Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 126003 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126003 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
I turn away, busy myself at the little bar, and when I turn back, Beth is out on the terrace, the wind blowing her long dress against her legs. I join her out there, handing her a glass and keeping one for myself.
“Thanks. You’ve got a nice place here, Maart. And those boys are nice too.” She turns her body, leaning one elbow on the terrace railing as she cocks her head up at me. “I’ve met a lot of fighters in my day but I can tell you this—none of them were anything like yours. You’ve got a real family feeling with them. Kind of paternal. Am I right about that?”
“Such a reporter.”
She shrugs, but takes it as a compliment because she’s smiling. “What can I say?”
“Well, I do owe you.” I turn and face the ocean, leaning my forearms on the railing with my wine glass in both hands, our shoulders bumping a little. “So I don’t mind answering the questions.”
“No? What changed?”
“Well, like I said”—I side-eye her a little—“I owe you. But not just that.” I hurriedly add that in. “I know you now. At least a little bit. So it’s fine. And the answer is yes. I feel like a father to all of them.”
“Even Irina.”
“Especially Irina. I mean…” I sigh. “Look, we didn’t have a lot of girls. We had Sissy, and Cintia, and Ling—”
“Those girls who came up with you, Cort, and Rainer?”
“Yeah. They helped us, we helped them. That’s how it went. If you have a nice big camp, right? That’s a lot of kids to wrangle. And when they keep winning, and grow older, it’s really tough to keep that anger checked. You need women for that.”
“But you don’t need girls, do you?”
“No. You don’t. I feel bad saying that. And it’s got nothing to do with how I feel about them. It’s just… they lose, Beth. They always lose.”
“But don’t they all lose, Maart? Men and women alike? And you had one, didn’t you? Just about to go into the ring?”
“Lilith. But she wasn’t gonna win. Everyone knew it, even her. Trust me, I’ve seen enough boys grow up to know what happens when they turn sixteen. They become monsters. Lilith was a great fighter. She would go very far in strawweight. But that’s UFC, ya know? Not Ring of Fire. It’s all very fair in the real world. The Ring is just straight-up evil. They would’ve put her up against someone like these boys here. And even though Evard is nothing compared to the rest of them in that room, he would take Lilith out in seconds.” I look Beth in the eyes. “Seconds. And her life would be over.”
I let out a long breath.
“But Irina could’ve fought in the real world.”
I turn to Beth, getting kinda pissed off. It comes out in my tone. “I don’t want her to fight.”
Beth puts up a hand. “OK. I get it. I’m just trying to point out that you’re not really allowed to make those decisions for her. You can guide her and teach her, but in the end, Maart, it’s none of your business what she does with her life. And when you see her—”
“Do you have news?”
“No. I’m expecting some though. So I just want to prepare you. When you see her, you need to treat her not like a child, but like a grown woman. Because that’s what she is. Just pat yourself on the back for helping turn her into this amazing creature and leave it at that. You’re not her father. You’re not even a friend, at this point. So be careful. Choose your words wisely.”
I let out another breath, wondering now if inviting Beth over was the right choice.
She turns and walks over to a table and takes a seat, setting her wine glass down. “Come on. Sit. Let’s talk.”
I join her. But before I set my glass down, I drink it all. Beth is smiling at me. “What?” I ask.
“You need courage to answer questions?”
“No. Yeah. I dunno.” She laughs and I smile. “It helps.”
“Good.” She leans back in her chair and crosses her legs. I can’t see them because they’re hidden under that long dress, but I look anyway. And when I meet her gaze again, she’s smirking at me. “Am I your girlfriend?”
“I have no idea.”
“Should we date, Maart?”
“Are you seeing anyone else?”
She almost snorts. “That’s your answer?”
“It’s a logical question.”
“Coming from the man who shares a girl with his best friend?”
I huff. “It’s been a while. We don’t really do that anymore.”
“Do you love Anya?”
“Of course.”
“It’s just that simple? Of course you do? And how does Cort feel about that?”
“I guess you should ask him.”
“Surely the two of you have talked about it?”
“No.”
Beth uncrosses her legs and leans forward onto the table. “You’ve never talked about the fact that you both sleep with the same woman?”