Bad For You - Sherilee Gray Page 0,66

this time—Mandy and the other women exchanged numbers with me and promised to be in touch.

As we drove away, I hoped I’d get to do it again. Some of Jesse’s family may be a little—okay, a lot—rough around the edges, but they were good people.

I grinned at Jesse and he reached out and took my hand.

He held it all the way to his house.

Chapter Twenty

Lila

Everly sat back down beside me and grabbed my hand. I squeezed hers back and gave her a sideways look.

My best friend blushed. “What? I had to go congratulate Dane on his win,” she said over the noise in the warehouse.

“Oh sure.” I smirked, even as my belly rioted with nerves. “Your hair looks like you’ve been through a wind tunnel.”

She blushed harder and Spanner, who was standing behind us, chuckled.

It was fight night, and we were sitting at the edge of the ring, surrounded by a bunch of Ramblers. Jesse had seated me here, kissed me hard, then after saying something to Spanner, left to get ready for his fight.

Jesse was fighting next and I was about ready to come out of my skin. I’d seen him fight here before. I’d come with Eves. She’d been looking for Dane at the time, and when we walked in Jesse had been in the ring.

I’d never forgotten it.

He’d been fighting a man much bigger than him, and the smack of his gloves hitting flesh repeatedly had shaken me to the soles of my feet. Jesse had won, and the sinister smile on his face, blood smeared across his mouth guard as he smiled down at his fallen opponent, had been etched in my brain since.

“You okay?” Eves asked.

I nodded, tried to smile, and failed.

Jesse had been quiet on the way here, so deep in the zone, that he’d almost vibrated with aggression. He loved it. There was no mistaking it. I, on the other hand, didn’t know how I felt. Yes, there was excitement, but I wouldn’t be human if there wasn’t some fear as well.

The man I loved was about to put himself in a situation where he could get beaten on.

So yep, I was ready to jump up and start pacing.

Eves gave my hand another squeeze. “It’s going to be fine. Jesse’s a good fighter.”

“He’ll be fine, babe,” Spanner said, grinning wide. “Our boy’s a beast in the ring.”

I tried to smile at Spanner, and obviously looked as wide-eyed and freaked as I felt because he laughed and shook his head at me.

The room suddenly erupted with cheers and hoots, some boos as well. I shot to my feet.

Jesse had just walked in, bouncing on the balls of his feet, gloves on his hands and stripped down to only a pair of nylon shorts and boot-like boxing shoes. His tattooed skin already had a sheen of sweat on it, and his beautiful ink stood out under the bright lights. His expression was fierce, fully focused. Dane met him in his corner and they huddled together. Everly’s boyfriend was obviously giving him a pep talk, his mouth moving rapidly, his face intense.

Jesse’s opponent walked in to a similar reaction and climbed into the ring as well. They were close in size and looked around the same age. The other guy looked at Jesse like he wanted to tear him apart.

I twisted in my seat and tapped Spanner’s leg. He glanced down at me.

“Does Jesse know that guy?”

Spanner smiled so wide all I could see was teeth. “He’s from one of our support clubs. He and Riff have fought a few times at parties. He hates our boy.”

“Why?”

“Not sure I should tell you that, sweetheart. But let’s just say he’d love to fuck Grifter up.”

The bell dinged.

I spun back, heart pounding.

They advanced on each other. Jesse was focused, his expression cold, blank, alarmingly so. The other man, however, looked like an angry bull, nostrils flared, lips pulled back, teeth gritted. They started trading hits, fists slamming into flesh, ducking and jabbing. The other man wasn’t getting as many in, and that seemed to make him even angrier, had him making mistakes.

Or what looked that way to my untrained eye.

Jesse kept that emotionless expression on his face, like he’d switched off a part of himself completely. The look in his eyes was so frigid, it sent a shiver up my spine even as heat spiraled through my belly and I squeezed my thighs together.

They fought two rounds like that, everyone cheering and booing, yelling taunts or encouragement.

During the