Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 64366 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64366 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Eyes that looked like Kage’s.
I shuddered again, and this time it was not from desire.
“If I come out, Santori won’t have any reason to threaten us anymore,” Kage said. “That’s why I’m seriously considering doing it. He doesn’t give a damn who I date. All he cares about is me fulfilling the plan he’s laid out for me, which is becoming a UFC champion. If I can come out, keep my contract, and earn a title, Santori will see that his concern was all for nothing. Then I won’t have to give up everything.”
Vanessa shook her head. “You’re playing with fire, Mikey. What if you’re wrong?”
“What choice do I have? Keep letting him control every move I make? Give Jamie up and be alone?”
“I don’t know. It’s all too complicated to think about.” She stood up and kissed him on top of the head. “I’m going to get a drink and mingle. You let me know what you decide about the publicity stuff and our fake wedding. Is there such a thing as a fake wedding planner?”
Kage laughed. “Shut up.”
Vanessa made her way through the crowd to the bar, and I was more than glad to have Kage all to myself again. Still thinking about his mouth on my earlobe, remembering all too well the warmth and the wetness and the gentle scrape of his teeth, I reached under the table again. This time I bypassed his hand and went straight for his dick.
He licked his lips and pushed his hips subtly toward my hand. “I want to jump you so bad right now.”
“I know. All this pretending is really starting to take a toll on me. How long will we have to be like this?”
He smiled, looking almost shy. “A title shot may happen sooner than we thought. That’s what we discussed in that top secret meeting you were bitching about. I’m going to fight David Grand next, and then the winner of that fight gets a shot at Nick Riker’s belt.”
“Oh my God, that is fantastic!”
“Yeah.” Kage watched me closely as I pulled away from him and settled back into my seat. The way he tracked me with his eyes, I could tell I was a hundred percent on his sex radar at that moment. His mouth was talking, but his eyes were already back at the hotel undressing me. “Riker and Grand aren’t crazy about the plan. I can’t blame them, really. Just between us, they’re absolutely right about the whole thing. I haven’t actually paid my dues in the official UFC octagon.”
“I don’t see why that matters. It’s just a technicality. Everyone knows you’re going to kick their asses.”
“That’s the point. They know they’re not going to get to keep their ranks much longer, because I’m gunning for them. If I was fighting my way up through the ranks, there would be other fights to slow me down, more chances to fuck up and get a loss on my record. The guys at the top would have some time before I got to them. This way, they know they’ve each probably got one more fight before they drop in rank. Riker will lose his title, and Grand will probably lose his shot at ever winning it at all. It sucks for them, but I can’t help that. I’m not going to sacrifice my dream so that they can have theirs.”
“How quickly do you think this all could happen?
“Maybe as soon as six months. Possibly a little longer.”
“So in less than a year, I’ll be a college graduate, and you could be the Welterweight champion. That would mean…” I didn’t know how to finish my thought. The feelings I was having seemed too fast, too serious. He might laugh at me or back off if I dared to give voice to those thoughts.
Chapter 9
(KAGE)
“WE could be together for real.” I finished Jamie’s thought for him, because I knew he wouldn’t.
When it came to expressing our feelings for each other, we had an odd dynamic. He’d already told me he loved me, but I had yet to say the words. On the other hand, I was much more willing to talk about our future together, while he danced around it like it was an illusion that would shatter into a million pieces if he dared to acknowledge it.
At least he was willing enough to acknowledge the sex part of it. He’d been bolder lately, making more overtures toward me. The way he’d goaded me into fucking him in the pantry at his parents’ house still blew my mind every time I thought about it. And believe me, I thought about it a lot. It was surprising how much I liked it when he got aggressive, because aggressiveness had never been a trait I wanted in a lover. With Jamie, it was different. When he came after me, it was proof that the attraction was just as strong from his side as it was from mine.