Page 82 of The Way We Are

“That’s where your knowledge of the fighting circuit will come into play. I plan to turn fifty thousand dollars into a quarter of a million dollars by you telling me who to bid on during the next circuit.”

Savannah licks her dry lips as her pupils widen. “I can’t do that, Ryan. I don’t want that kind of responsibility on my shoulders. What if I get it wrong?”

“You won’t,” I assure her, my tone relaying my confidence. “You know these men. You can read them as well as you read me. Just steer me in the right direction. That’s all I’m asking.”

“Ryan...” The rest of her sentence is swallowed by a deep sigh.

“You can do this, Savannah. I know you can. If you can’t do this for yourself, do it for your dad.”

My last sentence is a hit below the belt, but I’m so desperate to get out of the corner we’re backed into, I’m using any tactic I can. Savannah removes it quickly, but I don’t miss the rogue tear that fell from her eye when I mentioned her dad.

After intaking a few deep breaths to calm her nerves, she discloses her worries. “If I lose your money, it will be gone forever, Ryan. I can’t bring it back. I sold every possession we own to put toward my mother’s debt. I can’t replace your money.” Her voice grows croakier with every syllable she utters. “We are flatbroke. My dad’s health insurance pays for his care, but other than that, I havenothingto offer you if your gamble doesn’t pay off.”

“Yes, you do,” I reply as my thumbs remove her tears, hating every one spilling from her beautiful eyes. “You have this.” I trace my index finger over her sinfully plump lips.

“And this.” I trail my fingers down her chest, stopping at the spot thumping so hard it vibrates my fingertips.

“And this.” My voice comes out extra hoarse when my adventurous trek across her body glides over the two large mounds thrusting up and down in the rhythm of her breathing.

When Savannah giggles, I know my playful tease was delivered as intended. Our conversation went from choked with devastation to firing with lust faster than I could snap my fingers.

I run my index finger down the little indent popping in her cheek before murmuring, “But even if those things weren’t on the table, I’d still give you my money, Savannah. Because you're my girl, and anything that's mine is also yours.”

The sun doesn’t have a chance in hell of outshining Savannah when she smiles at my reply. Not a thing in the world can beat her smile...

Nothing but her murmuring, “I love you.”

Prompting me to reply, “But not as much as I love you.”

33

Ryan

Savannah’s breathing is so out of control, a strange whizzy noise accompanies every exhalation as we walk toward an isolated warehouse on the edge of Hopeton.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” she double-checks for the hundredth time the past hour.

I tighten my grip around her hand, answering her question without words. The past five days flew, but it wasn’t filled with just angst and torment. Upon discovering the drug paraphernalia in Damon’s room, my mother agreed with my suggestion of sending him to Aunt Kaci’s for summer vacation.

It took a little bit of convincing, but after showing her the most exorbitant airfares I could find online, she also sided with my proposal of her driving Damon to Aunt Kaci’s to save the hefty airfare she knew her husband would never agree to. Although the situation is not ideal, I not only kept my promise of placing distance between Damon and our father, but I’ve also achieved weeks of freedom from being my mother’s keeper.

Even though my Aunt Kaci is related to my father by blood, she still hates him. Her dislike is so strong, when I called her to say my mom was going to drive Damon to her ranch out in the country in Kentucky, she miraculously fell victim to a horse kick that same afternoon. My mom was so worried about her sister-in-law, she failed to notice the X-ray Aunt Kaci emailed, along with a doctor’s certificate saying she was out of commission for six weeks, was as old as me. My dad was reluctant to let my mother leave for so long, but when Aunt Kaci suggested he hire in-house care for his beloved older sister, he soon changed his mind. He's as stingy as he is violent.

With a promise to return as soon as Aunt Kaci was capable of looking after herself, my mom and Damon left town early the following morning. I should feel guilt that relief was my first thought while watching my mom’s taillights disappear on the horizon, but I don’t. I’ve watched over my mom for years; it’s time for a little break.

“You’ll want to stay near the front, but out of line of the main players,” Savannah says, drawing my focus back to her.

When we stop near a row of chairs on the far right hand side of the ring, she explains, “Bidding opens five minutes before the fight and closes the instant the referee declares the fight is starting. The maximum bet a bookie can accept without seeking approval is fifty thousand dollars.”

“Can you bid on my behalf?” I ask, mindful some of the bookies may recognize me from the times I fought in this circuit.

Although Col’s fighting circuit is closer to our home base, with the smaller circuits having less stringent security measures, we chose to visit one over thirty miles from home.

“No. Women are here merely for entertainment, not to be entertained.” Our scoot past a small gathering of scantily dressed women strengthens Savannah’s reply.

A week of quiet isn’t the only thing I achieved since my mom and Damon left town. I’ve also had a week of exploring every inch of Savannah’s body. It’s been a glorious motherfucking week.

I want to act like a stud and pretend Savannah was on her back the whole time, but that would be a lie. We did the standard things any new couple does: we went to the annual fair at her school Friday night; we watched a handful of corny rom-com movies, and we shared a milkshake while watching the sun disappear on the horizon last night. Although none of the things we did required a lot of money, the time we spent together was priceless.

---