Page 12 of The Midnight Delivery

ROUND FIVE

After a brief searchof AJ’s home to familiarize myself with where certain things were, I stepped out onto the front porch to wait. When Damian arrived a few minutes later, I forgot everything else. My troubles of the day, the trauma from the night before, everything. Including my ability to form words. His crisp white t-shirt hugged a hard, muscular body, and even in the darkness from the night, the gray sweatpants he wore outlined the imprint of his manhood. He might as well have arrived in lingerie. Up to this point, I’d only seen him on film from a distance, and thought he was incredible. With him standing before me, my knees went weak. His chiseled, sculptured frame made me want to collapse. Then he spoke my name, and I knew I would.

“Ariana?” His voice was deep, and rich, equally smooth and sensuous.

My body flooded with warmth, and my fingers ached to touch him. My mouth opened to say his name in response, but my ears heard nothing but the sound of my own heartbeat as it pounded in my ears.Get it together, Ari. This is what you wanted. No. This is what you want.

I asked him if he’d brought the wine, as I craved the alcoholic confidence. The man was so in tune with me, he’d picked up my favorite Pinot Noir,anda box of milk chocolate. If I died right there, it wouldn’t have been more perfect. I grabbed him by the hand and led him inside, partly out of fear I would tear his clothes off and fuck him right there on the porch.

He toyed with me as I found two wine glasses in the cupboards, saying things like I’m an amazing woman, and telling me how incredible my eyes were. These weren’t very original, but coming from the man of my desire, I was a pool. I did my best to play the game with him as I poured the wine, and used my best mental devices to not appear anxious, but then I looked below his waist and became a mess.

Damian picked up on my want, crossed the room, and pulled me into his arms. He joined his lips to mine and I melted. His scent was deliciously masculine, a subtle woodsy and sexy. He spun me so my back was to him, and my world dissolved. His hands and mouth searched my body, until every nerve ending was ablaze and I could take no more.

“Fuck me,” I moaned. I couldn’t believe the words had come out of my mouth, but the yearning for him demanded satisfaction.

When Damian entered me, it was as if the moon and stars came from behind their hiding place and lit up the night. We moved together as one, the symphony of our bodies playing the perfect love song, and as I moved to crescendo, I forgot myself. I reached the point of no return and shattered, grateful for the wave of pleasure, which drowned me in a sea of ecstasy.

#

IHADN’T BEEN WITHmany men before Damian. I tried to play it cool as he left, but my inexperience smacked me in the face. We’d just had sex with no condom. The realization of my fantasy was more than I dreamed, but reality was a bitch.Of all the things to forget, Ari,I scolded as I cleaned myself. I set everything back as it was in AJ’s home and left, locking the door behind me. Thoughts of pregnancy would have to wait. The Midnight Prize was a couple hours away, and I had to check on Dustin. He hadn’t contacted me at all during the day, and there was zero room for error if the night was going to play out the way I needed.

“Get your ass in gear and meet me at The Pit,” I texted.

There may literally be, no tomorrow. I sped away and towards our date with Tony Schmitt, knowing everything rested on my decisions. If we were going to die tonight, it would be on my terms, and my terms alone.No more mistakes,I demanded as I stared in my rearview mirror.No more excuses. Tonight, Ari, you become the woman you are meant to be. Or die in the attempt.

#

“YOU DID, WHAT?”

Dustin was furious. His eyes were as red as lipstick, and veins bulged from the side of his forehead.

“Well,” I said coolly. “You didn’t bother to check on me today, so I had some fun on my own.”

“Fuck your ‘fun,’ and you don’t dothatalone. This wasn’t the time or place, or...or person.”

Dustin arrived at the parking area to The Pit a few minutes after I had as I’d instructed him to, and we walked through the crowd together to the fight area. The Pit was an underground fight club where people paid admission to watch two men beat the daylights out of each other. It had an online following in the millions, with countless bets wagered on things such as who would win, how long matches would last, and even if bones would be broken. The only bet no one wagered on was if someone would be killed in the match, though that was a distinct possibility, to discourage a fighter from going into a match looking for murder. These were modern day gladiators with few to little rules, except the respect of competing against another man willing to risk it all and put his body on the line.

The fight area was the asphalt of a local park. Expensive cars owned by men with expensive tastes were circled up with the interior of the circle as the arena. Spectators observed from right inside the perimeter, and left their expensive headlights on to light the event.

This crowd was massive, as the buildup to the fight between the Vampire and the Wolf had gone viral. Avoiding the police was no easy task, unless they were in line to benefit from the proceeds. It wasn’t a stretch to believe someone in the OPD was out to serve and protect themselves. I grabbed Dustin by the arm, as he pushed our way through the throng. The bloodlust in the air was palpable and thrilling. The crowd was in rare form tonight, and if I had my way, they were in for quite the show.

We reached the inner part of the circle, and I scanned the crowd. The final two fighters before our match were in the midst of knocking the hell out of each other, but I wasn’t there for them. Searching each face in the crowd, most were enthralled by the action in front of them, save a couple of men spread throughout. I made eye contact with two of them standing side-by-side. The shorter one nodded towards me and smiled. I mirrored him, just as Dustin looked down his shoulder towards me.

“What are you smiling at him for?” He asked. “Stop it. He’s not the kind of guy you want to fuck.”

“You’re right,” I said and laid my head on his arm. “But he is.”

Damian emerged on the opposite side of the crowd, and my smile grew until my cheeks hurt. Fire rushed my face, and my body grew warm. Even separated by a ravenous crowd, across a battle arena, I was struck with the man. My fingers ached as thoughts of running them over his iron torso flooded my mind. He stood unrivaled with Derek beside him. Derek was yelling something in Damian’s ear I couldn’t make out over the roar of the crowd, but it was enough to snap me out my fantasy. He was obviously preparing Damian to face my brother, and I had to do the same.

“I told you, Ari,” Dustin growled. “You’re not getting involved with fighters. No fighters.”

“Too late,” I quipped and continued to smile at the man of my dreams.

“What the fuck?”

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