Smash_ A Stepbrother MMA Romance(66)

“Come inside and talk to me. Don’t throw everything away on this guy.”

I felt the rage still inside me, but there was something else as well. It was the only thing that could stop me, that could pull me back from the brink. It was the only thing strong enough to save me when all I wanted was to be damned.

I couldn’t say the word, not yet. But it was there and it was her.

I slowly climbed off the bike. Alexa wrapped her arm through mine and held on to my bicep, and we walked back inside together.

I never wanted to see that look on her face again, not because of me at least. I couldn’t describe the anger I had felt, but I also couldn’t describe how badly it hurt me to know that she was afraid of me.

We walked up the stairs. I let her lead me into her bedroom, and we slowly climbed into bed together. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her tight against me, feeling her breath against my chest.

We didn’t say a word. I didn’t think we needed to. We just lay there, breathing together, feeling each other’s bodies. I wanted to reach down between her legs and feel the heat of her pussy, but something held me back. It wasn’t like I was shy or some shit; the moment just didn’t feel right.

Instead, we just stayed there together. It was the most intimate I had ever felt with a woman.

We must have fallen asleep, because I woke up later with a start. Alexa was still tangled up in my arms and breathing deeply. I slowly tried to pull myself away, but that only made her stir.

“Hey,” she said, groggy. “What time is it?”

I checked her clock. “Almost six.”

“Seriously? Wow. We slept for a while.”

I smiled as I slowly sat up, rubbing my eyes. “Yeah, we did.”

She propped herself up on one elbow, looking at me through her hair. “You okay?”

“Yeah. I’m good.”

I stood up and stretched.

“You’re not going to rush off and murder anyone?” she asked.

“Not right now, no.”

She nodded. “Good.”

I looked at her seriously. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s okay,” she said simply.

“I don’t know what happened.”

“I don’t blame you, really.”

“I just lost it.”

“Cole, it’s fine. Really.”

“Listen to me. You don’t have to ever be afraid of me.”

She looked surprised and nodded slowly. “I know that.”

“Good.”

We were quiet for a second. “So, what now?” she asked.

“I have to make a phone call.”

She opened her mouth to say something, but I was already out the door. I headed downstairs and into the basement. I cringed when I saw the mess I had made, and I promised that I’d clean it up as soon as I was finished.

I found my phone in my bag and pulled it out. It took me a minute to find Trent’s manager’s number. I hit dial and let it ring.

“Hello?” he answered.

“This is Cole Redson,” I said. “I want to talk to you and your client.”

He was silent for a second. “Okay, Cole. What’s up?”

“Add Trent to this call. Then I’ll tell you.”

“Okay,” he said awkwardly. “Sure. I can’t promise he’ll answer. Are you sure we can’t figure this out between us?”

“Call him.”

“Okay.” I heard some clicks and leaned up against the wall, waiting. The phone began to ring again.

“Still there?” he asked me.

“Yep.”

After four rings, I was ready to give up when Trent answered.

“Dave,” he said. “What do you want?”

I felt another wave of anger, but I took deep breaths and kept myself under control. It wouldn’t help if I lost my shit again, not right then. I needed to keep myself centered.

“Trent, I have Cole Redson on the line.”

“Hi, Trent,” I grunted.

There was a surprised silence. “Well, uh, this is unexpected. What do you want, Cole?”

“Cole called me and set this up. I actually don’t know what’s happening. What can we do for you, Cole?” Dave added.

I could hear the worry in the manager’s voice, which didn’t surprise me.

“This is about the blackmail,” I said.

There was silence from the other two guys.

“What blackmail?” the manager said finally.

“Trent, we know it’s you. Stop the shit,” I said.

For a second, Trent didn’t respond. Dave started to say something but was cut off when Trent finally started to laugh.

That pissed me off. I had to lower the phone and close my eyes, working hard not to rage hard again.

“—such a mistake,” Trent was saying as I brought the phone back to my ear.