Fighting for Desire (6 page)

“It’s really not that funny,” Dev said with irritation as he
put his training equipment away.

He still had a raging hard-on and he was pretty sure his
friend had noticed. Hell, his shorts were tented and there was no hiding his
arousal.

Marco chortled. “It was pretty damn funny, man. I wish you
could’ve seen your face when she dropped the skirt and left.”

Dev glared at his so-called friend. “I’m glad you find it
amusing. Now tell me what you came back for.”

He hated that Marco had seen Shannon like that. Dev honestly
hadn’t even realized they weren’t alone until she started to turn around. That was
what she did to him though. She made him forget about everything else.

Marco sobered. “I just got word from the fighting commission
in Virginia. They aren’t going to allow you to compete because of your arrest
history.”

“Damn. That was years ago. Is there any way we can appeal?”

The cage fight in Virginia had a high payout and he was
looking forward to fighting their undefeated champion. It was going to be a hell
of a fight with both of their undefeated records on the line.

But he always ran into the same battle. His past kept
catching up to him and he wasn’t sure why. It almost seemed as if he were being
targeted but there was no proof. Yet.

The sponsors were getting antsy too. They didn’t want to put
their money behind a fighter with a reputation for violence even though the
incident haunting him had happened years ago. He sighed. They used to focus on
his winning streak but not anymore.

Marco shook his head. “No. The deal is off the table and
they have signed some unknown fighter from Mexico.”

He ran his hands through his hair. “Where does that leave
us?”

“The fight in Vegas is still on, if you’re willing.”

Dev nodded.

“Good, that’s what I told them. There’s a fight in Dallas,
Texas or Loveland, Colorado that I can get you in on. Loveland is where the
money is—the biggest payout to date.”

“Not Dallas. The Loveland one will be fine.”

In all his years spent fighting, Texas was the only place he
hadn’t been…by choice. He had left that state for a reason and he never planned
to go back.

“Okay, I’ll make some calls and get you added to the card.”
Marco hesitated and then said, “I take it Shannon agreed.” He didn’t wait for
Dev to confirm but went on. “How do you want her explained to the press?”

“She won’t be seen by the press. I’ll make sure of it.”

Marco snorted. “Please. You know as well as I do that there are
always
paparazzi
waiting at the hotel. We need an official answer before
they spin their own story on her.”

“What could they say about her?”

“Oh I don’t know. That you’re dating a waitress from
The
Honey
Jar,
a highly scandalous nightclub, and that this isn’t the
first time you dated her.”

Dev sighed. “Okay you’ve made your point. How do you want to
spin it?”

“I’m thinking reunited high-school sweethearts. You two will
have to act as if you are in love though,” he replied. “I talked to the others
and they think that a good old love story will take away from your sordid past
with her.”

Typical Marco. Of course he talked to the rest of the team
before coming to Dev. Looking out for his and his teams’ best interests was
what he paid his friend to do and he tried not to let it annoy him.

“Okay. I’ll let Shannon know. Anything else?”

Marco stared at him for a moment and then asked, “You aren’t
even going to see if she’s okay with the idea?”

His face heated with anger. “No, I’m not going to ask her.
She agreed to my terms so she doesn’t have a say-so in anything.”

The words sounded harsh even to his ears but it had to be
this way. He couldn’t let his staff start feeling sorry for Shannon because
that would make him the bad guy. And he wasn’t, dammit.

“All right. Forget I said anything.” Marco glanced at his
watch. “I need to get back to the office. There’s a ton of paperwork I have to
finish before we go to Vegas. I will see you tomorrow.”

“Oh yeah,” Dev said, “Before I forget…call both of Shannon’s
places of employment and let them know she won’t be coming back. Ever. Also…have
someone pay her rent at her apartment and tell the movers to meet us there in a
few hours.”

Marco waved in acknowledgment as he left and Dev went into
the locker room. He needed to take a long, cold shower before he saw Shannon
again. Ice water was the only cure for his hard-on. When he turned on the
spray, his thoughts went to a memory he wished he could forget.

They met behind the bleachers at the high school—the only
neutral place they could agree upon and her parents weren’t likely to find them
there. The smell of damp grass mixed with trash from the game a few nights
earlier made him feel queasy. And he had a bad feeling something horrible was
about to happen.

Shannon started crying before he even reached her. She
stood before him, rain drenching her sundress, showing the little bulge at her
stomach. He too was soaked but he didn’t care. Nothing mattered anymore…not if
she did what she’d told him she was going to do.

“What did you say?” He felt his entire world drop from
beneath him, kept telling himself this couldn’t be happening.

She reached out but he pulled away before she could touch
him. He didn’t want her filthy hands on him ever again.

“Dev,” she sobbed, anguish making her voice crack.
“Please, you have to understand. If I don’t do this, they are going to cut me
off. I…I will be dead to them.”

She was really going to do it because her daddy was
threatening to cut her off? No…he couldn’t believe her.

“Understand? What in the fuck is there to understand?” he
shouted.

She managed to grab his arm this time. “You just got out
of jail. The judge said this was the last time he was going to look the other
way. I…I don’t want to start a family like this.”

He spoke through clenched teeth. “I went to jail because
of what that asshole said about you, Shannon. Jesus! It’s not as if I just
walked up to a random person and knocked him out.”

“You broke three of his ribs, Dev! They had to wire his
jaw shut. That isn’t just knocking someone out. That’s beating the shit out of him.”

Shannon rarely cursed so he knew she was as upset as he
was.

“So what are you trying to tell me? That we’re breaking
up?” He ran his hands through his hair, trying to remain in control of his
emotions. “Is your father behind this? Is that what this is all about?”

Another sob left her lips. “He’s only doing what he
thinks is best. Please don’t bring him into this.”

“If he is the reason you’re trying to leave me, then I
damn sure will bring him into this!”

She shook her head. “No, don’t blame this on him. This is
my choice. I’m choosing this. We’re too young to be parents and you know it.”

There was a tense moment of silence. He didn’t know what
he could possibly say to change her mind. Those weren’t her words. The phrases
she’d used sounded exactly like something her father would say. But why was she
doing this to him? Tears filled his eyes and he blinked them away.

Finally he said, “If you do this, then you are dead to
me. I won’t be here to hold your hand when you realize what a huge mistake you’ve
made.”

“Dev, please don’t be like this. I do need you.” Her
voice was hoarse and broken.

He took a step back. “I need you too but I need our
family more. And if you take that away from me, then there is nothing between
us.”

“No,” she moaned. “Please…”

“I can’t believe I ever loved you.” His jaw clenched.
“You disgust me. I
will
never
touch you again, Shannon.”

With those final words he left her there, standing in the
rain. The scent of rotting garbage was so strong his stomach heaved but he kept
walking. When he reached his truck he vomited his lunch.

How could she do such a thing? She was breaking his heart
and didn’t even care. Looking around, he realized there was nothing left for
him there…not anymore. He vowed in that moment that he would leave Tyler, Texas
behind and never look back.

Holding his head under the spraying water, Dev held his
breath until the tears that threatened to spill subsided.
Strong.
He had
to stay strong and remember he controlled fate this time. Not Shannon. Now…time
to have some fun and remind her of this.

* * * * *

In the massive closet Shannon managed to find a pair of True
Religion jeans and a red silk tank top. She giggled to herself as she thought
about the shocked looks she got as she ran through the house. Luckily she had
remembered where her room was and hadn’t needed to ask for help.

She picked out a pair of sneakers. Wearing high heels while
packing up her belongings didn’t sound appealing. Besides, she lived in a
sketchy part of town and she never knew what she would be facing. Sneakers were
easier to run in.

She walked out of the closet and stopped in her tracks. Dev
was lying on the bed, using his hands to prop up his head. He wore jeans and a
t-shirt and looked oh-so-good. His gaze ran her up and down and then he
grinned.

“No heels?”

Still angry, she replied, “What? Marco didn’t want to come
in and watch? You know, if he was a part of the deal then you could have said
something.”

His eyes narrowed and she felt a small sense of victory.
Good. He deserved to be put in his place. She was tired of men pushing her
around.

He sat up. “Stay away from my friends,” he said in a slow,
calculated manner. “While you are here you are mine in every sense of the word.
Understand?”

She rolled her eyes. “As if I would sleep with your
friends.” Then she asked, “When are we going to my apartment? I really don’t
want to be there after the sun goes down.”

He cocked his head. “Is that why you work at night, so you
don’t have to be there?”

Lord, if he only knew the whole story, he would see the
irony in his words.

She nodded. “Yeah. Something like that.”

He glanced at his watch and said, “I need to make a couple
of calls and then we can go.”

He started to walk away and then stopped. “Just so you know,
I didn’t realize Marco was there until you started to turn around. Despite what
you think I wouldn’t intentionally embarrass you that way.”

He waited for her to reply but she didn’t know what to say.
Finally he gave a curt nod and left. When he was gone she sat on the edge of
the bed. One minute he seemed furious and the next he was apologizing. It was
hard to figure out where she stood when he did things like that.

Her cell phone rang and she jumped at the unexpected sound.
She chuckled at herself and grabbed her cell from her purse. The number on the
screen made her flinch but she answered the call.

“Hello, Johnny.”

“What in the fuck kind of game do you think you’re playing?”
he screamed at her.

She closed her eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talking
about.”

“Did you really think I wouldn’t find out right away that
you quit the club? Did you think it would be that easy…that I would just let
you fucking walk away?”

Shit. Dev’s people must have called the club to say she
wasn’t coming back. No surprise—she’d known they would but she didn’t think he
would move that fast. And now she had to deal with Johnny.

She took in a slow breath. “I didn’t think it would matter.”

“Oh it matters, you little bitch. Did you think I would
forget about the fifty thousand dollars you still owe me?”

Even through the phone she could picture his handsome face
scrunched up in rage. Hard to believe she had found him attractive at one time.
That was before he showed his true colors though.

“I will have it to you by tomorrow.”

She hoped Dev would put the money in her account by then. If
not, she would have to explain to him why she needed it and that was the last
thing she wanted to do.

“How did you manage to get all the money?” Johnny asked in a
low voice. “Are you fucking one of my customers without my permission? You know
what happens when one of my girls goes behind my back…”

Each word he said became a threat and she trembled in fear.
He was so very angry and she needed to end this conversation before it got out
of hand.

“No, Johnny. I’m not seeing one of your customers. I need to
go. I’ll drop a check by the club tomorrow.”

She hung up before he had a chance to reply. Her heart was
pounding and she tried to take in a calming breath. He had the power to destroy
her in an instant if he wanted. She bit her lip to keep from crying. He had
been her savior at one point. Too bad he ended up being the devil in disguise,
she thought, as memories of that fateful night came rushing back.

The lights in the club flashed in dizzying patterns but
she didn’t care. She danced in the middle of the room with her arms thrown in
the air. Several men danced with her and she ground against them, not caring
when they grabbed at her.

The music changed to a slow song and she made her way
back to the bar. She never danced to the slow songs. They hurt too much—made
her think about things she didn’t want to think about.

“I’ll take another vodka tonic,” she yelled over the
music to the bartender.

He shook his head. “I’m cutting you off. You’re drunk,
lady.”

She laughed and it sounded far away. “Fuck you. Give me
another drink!”

The bartender looked hesitant and she was about to cuss
him out when a warm arm went around her waist. Thinking it was one of the guys
from the dance floor, she rubbed against him without looking.