Chapter 17
Imogen
Izzy and I stand in my closet throwing clothes across the room as we get ourselves ready for Xander’s second big fight of the year. The first one was awesome and I expect this to be just as good, or better.
It’ll suck that I’ll see Caden there and won’t be able to speak with him, or I guess we could, but it wouldn’t be great for Cole’s concentration if he saw any of that, and besides, Cole needs to be on his A-game tonight. He needs to have every ounce of his concentration focused on Xander and assuming that Caden’s going to be his cornerman again, he needs to be focused as well.
Izzy grabs a yellow skin tight dress and holds it’s against her body. “What about this?” she asks.
I look up and down her body and take in how the yellow fabric practically shines against her sun-kissed skin. “Perfect,” I smile before pulling a black crop and jeans out for myself. I pull them on and look at myself in the mirror. I grab my knee-high heeled boots to finish off my look and smile with glee. Yeah, I look good.
We get our hair and makeup done and before we know it, we’re out the door and in the taxi. We ummed and ahhed over the decision if we should drive or not, but concluded that we’d both end up drinking, especially if Xander was to win, then we would end up at The Dark Room cleaning out the bar.
I can’t wait.
Either way, tonight is going to be crazy. I just hope I can keep my thoughts of Caden to a minimum, but I highly doubt it.
The taxi pulls up at the arena and we practically fly out the door. Izzy latches onto my hand as to not get lost in the massive crowd that’s pouring through the door. We flash our VIP backstage passes and are ushered through the doors.
I’ve been coming to fights like this for as long as I can remember having Cole as a brother and it never ceases to amaze me. I think it’s the atmosphere that does it for me. All these people coming together for the same reason. Everyone’s excited and high on life. They come here full of enthusiasm and ready for a good time. What’s not to love?
I pull out my phone and send a quick text to my brother, knowing he worries at things like this.
Imogen – We’re here. Just finding our seats.
He replies almost instantly
Cole – Good. Come back and say hi. All the girls are here.
I show Izzy the message. “Sounds good to me,” she says.
We squish our way through the crowd but stop at the bar for a drink. The fight doesn’t start for at least forty-five minutes so we have plenty of time. At the bar, I notice there are two lines. One packed, and one practically empty. I grin as I read the sign above the empty line. VIP. Hell yes. We flash our VIP tickets and get our drinks in no time.
We didn’t need the whole VIP and backstage pass thing, but Cole offered and I wasn’t about to say no. I could have caught up with Xander after the fight to say congratulations, as I have no doubt that he’s going to win. I mean, he’s trained by my brother and he always wins. Xander is just that good.
I’d bet my whole apartment on the fact that we’ll end up at The Dark Room and I can’t wait. It’s a Friday night and after another week of sulking around, I’ve really been needing this.
I flash our backstage passes to the security guy, and after asking a few directions, we’re ushered through the doors. We walk down the long corridor, passing all sorts of important people when we come to the door with Xander’s name across the front. I grin at the big gold star stuck to the door knowing Xander would have got a kick out it.
The nerves settle in my stomach. I have no doubt that Caden is on the opposite side of that door and I have no idea how this is going to be. It’s the first time I’ll see him in nearly three weeks and I’m a mess.
Izzy knocks on the door before twisting the handle and pushing her way through. “Hey,” she smiles at the occupants of the room. “It’s just us.”
“Hey, come in,” Xander says as we step through the threshold.
I can’t help it, my eyes instantly search the room for him.
Caden stands opposite Xander with a pair of boxing pads while Xander nails his fists into them, warming up. From past experiences, he’ll do this on and off right until the big fight. Cole is sitting on the bench reading through something while Jace is checking through Xander’s first aid bag making sure everything is there.
Caden’s eyes come to mine and I feel my heart leap out of my chest. There’s nothing but longing there and it makes me want to go to him. I want to wrap my arms around him and hold him until my arms get sore, but from the way Cole is shooting daggers at my back, I’d say that wouldn’t be a great idea. I’ll be keeping my distance tonight.
I glance over at Cole who has a warning in his eyes, a clear message to watch myself. He gets up and makes his way across the room. He pulls me into a quick hug. “Do I need to watch you all night?” he murmurs in my ear.
“No,” I snap, a little annoyed to be treated like a child. “Promise. I won’t screw any of your friends tonight.”
“Good,” he says, letting go of me and stepping back.
Izzy and I make our way over to all the girls who sit in the corner of the room chatting away while sipping on their drinks. “Hey,” Charli beams, getting up and giving both Izzy and I a welcome hug. “I’m so happy you guys could come.”
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” I tell her.
She sits back down beside her best friend, Zara, and we take our seats. Rylee and Cami chat about the guy Xander will be up against tonight while Zara ogles her boyfriend, Aaron, who has just walked through the door.
We sit in here for a good half an hour and I have to admit, it’s been really fun, all except trying to avoid looking at Caden like he has the answers to all of life’s mysteries. Our whole group is here and I absolutely love it, we’re like a big family and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love nights like this when we’re all in the same place. It feels whole.
The only thing missing is Luke. It feels wrong without him, but he’ll be back in a few more months, then hopefully, he’ll be calling it quits after that. I know he’s doing a great thing but my mind always takes me to the what ifs, and I know, Caden worries about him too.
“Alright, guys,” Cole says, stealing the rooms attention. “Time for you to get your asses out of here. Xander needs to get ready.”
We all get up and make our way across to him. He gets a train of hugs from all the girls and claps of good luck on the back from the guys. We all pile out of the room with only Cole and Caden staying behind with Xander.
It’s incredible just how packed the arena is when we come back out to the main stage. I mean, it was crazy busy before, but now, it’s ridiculous. I don’t know how Xander does it. If I had to get up in front of all these people, I think I’d probably shit myself.
We go and find our seats before Jace and Aaron get up and offer to get us all new drinks. We thank them and send them on their way.
By the time they return, the whole row behind us is filled with all the guys Xander used to play college hockey with and I just know tonight is going to be massive, no matter the outcome of this fight.
The lights dim in the arena and the crowd goes nuts. The announcer calls Xander’s opponent to the ring and the room instantly breaks into its chorus of either cheers or boo’s, making it clear just who’s here to support Xander.
The second Xander is called, I jump to my feet and scream out. I love this shit. It’s so exhilarating, hell it’s even intoxicating. Xander walks out of a corridor with Cole and Caden behind him. His hands are in the air and it’s clear he already owns this fight, the confidence is practically pulsing out of him.
Even with the look of extreme joy and happiness on Xander’s face, I still find my eyes on Caden. He looks across to me and a brilliant smile lights up his face.
Seeing him like this does strange things to me. Maybe mom was right. Hell, maybe everyone is right. Maybe there’s something between us that I’m just way too stubborn to admit. Maybe I do like him.
Shit.
I tear my eyes away from him and focus on the real reason I’m here, the reason we’re all here. To support Xander and Cole during this big fight. Nothing else. Nada. Zilch.
The fight gets started, and as usual, I’m blown away by Xander’s sheer talent. I see him fighting all the time at Rebels Advocate, but when he’s actually put on show and has an audience, this aura comes over him and it’s like he’s invincible.
I swear, the man is a machine when he’s in that ring, and I’m not the only one who notices. “Fuck, he’s hot,” Izzy comments beside me.
I roll my eyes. She’s not wrong, but it’s Xander. “He’s spoken for,” I remind him as my eyes flick across to Charli who watches him in the ring in complete adoration.
“I know,” she groans. “All the hot ones are spoken for.”
“There’s still Luke and Caden,” I remind her.
“First off,” she calls over the sound of the crowd. “Luke is a million miles away at the fucking war, and Caden is taken.”
“Pft,” I scoff, knowing exactly what she’s talking about.
The conversation is cut short when Xander gets through to his opponent. The moment goes so quickly. It’s almost as though Xander is using the guy as a speedball. His fists are flying and within the space of two seconds, Xander has the guy pressed right into the side of the ring.
I find myself on my feet, screaming out for Xander, the same way the rest of the crowd is.
“Holy shit,” Izzy gasps from beside me. She’s been to a few fights with me, but not many, so it still shocks her to see the amount of violence involved in this shit. For me, it’s just thrilling.
Xander’s opponent tries to get a knee up, but Xander is too quick and shoots forward with a kick of his own, the guy goes down and Xander moves forward and nails him a few more times. The referee gets in between them and calls the round before Xander can do too much damage.
The crowd roars for Xander and I watch as Caden and Cole fly to the side of the ring.
The rest of the fight goes like this and it’s not long before Xander is standing in the middle of the ring with his hands above his head being declared the undefeated heavyweight champion.
Just as expected, we all end up at The Dark Room and the night gets seriously messy. Drinks are passed around and for just tonight, there’s not a worry in the world.
I dance with all the girls while the guys sit at our massive table, probably discussing the fight like they usually do. There’s a smile on everyone’s faces and it’s honestly the best night I’ve had in ages. I’ve really needed this after all the Caden stuff and even though all that shit is far from being resolved, for tonight, I can pretend it doesn’t exist.
That is until I’m walking out of the bathroom and he’s heading the opposite direction. We pass side by side and it feels odd not to speak a word. Our eyes connect as we pass and a feeling of relief comes over me as his arm snakes out and he presses me up against the wall.
My eyes close at the feeling of his body pressed to mine. He runs his nose up the length of my neck and I moan as the satisfaction is almost unbearable. I need him to kiss me, only he doesn’t. He pulls back and his eyes bore into mine.
I tilt my chin up and all it would take is for him to close the distance and press his lips to mine. I see the longing in his eyes and I’m sure it’s similar to the need within mine.
A familiar stern voice is cleared in the hallway beside us as and we look over to see a very pissed off Cole watching our performance. Without a word, Caden drops his hands from my body and walks away.
I watch as he disappears from the hallway before letting my head fall back against the wall. Cole lets out an annoyed huff but thankfully doesn’t say anything before he steps around me and also walks away.
I take a minute to myself before heading over to the bar and ordering a drink for myself and Izzy. I find her a moment later and hand her the drink. “You alright?” she questions. “You were gone a while.”
“Yeah,” I smile. “I’m fine.”
I dance with her until our feet get sore and we collapse into the table. I squish in between Cole and Cami while Izzy slides in beside Caden on the opposite side of the table. Eventually, everyone finds their way back to the table and we all celebrate with Xander after another great win.
A plate of chips is placed down on the table and I dig in while chatting away with Cami and ignoring my cranky ass brother who sits at my back.
A phone ringing in the center of the table grabs my attention and I watch as Jace reaches forward and grabs his. He looks at the caller ID before quickly answering it and bringing to his ear.
“Hello,” Jace says into the phone before listening for a while. I swear, he almost looks sick as he talks to the person on the other end. I watch as Cami glances up and takes it in. She spots me watching and her eyebrows crease in question.
I shrug my shoulders and we look on as Jace uses his other hand to try and block out the sound of the club before getting up from the table and disappearing out the door. “What was that about?” Cami questions.
“I don’t know,” I say as my eyes cross to the door to see if he’s there.
A strange, hesitant look crosses her face as she looks to the door and back at me. “Do you think I should go after him?”
“I don’t know,” I say. “From the look on his face, that call wasn’t good.”
“I know,” she murmurs before deciding to stay put.
We try to get back to the party and I try not to notice the way Caden’s knee keeps knocking into mine under the table every time someone jostles either one of us, but it’s too real. He’s right there and all I want to do is take him home and feel his body on mine.
All I need is just one more night with him and I’ll be good. Shit. I can’t even lie to myself. I need him all over me again and again and again. One night is never going to be enough to satisfy this need within me.
Why does it have to be Caden who makes me feel like this? Why can’t it be some random guy I meet in a café or some stranger who’s never met my brother before? Why does it have to be him?
Cami’s back straightens beside me and I look across to her. A worried look is plastered on her face and I follow her gaze across to the door where Jace is walking in with a haunted expression in his eyes, it’s filled with pain and torture and puts an unease into the pit of my stomach.
I nudge Cole on my other side and before Jace has even made it back to the table, he has everyone’s full attention. Cami reaches out and takes Jace’s hand in hers. “What’s wrong?” she questions.
Jace’s eyes flick down to hers and something tells me he’s grateful for her presence. He squeezes her hand before looking back at the table. “That was a friend of mine from the military,” he starts, making my stomach squeeze. “Luke’s team was sent in on a mission. There’s isn’t much information on the situation just yet, but reports say that they walked straight into an ambush. Most of his team made it out, but Luke and two others were taken. They don’t know much more than that.”
“Fuck,” Cole grunts from beside me as Cami shoots out of her seat and wraps herself around Jace. He holds onto her for dear life, taking every ounce of comfort out of her as he worries over his best friend.
“He’ll be ok,” I say mostly to myself. We need to stay positive and if I know anything about Luke, it’s that he is one of the strongest men I know.
I look across to Caden to find his eyes already on mine. With Cole busily soothing Rylee, I use his distraction to check on Caden ‘You ok?’ I mouth across to him.
He shakes his head ever so slightly and the therapist in me wants to talk, but the woman inside of me wants to throw herself across the table and tell him over and over again that Luke will come back to us. He always does.
Jace finally goes on to tell us that he was promised more information as it came in, but for now, we’re all left wondering, so, it’s no surprise that nobody feels like celebrating much after that. Cami walks out the door with Jace and everyone else follows.
Izzy slides her arms through mine and we walk in silence as we hail down a taxi. I know Cole would probably insist that he comes with us but he’s not thinking right now. I look over at Caden and the need to go to him is there again, but he’s already in his truck, peeling out of the parking lot.
“Come on,” Izzy murmurs. “Let’s go home.”
I couldn’t agree more.