I’d wanted women before, chased them even, but none of them had ever knocked me for six.

I felt the lingering flutter of Ali’s lips on my cheek and mixed with the recent memory of kissing her, I felt my cock twitch.

“Of course, you’ll be able to repay me,” I said.

She tilted her head to the side, her silky hair sliding over her breasts.

“Not like that,” I went on hastily. “I mean…”

Fuck, what was wrong with me? I was a cage fighter, not a pussy.

“If you say so.” She shrugged, glancing away. “Are you fighting tonight?”

“No,” I replied, thankful for the change in conversation. “I’ve had three in a row this week. That was pushing it. Four would be bad news. I don’t want to get cocky.”

“So you’re winning enough points?”

“Yeah, I’ve got a good clip,” I replied.

“What do you get if you win?”

“The Championship?” I raised my eyebrows. “Well, it changes every year, but it never drops below a million.”

“A million…”

“Dollars.”

Her mouth fell open. “You’re shitting me.”

I smirked, liking how Ali’s new look had caused her to grow more brazen. Just like my fists were my armor in the cage, her outward appearance had become hers. It was a shit world we lived in to suppose beauty meant more than intelligence.

“Do you want a drink?” I asked. “Then we can go sit if you want.”

Ali smiled, her whole face lighting up. “Sure.”

At the bar, she ordered a bottle of sweet cider, and I handed over the cash before she could fish out the purse from her pocket. Faye was working her shift, and as she moved past, she gave me a look that said ‘don’t fuck with her.’ I wasn’t that stupid, but my cock had taken on a life of its own from time to time. The ultimate male excuse. Blame it on being horny.

She followed me past the cage, which was empty as fights were being switched over, and to a quiet corner at the very back of the warehouse. It was near the place I’d found her pinned by Mountain, and I bristled at the memory. He was a nasty son of a bitch, and there were no prizes for guessing what would’ve happened if I hadn’t been walking by that night.

We sat on a two-seater vinyl couch against the wall, my eyes darting to the place I’d first seen her. Scared, caught, and completely out of her depth. I’d laid that kiss on her in order to drive the point home with Mountain, but…

“I suppose everyone’s here to win the Championship,” she said, bringing my attention back to her. “Why do you want to win? Just for the money?”

“It’s life changing,” I replied. “There’s a guy who used to fight here who won a few million a couple of years back. He used the cash to start his own business. Maverick was his fighter name. He had a rough go of it before and turned it around. He’s really successful now. He coaches fighters for the AUFC, and his gym is one of the best in the country.”

“Do you want to be like him?” she asked.

Glancing at her, I nodded. “Something like that. My own version.”

“What would you do with the money?”

I was past talking about myself, so I turned the question around on her. “What would you do with a million dollars?”

“Me?” Her eyes widened.

“Yeah, you.”

“Well…” She thought for a moment. “I’d quit my job for starters.”

“Not a fan?”

“It’s…I don’t fit in there.”

“Okay,” I said, sensing it was a sore point. “You’d quit your job. Then what?”

Her gaze fixed on her drink, her lips curving upward slightly. She had a dreamy look about her as she thought about her heart’s desire. “I’d buy a little house someplace quiet. Something that didn’t need a lot of upkeep. A home.”

I frowned, wanting to wrap my arm around her back, but I curled my fingers into tight fists instead.

“A home?” I prodded.

“I haven’t had one in a long time,” she replied, shrugging.

The gesture was becoming repetitive, and I knew it was one of her tells. She was cut up about something, and her default reaction was to shrug it off. Like no one had cared to listen before.

“You live someplace, though, right?”

“That’s the point,” she replied, picking at the label on her bottle of cider. “They’re just places I’ve lived. Nothing more.”

I studied her, my mind ticking over. Most women wanted things like marriage, babies, a hot boyfriend, and a diamond engagement ring but not Ali. All she seemed to want was someplace to belong. Someplace that was hers. A home.

Her head dipped forward, and her hair slipped from behind her ear, covering her face. Reaching out, I tucked the strands back into place. My fingers brushed against her cheek, and her gaze met mine.

An overwhelming urge to comfort her rose, to pull her close and wipe away her tears and taste her lips again. Sucking in a deep breath, I turned away, my cock desperately needing to be rearranged.

“If you want it bad enough, you’ll find a way,” I said. “It’s not always easy, but you’ll get there.”

Silence opened between us, and we sat awkwardly. I didn’t know what to say after that, but finally, she spoke.

“So if you’re not fighting tonight, why are you here?” she asked.

“I’ve got nowhere else to be.”

“What, no girlfriend? No hot date?”

I smirked at her blatant fishing. “No. Nothing like that.”

“Why not?”

It was the perfect question, really. I could walk out into the warehouse and take my pick of any woman, take her home or out back, and fuck until I was blind. If I wanted to make a long-term thing with any of them, they would bend over backward on my cock to please me, but it wouldn’t be real. They wanted what was on the surface. My body, my stamina…my money. They didn’t care about anything else. Finding someone who gave a shit about all the other parts over what they could personally gain…that was a rare bird indeed.

Turning, I plucked at the collar of Ali’s shirt, my hand coming dangerously close to her breasts. “Who knew what I would awaken when I teamed you up with Faye.”

“Too many questions?” she asked, her body tensing.

“For someone who could hardly look at me a day ago…” I trailed off and reached for her cider. Lifting the bottle to my lips, her gaze locked onto my mouth as I downed a mouthful.

If I wanted to kiss her, now was the perfect time. I would put down the bottle, grasp her face in my hands, and when she gasped, my tongue would plunge against hers, devouring her. I’d make her wet and wanting until she begged me to take her home. When we got back to my apartment, instead of going to the bedroom, I’d strip her naked, spread her over the kitchen table, take a seat between her legs, and…

I grunted, breaking away from her. Putting the bottle back onto the table, I felt like heading out back and taking a cold shower. There were women you could have a bit of fun with who wouldn’t fall in love with you the moment you kissed them, and then there was Ali. There was a wide-eyed vulnerability about her that was hot as hell, but I knew it would be wrong to take advantage.

If she was looking for romance, she wouldn’t find it here.

Ali coughed nervously, picked up the bottle, and started picking at the label again. Little pieces of paper fluttered into her lap, but she seemed oblivious to the mess she was making.

“Why do you fight?” she asked out of nowhere. “I mean… When I saw you the other night, I was shocked. Aren’t you afraid of getting hurt?”

I guess this place was confronting the first time anyone came here. You could describe it with all the adjectives in the dictionary, but seeing it was another thing entirely. I couldn’t bullshit her if she asked. There were guys who had to be wheeled out on a gurney and taken to the hospital. There’d been guys who’d died—not many—but they’d bit the dust. Everyone understood the risks of fighting here. There was no forcing anyone to get in that cage.

“It’s cage fighting, Ali,” I said. “No one goes in there with the illusion they’re not going to get hit. No one is invincible.”

“So why do you do it?”

It was my turn to shrug.

“You don’t have anything else you could be doing?”

“No,” I said. “I don’t.”

I glanced away, my cock softening. I wouldn’t need that cold shower after all.

“Listen, I’ve got to go,” I said. “You good?”

She looked disappointed, but she nodded. “Yeah. I’m good.”

Rising to my feet, I hesitated, beginning to feel bad I’d brushed her off so abruptly. I offered her a small smile. “You look really good, you know.”

Edging around the coffee table, I strode off, leaving Ali behind.

Getting involved with her would be bad. Very bad.