Phenomenal X

I laugh and shove him back hard against the ropes. His eyes widen as I bring a big forearm across his chest and knock the wind out of him, only to pin him against the ropes and say just loud enough for him to hear, “Welcome to my house.”

I hit him one more time before he falls down with a hard thud. His chest rises and falls rapidly as he stares up at the lights burning down on us from overhead.

I reach down and grab a handful of his hair, forcing him to get up. “No time to rest, chump.”

When he stands, I kick him in the shin with my boot and then ram an elbow hard into his gut. He groans and grabs his midsection. The second he bends over, I seize my opportunity and hook an arm around his leg and hoist him up on my shoulders.

The crowd gets to their feet as I fall backwards, slamming Dexter’s back against the mat so hard the entire ring shakes. A collective sound of the crowd empathizing with his pain fills the arena and I know this match is about to end. The kid can’t take much more.

I roll over and pin his shoulders without any resistance and the referee falls to the ground and begins to count.

“One…two…three.”

The place erupts, and I’m unsure how it doesn’t physically blow the roof off the place with the energy radiating off the crowd. I raise my arms in victory as my music plays.

“Wi

I strut over to the corner and before I climb up the turnbuckles for my trademark moves after wi

A

She takes my hand, and I sit on the rope, widening it for her to get inside as the crowd begins to catcall. My woman is damn fine, and I’m ready for the world to know she’s mine.

A

The crowd continues to go crazy as they celebrate with me.

After I finish my portion of the show, I help A

The moment we pass through the curtain, I pull her into my arms, and she giggles. “That was amazing, Xavier. What a rush!”

I kiss her lips. “I loved having you out there with me.”

“Good,” a cold voice says, interrupting our intimate moment. “From now on she’s a part of the show.”

My gaze jerks over to my boss, who is standing there openly watching us, wearing his silver suit that matches his hair and name with a scowl on his face. I raise my eyebrows and instantly know I’m in deep shit. Mr. Silverman never speaks to the staff unless he’s promoting or firing one of us.

“Come again, sir?” I ask.

He shoves his hand into his jacket pocket. “You took your lady friend out to the ring, inadvertently making her a part of the show. Her contract is being written up as we speak. We can’t run the risk of having you take her out there again without one. I don’t like lawsuits, Mr. Cold.”

I hadn’t thought about that, but I like the idea of her being in my corner every time. “Will she need to sign today?”

“Take her to legal and then hit the showers. I want this taken care of before you leave tonight.”

“Yes, sir,” I reply as he turns to walk away.

Mr. Silverman pauses mid-stride and pivots on his heel. “One more thing. When the writers tell you to do something, you do it. I’m very disappointed that you didn’t give the fans a longer match.”

Fuck.

“It won’t happen again, sir.”

He nods. “See that it doesn’t. I want you following the script to a ‘T’, if you expect to keep your job here.”

“I will. You can count on that.”

That answer seems to appease him, because he smiles before he leaves us. Mr. Silverman never smiles, so it takes me back a bit. That man is always so fucking serious.

I squeeze A

She raises her eyebrows. “Really? That’s a dream job.”

I sigh. “It is, until they want you to do something physical. That’s where I’m going to draw the line, beautiful. I won’t have you getting hurt on my watch. If they ask you to do that, I want you to quit.”

She nods. “Okay, but I’ll still be able to come with you backstage, right?”

“Of course, but you won’t be able to go ringside any longer.”

“Seems fair.”

I can’t believe, for the first time in my life, things are actually working out in my favor. I have a career I love, and the woman I adore at my side. Life can’t get any fucking sweeter.

A

A small crowd of about ten people loiter in the lobby. No matter where we go, fans are tipped off as to where we’re staying, Not that I’m complaining. Fans coming to shows and buying shirts with my face on them go toward my paycheck, so I have no problem giving them a few minutes of my day.

The crowd swarms us instantly, and I begin posing for pictures and signing autographs. A

I kneel down beside him and take the poster and marker he’s holding. “What’s your name, little man?”

“Xavier!” he giggles. “Just like you.”

The short, curvy brunette wearing glasses nudges his arm. “It is not, Joh

I smile and wink at the kid. “Joh

“You think so?” Joh

“I do. Here you go.” I hand him back his things with my autograph.

“Thank you so much, Mr. Cold. This will mean so much to him. Ever since his mother died, he’s really locked himself into a shell. The only time he’s happy is when he’s watching you on TV,” the woman with him tells me.

My lips pull into a tight line. I wish I had some encouraging words to tell the kid, like the pain gets easier with time, but then I’d be a fucking liar and I don’t want to do that. So I give a very generic response.

“Happy to help.” I wave to the rest of the crowd. “I have to get going. Nice to meet you all.”

Panic sets in when I don’t spot A

I flex my fingers as I stalk toward them. I don’t allow anyone to bother A

She doesn’t see me when I step up behind her, but the man glowers over her shoulder at me. Pops better pipe down and wipe that expression off his face, before I do it for him.

“Is he why you ran away from home?” The man’s lip curls up. “This is so unlike you, A

Oh shit. This is her father—the father who she says hates her.

My entire body stiffens. Father or not, I won’t allow him to lay a finger on her again.

A

“You’re my daughter, I know what’s best for you.” He grabs her elbow. “Jorge said he’ll take you back. When we get back you can fix things between the two of you.”

Without thinking, I shove his hand off her.

“Don’t fucking touch her,” I growl. “I saw what you did when you laid your hands on her last time. You will not put another goddamn bruise on her again.”

He narrows his eyes at me. “I don’t like your tone, or what you’re implying. I’ll have you know I’m a Christian man. I only inflict physical punishment when necessary. It’s my right as her father.”