Meant for Me (A Second Chance standalone) by L.P. Dover Page A

well, it’s
been a long time since I’ve been in the ring.”
    Tyler guffawed. “It sure doesn’t look like it’s been a long
time. You obviously still train.”
    “I do,” I commented impatiently. “So what exactly do you
want me to do tomorrow? Kick your ass?”
    “From what I saw of your moves I’m sure you’ll kick my ass,
but my father owns a gym and a lot of my friends and I train there. Claire used
to go there with me to work out, so I’m pretty sure she’d love to watch us
fight. I need a worthy opponent to help me train.”
    I lifted a questioning brow. “So what makes you think I want
to help you train?”
    Actually, I was intrigued with the idea because it was only
my second day into the mission and it felt like I was starting to get
somewhere. I had to take a chance.
    Tyler nodded toward the door behind him. “What would you say
if I told you that some of the most hard-core MMA fighters in the world were
through this door?”
    I snorted, “I would say you were full of shit.”
    “What if they were?” he countered. “Would you train with me
tomorrow?”
    He was sure of himself with the confident sneer on his face,
and I had to admit I was intrigued. Could it really be possible? There
was only one way to find out.
    “Okay,” I gave in. “Open the door, then I’ll give you my
answer.”
    Tyler laughed. “Your wish is my command.” He opened the door
wide, and as soon as I stepped in behind him I stopped dead in my tracks,
thinking I had to be in a dream.
    Holy shit, I thought to myself. This couldn’t be
real.
    Tyler was telling the truth, and I just made it one step
closer.

 

     

     
     
    Jake had finally worn me down and made me agree to dance on
stage the coming Saturday night since Mason and I were still going to be in
town. I told him we were staying in town at least for the week, but in my mind
I knew that if Mason didn’t find anything out in that time then it would be
longer. To my surprise, it didn’t look like it was going to be much longer.
When Jake took me down to the right wing of the club, I was shocked to see that
the whole place had completely been renovated.
    A portion of the VIP rooms and some of the secluded sex
spots had been torn away and opened up to make a small arena, and in the middle
of it all was something that made my stomach twist in violent knots … an
octagon ring with Mason in the middle of it. He wasn’t fighting, but he was
standing up there with several other men, comparing moves and techniques. That
wasn’t the problem … the problem was that everything in front of me was one
huge coincidence. There were fighters showing up dead and now Jake has fights
in his club. What if there’s a connection? Jake wouldn’t do that, would
he?
    Swaying on my feet, I almost lost my balance until Jake
caught my arm and helped steady me. “Kitten, are you all right? You look a
little pale,” he said worriedly, taking my hand and leading me to a seat. He
barked out an order for someone to fetch me some water and a couple of seconds
later I had a cold bottle in my hands.
    Swallowing hard, I lowered my head and whispered, “I’m okay.
I got a little dizzy there for a second. I think I drank that wine too fast.”
It was a lie because growing up with a vineyard and a winery I was accustomed
to drinking large amounts of wine and it not affect me.
    Mason must have seen what happened because by the time I
looked up he was already on his way out of the ring and almost to me. Bending
down on his knee, he cupped my face in his hands. In my eyes he must’ve seen
the turmoil because he nodded and slowly helped me to my feet.
    “Too much excitement for you, baby,” he teased, hoping to
lighten the mood. “I guess seeing me in the cage made you feel faint.”
    He chuckled and so did Jake, but I smacked his arm and
rolled my eyes. “You wish, Mason. No, I’m not exactly feeling too good right
now. Do you mind if we go back to the hotel?”
    Nodding, Mason wrapped his