“
Is Nick still fighting?”
Lark asked, patting the hand on her stomach.
“
Yes, for now. He’s not
ready to stop being Dragon.”
“
He’s living at your
apartment though.”
“
Not technically. He still
goes back to his apartment every day, but never stays long. I’ve
offered for him to move into my place or get a new one together.
He’s not ready though and pushing Nick makes him close himself off
from me.”
As Lark studied me, I felt insecure under
her gaze, thinking she was judging me and Nick. Of course, Lark
wasn’t a judgmental type, but things came easily between her and
Aaron. When Lark reached for Aaron last spring, he was fully
willing to embrace her. Though my touch comforted him, Nick still
squirmed away when I held him too tightly.
“
Typical guy,” Lark said,
giving me a smile. “They want you, but commitment makes them wet
their pants. The important thing is he makes you happy and you’ve
never smiled more than since you two hooked up.”
I hugged Lark gently. “This is why I like
you more than Raven.”
Heading to the door, Raven snorted. “Kiss
ass.”
Lark and I grinned then I returned to
rubbing her belly. “I feel bad that you’re trapped in the house all
the time. I promise when you pop out these rugrats that I’ll take
you out and party. Let Aaron deal with them. It’s his fault you got
pregnant with twins even though you were on birth control. Him and
those Thor sperm.”
Lark laughed again while rubbing her
bouncing belly. “I’m really nervous as the due date gets closer.
Mostly, I’m nervous I won’t make my due date and the babies will be
born too early. I’m not really so nervous about taking care of
them. I figure they’ll be easier to deal with once they’re
born.”
“
Maddy and the Smith
sisters are here and they brought food,” Raven announced. “Lots of
food.”
Soon, a plate full of barbecue and the
fixings rested on Lark’s belly as we enjoyed lunch.
“
We’ll do a real big baby
shower once the babies are here and you can get out of the house,”
Tawny said. “The whole roller derby crew will come. A few chicks
from Denny’s plus Jade. I’ve got it all planned out.”
Even smiling, Lark already looked worn
out.
“
I hope I never have
twins,” I mumbled.
Raven snorted. “We all hope that for you,
Bailey.”
“
Well, I’m totally wishing
them on you.”
Rolling her eyes, Raven ate the spicy ribs.
“I could handle it. Lark and I are made of tougher stuff than you
sissy Johanssons.”
“
You’ve been pushing,” I
said, standing up and showing her my barbecue covered fingers.
“Someone clearly wants an ass whipping.”
Raven set down her food and revealed her
sticky fingers. “Let’s do this thing.”
“
Take it outside,” Lark
cried. “I don’t want my house dirty.”
“
As you wish,” I said,
winking at the baby bump I called friend.
Raven gave me her game face then took off
out the front door. I chased after her while the two ugly dogs
barked excitedly. Quickly catching her, I smeared sauce on her
face. Raven flipped me over onto my back, but ensured I landed
gently on the grass.
“
You’re so messy. Didn’t
your mama ever teach you to be a lady?” she asked, pinning me to
the ground as we wiped our hands on each other’s shirts.
“
What’s this about?” asked
a familiar voice.
Turning my head, I found Deputy Ennis
Darling standing on the other side of the fence.
“
We’re having a baby
shower,” Raven muttered. “You’re not invited.”
Dickhead ignored Raven and focused his
greedy blue eyes on me. I knew I looked a mess from my barbecue
wrestling, but he still acted like I was standing in front of him
naked.
“
What do you want?” I asked
as the dogs growled at Dickhead.
“
I tried calling
you.”
“
I blocked your
number.”
“
Now, why would you go and
do that?”
“
You had your chance,” I
said, glaring into his eyes. “You blew it. Now, I have someone
else.”
Dickhead flicked the tip of his stupid cop
hat. “That fighter Dragon?” he said, rolling his eyes. “You know
cage fighting ain’t exactly legal. Your boyfriend could get himself
into trouble.”
“
Are you threatening my
brother’s business?” I asked as Tawny and Raven stood behind
me.
Dickhead looked at the wives of Reapers’
enforcers then back at me. “Your boyfriend is a loser. When you
realize that, I’ll still be around.”
“
Whoop-de-fucking-doo,” I
said, walking away.
Raven and Tawny remained outside for a
while, eyeballing the cop. I wouldn’t be surprised if they called
their men to make loud complaints about a pig hassling them.
Ignoring the drama, I was more worried about Dickhead hassling
Nick.
“
You okay?” Farah asked
while I washed off.
“
Yeah, I just don’t want
Dickhead messing with what I have.”
“
Tell Cooper to handle
him.”
“
No,” I snapped then
softened my tone when I remembered Farah was cooking my niece. “I
want Coop to respect me and see me as an adult. I want to run the
legal part of the family business. He won’t trust me to do shit if
I run to him for help with Dickhead.”
“
Or maybe he’ll trust you
more because you knew to ask for help. I know Coop worries about
Tucker making dumb decisions and never asking for help. He needs
people to handle things, but also to know when they need
backup.”
Under Farah’s steady gaze, I accepted she
knew the answers and wouldn’t steer me wrong.
“
I’m sorry I slammed you
into the wall that day,” I whispered.
“
It’s okay. You thought I
hurt your brother and you’re protective of him.”
“
It was still wrong to hurt
you like that,” I said, wrapping her long dark hair behind her
ears. “How come you never told him what I did?”
Farah smiled. “Coop and I had just made up
and I didn’t think he’d understand what you did.”
“
I’m sure Coop knows I act
like a bitch. It’s a pretty established fact.”
“
I mean he was in the mood
to make things up to me and might have gone overboard with how he
responded to you. I just didn’t want him to do anything he’d
regret.”
Leaning against the walls, I sighed. “He
acted like an idiot a lot when you two first met. I don’t think he
liked feeling powerless with someone. Back then, I didn’t know what
the hell his problem was, but I get it now. Nick has the power to
chew me up and shit me out.”
“
It gets easier, Bailey.
Loving Cooper scared me and I thought I should push him away. I’d
never had a life like he offered or someone who could give me so
much. Nick might feel the same way with you. It’s why he runs
towards you and away at the same time.”
Biting my lip, I confessed, “I feel the urge
to trap Nick and make him stay with me. I know what’s best for him
and I want to force him to submit. In fact, stopping myself from
controlling him takes up most of my day. I’m not that different
from Coop, so you’re lucky he never locked you up somewhere and
made you worship him.”
Farah laughed. “It’s not like he didn’t make
threats to do just that. He found the patience to wait for me and
you’ll do the same for Nick.”
Hugging Farah, I soaked in her warmth.
“You’re a great sister-in-law. Better than I could have ever hoped
for. I thought I hit the jackpot with Maddy then you came along.
How did I get so lucky?”
Farah took my hand as we walked to the
living room. “You must have been very good in a past life.”
Joining the others for cake, we found Raven
and Tawny had finished intimidating Dickhead. On the couch, Lark
whispered with Maddy about baby things.
Soon, Lark opened presents, oohing and awing
at the car seat and stroller. With my gift, Lark only frowned.
“
I don’t get it. What do I
do with a picture of Winona?”
“
I’m giving you my
assistant. She’s great with babies and very organized.”
Raven frowned. “You can’t gift a person.
Winnie isn’t your slave.”
“
I know, fuckwit,” I
growled then smiled at Lark as if her sister wasn’t pissing me off.
“Winnie has trouble going to class with me because it’s full of
people. Hell, most of the time I have nothing for her to do. I
think she’d like taking care of the house, dogs, and especially
you. She’s not afraid of Aaron either.”
Lark pulled me into a hug. “This is a great
gift. Winona and I will have lots of fun together. Plus, Aaron
won’t have to scramble so much handling work and the house. He’ll
have more time to pay attention to me.”
“
Are you sure you like my
gift? I also have a non-person gift, but Winnie was the big
surprise.”
“
I need to stay off my feet
and your gift will help me do that.”
Raven walked over and ruffled my hair. “Your
slave gift is actually pretty sweet. I like when you go Hallmark on
the world.”
“
Shut up, bitch,” I said,
hugging her. “Save your compliments for Lark. It’s her special day.
Though feel free to praise me later.”
Raven acted like another wrestling match
might ensue. Instead, she kissed her sister’s forehead and we
returned to the cake. My friends rarely looked as happy as they did
together that day. Love suited them all. For the first time, I knew
how they felt.
Bailey refused to watch me fight, but she
agreed to hang out in Axel’s office until I was done. I imagined
her soft skin under my fingertips and warm breath against my neck.
All I needed to do was get through a single fight then I could
return to her arms.
My opponent was a guy from New Hampton that
I recognized from my freshman math class. Back then, he only
attended a few days a week and always looked wasted. Based on his
new thicker build, I assumed he added steroids to his personal
pharmacy.
Even with his increased size, I wasn’t
worried. My bulk came from training. I also had experience, so I
knew winning was about more than size. Besides, I felt the luxury
of not caring whether I won or lost. I had nothing to prove.
As Dragon, I was nearly unbeatable. The
hottest girl in town loved all of me. Not only the winner in the
Thunderdome, but the loser scared of thunderstorms. Bailey kissed
my scars and soothed my fears. She even ignored my need to shower
so often and clean the apartment more than necessary. Bailey loved
me in a way no one had ever loved me before.
Wanting to intimidate me, my opponent
growled before the fight began. I knew he was worried about losing.
A guy with his drug habits needed money and winning paid more. If
he thought growling might give him an edge, he really needed to cut
down on the dope.
Staring into his hard eyes, I knew I would
win. Yet the moment my fist smashed into his jaw, I also knew I was
done fighting. The need to be Dragon felt temporary while my love
for Bailey was eternal. Even as I dodged the punches and followed
with my own, I lost the fire I normally enjoyed in a fight. Now the
violence only reminded me of the suffering of my childhood. I
wanted to break free of the pain.
The druggie dropped to the ground and didn’t
get back up. Looking at my hands, I never wanted to see them
bloodied again. No more wounds or violence. I was done.
Rushing out of the cage, I pushed past
everyone to reach Axel’s office where I found Bailey watching TV on
the couch. She jumped up when I entered. Her eyes were filled with
worry over the bleeding wound over my eye. Ignoring her questioning
gaze, I cupped her face.
“
I love you and I’m ready
to move into your apartment. All my life I slept like shit until I
shared a bed with you. Everything feels different when I’m with you
and I need that kind of different in my life. I’m not going to
fight anymore.”
“
I love you too. A million
times yes at moving in together.”
Lowering my lips to hers, I remembered they
were bloody. I tried to pull away until Bailey wrapped her hands
around my neck and tugged me to her. She kissed me like we were the
only two people in the world.
“
Are you sure?” Bailey
asked as I wiped my blood from her lips.
“
I don’t need it anymore. I
have you.”
“
Yes, you do, Nick. I
promise.”
“
Let me clean up and we’ll
go out to celebrate.”
Bailey’s eyes literally glowed with joy as I
left her. I hurried to wash off the blood and get dressed.
In the past, I panicked at the very
suggestion of giving up fighting. Now, I felt as if the choice was
always so simple. Relief flooded me when I accepted I’d never walk
into the cage again.
Sawyer was the worst baby in the history of
babies. Yet my mom and pop refused to admit this fact. I always
figured they were simply exhausted by the time she was born and
didn’t even try anymore. This would explain why she sucked.
True, my little sister improved greatly
after Farah practiced her mothering skills on Sawyer. The kid said
thank you and please. She no longer stabbed people with her fork if
they wanted a bite of her food. She even stopped rolling her eyes
whenever I made one of my big announcements. Less evil was still
evil though.