Fight Me, Baby - Vegas Baby

Vince cried and begged for help, but I ignored his pleas. “And Butler”—my tone hardened to steel—”if you ever so much mutter Angelique’s name ever again—and trust me, I’ll know—I will return to finish the job. Got it?”

He glared at me and muttered, “Fuck you, Saint.”

“Not the answer I’m looking for,” I sighed. Then I put my boot on his groin, making him scream in pain. “Got it?”

“Shit! Yes, I got it,” he cried as he curled into the fetal position.

“Good.” I turned to face my friends and gave them a lift of my chin in thanks. “Let’s get the fuck outta here.”

With that taken care of, I breathed a little easier with every mile that took me closer to my forever.

10

Angelique

Waking up alone in Saint’s house should’ve freaked me out, but the note and text he’d left had soothed any nerves I’d had about him not coming back. After unpacking my meager belongings, I explored the house, snooping in all of its nooks and crannies. I liked that he didn’t feel as though he needed to hide anything from me, and I felt a surge of relief when I didn’t find a single hint of another woman in his home. All of the colors, furniture, and decorations were ultra-masculine, just like him.

I was about ten minutes into a recently released action movie, comfortably settled into one of the reclining seats in his home theater, when Saint returned. I paused the film and jiggled the bowl of popcorn in his direction as he dropped into the seat next to me. “Want me to restart this at the beginning so you can watch the whole thing with me? I haven’t been watching long.”

“Sure,” he agreed before taking the remote from my hand and setting it on the armrest between us. “But first, I have something I need to tell you.”

I braced myself, expecting bad news based on his tone and serious expression. My fear must’ve shown on my face because he took the bowl of popcorn from me, set it on the chair next to him, and lifted me out of my seat and onto his lap. Wrapped up in his embrace, I felt safer as I asked, “Where were you? What happened?”

“I went to see your brother.” He dropped his verbal bombshell as though it was no big deal, while my mind was blown.

I twisted in his lap to stare up at him in shock. “You did what?”

He cupped my cheeks in his palms and gently brushed his lips over mine. “Vince needed to be taken care of, so I had Knox hunt down his location. Some friends and I paid him a little visit to make it painfully obvious that he needs to get out of town and stay away from you.”

“It doesn’t matter how clear you made it, I can’t see Vince leaving Vegas unless there’s something in it for him,” I warned. “And he’s always thought of me as…a tool he could use when he needs me. He won’t let go of that without a fight.”

“Then I guess it’s a good thing there wasn’t any fight left in your brother after I was done with him.” He traced a finger down my cheek.

Even though we were completely alone, I lowered my voice as I asked, “Wait. Did you go beat him up?”

“Yup,” he confirmed with a satisfied smirk. “The beatdown I gave him in the ring wasn’t enough. An unquestionable message needed to be delivered in a way Vince would understand. Along with a reminder that the pain he endured tonight was nothing compared to what his bookie will do to him if he doesn’t either pay up or leave town.”

“I can’t believe you did that for me.” I shook my head, trying to make sense of the lengths Saint had gone to in order for me to be safe. “What if you get caught? I wouldn’t put it past Vince to go to the cops just to mess with you. You could get kicked out of the UFC, or even be sent to jail.”

“It’s not gonna happen,” he assured me. “Your brother knows how bad things will go for him if he tries to turn me in.”

“He can be vindictive when he thinks someone has crossed him.” I wrapped my arms around the front of my body as I remembered some of the crap he’d pulled on me in the past few years. “He might file charges before he leaves town, even if he wouldn’t be here for a trial. Getting you arrested would be a major win in his book, even if you get bonded out right away.”

“You’re worrying for nothing.” He loosened the hold I had on myself and twined my arms around his neck. “Even if Vince was that dumb, the cops wouldn’t be able to file any charges because your brother doesn’t have any proof of what happened tonight. The shithole of a motel I found him in didn’t have security cameras, his injuries can be explained away by our well-publicized fight for the UFC, and I have a group of guys who’ll serve as my alibi since I wasn’t alone during my visit.”