Chapter 24
After stitching up one of the guys from the last fight of the night, Mariah washed her hands and snagged her coat and bag. Angelo waited outside the medical room, a tormented expression plastered on his round face.
Lifting a hand, she said, "These things happen. Not to worry."
The corners of his mouth dipped. "But I do worry. That's my job. And you're like family here."
He wrapped her in a bear hug, making her voice come out muffled and squished. "Aw, thanks."
"Will you ever work for me again?"
"Of course."
"Maybe not," a low voice filled the hall, skimming over her nerves. Vaughn, freshly showered with his damp hair brushed back from his forehead, strode toward them. A whiff of spicy soap came with him, making her inhale deeply. "What'll happen to Linc for that violation?" He lifted his chin toward Mariah.
The fight promoter swallowed. "At least a year-long suspension. And I'll report this to all state athletic commissions. Even if he comes back after a year, I'm not sure who would let that loose cannon fight again. I sure won't." Angelo gave her one last squeeze and stepped back. "You did your job perfectly, Doc. I feel terrible about what happened. If you need any treatment or anything, I will cover the expenses."
"No harm done. I'll see you in two months for the next event, right?"
"No one I'd rather have working ringside." The promoter strolled away.
In the empty hallway, she studied Vaughn. The skin under his left eye over his left cheek had swelled and turned a reddish purple color. Abrasions dotted his forehead, nose, and chin, and a few butterfly bandages closed the cut on his brow. But take away all that facial trauma and the man in the navy slacks and striped Oxford button-down shirt fit the part of a businessman on Wall Street. Except that the average financial analyst probably didn't have pecs that shifted when he moved.
Good Lord, Vaughn looked good enough to eat.
Jolting her out of her daydream, he blurted, "Why was Wyatt Brand here tonight? Near you?"
Rocking back on her heels at his pissy tone, she said, "Why ask me? He's a creep. But beyond that, I have no idea why he showed up. It's a free country, I guess."
"Bizarre, if you ask me."
"How so?" She leaned a hip against the concrete wall and set her bag down. This might take a while.
"Well, besides his family's feud with mine, he also has a weird thing for you."
Oh really? She flicked a tooth with her nail. "So, you think it's strange some guy is interested in me?"
"Damn it. That didn't come out right." He looked at the ceiling and then back down to her. "And no, it's not strange at all for a guy to be interested in you. Hell, every unmarried guy in the place tonight wanted you." Raising his hand at her sputtered protest, he said, "What I mean is, Wyatt is fixated on you. I'm guessing you being here, me being here—he couldn't stay away."
"Good point. He did get too close while I was watching your fight." She rubbed her upper arm, but goose bumps still rose.
"Wonder if he was working with Linc. Distracting you so Linc could do whatever he wanted in the cage." When Vaughn ran a hand over his bruised cheek, she flinched in sympathy. "You know Linc had illegal material in his gloves?"
"No way."
"Yeah, ran some fiberglass between layers of gauze before putting on his gloves. Hit like a brick sonovabitch, too."
"You could have been seriously injured. That's dangerous."
That grin molded his swollen face in a strangely endearing way. "Yup. Luckily, I've got a pretty hard head."
"True." Awkward silence stretched. "So." She pushed off the wall. "I need to be getting back to Copper River."
His eyes darkened. "Can I walk you to your car?"
A frisson skated over her skin. She considered the nearly empty event venue. What if Wyatt or Linc waited out there for her? "Yes, I would appreciate that."
He snagged the straps of her bag with the hand that also held his gym bag. He waited for her to put on her coat and then rested his free hand at the small of her back. Despite the layers of clothing, the warmth from his palm seeped into her skin.
Light snow blew as the arena door closed behind them. The back parking lot had only a few cars left. Pulling her coat closed, she wanted to hurry to her car but at the same time linger in Vaughn's presence.
Déjà vu hit as they stood next to her car.
Right, because of the last unfabulous encounter in a parking lot.
She turned and held her hand out for the bag, which contained her car keys. "Well, okay. Thank you."
A shadow came and went over his face. "Screw that." He dropped the bags behind him and faced her squarely, nostrils flaring. She took a step back. "Do you even know how worried I was that you might have been hurt? Do you know how much I wanted to kill Linc for touching you?"
"I—"
In a fluid move, he backed her into the side of the car and took her face in his rough hands, not a hard grip but firm, insistent. With a low moan, he ground his mouth into hers. But not painful or intrusive.
Oh hell, he could intrude like this any day of the week.
He changed angles, and liquid heat pooled down low in her abdomen. His harsh breaths shot straight into her bones, and she purred.
When he paused, she groaned in frustration and yanked him back down by his fancy shirt. A test nip to his lower lip, and his response went thermonuclear as he growled and pushed his hard groin into hers. His big arms snaked around her and pulled her even closer than she thought possible with this many clothes on. Trapped in a sensual prison, waves of throbbing need built inside.
Normally confinement terrified her, but not with Vaughn. On a basic level, her body and mind responded to the reality that he was safe. Their connection pressed them, like two poles of a magnet, together. Tight. Melded.
He separated the seam of her lips and tangled with her tongue in a rhythm to match the roll of his hips. Her knees wobbled, and he tucked her more firmly against him.
"I won't let you fall," he breathed against her lips, before using his mouth for more than talking.
Frigid temperatures weren't a problem, encased as she was in the circle of his arms. Dampness and heat bloomed between her legs as her hips went loose.
He came up for air, cupping the back of her head.
"Shit. I want you so badly," he gritted out, resting his chin on the top of her head.
Things like carpe diem and YOLO raced through her head. Could she be with Vaughn even if they had no guarantee of a long-term relationship? What about her own fears? Could she risk the same rejection she'd experienced before?
The moment he ran a hand over her jacket-covered breast, her breath caught in her throat. Logic and mapping out life didn't fit this situation. She had to make a leap of faith.
"I want you too." Licking her lips, she rose on tiptoes to kiss him. Thank God he obliged by lifting her to meet his mouth. Barely touching the ground, held in his arms, beneath the sweet onslaught of his kisses, Mariah was flying.
She didn't want to return to Earth.
He pulled away and let her slide the inches back to the asphalt; his chest pulled air in and out. For a guy with amazing aerobic capacity, he sure breathed hard. "You sure?"
"Yes. I am."
"I don't want to drive back to Copper River."
"Me neither."
"Well." A brief, boyish grin softened his hard, bruised face. "Casino hotel?"
"Sounds like a good plan to me." She kissed him again until neither of them could see straight.