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His breath smelled of mint, mixed with the vaporous undertone of alcohol. Was he . . . drunk? The heat of his exhale skated down her neck, sending a shiver of goose bumps prickling over her arms. Her pulse quickened at his wicked promise as he ushered her out the front door. Before Rya
And there she was, standing on the sidewalk with wet panties, wearing his sweat all over her, and with a date she never asked for. What in the hell just happened?
CHAPTER
3
Aiden was not exaggerating when he said the Mirage was sold out. The only empty seats she could see were the ones beside her, seats she suspected were reserved for family, and sitting there made her feel a little awkward. People eyed her with a mixture of surprise and curiosity. Some gave her blatant glares—mostly the women—while others stared at her like she was some kind of circus oddity.
A guy from the group of men, presumably Aiden’s camp, came over and plopped down in the empty seat beside her. His shirt had Disco Stick printed across the front of it and Take a ride plastered across the back. How cute. She recognized the man he’d been sparring with the other day, standing among the group. He looked no friendlier now than he had then.
“Don’t let those bitches get to you. They’re just jealous,” Disco Shirt said, bumping her with his shoulder as if they were old friends.
Rya
“I’m not bothered.” A denial neither of them believed. “I just don’t like large crowds”—which was absolutely the truth.
He shrugged as if her lie mattered not to him either way. “Suit yourself. I’m Regan, by the way.”
“Rya
“You excited about the fight tonight?”
“Curious is more like it. I’ve never been to something like this before.”
Regan laughed. “Well you picked a great one to break your cherry on, sweetheart. Disco puts on one hell of a show. Wicked talented fighter, that guy. So . . . if you don’t mind me asking, how do you know our boy?”
“I don’t.”
Regan shot her a surprised look. “Yet here you are, sitting in a spot reserved for family and close friends.” The suspicion in his tone suggested he didn’t believe her.
“I assure you I am neither.”
“Wow . . . Disco must want in your pants pretty bad to give you a front row seat to this fight.”
Rya
“What?” he asked, having the nerve to sound offended. He did a double take, looking between her and the aisle as if expecting “our boy” to come jogging down it any moment. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Like what?”
“Like I just told you something you didn’t already know.”
No comment. This conversation was not happening. Change of subject. “Why do you call him Disco?”
As if on cue, the house lights went out and floodlights clicked on, illuminating the path from the octagon to the doorway where the fighters emerged. Regan leaned closer to be heard above the a
As the music started up, Regan made his way back to his friends. She immediately recognized the beat coming from the speakers and couldn’t hold back the bubble of laughter. Lady Gaga? You’ve got to be kidding me . . . She rolled her eyes, shaking her head as the intro continued to play. This guy is walking out to “Love Game”? Seriously?
“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s the fight you’ve been waiting for! Put your hands together for Aiden ‘Disco Stick’ Kruuuze!”
The crowd went wild and the music boomed louder.
Rya
Her stomach knotted with a mixture of anxiety and anticipation—emotions he did not seem to share, because that cocky grin he wore never faltered.
After a few back-slapping hugs from his team, Disco Stick entered the octagon and promptly began parading around the ring as if the fight was already won. Despite herself, Rya
What she didn’t expect, however, was for the fighter to turn and lock gazes with her. There were easily sixteen thousand people in here, but it was her he stared at, and holy shit if that didn’t shoot a heady sensation right into her core. That glam-cam smile softened, taking on a sensual grin that absolutely melted her heart.
He seemed genuinely pleased to find her here, which made zero sense, because he didn’t even know her. Yet, the co
This wasn’t real. It was nothing more than a show for the fans. Unable to hold his amber stare another moment, she broke the co
Regan hadn’t been kidding. Aiden did put on one hell of a show. He was a great fighter, as was his opponent. The brawl wasn’t as one-sided as she’d been expecting. The fighters exchanged blows in two rounds of stand-up that had her wincing every time Aiden took a shot, and inwardly cheering every time he gave as good as he got—and then some.