UNDYING: A Bad Boy MMA Romance (Midwest Alphas) (Book 3) by Tabatha Kiss Page B

holds him back. My entire body shakes in fear of him. The moment grinds to a halt, blurring in slow motion until the green returns to his eyes.
    “Claire…” His voice sounds as quiet and soft as a lone raindrop. He releases me, lowering his hands to his sides before taking a long step back.
    “There it is…”
    I turn around and look to the mat. Pike sits at its center, propped up on one elbow, his other hand massaging his jaw while blood seeps from his nose.
    “That’s it, Tobias,” he says, sliding to his knees.
    Tobias stares down at him, saying nothing in return. He walks out of the ring and disappears into the back hallway, veering left towards the men’s locker room.
    I look for Ryan and find him leaning against the far corner with Amy attached to his arm. His cheek is red, connected to a split and swollen bottom lip. “I’m sorry,” I say to him.
    Ryan nods, but gives a nonchalant wave to show he holds no grudge.
    I turn back to Pike and stare up into his eyes with a white-hot fury. “I need to have a word with you,” I say, refusing to even blink. I step out of the ring without bothering to wait for his response and charge towards the back hallway. His feet follow me until we pass into the abandoned women’s locker room. It sits in the exact same condition as it was the last time I saw it six months ago; pristine, pink, and unused.
    I cross my arms about my chest as Pike walks over to the sink in the corner and wets a paper towel to dab against his bleeding nose. “What the hell were you thinking? Did you think that was funny ?!”
    “Of course not,” he says before hocking his red spit down the drain.
    “Pike, I promised you he’d play nice. I promised that he’d stop trying to get justice for Mary — which for the record , you absolutely deserve to be locked up for — but I can’t keep that promise if you keep poking him like a damn lab rat every time you want to get a rise out of him.”
    “Claire…” He smashes the towel in his palm before tossing it to the floor. “If he’s really going to beat Rick, then he’s going to have to go to a very dark place. Rick has already proven he’s willing to kill to take back what he wants and we have to make sure Tobias is just as willing to do the same.”
    “Tobias is willing to kill.”
    “No, he’s not.”
    “He almost slit your throat last year, Pike. Or have you forgotten about that?”
    “Exactly, Claire…” He pushes in close, so close I feel his breath on my forehead. “ Almost , but you stopped him.” I counter with a step back, but he just closes the distance between us with a quick stride. “If we really want Tobias to be ready for this, then he has to be pushed farther than even you are capable of pulling him back from.”
    I pause as my heart lurches in my chest. “I can’t lose him again, Pike…” The words fly through my lips, passing every filter before I can stop them. “I don’t want him to become you .”
    “Well, I’m sorry, Claire,” he whispers. “But when all of this is finished, he may not be the same man you know now.” He turns around and moves towards the door.
    “I have to believe there’s another way…” I mutter.
    Pike lets his hand rest on the door knob. “I’m all ears to you, Claire… but for the record , you’re wrong.” He pulls the door open but stops as Amy appears and blocks the doorway.
    “Guys…” she says, her eyes wide. “Veronica is here.”
    We follow her back to the main room to find Veronica standing at the entrance. Tobias and Ryan stare at her like a ghost. Her face is so pale and white. It nearly blends with the winter world falling down outside the window. She wears the same white fur coat she wore two nights ago to our meeting. As I draw closer, I notice dark stains discoloring it from top to bottom. She holds a small shoe box in her hands, clenched tightly against her chest.
    “Veronica?” Amy asks, the only one of us daring enough to step closer to