Page 18 of Seducing Cinderella

“She met him when they literally collided outside of the university one day. She was on her way out of class, and he was involved in some rally about whatever his group had their panties in a twist about that week.”

Reid knew the exact type Eric described. There were entire groups of them that constantly spoke out against MMA. They called themselves “human activists.” He called them “uneducated assholes.” He tried picturing Lucie with a guy like that and failed. Then again, he couldn’t picture her with a guy like Mann either, but clearly she saw something he didn’t. “Okay, so the guy was an activist, she was a student, they met. Then what?”

“The relationship was a fricking whirlwind. One day they met for lunch and the next thing we know they’re announcing their engagement and eloping to Vegas. The whole thing happened so damn fast it made our heads spin.”

“Is that why you didn’t like him?”

“Fuck no,” Eric snarled. “Ihatehim because of what he did to Lucie. She was so blinded by his passion for saving the world and idealistic dreams that she couldn’t see what a total flake he was. That guy couldn’t commit to just one entrée in a restaurant much less commit to one woman. He was a self-important douchebag who loved attention.”

Reid could see where this was headed, and his gut clenched with the familiar desire to put his fists through someone’s face. “Tell me what he did,” he said through a tight jaw.

Eric tensed and glanced at Lucie. His love for her was evident in the narrowing of his brown eyes as he spoke. “Bastard hooked up with some chick a few months into the marriage. I’d bet a year’s salary it wasn’t just a one time—or one girl—thing. Anyway, Lucie caught him in the act. In their bed.”

Reid swore and had to put his beer down before his grip crushed the bottle. What kind of man does that to such a sweet and innocent woman? Oranywoman for that matter. It finally made sense why Lucie was so hung up on finding someone she was compatible with. Her ex had been her complete opposite and the relationship had been a joke. Now she needed to find the opposite of that relationship, which was a long courtship to someone as similar to her as possible. Someone like the guy currently whispering in her ear as she laughed. Dr. Stephen Mann, MD.

“Easy, amigo. Your fangs are showing.”

Reid cut a glare over to Eric. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“You look like a jungle cat ready to sink your teeth into someone’s jugular.”

Reid studied the man, wondering why the fuck he was grinning like an idiot. “Is that so?”

“It is. And although I’d love to wheedle the reason from you, I’ll have to be satisfied with my own ruminations.”

“Why’s that?”

Eric nodded over to the side. “Because Lucie’s headed this way.” Reid followed his line of sight to see her gliding across the room with the biggest smile he’d ever seen on her. “I’ve gotta go hit the head. Nice meeting you, Reid. Maybe I’ll see you around.”

“You too, man. Thanks for the beer.”

A second later Reid forgot all about Eric’s cryptic statements as he focused on Lucie. He felt duplicitous, both wanting to know all the details of her Mann encounter and wanting to pretend like it never happened. But he’d be a pretty shitty friend if he did the latter, so he sucked it up and did the right thing. “How’d it go? Looked like you hooked him pretty deep from what I could tell.”

Lucie clasped her hands in front of her, seemingly trying not to explode. “It happened just like you said, Reid. He noticed me, said I looked beautiful. Is it hot in here?” She started fanning herself. Reid handed her one of the ridiculous diaper-pin drinks. “Mm, thanks, I’m so thirsty.”

A drop of condensation from the glass splashed onto her neck as she tipped her head back to down the entire contents. He had to fist his hands at his sides so he wasn’t tempted to wipe it away as it descended to the sexy hollow at the bottom of her throat.

“Anyway,” she continued, placing the empty glass on a waiter’s tray as he walked by, “we talked for a little while and then he asked me on an actual date. Can you believe it?”

Reid plastered a stiff smile on his face and hoped it passed for the real thing. He had the insane urge to march over there and deck the guy on principle alone. Why the hell wouldn’t he have noticed Lucie before the makeover? So her hair was usually a disheveled mess and she wore her glasses instead of contacts and her clothes didn’t accentuate the tight little body she possessed. Why had that made her invisible to the doctor for the last several years?

When Reid had seen her in her office that first day, he’d liked watching her try to get her errant strands of hair to stay where she wanted them, only to have them fall right after she was done tucking them back. He thought she looked sexy with her glasses on—that whole naughty librarian thing he loved—and she was adorable when she accidentally snorted from laughing too hard.

Mann was a vain asshole who didn’t deserve Lucie, that’s all there was to it. But then again, it’s not as if Reid deserved someone like her either. He couldn’t offer her what she needed. He didn’t live the lifestyle of predictability she craved. When he had fights in other states, other countries, he was more of a nomad than anything. And even if that wasn’t an issue, he still could never be with her. Not as he was currently. A loser. A has-been. A wash-up. No, he needed his title and his championship status back if he ever hoped to be worth anything ever again. Nobody loved a loser. His pop had taught him that. Over and over again.

“Reid? Did you hear what I said?”

Blinking a few times, he brought her back into focus. “Yeah, I heard you. But I’m not surprised. I told you the guy would be all over you.”

She gave a tiny little squeal. “I’d totally hug you right now, but you know, he might be watching, and I don’t want him to get the wrong idea.”

“No,” he replied wryly. “We wouldn’t want that.”

His trainer, Butch, was often trying to get Reid to hold back in a fight. “Know when to use restraint,” he’d tell him. The point was to keep calm, keep your wits, and let the other guy make the first move so you could defend against it, and then counter with something even stronger. Reid had never been good with the idea of restraint. He was more comfortable in the position of the aggressor.

He’d always hated those lessons of restraint. But as the night progressed and he was forced to watch Mann circle Lucie like a shark, Reid had to call upon every last one of them. By using Butch’s mental techniques, he managed to keep his distance, thereby allowing Mann to keep his teeth. At least for now.

Chapter Eight

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