Whiplash: A Sports Romance (70 page)

I move behind him and lean against the ladder that leads up to the loft. A tear falls down my cheek. I wipe it away and Tobias continues pounding away at the bag.

Finally, I can’t take the sound anymore. “Tobias, what are you doing?” I ask him.

He pauses, briefly lowering his hands, but he doesn’t look at me. “I’m training.” He raises his hands again, his fingers rolling down into tight fists. They connect with the bag so hard, it knocks against the wall behind it.

“Tobias, stop,” I say. Blood has started to seep from the wound on his arm, leaving dark red spots against the bandage. “You’re going to hurt yourself—”

“I don’t care.”

“I do.”

He ignores me and thrusts his fists even harder against the bag. I stand up and walk over to him, ignoring the fear growing in my gut.

“Tobias!” I shout.

He drops his hands and spins around to look at me. “What else would you have me do, Claire?” he asks, breathing hard.

“I know you’re angry,” I say, “and you have every right to be, but… Tobias, you don’t have to fight anymore.”

He shakes his head. “Yes, I do.”

“No, you don’t.” I swallow the rock forming in my throat. “Mary’s—”

“Don’t say her name.”

I flinch, but I can’t stop the words. “She’s
gone
, Tobias.”

He takes a deep breath, staring down at me as if I were his enemy. “I know,” he mutters.

“So…” I keep my voice as steady as I can. “You don’t have to fight anymore.”

“No, Claire,” he says. “I have an even better reason to take him down now. For good.”

My jaw drops slowly as he turns back around to face the bag. “Don’t say that, Tobias—”

“He put her in that bed, Claire—” He slams into the bag. “He deserves worse.”

“You can’t…” I hesitate. “You can’t
kill
him
, Tobias.”

“Why not?”

“It’s not right…” I beg. “If he fights back—”

“He won’t get the chance,” he growls.

“And if he does, I don’t think your father wants to bury two children in one week!”

He spins back around, towering above me in anger.
“Since when do you fucking care, huh?”
he bites. “You were supposed to be gone by now—”

I raise my hand and slap it across his face.

Pain shoots through my fingers, climbing all the way up to my elbow. Tears plummet down my cheeks. I jump back, stunned by what I’ve done. “Oh,
god—
” I cry to myself, covering my face in my hands. I can’t bring myself to look up at him. “I didn’t mean to—”

“Claire—” I feel his hands on me, but I push away from him.

“Don’t touch me…”

He cups my face, refusing to let me stray from him.
“Claire… look at me.”

I open my eyes and his face fills my vision. “I’m sorry, Tobias—”

“No,” he whispers, shaking his head. “You have no reason to be.”

I step back and his hands fall from my cheeks. “So much for being untouchable,” I whisper.

“Not to you.” He pulls me back in, holding me so close that our lips touch. “Never to you, Claire.”

I quiver in his arms. My heart thumps loudly in my ears, overwhelming all the other sounds around me. “Tobias… I—”

He silences me with a kiss. It’s long and slow, full of passion and love. His tongue massages mine, allowing me to experience his intoxicating flavor. It makes me dizzy and I fall deeper into his embrace.

“Tobias,” I whisper, “take comfort in me.”

Tobias looks into my eyes and I see his desire staring back at me. “Claire, if we do that, then there’s no going back,” he says.

“I don’t want to go back,” I say. “I want you.” I kiss him again and he returns my kisses with even more desire than before.

***

Tobias travels down my body, leaving a trail of warm kisses against my flesh as he goes. His breath skirts across my skin as his breathing intensifies. I can’t move. I can’t think. I lie here on his bed, taken completely by his passions.

He moves between my legs and I feel his hardness press against my engorged bud. It sends a shock wave up my spine and he silences my sudden moan with a long, hard kiss. He cups his hand behind my head, forcing even more of his kiss upon me. I relish in it and taste his flavorful tongue against mine.

His thick shaft pushes against my opening and my body clenches with tension. Tobias pauses, retreating his hips. “Claire…” He searches my face, which is no doubt filled with fear. “Relax,” he smiles.

I let out a soft chuckle to hide my hesitation. “I’m fine,” I whisper.

He shifts to his side and kisses me again. “Don’t worry, Claire,” he whispers. “I’ll take care of you.”

His fingers tickle my skin as he reaches his hand south. I kiss him again, blinded by the unknown, as he spreads my folds with his fingertips. Desire aches within me, begging for him to go further. I moan as he traces small, smooth circles around my swollen bud, teasing my pleasures to come out and play. I breathe deep, holding still to allow the throbbing to intensify.

My hips buck against his hand with a mind of their own. My wetness surges, begging to feel him inside. I twitch and squirm beneath his touch, but that only makes him press a little harder.
“Tobias…”
I moan his name through clenched teeth as the climax takes hold of me. He takes me with a firm kiss and holds me tight against him until the storm subsides.

I breathe slowly, barely able to feel the kisses he leaves on my neck. He keeps his hands on me, touching me, caressing me, until I feel his finger slide inside of me. I cry out from the sweet sensation as my body gets what it wants. His thick digit moves in me. He plays me like a concert pianist. I’ll sing any note he wants me to, as long as he doesn’t stop.

He pushes a second finger into me and I bite my lips to keep from screaming. I feel the stretch and quiver as it creates a powerful elixir of pain and pleasure inside. There’s a smile on his lips when he kisses me again. The pressure builds inside of me, doubling back for another climax, but he slides his fingers out of me and I whimper with disappointment.

Tobias balances himself above me and positions himself between my legs. That fear and hesitation I felt before has completely disappeared, leaving an undeniable passion behind. A passion for him. He said he’d take care of me and I fully intend on taking care of him, too. His thickness splits my folds. I lie back and close my eyes to focus all of my energy on feeling him as he pushes inside.

His lips graze my neck, tasting my skin as he slowly moves in and out of me. I wrap my arms around him and pull him in for another kiss. I moan softly against his lips. Sweat drips off his brow onto mine. My entire body quivers beneath him. Jolts of electric passion course through me as he holds me against his bed. He grunts with each slow and steady thrust he gives me. He’s in complete control of me, of himself, of us, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. His strength takes me over, making me feel warm and untouched inside, full of new sensations I never knew I deserved.

“Are you okay?” he whispers.

I smile back at him as a tremble of pleasure rocks my inner walls. “Yes,” I moan. He plants a firm kiss on my lips. I can feel the desire building inside of him. He’s holding back, hesitant to use his experience on me. “Keep going,” I urge, begging to feel more of him.

Tobias reaches down my body and grips my knees to adjust his angle. I feel him slide deeper inside of me, filling me in the most perfect way. I hold him tighter, biting my lips to contain my moans as he grinds me harder against the bed. I catch the smirk on his face before he groans and thrusts me a little deeper.

He gazes into my open eyes and his love for me shines back. With a quick, sudden motion, he scoops me off the bed and wraps my legs around his waist. I yelp in surprise and he laughs with me as he sits back and holds me against him. His lips find mine again and I lower myself back down onto his thick root. I sigh with every inch of him, lost in the grips of pleasure. He moves me on him with great ease, forcing me towards the point of no return faster than I can process the intoxicating joy. I cry out, but he silences me with another hard kiss and wraps his strong arms around me to hold me in place.

“Tobias—”
I whisper his name as another climax tears me apart. He pauses and lets the experience trigger his own body’s demise. His ravenous groan fills my ears as his tense muscles twitch with pleasure in my arms.

I lie back against his pillows and he falls forward to lay his head on my breast. We breathe deep and slow, soothing our wrecked bodies together.

“Tobias,” I say his name again.

“Claire,” he sighs.

“Promise me that no one will die tonight.”

I feel his firm fingers touch my skin, traveling up my arms to embrace my trembling hands. There’s a hesitation on his breath as he raises his head and kisses my skin. “I promise, Claire,” he says, his eyes down.

“Promise me again,” I say.

He looks up at me with his dark, green eyes. I feel his resentment, but he knows I’m right. Killing Pike won’t bring Mary back. It might make him feel better for a few minutes, but the consequences are too dire for him to ignore. “I promise,” he finally says again. “No one else is gonna die tonight.” He pushes off the bed and stands up to gather his clothes.

I watch his body glisten with sweat as he moves around the room. “I know you hate me for it,” I say, “but if you kill him, I’ll lose you forever and I can’t…”

He sighs, shaking his head. “No, Claire…” he says. “I don’t hate you. This isn’t your fault.”

“It’s not yours either.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“Tobias.” I slide off the bed to stand in front of him. “She made those choices. There’s nothing you could have done to stop her.”

His chest heaves up and down. “You don’t know that.”

“Yes, I do.” I reach out to cup his face and he looks down at me with sad eyes. “This place… the things I’ve learned here, it’s saved my life.
She
saved my life. If you can take any comfort from what’s happened, make it that.”

Tobias closes his eyes and inhales a deep breath before opening them again. “She really would have liked you…” he mutters.

I lean in and wrap my arms around him in a sweet embrace, never wanting to let him go. “I’m sorry it had to be like this,” I whisper.

He holds me close. “Me, too,” he says, kissing my hair. “We should get going.”

I pull away and nod, dreading the hours to come.

Chapter 14

A Better Man

My heart thumps wildly in my chest, a mixture of fear and excitement fueling my every thought and feeling, as we approach the city limits of St. Louis.

Tobias turns off the highway onto a dirt road, taking us farther into the darkness than I’d like. I grip his waist a little tighter as the uneven terrain rocks the motorbike back and forth. He holds us steady and even manages to lay his hand on mine to soothe me for a moment before gripping the handlebars again.

We see the bright lights before the nightclub comes into view. Spotlights swing wildly off the sides of the building, mimicking the excitement of all those around it. I look about in confusion, thinking that these people seem very out of place for an illegal MMA fight, but then I realize that the short skirts and popped collars standing around probably have no idea there’s a secret underground tournament happening around them.

Tobias parks the bike and immediately takes my hand to lead me through the packed parking lot. There’s a long line of people waiting out front, each of them dying to get inside what looks to be the latest and hottest nightspot, but we walk right past it and into the dark alley between the buildings.

“Stay close to me,” Tobias mutters as we pass under the broken street lamps.