Theirs to Keep - Maya Banks Page 0,88

never felt so miserable in her life. The anticipation was agony. The knowledge that one lucky punch could kill Merrick’s dreams. One slip and Lash could get him in a hold, forcing him to tap.

Merrick drew blood with a forceful jab, opening up a cut on Lash’s cheek. But then Lash landed a left hook that sent Merrick reeling back, and Elle saw blood above Merrick’s left eye.

Shit.

Lash made several attempts to take Merrick down, but each time, Merrick sprawled, making it impossible for the other man to take him to the mat. It was obvious that Lash was getting frustrated, and Elle saw it as a positive sign that Merrick was still focused and calm.

At thirty seconds left in the first round, Merrick went for the kill shot, and Lash dodged and lunged forward, slamming Merrick onto the mat. Elle’s throat hurt, and she realized she’d yelled at the top of her lungs the moment Merrick went down.

“He’s okay. He’s okay,” Catherine hollered next to her ear. “Lash doesn’t have his back. He doesn’t have position.”

The two men scrambled and rolled, a flurry of bodies as they grappled, twisted and turned. Merrick suffered a series of blows to the head and side that had Elle wincing.

She turned anxiously to the clock, counting down the seconds until the end of the round.

Hold on. Hold on.

The chant echoed through her mind as she watched, unable to look away as Merrick’s blood smeared onto the mat.

Finally the bell sounded, and the referee pulled Lash off Merrick. Merrick rolled to his feet, quickly jumping up. Elle wasn’t sure if he truly wasn’t affected by the pounding he’d just taken or if he just wanted to get into Lash’s head by making him think he wasn’t.

She watched as Dakota got in front of him, talking earnestly and gesturing. Cade handed Merrick water, and Dallas watched closely as the ringside doctor assessed the cut over Merrick’s eye and applied Vaseline to stop the bleeding.

“What is Dakota saying to him?” Elle asked anxiously.

“He’s just pumping him up. Telling him to stay on his feet and not to let Lash take him down. Merrick keeps the advantage if he stays off the mat.”

“Who won that round?”

Catherine’s lips tightened. “I don’t know. It was close. It might go to Lash because of that last thirty seconds. He landed a lot of punches, and he gets points for the takedown.”

“Damn,” Elle swore.

Catherine burst out laughing. “I do believe that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you say a cuss word. Stick with us, kid. We’ll have you swearing like a sailor before long.”

All too soon, the bell rang, signaling the start of the second round. Lash came out with more determination, calmer, more focused. He seemed to have gotten his frustration under control, and he looked…cold and deadly.

Merrick appeared unruffled. But the cut above his eye bothered Elle. The fact that Lash had made him bleed. It didn’t matter that there was as much of Lash’s blood coating the mat as there was of Merrick’s. She saw only Merrick’s, and she flinched with every blow that Lash landed.

“I give that round to Merrick,” Catherine said, edging close to Elle when the second round was over.”

“I wish it was over,” Elle said, her stomach in a vicious knot. “I wish he’d knock him out so this would be over!”

“You and me both!”

The third round, Merrick started to show wear. Up to then, he’d been fresh, almost robotically so. Untouchable. He moved slower, and Lash, sensing his opponent’s change in strength, began pressing. Taking him to the mat more. Merrick bounced up. Lash took him down.

In the fourth round, Merrick showed a resurgence, and Lash began to fray. Elle was beside herself. She knew many fights went the full five rounds, but they were often brutal, bloody matches of endurance.

She sagged when the bell rang, ending the round, and the fighters returned to their corners. Both men looked worn, and fatigue was starting to show in their movements.

“Tied,” Catherine said grimly. “This last round is it. Merrick’s either got to have a dominating round or knock him out. He’s likely to lose in a coin flip because the edge will go to the champion. And if Merrick did get the decision, there’ll always be question regarding his title worthiness. Lash will say he was robbed.”

Elle closed her eyes and sucked in a deep breath as the final round began. The two fighters touched gloves in a show of respect and then