Except …
“That guy’s going to kill him.”
Dominick, Lorenzo, and Bri crack up laughing.
“Size and weight aren’t as important as skill,” Dominick notes. “And although I hate that my brother fights, he’s got the skill.”
The music changes, and the lights dim as Matteo is introduced. He walks out with his entourage, including Lucian, and when he gets to his corner, he looks directly at me, nodding once.
I smile and mouth,I love you, and in response, he points to his chest and then at me.
“My God, my brother has it so bad,” Bri groans. “He’s like a completely different person.”
“Love will do that to you,” Dominick says, then flinches when he realizes what he just said and who he said it to. “Brielle, I’m?—”
“It’s all good,” she says, waving him off, but we can all see the pain in her features.
“Personally, I think you lucked out,” Lorenzo says to Bri. “Love complicates shit and makes people stupid.”
He grabs his drink and downs it, and my heart aches for my brother. What Hillary did to him was fucked up, and it’s going to take time for him to get over it. While I now realize I wasn’t in love with Enrique, I’d be lying if I said what he did to me didn’t hurt.
The emcee rattles off the guys’ stats, then says, “Remember, the only rule is that it’s bodies only. No weapons. First one to not get up loses.”
The whistle is blown, and the huge guy, Diesel—yes, his name is freaking Diesel!—goes straight after Matteo. He’s throwing punches like his life depends on it—and I guess, in a way, it does.
Matteo rocks side to side, avoiding the hits he can and blocking the ones that almost connect. The crowd is screaming and cheering, and even though I’m not a fan of my fiancé risking his life to fight this big-ass guy, I can understand the rush he gets, being up there.
After several minutes, it’s clear that Diesel is working harder than Matteo, and I’m starting to wonder when Matteo is going to fight back. Then, he finally makes his first real move. He fakes a kick and lands a hit to Diesel’s face. Before he can recover, Matteolands another hit and then another. The guy starts to teeter, losing his balance, and then a kick from Matteo takes him to the ground. Matteo slides behind him and puts him in a choke hold that causes the man’s face to turn several different shades of red before he slumps onto the ground.
The emcee counts down, and when the guy doesn’t move, he announces Matteo the winner. Everyone claps and cheers. Some are pissed that they lost due to betting against Matteo, but many are smiling big at having padded their pockets tonight.
Matteo is shaking Lucian’s hand when I notice Diesel get to his feet. He walks over to another gentleman, takes something from him, and then heads for Matteo.
I don’t know what’s in his hand, but when he shifts in the right way, the metal gleams in the light, and I gasp, realizing he has a weapon.
“He’s going to stab him,” I breathe out, hating that it’s too loud and I’m too far away to do anything about it.
But then Lucian’s eyes go wide, his lips move, and Matteo spins around faster than I’d ever think was humanly possible.
The crowd must catch on to what’s going down because everyone goes silent as Matteo disarms the man and flips it around, threatening him with his own knife.
The guy tries to swing at him, but Matteo blocks him. I hold my breath, praying he doesn’t stab him. There are too many people, too many witnesses.
But then Matteo’s men swarm the ring and grab the guy, dragging him away, and I sigh in relief.
Our gazes clash, and I want to run over to him, but I promised him I wouldn’t leave this area, so instead, I mouth that I love him so he knows I’m okay.
I don’t know how the other fights go, but Matteo doesn’t go to the back to change. Instead, he heads straight for me, and once he gets to me, he wraps me in his arms and kisses me, hard and deep.
“Let’s go, Sweetness,” he says, sliding his arm across my shoulders and pulling me into him. “I have a shit ton of adrenaline I need to release, and I plan to do that by pounding into your pussy all night.”
I can’t help the giggle that escapes me.
Because there is never a dull moment with Matteo.
36
Daniella
