Page 20 of Clinch'd

My lip trembles but I will back the wobble and say coldly, “Fuck you.”

It’s not much for a comeback but it’s fucking succinct. I walk away after that, seething as I duck into the restroom once more, and it’s only as I’m leaning against the fancy damn stall again that I realize I fucked up.

I’m supposed to be wooing him or some shit and I just told him off and stalked away in a fit. Fuck. What will Suit do now?

Chapter 6

Cooper

Fuck me but I don’t think I’ve ever been the one to get shut down before. My dick aches like a motherfucker and it definitely leaves me cranky. This and I was well on my way to seducing little Minnie into blabbing all her secrets.

Jordan gets the brunt of this when I exit and find him waiting for me. Of course, I cut him off because I’m not in the mood.

The fucker would follow me into the john if I let him and usually it doesn’t bother me because he’s a good manager even if he is an asshole.

Now though I have a hard on that won’t quit and the taste of Minnie still coats my tongue. Fuck me but if I don’t think of something and quick, I’m gonna embarrass the uptight fuckers on the other side of those doors.

I hate these fucking events with the jerks who fawn all over us like we’re celebrities while simultaneously turning down their noses at our supposed violent tendencies.

I know it’s a part of the game and good press but these days I’d rather have a fucking beer and watch a game on television—shit gets old.

Besides, if I want to be at my best, I can’t eat and drink what these assholes serve so I’m constantly hungry and on edge. Thoughts of which being me back around to Minnie and my dick throbs painfully in my pants.

Strangely, the look in her damn eyes when she lashed me with her tongue lingers and something weird burns my chest which I refuse to analyze.

She’s not as sweet and innocent as she proclaims to be. So why the theatrics? We both want the same thing just for different reasons. I refuse to feel fucking anything as a result.

The luscious little troublemaker will do fine to sate my raging libido but beyond that, she’s just another person trying to get something from me. The question is—what?

“Patterson wants to see you in Vegas,” Jordan says and that effectively kills my arousal.

Patterson. Fuck me. The little prick won’t get off my ass, but I need him which is why I string him along.

“Fine.” I leave Jordan behind and stalk into the ballroom meeting Beast’s dark stare. Baring my teeth, I give him a finger wave and he scowls. Good.

Fucker. I’m tired of his games too.

The following day I call home. Mom doesn’t let a week go by without speaking to each of us and I’m sweating any questions she might have about Monroe.

Since it’s a beautiful morning, I’m sitting on the back deck, watching the sun rise in the sky. I haven’t done this in a while and if my chest wasn’t a tight ball of anxiety, I might enjoy it more.

“Son,” she says quietly, and I exhale.

Call me a mama’s boy but something about hearing her voice brings me peace but don’t take her quiet tone for being a pushover. She’s a lioness when it comes to her brood.

“Hey Mom,” I say and clear my throat. Even though she can’t see me I still fear her sixth sense for knowing when I’m lying.

When I was sixteen, she confronted me about sneaking out and I insisted it was to meet the boys for a party. Meanwhile, I popped Melanie Stone’s cherry, and I was riding that high until I found her waiting for me in my room. Luckily, she didn’t push it, but I sweated through that explanation just like I’m sweating in anticipation of this one now.

“How are you?” she asks.

“Good. Going out of town for a few matches and some press in a few days.”

“Hm,” she hums, and I shake my head. I know she doesn’t like what I do but it’s hard to explain how much it helped me all those years ago when I was angry about my life and the loss I didn’t know how to process.

Now, the steam is slowly dissipating and anymore, I’m tired of getting in that ring. Maybe it’s because what I’m fighting for lost its luster or maybe I lied to myself to begin with.

All I know is that what used to push me to be the best is no more and I can’t help but wonder if I’ll start to lose the feeling altogether.

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