Wrestling Desire (3 page)

She worked her way through the crowd toward the bar and spotted Holt and Garrett.  “Hey Riss,” she called over her shoulder.  “You want to meet Garrett?”

A mischievous smile tipped Marissa’s lisp.  “Okay.”

They weaved their way through the mass of people and sidled up to the bar.  “Hey guys.”

Holt turned to look at them and his face quickly slid into a grin.  “Hey, Gorgeous.  What are you doing here?”

Emma motioned to Marissa.  “Marissa dragged me out.  Marissa this is Holt Hendricks and Garrett Patrick.”  Inwardly she grinned as Garrett turned and caught an eyeful of Marissa.  “Marissa is Gene France’s daughter and my best friend.”

Garrett swiveled on the barstool until he faced them.  “Very nice to meet you, Marissa.” He took her hand in his.  “So what brings you to this traveling circus?”

Marissa shifted most of her weight to one hip and cocked her head to the side as she went into flirt mode.  “Dad is going to write me into a storyline.”

“Really?  Which one?”

“Yours from what I understand.”

“Awesome.”  He slid from the barstool, picked up his beer and wrapped an arm around Marissa’s shoulders.  “Then maybe we should go get better acquainted.” 

Emma giggled under her breath as Marissa and Garrett walk
ed
away together.  While she wasn’t sure which one to feel sorry for she knew one thing for sure.  Life on the road was about to get a lot more interesting.

“So, Gorgeous,” Holt’s warm tenor slid over her.  “Looks like we both lost our partners in crime.”

She grinned.  “It does look that way.”

“So maybe we should partner up?”

“You’d like that wouldn’t you?”

He shot her a wry smile.  “As a matter of fact, I would.”

“I don’t think so,” she shot back.

“Then how about a dance instead?” Before she could reply he
tugged
her toward the dance floor where many of the Vixen wrestlers were currently gyrating to the beat of the Black Eyed Peas. 
Various couples m
ixed in, both part of the staff and people she didn’t know, their bodies bumping and grinding to the rhythm.

She slowed as doubt crept into her brain.  Yes she could dance and was actually very good at it, but this kind of dancing require
d
Holt getting closer than was comfortable.  Plus there was the whole visibility issue.  While many of the staff and stars knew they spent time talking on the plane rides, those conversations appeared as innocent as they actually were.  Stepping onto a dance floor with him would no doubt lead to gossip that would eventually make its way back to Derek.  “I don’t know about this,” she finally said.

“Oh come on, Emma.  There are tons of people here watching, so it’s not like I can easily take advantage of you or anything.”  He stepped toward her and leaned in close.  “How long are you going to let others
’
opinions dictate how you live your life?”  He pulled back and looked down at her, arching a brow.  He’d just thrown down a challenge and damn it, she never backed down from a challenge.

From her peripheral vision she spotted Garrett and Marissa on the dance floor and inwardly grinned.  It certainly didn’t take long for Marissa to make her move.  Of course Marissa never s
econd-
guessed her decisions.  Maybe it was time Emma took a page from Marissa’s play book.

“Okay, let’s dance.” She stepped
o
nto the dance floor and immediately dismissed everything from her thoughts
except
the music piping in from overhead.  It wasn’t often she could simply let go and enjoy herself, but for tonight that’s exactly what she intended on doing.  Angling her hips she let the music wash through her and began to move and sway to the beat.  Within minutes she was lost in the heady rush of adrenaline coursing through her system.  A large hand caught her hip and pulled her close until she was pressed against Holt’s body.  This time she didn’t second guess herself as she looped her arms over his shoulders threw her head back and ground her lower half against him. 

Despite the blaring music she could make out his growl as his hands slid down to cup her ass, holding her against his growing bulge.  A giddy thrill zinged through her at the realization that she’d caused that reaction.  There was no mistaking his desire and a visible shiver tore through her body as white hot need burned deep in her core.

After a few moments, she turned in his embrace until her backside rested against his bulge as her need grew. 
T
reading into dangerous territory
,
the sensible Emma should be screaming for her to retreat.  But the sensible Emma wasn’t here right now and she’d finally move
d
past the point of caring what others thought.  She eased back against the hard wall of his chest and reached up, her hand brushed along the side of his neck as he leaned forward.  His lips brushed ever so gently along the side of her neck, and her eyes drifted closed. 

She reveled in his touch as his hands crept around her front and slid seductively over her belly.  Never in her life could she remember wanting someone as much as she wanted Holt right now.   She managed to open her eyes and immediately her body jerked in shock.  Sitting at a table directly across from where she and Holt were dancing w
ere her brother
s Derek and Bryan.  The anger in Derek’s eyes sent her reeling back into reality and she froze. 

“Em…what’s wrong?” Holt asked from behind her.  He followed her gaze and frowned.  “Never mind.  I see what’s wrong.”

“I-I think we need to stop,” she mumbled as she turned and walked off the dance floor.

“Emma,” Holt chased after her eventually grabbing her by the arm, stopping her forward motion.  “I know Derek doesn’t like me, but do you honestly think he’s going to be mad at you for dancing with me?”

Daring a glance, she looked up.  “He doesn’t want me anywhere near you.”

“But you’re a grown woman, Emma.  Are you really going to allow him to dictate how you live your life?”

His question was valid and one Emma couldn’t answer.  After her mother
disappeared
,
Derek
became
over
-
protective of her.  That had been fifteen years ago and he was still trying to protect her from the world.  She loved him more than anyone in her life, but there were times, like now when she felt as if he was smothering her.  Still, how could she tell him to back off without hurting his feelings? “He’s my brother, Holt.  I can’t just dismiss him.”

The hurt look on Holt’s face made Emma want to cry.  She hated being placed in this position.  Maybe it was time for her to talk with Derek
again
.  Before she could voice her thoughts the pain
ed
look
on his face disappeared
,
smoothing into a neutral expression.  “I understand about family loyalty Em.  You do what you need to do.”

Dread streaked through her.  Had she
finally pushed him away
?
  “I’m going to talk to Derek.  Just give me a little time, okay?”

For a moment she feared he would reject her request, then he nodded.  “Okay.  Talk to your brother.  I’ll still be here when you’re done.”

As she rushed through the arena’s corridor Emma clutched her notebook with one hand while she rooted through her bag for her favorite pen with the other.  Not only had she overslept, but she’d missed breakfast with her brothers and was now late for her meeting. 

Ever since Marissa arrived two weeks ago Emma’s life seemed to slowly be spiraling out of control. Somehow Marissa had an ability
to
bring
out all of Emma’s bad habits.  Not only had she drank more in the last two weeks than in the last year, but she’d begun staying up late and today she’d paid for that decision. 

Worst of all she still hadn’t talked with Derek and Bryan and
began
avoiding Holt.  Normally she wasn’t one to avoid her problems, but this situation was special.  No matter what she did somebody
would be
unhappy with her decision. 

Trying to put her personal problems out of her head, Emma hurried down the hallway to the temporary conference room.  Not only was it time to begin assembling the lineup for the next live show but the group of writers and coordinators would continue with the various scripts and storylines, adding and changing to fit their ideas. 

After three years working as the assistant back stage coordinator and two as the person in charge she not only enjoyed her work but had finally settled into her role.  When she’d first started as the assistant backstage coordinator
,
answering to Mr. France had scared the hell out of her, but not anymore. 

While he might appear as the shrewd, cold-hearted CEO of one wrestling’s biggest companies, behind the scenes he was a fair and trustworthy boss…most of the time.  Though, Gene had no patience for nonsense from his employees running the show.  Despite the wrestling stars being able to act however they wanted, behind
-
the
-
scenes people were held to another level.  As long as you worked hard and did your job, he always had your back. 
Her friendship with Marissa and the fact that she’d spent her teenage years living with the France family gave her another level of protection. 

Emma pushed open the door to conference room and noted that all the necessary staff was already in place. 
Damn Traffic!
  She hated being the last one to arrive. Marissa was already seated near the head of the table next to her father.  She waved Emma over and motioned to the empty chair.  “Good morning, Emma,” Gene said as Emma rounded the table to take the seat next to Marissa. 

“Good morning, Mr. France.  I’m sorry for being late.  My cab got caught in traffic on the way here from the hotel.”

Gene shook his head.  “No problem.  A couple of our stars are having the same problem.  Something about road construction on one of the main roads.  So we’ll have to run the show out of order for now and then put it together later for the actual run through.”

Emma gave a nod of understanding as she eased down into the chair.  “What have I missed?”

“Nothing much,” Marissa offered.  “They just finished going over ticket sales, concessions and vendors
,
and we were ready to start with scripts and lineup.”

Gene flipped open his book. “Since we still have five of our singles wrestlers out with injuries
,
that division remains a little thin on talent.  The crowd seems to have accepted the new storylines so we’re going to continue down that path for now.  Since Mike Martin is also not here yet, we’ll go ahead and skip to Holt Hendricks.”

At the sound of his name Emma jerked her attention to the door.  As if on cue Holt entered the room and paused.  He appeared to assess everyone and a slow grin crawled across his handsome face as his attention settled over her.  Warmth pooled in her belly and Emma’s skin came alive with the realization that the only empty chair at the table was right next her.  

He strode around the room, his arrogant nature evident as he pulled the chair out and settled down next to her.  “Good morning, Gorgeous.”

She tried to her best to hide the smile that seemed to automatically appear whenever he was around. The man practically oozed charisma and he had woman of all shapes and sizes constantly falling at his feet. While she was sure he indulged those invitations far more than he let on, it appeared that even after a two week cool down he still hadn’t given up on chasing her. 

For the past two years he’d been working to break down her resolve and for those two years she’d always managed to say no to his offer of dinner or coffee or anything else he had in mind.  Somehow he’d still managed to weasel his way into her heart. 

He’d only started the habit of switching seats on the airplane a couple of months ago.  Though she’d never admit it, those plane rides ended up being some of her favorites as she got to see the real Holt, not
‘The Heartthrob’
. 

Then there was his growing need to watch over her.  Honestly, he’d damn near become worse than Derek when it came to trying to take care of her.  Somehow he always managed to know when she needed help.  If she hadn’t eaten in a while he would insist on bringing her food.  If someone
gave
her a hard time he position
ed
himself between her and that person. He doted over her and almost seemed to worry about her at times. 

Those small acts chipped away at her invisible wall of defense leaving her feeling vulnerable and confused, but how could she possibly go against Derek’s wishes?  He and Bryan were the only real family she had left. 
They’d most certainly view her dating
Holt
as
turning her back on her family and she didn’t want to lose them. 

Still, she couldn’t ignore how she felt or how after all this time Holt continued to pursue her.  Was it truly because he liked her or simply another way to get back at Derek she didn’t know.  That uncertainty was another reason she struggled to keep her distance.