slipping inside.
God, this was stupid. More than stupid. Absolutely moronic. I patted my pocket. I had my phone if shit went south and some boxing skills to back me up. And we were in public. Sort of. Scotty wouldn’t try anything knowing the other guys would be looking for me… right?
I entered the bathroom before I could change my mind.
“Good choice. Now lock the door.”
“I don’t think so,” I shot back.
“Your choice, sweet cheeks. It’s your career on the line.”
Scotty shrugged off the bag on his shoulder and set it on top of one of the sinks.
“There’s only three weeks of the Circuit left. Highly doubt your little gym is going to make it without some help.”
“We will,” I promise. I kept my eyes on the bag as Scotty unzipped it. A bad feeling sank in my gut. Why did he keep talking about the top four?
“Vegas is a long ways away, Ari.”
“And there’s always next year.”
“As if they’ll let you back with all the shit you caused this year.” Scotty set a hand on his bag and grinned at me. “When I called to take you on as a sponsor, they sounded pretty damn relieved you were out of their hair.”
“And?”
“And the other two sponsors are taken. Without me, you’re fucked. So, it’s your choice.”
“To do what?”
“Become true winners.”
Scotty opened his bag and shuffled around inside. After a few seconds, he pulled out a small medicinal vial filled with a clear liquid. He reached into the bag again. This time, he pulled a syringe. His smile made me feel sick. I couldn’t find my voice. My eyes burned as hot as my lungs.
“...PEDs?”