Olivia
He leads me away from the gala and nervousness replaces my previous frustration.
Are we even allowed back here?
“Where are we going?”
I wonder aloud as he escorts me up a corridor, his hand low on the small of my back.
“You’ll see
,” is all he says as he glances sideways at me.
In that quick glance, I saw it. I saw his eyes flash with indecent excitement and h
eat spreads through my organs. The wild gleam in his eyes doesn’t pass me by, and as he pushes through some double service doors, I follow behind him. After a few more steps I’m suddenly standing in the Garden Arena looking down on the intimidating cage. My chest tightens and I grip the black metal railing for support. I haven’t been in a stadium in a few months and being back both terrifies and electrifies me.
Seth clears his throat and I snap my attention to him. His hand is extended and his eyes clearly reflect
the positive emotions he feels.
“We’re going down there?” I ask, taking one step.
He doesn’t say anything, only nods. The weak lighting barely filters off the plastic chairs and to think in two weeks this place is going to be as bright as day and filled with thousands upon thousands of screaming people bewilders me.
Seth walks with purpose, pulling me along behind him as he leads me through rows of seats and down concrete stairs.
The closer I get to the cage, the larger it seems, and the larger it seems, the more the apprehension of what Seth does settles in.
I’m with a fighter…
How the hell did that happen and what the hell is wrong with me? I don’t like fighting and I never have, so how the hell did I fall for a fighter?
The tall cage looms over me, distracting me from my thoughts. I gape up at the monstrous structure. I’ve never been this close to a cage before—a real cage
, I mean. I’ve seen Seth’s training one plenty of times, but it doesn’t intimidate me like this one does.
Seth moves from me and up the small steps before opening the cage door.
He smiles down at me with those gorgeous goddamn lips and says, “After you.”
He gestures fo
r me to enter the cage with one gentle swipe of his hand.
“Me?” I almost glance over my shoulder. “Am I allowed to go in there?”
“We can do whatever we want. Who’s going to know?”
The way he says it—with such promise—has my stomach doing flips and I inch forward. When the tip of my shoe hits the bottom step of the ring, I halt and look up at him.
“Scared?” he asks.
“Should I be?”
His irises flare at me and his mouth curls into a cocky smirk. “Absolutely.”
M
y body reacts as if he said, no, I shouldn’t be scared. It’s like he has me under some kind of spell. I ascend the steps and inch forward until I’m standing firmly on the vinyl flooring. The floor doesn’t bounce or bow underneath my weight.
How hard do these guys slam each other to make it bounce so much?
I do a full circle, taking in the view from this spot. How amazing would it be to see the arena filled with people from where I’m standing? Even now, when it’s just Seth and I, adrenaline flows through my veins like rapid-fire, making my head spin. I circle the ring slowly, letting my fingers glide over the vinyl baked wiring. Halfway around, I run out of breath. Not because I’m tired, but because I’m overwhelmed by the size of it all. I rest against the cage, letting the cold metal cool my burning skin. I drag my eyes around the ring before settling on Seth’s face.
“I see why you love being on this side of the wire,” I wonder aloud
, feeling a hot flush flow through me as he pushes himself off of the cage door. “It’s amazing from here.”
The door closes behind him with a light slam and I
watch as he hooks a finger around his black tie, loosening it. I swallow hard and subtly squeeze my thighs together as a familiar pulsing starts—the pulsing only Seth can arouse.
Only he can provoke such feelings with one painfully normal act.
I expel a slow, heavy breath as he saunters toward me. There’s no mistaking the way he walks—he wants me and he wants me now.
Seth stops once his
hard body grazes mine and his hand wraps around my wrist, pinning it above my head. Being within a foot of him, I feel my body come alive, humming as pure sexual energy starts to take over. Our eyes stay locked as he pulls his tie from the collar of his white formal shirt. The soft silk of his tie glides against skin and I frown.
What is he doing?
The fabric bites into my wrist and I lurch forward, rebounding off his large torso and ending flush up against the cage again.
“Seth!” I gasp,
tugging at my wrist and getting nowhere. “What are you doing?”
He works the fabric around the wires of the cage
, ignoring me. The whole time I watch him, panicked by what’s happening,
he
has a mischievous, smoldering gleam in his eyes.
When
he’s done successfully tethering me to the cage, he runs his rough fingers up my sensitive forearm, sending heat inducing tingles tearing through my body. I can just make out his features under the glow of security lights and exit signs as his hands slide onto the nape of my neck and his lips crash to mine. My body melts to his as he presses me hard against the wire and all is well and fun until his fingers slide across my waist and clasp the zipper to my dress. I pull away from him, breathless.
The zipper
begins its painfully slow descent and my nerves rise. I flinch away from his hand in an attempt to get him to stop.
“Easy
,” he scolds me. “I’m already trying hard not to rip this thing at the seams.”
“So
meone will see us…”
He stops and looks me dead in the eyes.
“You think I’d put you on show for someone else to see? No. You’re all mine.”
Using my free hand, I
squeeze it between us and reach to untie the tie, but I’m stopped as he yanks my hand away. I squirm as he presses it against the cage above my head, right next to the other and his free hand slips into my dress, clamping on my bare hip.
“Why here? Why can’t you wait until we get home?”
He lowers his head, bringing his full lips to my ear. His breath hits my face and it’s like fire lapping at my nerves, singeing and burning my insides.
“Why wait?”
he breathes, his hand tightening around my hip. “I fight here and I want to fuck here.”
I don’
t have time to react—or even frown—before his mouth claims me for a second time. I shiver as his rough hand skims my bare flesh. He tugs my dress down and it pools in a purple mess at my feet. Kissing me harder than I’ve ever been kissed before, his hands roam my body, harshly grabbing and squeezing everything and eliciting moans from me every time.
I can’
t say I ever pictured myself bound to an MMA ring in my underwear…but that’s how it is with Seth. If he wants something, he gets it, and he gets it any way he wants it.
His fingers
curl around my underwear and he snags it, snapping the flimsy fabric and leaving me bare. Too consumed in his mouth, it takes me a while to register what he’s doing…until the lace of my underwear tightens around the wrist above my head.
He catches
my lip between his teeth and I wince as he rakes them over it before taking a step back. His eyes linger on my breasts, long enough for my cheeks to burn from the scrutiny as he admires me, giving no indication if this is to his liking or not. Seth steps in close again and reaches round me, unhooking my strapless bra. I feel my eyes widen as the cups fall to my feet, landing on top of the fabric.
I try and cross my legs, but he jams a hand b
etween them, chuckling deeply. “I don’t think so. I didn’t lure you all the way up here and tie you to the ring only to have you shy away from me.”
“Seth—”
“O, I want you to take all of those nervous thoughts that are skittering around your head and I want you to forget them. I’d never do anything to hurt you. I’d never do anything to demean you…” His lips twitch. “…intentionally. All I want is to make you feel good.”
He removes his hands from my thighs, slips out of his ja
cket and tosses it to the side like it isn’t worth a cent. “I want you to feel special, like you’re the only girl I want to be with.”
I keep my eyes on his as his fingers curl around his buttons one by one, exposing his alluring flesh piece by piece.
I’m enthralled by the vision. Every muscle in his perfect body is obvious and sculpted to complete perfection.
“You don’
t scream for me when I’m fighting, but you
will
scream for me now.” He strokes his finger along my bottom lip then pushes it inside. He surveys his finger in my mouth before he snatches it back, grabs my jaw and swoops down, claiming it with a heavy breath. His tongue tastes me with an aggressive passion that sets my body alight. I can hear our breath smashing into each other and I gasp loudly when he pulls away without any notice. He rests his forehead against mine. “And I will replay your screams over and over in my head every second I’m in this ring two weeks from now.”
I nod my compliance eagerly, but
I don’t know whether to be petrified or exhilarated. He shrugs out of his shirt, exposing all of his clean cut muscles and he kicks the fabric to the side, uncaring if it wrinkles. He doesn’t give me much time to admire him topless in a nice pair of slacks. His hands shoot out and grip my bare hips as he descends on me, lowering his head to suck harshly on my neck. Fervently, I press myself into him, unable to get enough. Seth’s rough hand glides down my navel and between my legs. I shudder as a low growl rolls through his chest like thunder and he drags his lips to my ear.
“
You’re so fucking wet.” He sucks my earlobe between his lips and releases it. “You don’t want to be, but you’re really turned on by this, aren’t you?”
He strokes me and
it sends a bolt of pleasure down through my body, making my knees weaken. I rake my teeth across my bottom lip and shake my head, refusing to play into his hands straight away even though my heart pounds hot blood through my veins.
“You’
re going to have to do better than that, baby,” I tell him, not in the slightest bit embarrassed that my voice is low and breathless.
His eyes flare. He knows he has me melting like butter, but he plays along, undoubtedly eager to see how long I can keep from letting myself go. His fingers slip from me and a pang of d
isappointment courses through my body…or at least it does until I hear the zip of his pants. Before I have time to see if he’ll drop them or not, his hands tighten around my hips and I’m suddenly being thrust upward. He hoists me up, forcing me to wrap my legs around him while he shoves his hips into mine, thrusting against me. Seth smirks as he presses his bare erection deliberately into the apex of my thighs, and I squirm as my breath escapes in a sharp gust. His expression turns predatory—dark and hungry.
“I’ve watched you strut around in your dress while others stared.”
He cups one of my breasts and my peaks strain against the palm of his hand.
I squeeze him tighter, forcin
g him even closer to me. In response, he runs his tongue slowly over my bottom lip. “I’ve watched other men flirt with you and eye-fuck you.” He drops a hand to position himself right where I want him to be. “You’re here with me now, though,” he rasps, entering me a fraction and sending white hot pleasure arrowing through my core. “And all I want is to hear you say it.”
He doesn’
t push further as he waits for me to say it—whatever
it
is. I flex my hips, forcing him in deeper, but he pulls away, keeping me desperate and wanting.
“Seth
…” I groan.
Cold
tingles—wait—hot tingles dance over the surface of my skin as he pushes a little deeper then moves back out.
“You were mad at me upstairs
,” he says, his breath sounding awfully shaky for someone who is meant to be in control. I almost smile.
“I was.”
“It was never my intent to demean you, but I had to let those dick bags know that you’re mine.”
I feel my brows draw together. “I know I’m yours. That’s all that should matter.”
He shakes his head. “For as long as you’re with me, I’ll make sure everyone knows it. Whoever talks to you, touches you, or looks at you will know that
you
are
mine,
and I will do and say an endless amount of stupid shit to achieve that.”
“Why?”
He moves inside of me and I desperately want to grip his shoulders against the shudder that rolls through me.
“Because I love you and I’ve never loved anyone befor
e…I don’t want anyone else to feel how you make
me
feel. I told you when we met that I’m fucking selfish and spoiled, and I wasn’t kidding. I want every one of your smiles, every laugh, every tear, every-fucking-thing—all of it—I want it and I want it all to myself.”