Fight for Me (25 page)

“But we do, Lexi,” Leah said. “There’s something you need to know.”

“Whatever plan you two have concocted to break me and Ryder apart won’t work.”

“Listen,
Alexis
.” Julia said my name like it was filth. I should’ve been offended, but I knew where her hate stemmed from.

“We both know I don’t like you, but this isn’t about how I feel. I won’t let my son ruin his life just to be with you.”

“And how am I ruining his life?” I crossed my arms and hardened my expression. She looked back at Leah and nodded her head.

“Tell her.”

I glanced at Leah nervously twisting her hands and tapping her feet.

“I’m pregnant,” Leah heaved. I glanced at her, grimacing at her outlandish outburst. It was so abrupt I felt like she vomited the words at me.

“Is this the best you can do, Leah? Because it’s really sad.”

“It’s true,” she shouted, stepping around Julia. “Ryder doesn’t want you to know. He’d do anything not to stain your
precious
relationship.”

“If you two are done wasting my time, I need to get ready for a party.”

“You don’t believe me?” She narrowed her eyes angrily. “He’s so desperate to keep you he paid me to get rid of it.”

“
What?
Are you insane? Ryder would never do that.” I turned a sharp eye to Julia. “And you’re his mother. How could you believe this?”

“Because Ryder hasn’t been himself since you came into his life. He’s turning into David. He’ll do anything to be with you. Show her,” Julia said.

“Fine.” She pulled a piece of paper out her the pocket of her jeans and unfolded it. She held it up in front of my face, and there it was. A copy of a check deposited into Leah’s account for twenty thousand dollars. “I knew I shouldn’t have cashed it if I wasn’t going to go through with it, but I changed my mind.”

I didn’t want to believe. I’d convinced myself I was so sure in our love I wouldn’t doubt anything. But as I stared at Ryder’s signature and the distinct way the last three letters faded away, I felt my conviction fade, also.

“He’s chosen you over Leah, over me, even over his own child. You need to put a stop to this before you cost him everyone who loves him.”

I nodded, but just to get them to back off. Julia finally relented after a few moments of silently staring me down. She pressed a button, and the elevator car began moving again. When the doors slid open, I rushed past them so I wasn’t sure if they exited.

I was hurrying through the lobby when someone grabbed me by the arm and spun me around.

“Are you all right, Lexi?” David asked, looking concerned.

“I’m fine.” I tried to pull away, but he tightened his hold.

“You look flushed, shaky. You know you can talk to me, right?”

“I know, David, but I’m fine. I just have to get to the house and relax.”

“What house? I thought you and Ryder were staying here.”

“No, he rented a house. There’s a party tonight if you want to come.”

“Ryder might not like you extending invitations to me.”

“It’ll be fine. Just try to come.”

“All right, sweetie, I’ll try.” He pulled me in and hugged me, kissing the top of my head. “We only worry because we love you.”

“I know. I love you, too.” I leaned back and looked at him. “I hope you know that.”

“I do.”

“I got to go. I’ll text you the address when I get there.” I pulled away, waved one final time, and walked out to find my driver.

The house was massive, and it appeared the party had begun. The driveway was full, so the driver parked across the street and took my bags in for me. I pulled out my phone and texted the address to David. As I crossed the street, I heard a car screech, and I leapt out of its way. Texting while crossing the street was pretty stupid.

This was no house. It was a huge, three-story mansion. As I stepped through the entrance, the music coming from the back yard blared. The driver came down the steps and gave me directions to my room. I climbed the stairs to the third floor, went down a long hallway and through the double doors that led into our room.

The scene was definitely set for romance. My feet sank into deep red carpets, and I saw a cozy seating area just in front of a large terrace, and the bed…

The dark-gray headboard ran nearly up to the ceiling, and it had matching bedding adorned with a bunch of pillows. I went straight for the terrace and pulled open the French doors. I walked to the edge and peered over. The small after-party Ryder advised me about had over fifty people already. The pool was right beneath me, and I watched people lingering around it as I stood there, but I was too high for anyone to notice me.

I wanted to be excited about Ryder’s victory and celebrate with everyone else, but that tiny grain of doubt about Leah had taken root. I went back into the room and threw myself on the bed. I wasn’t going to be able to do anything until I talked to Ryder.

Chapter Thirty-Three

Ryder

It was after midnight when I pulled up to the house. Ty’s party was in full swing, but all I wanted to do was go upstairs with Lexi and lock everyone else out. I’d made the right decision renting this place for the weekend. I loved to fight, but the public side of being the champion got tiring.

If we’d stayed at the hotel, the press would’ve followed every step we took out of the room. As much as I wanted the world to know Lexi was mine, I didn’t want them digging into her past. If the media found out about Alec and her subsequent suicide attempt, they would turn her tragedy into entertainment news. I knew we couldn’t keep it under wraps forever, but I wanted to protect Lexi for as long as possible.

I pushed open the door to our room and found Lexi lying on the bed. I smiled as I turned the lock on the door. I dropped my bag, then pulled my shirt over my head. I was sure she’d be ready to join the party, but it seemed like she was waiting on me. I might just let her convince me to skip it.

I climbed on the bed, and Lexi startled as I crawled over her. She must’ve been deep in thought to not have heard me come in. She smiled meekly at me, a little nervously, too. I covered her with my body and began kissing her.

“Ryder,” she said as I moved down to her collarbone. “Ryder,” she insisted.

“What?” I glanced up at her.

“We need to talk.”

“We have less than an hour to be downstairs. Do you really want to talk?”

She nodded. I stared at her, willing her to change her mind, but there was a definite urgency in her gaze. I climbed off the bed, and she swung her legs over the edge to face me.

“What’s going on?”

“Is Leah pregnant?”

“What? How should I—wait, you think it’s mine?” Shit, a million different thoughts just traveled through my brain, but I still hadn’t processed one.

“So she is?”

“No—I mean—I don’t—know.” I stuttered like I was nervous or guilty, and she looked at me suspiciously. I took a deep breath, held her hands in mine, and started over.

“I don’t know if she’s pregnant, and if she is, it’s not mine. Where is all this shit coming from?”

“Leah and your mom cornered me at the hotel.”

“
Great
… I thought we were over this shit.”

She looked away, then mumbled something I couldn’t understand.

“What?”

She looked up and glared at me. “She said you paid her to get rid of it. She even showed me the check.”

I smiled and shook my head. I knew Lexi was trying to read my reaction to this information, but I couldn’t help but smile at how clever Leah had been. I didn’t realize she would go this far. I pulled Lexi up so she faced me. If she wanted to read my expression, I wasn’t going to cower away.

“Leah is obsessive. She’ll say anything to get you out of the way. You can’t just believe all the bullshit that comes out her mouth. Years ago, when I was an underground fighter, she moved to California to be with me. She was having a hard time, and I felt bad, so I gave her a check so she could stay on her feet. I haven’t slept with her in over four months.”

She tried to pull away, but I held on to her hands.

“And my mom… hates you. She’s usually a little more logical than this, but she’s desperate. She thinks if I’m with you, David has won. I’d be lying if I said David never cared about me. He loved me, and she got to keep the most important thing to him. So now she’ll back the devil up to keep you away from me.”

“But I’m not trying to fix your relationship with David. And I don’t want to come between you and your mother, either. I just want you without all this… drama.”

I cupped her face and pulled her in close.

“You have me, but it will never be easy. Will you be able to live with that?” She looked defeated. I knew this wasn’t the way she wanted things to be, but it’s the circumstance we were stuck with. I pulled her into my arms, and she tucked her head under my chin.

“I never say this, but I’m sort of a famous fighter. There will always be some woman trying to get you out of the way. I just need you to ask first before you let all those doubts take up space in your head. I promise to always be honest with you.”

She pushed back and brushed her fingertips against my cheek. “I’m sorry I doubted you.”

“It’s okay. She did have my signature to back her up. And my mother will probably always give you hell. She’s my mom. I can’t shut her out, but I can shut her down when she tries to hurt you.” I kissed her softly, then looked back into her hazel gaze. “This love will never be easy, but it will always be worth the fight. Even if they managed to tear you away from me, I’d come for you. You’re that piece of happiness I can’t live without.”

I slid my hand under her shirt, and she stiffened.

“The party?” she asked, because she knew if we started we’d never get down there.

“Ty will break the door down if we don’t go. Let’s go shower together. It’ll save time.”

We both knew this would not save time, but it was bound to be a lot of fun. Hot, wet fun.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Alexis

Ryder’s tongue was on me. Oh God, the things he could do with his mouth. He’d pushed me against the shower wall, spread my legs, and slid down to lick me where I ached the most. We had exactly half an hour to be down at Ryder’s after-party, but he was determined to give it to me. He stroked, sucked, and worked my clit until I quivered, begging for the release I knew he could give me. My nipples were tight, painful knots of suppressed need.

He pulled back, and I whimpered. I needed release, and we didn’t have much time. He stood up, pushed his big, beautiful cock at my entrance, and I was elated. Finally, he was going to give me what I really wanted.

He rammed into me, my head hit the tiled wall, and I gulped water as the shower rained down on me. His thrusts were hard, hitting the right spots. He didn’t have to look for it. Ryder always knew how to get me there, and I was arriving in a hurry. Wet skin slapped together as his powerful cock entered me again and again. Inch after inch of hot steel filled me up and made me pant. My reverberated moans echoed in the stall. His groans mingled with them as we made erotic music. Surge after surge of ecstasy took hold of me, picking me up, then throwing me back into it, and then lifting me up again. I felt like I came over and over, my mind too muddled to know when one ended and the next began. Ryder was there with me at the end, finishing with a great cry of release, convulsing as he exploded inside me. He pulled out and we kissed until the water turned cool and the fire was building again in my belly. I wanted to stay in here and do yummy things to his sexy body, but we couldn’t.

I pushed Ryder out of the shower so he could get ready and stayed in to cool off. When I got back into our room, he was fully dressed. He wore a pair of stonewashed jeans, white button-up shirt, a tie, and a dark-gray vest. Ryder wore casual dressy well.

“You look amazing.” I dropped a kiss on his cheek as I passed. He yanked my towel, and I yelped as I attempted to cover myself with my hands. He leaned in to kiss me, but there was a loud barking knock at the door. He grumbled something about stupid parties before he left to answer the door.

When he came back, I’d managed to cover myself with underwear. “Hurry up, Lexi. Ty’s here and we need to get downstairs.”

“Go without me. I’ll be at least another fifteen minutes.” He glanced at his watch, then frowned at me.

“You don’t need that much time. You look amazing already.”

“I have to get dressed, blow-dry my hair, add a little makeup—”

“Fine.” He held up a hand to stop me. “Fifteen minutes, Lexi,” he warned me as he left the room.

I took my time fixing my hair to make it look loose and effortless, which it wasn’t. It was Ryder’s big night, and I wanted to look like I belonged at his side. I slipped into a black, lacy cocktail dress that gave the impression I was nude underneath. It was short, tight, and sexy. Just the look I was going for. I’d just finished stepping into a pair of red stilettos when there was a knock on the door. It was five minutes past the time I’d told Ryder I’d be down. He was so impatient he probably headed back up as soon as he noticed my time was up. I pulled open the door and took a surprised step back.

“What are you doing here, Noah?”

“You look beautiful, Alexis.” His gaze traveled over me.

“Are you one of Ryder’s friends?” This could actually get really awkward, extremely quick.

“I’m not.”

“Oh… okay.”

His expression was weird, and his being in our room was making me nervous. I was running late, so if Ryder caught him up here and found out our connection, it wouldn’t be pretty.

“We need to talk.” He pushed his way into the room, shutting the door and blocking my exit.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to talk up here. Let’s go down to the party and talk there.”

“Why? Will your
boyfriend
be mad?” He stood in front of me, his hands in the pockets of his jeans. His stance was alarming. I wasn’t a master at body language, but I knew he wasn’t here for small talk. I stepped back, scanning the room for the closest exit.