Consumed: A MMA Sports Romance (77 page)

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

Kya

The
music started again, and before I could turn to Fenton, he was disappearing
into the crowd. He said something to a security guard in passing and the large
man helped me off the dance floor. I was deposited near the bar and decided it
was a good time for a drink.

"Order one for me,
too," Kev said. He leaned on the bar to peer into my face. "You did
alright on mic. I'm sure the fans wanted you to extol Fenton's sexual prowess
and call him a god, but, you know, what you said worked."

"Did Fenton practice
that speech?" I asked.

"The one about his
upbringing and focus or the one about how to treat women?" Kev asked.

"Either, both. Wait,
have you heard them both from him before?" I asked. My hand trembled as I
picked up my drink.

"Fenton has spoken
out against domestic violence, but he normally doesn't talk about his family
life," Kev said.

I slumped into my stool.
"Thanks. That makes me feel a lot better."

"Come on, Kya. It’s
like I told you; it's all part of the show."

" I thought you
meant his reputation, not our relationship," I said.

"Well, they might
both have a ways to go. That doesn't mean you won't get there. Sandi thinks
you'll make it," Kev said.

"Excuse me, Ms.
Allen? I'm a reporter for the
Desert Post
and I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions," a slim young man
asked. He fidgeted foot to foot but looked me straight in the eye.

Kev handed him a business
card. "No problem, kid, as long as you send your article to me before
publishing. I'll vet the quotes, dot the Ts, that kind of thing."

The young man smiled,
unsure if Kev was serious or not. He took the card, and Kev shifted over a bar
stool to give him room.

"I'm sorry, I'm not
doing interviews if that's what you think this is," I said.

"Sure you are,"
Kev said. "Just answer the kid's questions. It’s not hard and, who knows,
it might be good for Fenton."

"How long have you
known Fenton Morris?" he asked.

"A few days," I
said. It was hard to believe because it felt like much longer.

"Have you always
been attracted to 'bad boys?’? Or was it Fenton that approached you."

"Fenton approached
me first." I took a long sip of my drink to cover my smile.

"And, do you feel
threatened by his womanizing ways, his drinking, or his violent
tendencies?" the young man asked. He was concentrating on holding his
phone at the right angle to record my answer and did not notice the look on my
face.

"Those are all
grossly exaggerated. Fenton Morris is a gentleman, an athlete, and a
professional. You've got him all wrong and if you try to pursue this
sensationalized direction any further, you will be getting close to
slander," I said.

"So, you're saying
everything the public knows about Fenton Morris is an act?"

"It’s a natural
extension of what his fans want," Aldous said. He towered over the young
reporter and frowned down at him. "As his long-time coach and advisor, I
can assure you that everything Ms. Allen has said is the truth."

The reporter wanted to
ask more, but I turned to Aldous. "Is this your wife?"

Aldous stepped in front
of the reporter, effectively shutting him out from further conversation.
"Tia, I would like you to meet Kya Allen. Kya, this is my lovely wife,
Tia."

"It is so nice to
meet you, Kya. I've heard a lot about you," Tia said. She was older,
mid-forties, though it was impossible to tell from her flawless olive skin and
shining black hair.

"You've heard about
me?" I looked at Aldous. "I can't imagine what you must think of
me."

"I think we have a
lot in common," Tia said. She shooed Aldous over to talk with Kev and sat
down next to me. "Aldous and I met when I was around your age. He was on
the boxing circuit. I, believe it or not, was dating an accountant who tried to
save himself from being boring by going to boxing matches."

"I don't think I can
see Aldous having a wild streak, but I bet he was an amazing boxer," I
said.

"Yes, very clean-cut
and very fair. That's why he was never a fan favorite and also why he's such a
great coach," Tia said. "He's been with Fenton so many years, they
are starting to feel like family. So, when he mentioned that Fenton wants to
settle here in Vegas for a while, I was overjoyed."

"You wouldn't mind
moving?" I asked.

"Not at all. If it
means I see my husband every night instead of a few weeknights here and there
throughout the month," Tia said. "I should thank you for putting the
idea in Fenton's head."

"Oh, I'm not sure it
was me," I said. I looked across the room to where Fenton danced with
three women.

"Give yourself some
credit," Tia said. She patted my hand.

Even as I watched Fenton
draped with women, my heart was buoyed up by the thought that meeting me had
encouraged him to find a home base and try settling down. I clung to thought
and nurtured it into a small spark of hope.

I held on to it all
throughout the promotion party, even though Fenton never spoke to me. He only
glanced my way a few times. I waited until I saw him leave the nightclub and
then I took the very long way back to my suite at the Tropicana. My stomach was
in knots as I approached the door, only to discover it was worse than I had
imagined.

Fenton was gone. The
second bedroom was completely packed up and a maid was stripping the sheets.

"Did he say where he
was going?" I asked.

She shook her head.
"But the porter said his stuff was going to the MGM Grand."

My hand was on the door
handle when there was a soft knock. I pulled the door open to discover Sienna.
It was shocking to see here without the blinding orbit of her television camera
crew. Instead, it was just her, the long blonde hair tied back in a neat
ponytail and her blue eyes soft without the heavy dose of eyeliner.

"Is Fenton
here?" she asked.

My chest burned.
"No. He wants to be alone the night before a big fight," I said.

Sienna was not surprised
at the bite of jealousy in my words. "I just wanted to tell him thank you.
If you see him, will you let him know I said so?"

"Thank him for
what?" I asked. I squeezed my eyes shut and raised my face to the ceiling.
When I opened them, I looked back at Sienna. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, I get
it. And it's not what you think. Just tell Fenton thank you," Sienna said.

She looked so slim and
lonely as she headed back to the elevators. "What, no camera crew?"

Sienna turned back to me.
"I took the afternoon off. I needed a little time to recoup – I mean,
relax."

"Well, if you want
to relax off camera, why don't you come in? Once the maid's gone, I'll have an
empty suite. There's a bottle of wine." I held the door open.

The reality star
hesitated, looked at the elevator, and then at the open suite door. "Sure,
why not. I could use a glass of wine."

The maid had tidied the
second bedroom until it looked as if no one had occupied it in weeks. I kept
looking at it as I opened the wine and almost spilled all over the white rug.

"Here, let me do
that," Sienna said. She expertly handled the wine opener and had two
glasses poured in seconds. "I used to be a waitress; it’s a necessary
skill if I wanted good tips."

"You were a
waitress?" I asked. "I always assumed you had a trust fund or
something."

Sienna smiled.
"Exactly. That's what I want everyone to think." She slumped back on
the couch.

"It gets a little
tiring playing the part?" I asked.

"Yes. You get it.
You can't be a successful female sports agent without playing a certain
part," Sienna said. "Yours is good, subtle."

"Thanks, I guess.
Though, I think I'm going to drop the act." I sipped my wine.

"Me, too,"
Sienna said. "I think it’s getting in the way of my relationships. I mean,
I can't really find anyone genuine if I'm not acting like my genuine
self."

"Is that how you
feel about Fenton?" I asked.

"Don't be
stupid," Sienna asked. "Our acts go perfectly together, but even that
ended up not working because he's so into you." She finished her glass of
wine and got up. "I think it’s about time I try out my obscenely huge
hotel room tub without the lighting guy adjusting the soap bubbles."

I walked her to the door
and waited until her elevator descended. Then, I grabbed my purse. I had to see
Fenton and the glass of wine had quieted down all my rational objections just
enough for me to go right away.

I made it all the way
through the lobby of the MGM Grand before I was stopped by Dana Maria.

"You can't be
bugging him the night before the title fight. He left the party early to be
alone," she said.

"Dana Maria, I'm
glad I ran into you. I've got to tell you I'm sorry we never hit it off. I
really admire you, even if I say all the wrong things," I said.

"Had a little wine
tonight, Kya?" she asked. Dana Maria adjusted her sequined tube top and
smiled at me.

"Just enough to say
things I mean."

"Good. Then, you can
tell me why you won't leave Fenton alone."

I wandered over to lean
against the glass wall of a souvenir shop. "I can't. I don't want to. I
don't know. All I think about is the last time I saw Fenton and the next time
I'll get to talk to him. I wonder how he's doing and if he ever thinks of
me."

"Oh, Jesus, girl,
you've got it bad," Dana Maria said. She pulled me away from the wall and
led me back out the front doors. "Now, let me tell you the truth."

"Please. No, wait,
do I want to know? It’s bad, isn't it?"

Dana Maria shook her
head. "The truth is I like you. And, I like you with Fenton. I like the
way he looks when he talks about you, even when you've annoyed him."

I grabbed her arms,
smearing her body glitter. "Really? You're not just messing with me?"

"And, what I like
most of all is that you do what is best for Fenton, even if he doesn't like it.
You kept on at him about the endorsement deal, even when it hurt your chances
with him. So, now you have to do what's best again. Leave him alone until after
the fight," Dana Maria said.

"But he's mad at me.
I didn't believe him when I should have," I said.

She stopped me from going
back inside. "It's good. Let him be mad. He always fights better with a
little anger."

Dana Maria put me in a
cab and sent me back to the Tropicana. I practically danced all the way back to
the suite, even though it was empty. When I woke up in the morning, the quiet
was strange, but I was excited. It was the day of the title fight and I was
going to see Fenton.

There was a knock at the
door and my heart leapt. I tried to calm myself down but the wild hope that it
could be Fenton made it hard to breathe. I rushed to the door, only to feel a
cold rush crash over me.

Jackson McRay leaned on
the doorframe. "I was hoping to catch you alone, Kya."

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Fenton

I
woke up in the same suite I had at the MGM Grand before they kicked me out. I
half expected Kya to be curled up next to me. I held still for the onslaught of
nightclub memories. But it was different nightclub. The fight promotion party.
The memories rushed back.

Kya in a light purple
dress. It caught the light, changing colors. I had to force myself to look away
from her hundreds of times. Almost as many times as I saw the picture of my
opponent locking lips with her. I flung myself out of bed and stomped into the
main room.

"Good morning.
Breakfast shake on its way," Aldous announced. "Please tell me you
slept well. You don't look it."

"It's just
weird," I said. "Like déjà vu. The last few days could have been a
dream and here I am right back where I was."

Aldous handed me the
green shake. "So, would you change anything?"

"I'd skip seeing Kev
in that seventies low-cut shirt," I said. "A man as white as him
should not try to pull off a medallion."

"Yeah, that gave me nightmares,
too," Aldous said. He grimaced, but forced himself to drink the same
healthy concoction he made for me. "But, seriously, would you have changed
anything?"

"I know what you're
getting at. I'm not falling for it," I said. "I knew as soon as your wife
got here you'd be all hot to matchmake."

Aldous gave me his best
innocent look. "Me? Never. I just want to make sure you don't have any
regrets. It’s time to look forward, strategize. Visualize your fight, but more
importantly, visualize what's on the other side."

I sat down at the glass
dining table and choked down more of my shake. "Me staying in the basement
of your new Vegas house," I said.

"Tia would kill
me," Aldous said. "Try again."

I shut my eyes.
"Home base. Roots. Strength. Going out to fight and coming home to get
stronger."

"Perfect. That's it.
Think about that home base. What you need there. What there gives you
strength."

It was Kya. Copper curls
in the sunshine. Her green eyes crinkling at me from the next pillow.
"Alright, coach, good talk. Now, let me choke this down in peace."

Aldous sat down across
from me. "You know the more you share, the more solid the
visualization."

"Leave the poor man
alone, Aldy," Tia said. She leaned over and kissed her husband's cheek.
"He doesn't need to tell us the obvious."

"Thanks. Wait,
what's obvious? No, I don't want to know," I said.

Tia rolled her eyes and
smiled. "You know Kya is terrified to come to the fight. She's got it in
her head that she's there she'll distract you and make you lose."

Aldous chuckled. "I
can speak from personal experience when I say that is possible. Though, I'm so
glad I got blood all over that accountant's white shirt. Best blood I ever
shed."

"I'm sure her
clients want her there," I said. "She'll be there. She should be there."

"That's what I told
her, but it had nothing to do with her clients," Tia said. "She and I
are planning to sit together. Low and close, but a few rows back. You'll never
notice."

That was good. Kya would
not be in my direct line of sight. If I kept my head up like I was supposed to,
I wouldn't see her. Maybe the top of her copper curls. If I looked I could spot
her green eyes. I shook myself and finished the shake.

"There, I drank my
super foods. I gotta check my messages," I said. I pushed away from the
table and took my phone out onto the patio.

The first message was
from Kev, as were the following three. He started off reminding me of MMA
contacts I had met. Kev was great at giving me the details in voicemail form so
I would not forget any important conversations.

Then, he veered off
course. He slurred a few words here and there. But mostly, his speech was
impeded by what I had seen was a sloppy grin. It had been permanent all night.

"It’s great, I'm
telling you, Fenton, it's great. Just relax, just go with it. Just be yourself.
What are all the other things those stupid chick flicks tell people? You know
when you feel it. I know you feel it. I've seen it on you. Remember that,
too," his message said.

The next one was more of
the same. A few reminders of MMA contacts, launching into another soliloquy.
"I mean, she saw right through me, man. She saw it was an act. I didn't
think I was acting, I was just being me, but when she saw through me, I
realized I'm someone else. I mean, I’m better. There's a better me, and Sandi
saw it. We just met. I know it’s crazy, but I know you get it. It's great, it's
really great."

I was about to hang up on
voicemail, but the next message was from Kya. "I'm downstairs, but I
shouldn't be and I know that. So, I'm just calling to say I'm sorry. I should
have believed you. I think I do believe you. But, that's all that. I really
just want to say good luck. Wait, I know you don't believe in luck. I'm the one
that's lucky. I met you. So, there, I'm giving you that luck and no matter
what, I will see you after the fight. I… I…I can't wait to see you,
Fenton."

I sat up and held the
phone with both hands. The message started to replay when Dana Maria appeared.
She raised her eyebrows at me.

"Go ahead, listen to
it again. I liked it," my sister said.

"I'm not. I have
other messages," I said.

"Come on, Fen,
you'll do better if you say it," Dana Maria said.

"Say what? That I
care for her? What good is that going to do anyone, least of all her?" I
asked.

"I think it will
make all the difference to her." My sister sat down on the patio chair
across from me. "You can love someone. Why do you always think you're like
him? You're nothing like him."

"Dad? I've gotta be.
Everyone says I look just like him," I said.

"And, that's as far
as the similarities go. He thought love was about people admiring him. He
thought family was something to escape. He hated being needed and he was never
around. You were always there, you always loved Mom and me, and all you ever
wanted was for us to be together as a family. So, no, you are nothing like
him."

"I'm sorry I let us
drift apart." I caught my sister's hand.

"Drift apart? Is
that what you call sending a private investigator to find me?" Dana Maria
asked. "You know the girls at work still think Matt Smith, or whatever his
real name is, is my boyfriend?"

"Really?" I
asked. "He seems like a decent guy. I like that idea. Whoa, wait, are you
blushing? Have you gone out with him?"

"Maybe. We're
talking about you here."

"What's to talk
about? Kya is interesting. It'll never work. End of story," I said.

"It's already
working. You can't tell me you don't think she's different. You feel
differently about her than any other woman you've ever dated."

"Is that how you
feel about Matt Smith?" I asked.

Dana Maria's smile faded
as her thoughts wandered. Her face was serene and far away for a moment.
"You know, I always thought it would happen quietly. One day, the right
guy would just show up and be in my life. He wouldn't judge me, and he wouldn't
want to change me. He would just want to see me and we'd end up spending time
together. No big fireworks, no grand scenes or mountains of roses. Just someone
I want to be with who wants to be with me."

I did not hold my breath.
It just wasn't there. When it came back, I said. "I love that. I love that
for you."

Dana Maria patted my
cheek, hard. "And you, too, baby brother. I love that for you, too. Except
you had to go ahead and have the fireworks."

"No," I said.
"Think about it. Don't you think everything you just said is what Kya's
saying about Jackson McRay? They're the ones that fit together. He just
appeared in her life and he actually fits her life."

"Why would you say
that?" Dana Maria asked.

I flinched thinking maybe
her sisterly pat was going to turn into a slap. "Because I heard her say
it. I accidentally overheard Kya tell Sandi that Jackson McRay is the man she
is supposed to choose."

"What? That's what
you think?" Sandi asked.

"Is everyone
eavesdropping on me?" I asked. I stood up and faced everyone in the suite.

"The patio doors are
wide open, man," Kev said.

"You were there, you
heard the same thing," I reminded him.

"Well, I was there,
too, and I was actually the one that Kya was talking to, so let me set you
straight," Sandi said. She propped her tiny fists on her slim hips.
"Kya said that Jackson McRay is the one she is
supposed
to choose. But you are the one she desires."

"Oooh," Dana
Maria said. She fanned herself. "Now tell me which one you'd rather
be."

"That doesn't mean
she's going to choose me," I said. "He's the better choice,
right?"

Dana Maria looked ill.
"Not from what I hear."

"Not from what we've
seen," Kev muttered.

I waved a hand to cut him
off. "What have you heard, Sis?"

"He's been down to
my club a few times, thankfully, not while I was on. At first, the girls were
all excited. They fought over him. You know, nice-looking rich guy in suave
clothes. They all thought he was Prince Charming."

I could not keep still
and started pacing. "So, what made them change their minds?"

"He'd tell them all
the people he knew, hint at all the ways he could get them fired or worse, then
he was all hands. The bouncers were on him right away, but some of the girls
were too afraid to call them. He thought he could do whatever he wanted."

"I'm going to kill
him," I said.

"No, don't worry
about it," Dana Maria said. "The girls aren't stupid. Word's spread
and no one is going near him. Jackson McRay is his own STD as far as the women
of Las Vegas are concerned."

"Ugh, it’s always
the all-American handsome ones that are the misogynists," Sandi said.

"Don't worry, honey,
that's not me," Kev said. "Well, except for the handsome part."
He turned to me. "Guess we don't have to worry about people not believing
us anymore. Turns out lots of people know what a slime ball Jackson McRay
is."

"Except Kya," I
said.

I charged for the door.
Kev stepped in front of me. "Forget about Jackson McRay. I'll leak the
story. We'll get some of Dana Maria's girls to speak out. He'll be ruined. You
don't need to go down with him."

"I'm not going to
fight him. I'm not going anywhere near Jackson," I said.

"You have to report
to the arena in an hour. You're not going anywhere," Kev said.

"Fenton, forget
about it. It’s just a distraction," Dana Maria said.

"Move, Kev. You know
I have to see her," I said.

Kev nodded and stepped
aside. "Tell Kya we'll see her at the fight."