UNBROKEN: A Bad Boy MMA Romance (Midwest Alphas) (Book 2) (15 page)

I freeze my position. “Tobias…”

“Where did you go, Claire?” he ask again.

Hesitation catches my breath. Rick’s words of warning repeat in my head, asking me what Tobias would do if he found out where I was, but I push them aside in favor of trusting my original instinct. Tobias is the better man. “I went to St. Louis,” I answer, dropping my wrists to my sides.

I see the anger in his eyes already, but he manages to keep a steady tone on his voice. “Why did you go there alone?” he asks.

“Because I thought I could fix this myself.” I turn away from him and walk over to lean against the ladder to the loft.

Tobias stays near the punching bag, his fingers still digging into it. “Tell me what happened.”

I swallow to wet my drying throat. “I asked Rick to call off the bet, but he refused. He said he wanted me back.”

“Why did you do that?” he asks me, the words seething through his clenched teeth.

“Because this is my fault, Tobias,” I answer.

“No, it’s not—”

“Yes, it is! When are people going to stop saying that this isn’t my fault? Because it clearly is!”

“Claire—”

“
I
let him into my life.
I
told him I’d go back to him.
I
got involved with you and turned my back on him.
This is all my fault.”
I pause to catch my breath. “I thought I could reason with him.”

“Reason with him?”
he repeats, pushing the bag away as he steps around it to get to me. “You could have been hurt today, Claire. Or worse.”

“I know.”

“Never go anywhere like that ever again.”

I pause. “Now you’re issuing me orders?”

He lays a hand on my arm, his grip tightening more with each second. “This isn’t a game, Claire.”

“I’m not playing, Tobias.”

“Tell me you won’t do something like that again.”

“Let go of me.”

He releases me, but keeps close. “Please, Claire.”

I shake my head. “I had to go alone. He wouldn’t have spoken to me otherwise.”

“What did he say?”

“It’s not what
he
said that we should be worried about…”

“What do you mean?”

I take a step back. “Pike was there.”

His eyes flinch at the mention of his name. “He’s training Rick,” he says suddenly. “Isn’t he?”

“Yeah,” I say, my brow creasing. “How did you know?”

He turns away, his eyes studying the barn walls. “Felt a bit of deja vu during the fight last night,” he explains. “Thought it was just my imagination but… it seemed like he knew what punches I’d throw, even before I did.”

“Rick was studying your moves pretty closely,” I note. “I saw him during your fight with Burt.”

He bites his lip and looks down, his brow casting a dark shadow over his green eyes. “Pike’s not just training Rick to fight in the tournament, Claire,” he says. “He’s training him to fight
me.”

“Why?” I ask, more confused than before. “They never could have known you’d challenge Rick to a blood duel, let alone that you’d be there at all in the first place… Right?”

“This is bad, Claire. There’s something else going on,” he muses. “Something beyond us.”

“Like what?”

He shakes his head. “I have no idea.” He finally raises his eyes to look at me. “We should keep it between us until we know more. Tell no one. Not even Amy. Have you mentioned any of this to her?”

“No.”

“What about Lillian?”

“I went straight to her after I found out about Pike,” I say, “but she already knew about it. It was like she didn’t care.”

“Pike and Lillian go back pretty far,” he says. “It’s possible she’s letting that history get in the way, but…” He chews on his lip, frustration pausing his breath. “I don’t know.”

“What do we do?” I ask.

He inhales deep. “We train,” he answers. “I keep fighting. You keep your eyes open. We trust no one but each other.”

“Seems a little drastic, don’t you think?” I chuckle nervously.

“It might be, but I’d rather be safe. This could all be nothing, but with what we know now and the fact that the Double Ex Kings are suddenly popping up everywhere, I don’t think we can afford to trust anyone else.”

I hold my breath, but that only illuminates the shaking in my limbs. “Okay…”

“And
please
,” he whispers, “don’t go somewhere alone with him again.”

“I won’t,” I reply. “I promise.”

“He’s already shown he won’t hurt you,
for now
— but I’m not willing to place any bets on that.”

“Me neither.” I look up at his concerned eyes. “I’m sorry I went.”

“Don’t be,” he smiles. “As reckless as you are, it’s rarely ever for nothing.”

“I guess.”

He wraps his arms around me and holds me close. “I love you. That’s never going to change, Claire.”

My body absorbs his warmth, leaving me with a pleasant smile, but I imagine it will be short lived. I thought all of this was because of my mistakes. Oddly, I was okay with that. It meant I could take charge of it and hopefully control the outcome. Having the responsibility to fix it gave me a sense of purpose and power. If there really is something else happening here, something beyond “our little love triangle” as Lillian said, then all my effort will be for naught.

I fall even deeper into Tobias’ embrace; possibly the only safe place I have left.

Chapter 10

Let It Bleed

We train. Tobias fights. I keep my eyes open. We trust no one but each other.

A life of espionage may seem intriguing and fun in the movies, but I’ve come to reject any delusions I may have had on the subject. Lying to Charlie is one thing, but now, I’m lying to Amy, Lillian, even myself at times about what I know. The last few weeks have been a haze of near slip-ups, each one triggering my guilty conscience. I’ve bitten my tongue so many times, I’ve left marks along my taste buds.

But as Tobias said, it’s necessary.

I let my eyes wander the abandoned school basement. I stand by the door with the glass jar in my hands, taking cash from the giant crowd that’s formed, as Amy’s eyes grow wider and wider. “This turnout is
nuts
,” she says.

“I guess word got around about Tobias being back in the tournament,” I say.

“You know what?” she says, nodding with satisfaction. “That’s
exactly
what this is…” A grin touches her lips. “All these people have come out here to see my boy…”

“
Your
boy?”

“It’s
my
district, Claire,” she teases. “Inside the ring, Toby is mine. You can have him everywhere else.”

“Fair enough,” I chuckle.

My smile fades as the door opens and Rick steps inside. He’s alone, not surrounded by adoring fans as many other fighters are at this stage of the tournament. He’s firm and focused, ready for a fight.

I like to imagine I look the same way, but I highly doubt it.

“Rick,” Amy greets him with a smile, the same smile she shoots at everyone else. “Gotta love a man who’s punctual.”

He says nothing and he steps around her, his eyes shifting towards to me. “Can we talk in the back?” he asks.

“Why?” I ask, genuine curiosity lingering at the edge of my mind.

“Just…” He sighs. “Please. It’s a family matter.”

I pause, taken back by the intensity of his stare. Amy’s little eyes peek in our direction, but she pretends they don’t. “What’s wrong?” I ask, refusing to leave my position.

“Okay…” he says, giving in. “When is the last time you spoke with your mother?”

“Last week,” I answer. “Why?”

“Where is she?”

I blink. “At home, in Chicago, last I heard.” He stares at me, searching my eyes for a lie that’s not there. “What’s going on, Rick?”

“You tell me,” he says. “Apparently, she’s disappeared.”

“What do you mean
disappeared
?” I ask, panic rising in me. “What happened?”

“Dad came home last night and she was gone,” he answers. “Packed a bag, emptied their bank account —
gone.
”

“Are you serious?”

“Where is she, Claire?” he asks me again, this time with a much firmer tone.

“I don’t know. Why would I know?”

“Dad seems to think it was all your idea.”

I flinch. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Claire…” Rick leans in closer to me, so close I can feel his breath on my cheek. “If you know anything, now is the time to say.”

“Hey, Rick!” Amy steps forward and lays a hand on his shoulder. “It’s time to suit up, honey. We’re waiting on you.”

He clenches his jaw, his eyes still locked on mine. “This conversation isn’t over.”

“Yes, it is,” I say. I lean in closer, bringing my lips just below his earlobe. “I don’t know where she went. I didn’t even know she was gone. But to be honest, I’m happy she escaped.”

“Claire—” he growls.

“Don’t ask me about her again,” I interrupt. “Even if she does contact me, I won’t tell you. You’ll get
nothing
from me, Rick. She’s better off without him.” I take a step back. “You can go now.”

He stares at me with such disdain, such disappointment, but I catch a glimpse of desire behind it all. Finally, he turns away and drifts off into the crowd towards the back to get changed.

“What was that about?” Amy asks as she passes around me towards the cage.

“Just a family matter,” I answer, watching Rick closely as he walks away.

My mother ran off. She did it. She actually did it. It wasn’t exactly what I expected her to do, but I’m not complaining either. I reach into my back pocket for my phone, but the roar of the crowd draws my attentions towards the arena. Amy steps inside, bearing her midriff for all to see and waving her arms around to stir the ravenous hungry of the room.

“Hello, there!” she calls out. “I’m so
happy
to see you all here tonight!” They scream and beg for her, just as they always do. I’ll admit, I’m a bit envious of her confidence, her grace, but I’ll find my own eventually.

“Shouldn’t it be you up there?”

I turn around to find Ryan standing above my shoulder. “She won’t let me up there just yet,” I answer.

He chuckles. “She’s still a little protective of her introductions?”

“Yeah,” I say. “Shouldn’t you be
elsewhere
?” I ask him with a smirk.

“You mean somewhere that’s
not
a Midwest Alpha fight?” he quips.

“Yes.”

He shrugs. “Probably.” His eyes rise up again to stare at Amy. “But this is more fun.”

I follow his gaze, making note of his warm expression. “You
really
like her, don’t you?” I ask.

“Let’s just say my feelings are a bit…
conflicted
.”

“You know, there’s a play about this exact same thing. Can’t quite remember the name of it,” I joke.

“Oh yeah?” He smiles at me. “How’s it end?”

“Not well.”

“Well, darn,” he laughs. “Sounds like I should pack it up and head home then.”

“You probably won’t though,” I say.

“No, I will not.” He inhales a deep breath and glances down at me. “I get the feeling you wouldn’t either.”

I turn back to the ring as tonight’s fighters climb inside, Tobias and Rick included. It’s strange to see them standing next to each other like that, especially without one of them taking a swing at the other one. It’s only a matter of time, I guess. “Probably not,” I tell Ryan.

“Tonight, we narrow down our fighters to
three,
” Amy says slowly, milking it with all she’s got. “It’s elimination night, folks!”

The crowd screams. I hear various names on their tongues, each fighter with their own fan club in tow. But it’s obvious which fighters are the most popular and which fight all these people came out here in the hopes of witnessing.

Rick, the current
Alpha
, and Tobias, the reigning champion.

“Rick the Unbreakable!”
Amy cries, her voice barely audible over the joyous noise. I cringe at the name. It’s so similar to Tobias’, but I’m sure Lillian chose it that way on purpose. “
And
…” She steps around the ring, her feet lingering in front of Tobias for longer than necessary. The crowd eats it up, begging and pulsating, waiting for her to announce his name.
“Devlin the Daring!”