Got A Hold On You (Ringside Romance) (9 page)

She couldn’t take her eyes off Jack’s incredible
chest, his firm pectoral muscles and a hard stomach that looked like it had
been sculpted by God’s hands. Not a washboard tummy, she thought, remembering
the cover of Bradley’s “Ten Minutes to a Tighter Tummy” video. No, Jack’s
stomach was thick and muscular and lightly dusted with dark hair that
disappeared below his waistline.

“It’s always something with you, Sully, an angle, a
manipulation. I told you my terms, and you agreed to them. Frank, here,
witnessed the discussion. So, what’s it going to be?”

She tore her gaze from Jack’s sleek, sweaty body and
glanced at her uncle. His shoulders sagged with an incredible sigh, as if the
world was crumbling before his eyes.

“Tatianna’s not coming,” Uncle Joe said.

“What are you talking about?”

Uncle Joe glanced at Frankie. Her stomach lurched at
the look in his eyes, the look of defeat.

“The truth of the matter is—”

“She had car trouble.” Frankie jumped to her feet and
faced Jack. “She’ll be here within the hour.”

“What?” Uncle Joe said.

“I forgot to tell you. We were so wrapped up in
business.”

“But Frankie—”

“She’ll be here.” She glanced at Uncle Joe.
“Everything will be fine.”

Grabbing the plastic bag, she marched toward Jack who
was blocking the doorway. She focused on her breathing technique to quell the
heat wave that washed over her whenever she got within ten feet of him. Could
she survive being so close to this impossibly sexy man? She had to, for Uncle
Joe, bikini or no bikini.

“I hope she doesn’t come dressed in that ridiculous
costume of hers,” Jack said, pulling off a glove.

“I’m sure she knows the appropriate way to dress for a
workout.” She hadn’t a clue. Better flag down Maxine on her way to get her head
examined.

She sauntered past him, but he grabbed her arm.
Staring at his partially gloved hand she marveled that his touch didn’t pinch
or squeeze. How could such a large man be so gentle?

Then she glanced into his devilish green eyes.

“I’ll hang around for a half hour,” he said. “Oh, and
thanks, Frank.”

“For what?”

“For giving me such a light promotional schedule next
week.”

His sarcasm hit her dead center. “It’s the least I
could do,” she said.

“I’m sure Tiger Lady will be real happy to know she’s
booked for a different town each day for the next week.”

“Tiger Lady?”

“Where I go, she goes. Kaneville, Plumtowne, Sterling
Falls. Tiger Lady and I are partners which makes us inseparable.”

Heavens! When she’d convinced the PR department to
boost Jack’s schedule, she’d meant to get him out of her hair and teach him not
to mess with her. It seemed in the process she’d messed with herself. Big time.

“I don’t know that Tatianna can make all those dates,”
she said with a nonchalant lift of her chin.

“I’m sure you’ll work it out. You have a way with
people.”

A fantastic grin lit up his face, showing off a slight
dimple in his left cheek.

“Send Tiger Lady down to the ring. We’ve got a lot of
catching up to do if I’m going to train her by the day after tomorrow.”

“Train her to sign autographs? I’m sure she can figure
that out.”

“Not autographs, sweetheart. She’s got to learn some
of the moves if we’re going to step into the ring together.”

“Moves—right.” She picked a speck of lint off
her gray blazer. Next he’d be telling her she had to take a course in grunting.

“Why do I get the feeling you still don’t respect this
business?”

“I don’t know what you mean.” She narrowed her eyes in
challenge.

“I mean...” He took a step toward her and she
automatically backed into the wall, knocking Uncle Joe’s golf clubs on the
floor.

A five iron would make a good weapon right about now.
She couldn’t take her eyes off the man long enough to grab a club. His dark
green, penetrating gaze pinned her in place.

“You act like we’re the scum of the earth and you’re
the queen of England,” he said.

“I happen to take pride in things that are real,
genuine, and serve a purpose, Mr. Hudson. Wrestling doesn’t fit into any of
those categories.”

His eyes blazed fire. “Pick me up.”

“Excuse me?”

She watched him swallow, and her blood pressure
jumped. Goodness, even the man’s Adam’s apple was a turn on.

“Pick me up,” he repeated.

“I...I can’t.”

“Why not?” His voice carried a ragged edge.

Was he feeling the same heat that set her nerves a
skitter?

“I’m not strong enough to pick you up,” she said.

“But Frank, wrestling’s fake, remember? Smoke and
mirrors. You should be able to pick me up with one finger, maybe two.”

He placed Frankie’s hands on his waist. Her fingers
burned at the contact of his slick, warm skin.

“Come on, Frank. Give it a shot.”

She wanted to take a shot all right. She wanted to
take a shot at tasting those incredible lips, running her fingers across every
muscle, every curve of his amazing chest.

“Can’t do it, can you?” he taunted.

Had he read her mind?

His smile faded, and he took a step back. She snapped
her arms against her sides.

“That’s lesson number one,” he said. “I really pick up
three-hundred-pound men for a living. I really get hit with chairs, fall off
fifteen-foot cages onto tables, and fly out of the ring onto the cement floor.
I’d be happy to demonstrate if you’d like to join me in the ring.”

It was all a game, a way to make her look small and
foolish. He didn’t feel the heat, the desire bubbling beneath the surface. It
was all business to him, a way to make his point.

And she’d been drawn in like a naive schoolgirl.

“I get the picture,” she said.

“Good. I’ll be waiting downstairs for Tiger Lady.” He
pulled off a glove with his teeth, his eyes intent on Frankie.

Heat shot to every fiber, every nerve ending of her
body against her will. He might be an empty-brained wrestler, but she had to
give him an A-plus in the animal magnetism department. The man knew exactly how
to use his power and she had a feeling he planned to use it on her, or
Tatianna, or…oh, crap, she was getting confused.

He shot her one last victorious smile, ambled across the
office, and slammed the door. She slid down the wall into a heap on the floor.

“Get Maxine up here,” she said.

“You don’t have to do it.” Uncle Joe sat beside her.
“I know how uncomfortable you are with all this.”

“You need me and I refuse to be intimidated by that
man. Now get her up here before I come to my senses and abandon you for good.”

***

“Again!” he said, running toward Marco. The kid swung
his forearm and Jack fell backward, slamming against the mat. He sprung back to
his feet.

“Three to the midsection,” Jack ordered. The kid
delivered three open-fisted punches and Jack’s body jerked in response.

“Irish whip to the turnbuckle and pummel me with
kicks.”

He was asking for it today. He shouldn’t even be here
and everyone knew it. But that scene with Niece Sullivan set his gut ablaze
with an overwhelming urge to do some serious damage to something. He needed to
exorcise his demons.

Jack slid down the corner ropes and Marco nailed him
twice with his boot, flattening him to the mat. Jack played possum, trying to
gather his thoughts, trying to figure out why he had so much trouble shaking
free of this damn business.

“You okay?” Marco asked.

“Wonderful. Give me a minute.”

The fluorescent ceiling lights burned bright, and Jack
wished it were the sun shining down on him. What he wouldn’t give to be sucking
down umbrella drinks on a deserted beach or riding a playful Appaloosa into the
Rockies. He’d give anything to be someplace else. Someplace far away from Ms.
Frankie McGee.

With a little luck he’d be out of here, starting his
new life sooner rather than later. The inexperienced Tiger Lady would ruin the
story line and he’d go about his merry way without turning heel. All would be
right with the world.

Unfortunately, there was something very wrong about that
scene that just played out in Sully’s office. If only the niece hadn’t touched
him. He closed his eyes and ran his hand across his face. A myriad of blues,
greens, and yellows filled his vision—Frankie’s eyes. He wondered why she
didn’t wear contacts, why she wore the protective shield of thick-rimmed
glasses. Then again, he wouldn’t want her to change that incredible color. She
had striking, iridescent eyes, big and round…and burning with need.

“Dammit!” He pounded a closed fist on the mat.

“Don’t look now, but your woman’s coming,” Marco said.

Perfect. Just what he needed when his brain was
scrambled like a carton of eggs.

Catcalls announced Tiger Lady’s entrance into the gym.

“Come on down, baby,” Nick called.

“Wooooeeee!” Luther howled. “Look at those legs.”

“I like the set of lungs myself,” the Basher said.

He could only guess what Tiger Lady was wearing today.
He draped his arm over his eyes, giving himself another second or two of peace.
Who was he kidding? Frankie had shot that to hell.

“Are you okay?” a soft voice said. He opened his eyes
and spied Tiger Lady, mask and all, standing over him.

“What’s with the mask?” he said, trying not to gawk at
the voluptuous body hugged by a skin-tight, black leotard with gold trim.

“I always wear the mask.”

“Always?”

“Almost always.”

She grinned and he found himself smiling back. It
would be nice to work with someone who had a sense of humor. Then he remembered
last night’s assault, the injury and his losing the belt. In one swift motion
he jackknifed and slid under the bottom rope out of the ring. She took three
steps back. He grabbed her by the arms to prevent her from tripping over a
200-pound barbell.

“You really messed me up last night,” he said.

“I’m sorry.” She blinked those cornflower blue eyes
and he found himself believing her.

Remember your
goal
.
Teach her to screw up so you
can get out of this hellhole.

A great plan if they were alone. Unfortunately, a
crowd of wrestlers was gathering. Word must have gotten out that Jack was
taking on a partner, something he’d successfully avoided for the past nineteen
years.

“We don’t have a lot of time. Sullivan’s witch niece
has scheduled us for a whirlwind tour of the Midwest. We go the day after
tomorrow.”

“You don’t like her very much.”

“What’s to like?” Other than those incredible eyes,
uptight little attitude, and peaches-and-cream skin that probably tasted even
better than it looked.

“Come on.” He grabbed her hand and led her up the
steps to the ring. She stumbled. “Take those spiked heels off.”

“I need to practice in them so I don’t keep tripping
over my own feet.”

 
“Whatever.” He held the ropes open for her and she stepped
inside the squared circle.

“Teach her a Bulldog!” Teddy shouted.

“Teach her to sell,” Luther added.

“Show her a clothesline,” Marco said with a hearty
chuckle.

“No one said anything about doing laundry,” Tiger Lady
said, confusion coloring her eyes.

“Man, you are green, aren’t you?” he muttered, almost
feeling sorry for her. Talk about being out of her league. He reached for her
wrist and she stepped back.

“I’m not going to hurt you.” Sheesh, why were the
women in his life so jumpy around him? First Frank, then the Tiger Lady. Had
Marco been spreading rumors?

“Here.” He got behind her and raised her arm at a
right angle. “You swing at my chest like this.” He moved it backward, then
forward.

She seemed softer today, more normal. Her scent teased
his nostrils. Different today, more subtle although he couldn’t quite make it
out.

“Keep your arm right there.” He stepped in front of
her. “Okay, now whack me across the chest.”

“But I’ll hurt you.”

“I doubt it.”

Her eyes flared and she swung. He fell flat to the
mat, and she stared down at him in wonder.

“Clothesline,” he said, getting to his feet.

“I did that?” Her eyes grew wide.

“We did that. It’s a partnership. Don’t worry, you
won’t be doing much inside the ring, but I wanted you to become familiar with
some of the moves.”

He glanced up and spied Sully watching from his
office. Good. He wanted Sully to see him working with Tiger Lady, training her,
showing her how to be a superb partner. That way no one could accuse him of
self-sabotage when she screwed up and ruined the angle.

“Your job is to distract the ref when I’m being taken
down,” he explained to her.

“Distract him how?”

“Use your womanly powers to stop the three count.”

She pursed her lips. “Isn’t that cheating?”

“All’s fair in love and wrestling.”
If only that were true
. “You’re also
supposed to nail my opponent while I’m keeping the ref occupied.”

“More cheating?”

“Fans are very forgiving when the face is doing the
cheating.”

“The face?”

“Baby face, hero, good guy.”

“Oooohhhh.”

He rolled out of the ring and reached up for her. She
hesitated. “Come on, you’re giving me a complex. I told you, I’m not going to
hurt you.”

She stepped through the ropes and lost her footing,
falling into his arms. Hesitating before placing her on the floor, his eyes
caught on her lips. Such beautiful lips, perfectly shaped and ruby red. He bet
they tasted like—

“You can put me down now,” she said.

“Right.” What the hell was the matter with him?

He steadied her and turned to Marco. “Get over here.”
The kid actually looked scared, as if he thought Jack was going to rip into
him.