Dare to Dance: The Maxwell Series (14 page)

Waving, I edged back. I had a lot to think about.

I
tore
into Firefly through the backdoor then ran up the stairs. Loud voices filled the hall from down below. Tommy was probably seething that I was late for the fight. I wasn’t scheduled to waitress, but I had to fight or I wouldn’t have a waitressing job.

After I’d parted with Raven and Ms. Waters, I’d done some soul-searching and roamed the streets too far in the wrong direction. However, I considered my time productive. My original plan was to take baby steps with Kross. I’d planned to show him Riley’s grave near my old home in the Berkshires and start at the beginning. But if a paternity test proving that Kross was Raven’s daddy was a quicker route to getting her out of foster care, then I had to put aside my own selfishness and do what was best for Raven, no matter the consequences.

I slipped past Tommy’s office.

“I don’t know where the fuck she is,” he yelled.

I cringed. I was certain he was talking about me. Before I got my ass handed to me, I had to show my face to Norma. She knew I normally liked some alone time after I visited with Raven, but today, I’d been gone too long.

I stuck my head into the bar area. Pete’s eyes went wide, then he crooked his finger. I shook my head, but he waved me over more firmly this time. His features transformed into those of one scary dude. His lips mashed into a thin line, a deep crease between his eyebrows traveled up to the crest of his baldhead, and his eyes formed into slits, his nostrils pulsating. I’d never seen him mad, but Norma had. Apparently, Pete had almost laid Kross out on a stretcher. That was hard for me to believe since Kross was more muscular than Pete.

I ventured over to the bar, mostly out of respect for Pete since he had given me so many pointers on serving drinks and addressing upset customers.

“First, glad to see you’re in one piece. Everything okay?” The angry look on his face belied the sweetness in his tone.

“I had to take care of something. It went longer than I expected. And as you know, I don’t have a cell phone. So I couldn’t exactly call.”

“Tommy is furious. You’re thirty minutes late for the fight.”

I hung my head. He reminded me of my dad when I’d gotten into trouble. Dad wouldn’t yell. He would say in a firm but calm tone how disappointed he was in me. I shouldn’t care what Pete thought, but I did. He was a big teddy bear. He kept an eye out for Alex, Norma, and me. More importantly, he kept us shielded from Tommy’s mood swings most of the time, at least while we were working.

He flicked his head toward the hallway. “Well, you better get in his office.”

I swallowed hard. “Am I still fighting?” Given that I was late, I wasn’t sure. I would prefer to put all my effort into becoming the best damn waitress in Boston. By doing that, I could show Ms. Waters I was responsible and prove to myself I could stand on my own. But I had a deal with Tommy first. Nausea began to churn.

Someone tapped me on the shoulder. If it were Tommy, Pete wouldn’t have a warm smile on his face.

Norma cleared her throat. I turned to find my best friend with a scowl on her face.

“Before you yell or tell me how worried you were, I’m sorry. You know how I get after—” My voice dried up when I spotted Tommy. He and I locked gazes.

I had bigger problems than Norma. Tommy’s dark features grew darker with every step he took in my direction. He paused in the doorway between the hall and the main part of the club. “Get your ass downstairs right the fuck now.”

Well, crap. I was still fighting.

“Don’t fight,” Norma whispered.

A war battled inside me. If I didn’t fight, then I would be out on the streets again. I wouldn’t have food in my belly. Above all else, my case to get Raven back would take even longer. “I made a deal.” One last fight. One last deal.

I pushed off the bar as I remembered a conversation I’d overheard between Tommy and Trent that very first night I’d hidden in the dumpster.

“The fight should yield us close to fifteen thousand dollars,” Tommy had said.

“Just make sure she shows. I’ll be taking your nuts if she doesn’t,” Trent had added.

Granted, that conversation hadn’t been about me then, but somehow I got the eerie feeling that it was tonight. Sweat beaded on my body. If Tommy’s nuts were on the line because I was late, then he would hold me responsible. I just wasn’t sure how.

“We can find another job,” Norma said at my back.

Time was our enemy and so was the storm brewing in Tommy’s dark eyes. I weighed my options. I could either run or take my licks until Tommy decided for me. When I was within his reach, he grasped my arm hard.

It was time to fight.

T
hick clouds
of cigar and cigarette smoke billowed out of the boisterous room as Norma and I approached.

“You can still back out,” Norma said. She’d been telling me that nonstop during the two minutes Tommy had given me to change into my workout gear.

“Chill.” I blew out a breath as I entered the room. In my mind, I couldn’t run. I’d made a deal, one that would allow me to at least keep waitressing whether I won or lost the fight.

“Holy Moly. You’re fighting Sasquatch,” Norma all but screeched.

Vickie, the very large girl I had told to fuck off the first night I’d found Firefly was cracking her knuckles and bouncing on her feet. Her body gleamed with sweat. She regarded me with a bone-chilling smile as though she was ready to beat my head into the dirty floor.

Suddenly, I berated myself for not spending more than thirty minutes training with Kross. “She’s not seven feet. She’s six.”

“You can’t fight her.” Norma’s voice hitched. “She’s going to seriously damage your body parts.”

Vickie had the advantage. Her sports bra was stretched tight over her well-toned chest. Her biceps reminded me of Kross’s, big and cut. Her short shorts revealed thick thighs. But her muscles weren’t what had me shaking where I stood. Her hands were big. One punch, and my entire face would be bruised. Then Ms. Waters might think it wasn’t safe for my own daughter to be around me. Heck, I didn’t want Raven to see me all black and blue. I was also beginning to think Tommy had gotten me all excited about winning two thousand dollars when he knew I didn’t stand a chance. A psychopathic laugh broke out in my head at something Tommy had said. “You have potential and great footwork.” Those two attributes did nothing to quell my nerves.

“Kross gave me some good pointers,” I said to Norma as I looked for Kross in the crowd.

Norma chewed on a long nail. “If you’re looking for Kross, he’s banned. Remember?”

“He said he’d be here.”

“He’s not walking through the door upstairs. Pete will kill him this time.”

I’d gotten in through the alley door, which had been wide open earlier.

Tommy circled the police-taped ring, extending his arms. “Sorry that we had a snag.”

Whistles and shouts erupted from the throng of men gathered around the ring. The room was packed, but not as much as it had been the last two times I’d been there.

“Are you ready, Vickie?” one man shouted. “I got a lot of money on you, sweet thing.”

Vickie cracked her neck and pumped her fists. “Kill,” she shouted, bouncing her way into the ring like a prizefighter.

I swallowed thickly as Norma held onto my arm for dear life.

Tommy glared at me. I guessed that was my cue to get my ass in the ring.

Norma hugged me tightly. “Be careful.”

A guy wolf-whistled as I pushed men out of my way and stepped into the ring. I wasn’t anxious to fight, but I was anxious to get this night over with.

“You two know the rules,” Tommy said.

“Wait,” a smooth and tingly baritone voice shouted.

“Fuck,” Tommy muttered.

Kross appeared from behind a group of men, cutting a visceral path through the spectators. Power and confidence oozed off of him.

“Hey, isn’t that Kross Maxwell?” someone asked.

He pushed toward me with a sense of purpose, his long, thick, denim-clad legs closing the distance between us.

Butterflies took flight in my stomach when I saw how his muscles bunched along his arms. I swore that snake tattoo on his forearm slithered. Or maybe it was the light-headed feeling that settled within me.

“Yeah, they call him rattlesnake in the ring,” a guy added.

I had no idea why. But at the moment, the why didn’t matter. What mattered was that Tommy was ready to throw down, which was surprising, considering he was afraid of Kross, although he was more afraid of Dillon, who was behind Kross. Suddenly, Tommy unclenched his fist.

“Let’s fight,” I said to Tommy. It was better to get this party started before a huge brawl broke out and before Tommy fired me. I’d promised him Kross wouldn’t be any trouble.

“Hold up.” Kross ducked under the yellow tape like an expert fighter.

Okay, I was getting fired.

“You know Kross Maxwell?” Vickie asked me with awe in her voice.

Maybe if I said yes, she wouldn’t kill me.

“You’re banned from this establishment.” Tommy’s tone was all businesslike as he addressed Kross.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Tommy’s business partner, Trent Baker. He was with a pudgy man, dressed in a tailored business suit, standing out like a sore thumb among the men who were dressed casually in jeans. With his arms crossed, Trent pointed at either me or the ring then said something to his friend.

“I need a minute to confer with my fighter,” Kross said.

Holy cow!
I’d thought he would try to stop me. I smiled.

Dillon stared Tommy down until Tommy lifted his hands. “No trouble.”

Kross got super close to me, just as he had the other night when I thought he was going to kiss me. “Walk away. Leave with me. You don’t stand a chance with that girl.”

The light-headed feeling vanished as anger seeped into my veins. My pulse jumped a notch.

The room buzzed with chatter.

“Way to motivate your fighter. I made a deal. I’m sticking to it.”

“Ruby.” He lowered his head, piercing me with a look that would have knocked me out from lust if I weren’t hurt and angry that he was still trying to be bossy.

“No,” I said. “I get she’s big. I get I probably don’t stand a chance. But I’m not running like a scared animal.” My voice was several octaves lower than the restless drone in the room, so I didn’t think anyone could hear us. Then again, I didn’t care. “I’ll tire her out. I’m winning this fight.” Okay, maybe my bravado was a little too strong. But if I let the fact that I didn’t have a chance consume me, then I definitely wouldn’t win. I needed to win.

He latched onto my arms with his strong hands. “God damn it. You should’ve let me train you more the other night.”

Even though I agreed with him, I realized another hour or two of training wouldn’t have made me an expert fighter.

“Are you going to kiss her or let her fight?” a spectator asked.

I cocked an eyebrow. If he so much as touched my lips with his, I might have had to use a boxing move or two on him. I didn’t need him to replace my confidence with a dreamy state of mind.

“Just stay close and give me pointers while I’m fighting,” I said. Maybe that would make him feel better. Hell, it would make me feel better.

He lowered his gaze to my lips. “If I see you faltering, I’m stopping the fight.”

“This isn’t your boxing world with rules.”

His gaze shot up to mine. “I know that. I’m also aware of how people in underground fights get their heads torn off. Remember, block, keep your face shielded, punch hard, often, and fast. And keep your footwork going. Do. Not. Stop.”

“Maxwell, get the fuck out of her way,” Tommy said.

“Go.” I pushed him, or I at least tried to push him.

He gave me a cocky grin before he stepped out to stand close by, next to Norma.

“If Maxwell is in her court, my money is on that girl,” someone said.

The men began waving money in the air as though they were swaying to some melodic music. Vickie, on the other hand, was flaring her nostrils and fisting her hands, ready and anxious to beat my lights out.

Tommy held out his arms between Vickie and me. “Only one rule, ladies. You fight until one of you gets knocked out.” He gave Vickie a nod then me before he ducked out.

The buzz of the crowd energized me as Vickie and I met in the middle then bumped fists. Once we stepped back, we both bounced on the balls of our feet.
Footwork,
I had to keep telling myself. Punch hard, often, and fast. I could do this. I might have been five foot four, but I could also be the Tasmanian Devil if my life depended on it.

She lunged, throwing the first punch directly into my mouth. Pain ricocheted up through my nose. My eyes watered. She came at me again. This time, she jammed her Sasquatch paw into my gut.

On reflex, I bent over, air gushing from my lungs as though someone had popped a balloon.

“Ruby, hit back,” Kross instructed.

As hard as it was to straighten, I swallowed the pain. I charged her with my fists flying. She darted to the right, and I hit air.

“You’re too wild,” Kross said. “Block with one hand, punch with the other.”