Total pages in book: 35
Estimated words: 33230 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33230 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
“But I promise. I’m going to keep an eye on everything he does. He won’t get his dirty hands on what belongs to you.” I settle more into Brad’s side, knowing that he won’t let anything happen to me. He might do some illegal things but at the end of the day he is a good man and to me that’s all that matters.
Chapter 17
Brad
“I’m not going to fight that guy,” I tell Loren, the fight promoter who is busy taking down a bet.
“Then you forfeit the entry fee.”
Loren’s got a sweet gig here. He gets money from the fighters and from the people who bet on us. Loren’s seat is where I need to be sitting instead of on the so-called ring which is just a chalked-out area at the end of a warehouse storing the finished washing machines my mom puts together.
“It’s not going to be entertaining. The guy doesn’t know how to fight. I leveled him with one punch the other day.” I have no idea why Mark showed up. Yeah, he played football but that doesn’t mean shit in a fight. Plus, the season has been over for two months so he’s out of shape.
“Yeah, I know. I promised he could hit you five times before you punched him out.” Loren waves me aside so he can take the next bettor.
“Are you serious? I’m not going to let some asshole punch me in the face five times just so that you can entertain the crowd.”
“I’m completely serious— He breaks away to address a customer who hands him five crisp one hundred dollar bills, marks down the bet, and then turns back. ”Dude paid me a grand to hit you. I’d be dumb to turn that down. I will, however, split that with you if you get into the ring. How’s that?”
My choices are limited. I either lose my hundred dollar entry fee or I allow myself to get beaten by a blowhard from school whose feelings are hurt because I knocked him out.
“It’s not like you have to let him hit you in the face,” Loren says. “Feel free to duck those if you need to look pretty for your girl over there.”
He nods his head toward Melody, who I installed at the top of a stack of freight boxes waiting to be shipped. It’s high enough that she can see everything but also be out of the way. She insisted on coming because she didn’t believe me when I said it wasn’t dangerous. I figured I’d come in, have a decent match where I’d dodge a few blows before downing my opponent and then I’d take her out to the car and fuck her in the backseat with all my pent-up adrenaline. If I take Loren’s deal, she’s not going to believe that and then we’re back to me doing legal things. For some reason, she thinks I should take over her family company. I’m smart but I don’t think I’m that smart. If I was as smart as she thinks I am, I would’ve anticipated something shady would go down right when she was here to witness it.
“How about next time I let your paid stooge beat the shit out of me, but this time I fight someone else?”
“How about you either tape up your hands and prepare for a few punches to the gut or you leave?”
I barely refrain from punching Loren out and stalk over to the freight stack to Mel.
“You look mad or is that your game face?”
“I’m mad,” I admit. I grab the tape out of my bag and start wrapping my hands. “Look, maybe you should take off.”
“Why?”
“You see anyone here you recognize?”
“Um, no. I don’t recognize—wait, is that Mark? What’s he doing here?”
“I guess he wants to beat me up.”
She squints and then peers down at me. “Didn’t you knock him out at school?”
“Yup.”
She crosses her arms and settles back against the pallets. “Oh then this will be a cake walk for you.”
“Should be, but he paid the head guy a hundred a punch.”
“What does that mean?”
I tear the tape with my teeth and toss the roll into the bag before answering. “It means that unless I let old Mark hit me five times for free, I lose the fee I paid to enter tonight.”
“That’s so wrong,” she exclaims.
It makes me feel a little better. I tap my cheek. “Better give my face one last kiss. It might be too swollen later.”
“You’re going through with this?”
“Yeah. I’ve been through worse for less money. If it bothers you, though, I’m not going to be hurt if you wait in the car.”
Mel wrinkles her nose. “I can’t believe you think I’m not going to watch this whole ridiculous mess. After it’s over, I’m going over to—what’s his name?”
“Loren,” I supply helpfully.