“Sit here.” I motion to a chair in the front row. “Keep your hood up and don’t bother with anyone. The last thing I need is Noah finding out you’re here.”
“Seems like if that were the case, then you wouldn’t do something stupid like bringing me to a Rinaldo party,” she mutters as she sits down, eyeing me like I’m an idiot.
And maybe I am, to some degree. Bringing her to that party was only the first step in planting the seed in Noah’s head that she could belong with us. That she might be willing to turn against her family for me.
It’ll be the revenge I need for the way her family took Zoe from me. She was my cousin. The only person in my family who didn’t make me feel like I was only good to them if I was winning fights or killing people.
She’s gone now, but I have Jade.
It’s a better trade than I hoped for, even though I’m still working out the finer details.
I crouch down in front of her, adjusting her hood to keep her hidden. “I know, but I have a plan for you. Being here isn’t part of the plan, but I’m choosing to trust that you’re not going to run away from me.”
Suspicion shines in her eyes, making it clear that she still doesn’t trust me.
Not that I blame her for that in the slightest. One night of sex doesn’t make up for kidnapping her. But in time, she’ll see things the way I do. She’ll see the future I have planned for us.
Unless Noah kills her first. Or worse. Tries to makemekill her.
I pull out some cuffs, clamping one around her ankle and the other to the chair that’s bolted into the ground. She’s not going anywhere during the fights.
After a moment of looking up at her, I stand. “This is for your own safety. Stay here and don’t draw any attention to yourself, and everything is going to be fine.”
“Somehow, I doubt that.” Her words are barely more than a whisper as I walk away, and I don’t have time to fight with her right now.
As much as I might enjoy being with her, there are other aspects of my life to deal with.
I head through the crowd, weaving past the people putting bets on whether or not I’m going to win the fight. It’s more than a little morbid to stand around and listen to the people threatening to beat the shit out of you because they can.
It makes you feel like you’re nothing more than a dog someone is fighting and hoping to win big on. Which, I guess, is exactly what I am to Noah.
To some degree.
I push my way into the back room of the warehouse where the other fighters are getting ready.
Tyson walks over and claps a hand on my shoulder. “It’s about damn time you show up.”
“Had some other things to take care of.”
He shuffles me to the side, leaning in close. “You weren’t stupid enough to bring her here, were you? Having her in the apartment is bad enough but bringing her here after the stunt at the party is going to be like pouring gasoline onto a wildfire.”
I sigh. Letting him know that Jade was in the apartment the other day when he came home was bad enough. I shouldn’t havetold him. It would’ve been easier to take her back to the cabin instead of putting him in the middle of what could be a bad situation with Noah.
But I like having her close. Watching her sleep in my bed, her hair fanning across the pillows, her long legs sprawling out.
Tyson shakes his head and takes a step back. “You’re going to get both of us killed if you’re not careful about this. You know that, right? You might fuck us both entirely because you’ve been following her around for far too long and hoping for something she’s never going to give you?”
“I told you, this is all part of the plan. Noah is going to see her turning against her family, and it’s going to level up our position in the war.”
“But what if she doesn’t turn against them?” he hisses, stepping closer to me again. “You are banking on something that isn’t a sure thing.”
“She left the party with me. You know that was an attempt to get her back, and she followed me. That has to mean something.”
“I think you’re delusional.” Tyson’s gaze darts over my shoulder, and he takes a step back. “Boss, good to see you.”
Noah nods to him as he appears at my side, clamping a hand on my shoulder. “Come. We have some things to talk about before the fight.”
I sigh and slide out of the sweatpants I have on, tossing my shirt to the side and grabbing the wrap for my hands. I’m not going to have time to properly warm up.
