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It was good for Smiley’s as well. The attention Bones brought to the gym had the money rolling in. More people were signing up, the number of promoters knocking on our door increased, and the advertisers were desperate to be a part of what we were currently rebuilding in Bones. The entire fighting world might be divided in their opinion of him, and what sort of person he was, but it was attention. All publicity was good publicity.
I was certain Bones wouldn’t betray us like people were suggesting. My gut told me he wouldn’t throw a fight and screw over Smiley’s and the team we built to support him, even if he had done it before. I didn’t know the full extent of the past yet, not from Bones’ point of view anyway, but I gained the impression that whatever had driven him to make that past mistake was gone.
He was a different man now.
Maybe I was being naïve. Maybe I was just seeing what I wanted to, but my instincts were telling me I was right, and that everything was going to be fine.
“We have a meeting today.” Frankie stalked into the office with Lotto close behind, a furious frown on his face. “The Heathens Hollow promoters want to talk to us.”
My blood ran cold at his statement. If the Heathens Hollow promoters wanted to meet with us today, then we had definitely done something wrong.
“The Godwins?”
“They didn’t say who was coming,” Lotto said as he took a seat.
“Do you think it’s about Bones?” Panic lacing my words. I already knew the answer to that question. What else could it be?
“I would assume so,” Frankie said, maintaining eye contact for a second. I missed him. Jesus, I missed him. “I can’t see what else it’ll be.”
“What time are they going to be here?” I was going to get grilled. I was the recruiter. I’d gone after Bones and essentially forced him to join the gym. If they had any concerns, or they didn’t like it, I was going to have to accept the consequences.
“In an hour or so,” Lotto said, looking more nervous than I was comfortable seeing.
A part of me was glad that it was so soon because it didn’t give Frankie too long to get worked up, but another part of me was totally freaked out. An hour wasn’t long enough to figure out what I was going to say. Sure, I knew why I’d picked Bones and that I’d done the right thing. But how was I going to get that across if they disagreed?
I instantly started pulling up my research, getting some solid numbers on Bones and his stats to present to the promoters. With that, I started to feel a little more confident. He was a damn good fighter with a solid background, and if it hadn’t been for the fuckup at the end, he probably would have been one of the most sought-after fighters on the planet.
A text came through Frankie’s phone, and he scowled. “Scratch that, they’re here now. We better take this to the larger meeting room.”
“Let’s stay calm,” Lotto began.
“Have you met the Godwins?” Frankie asked. “Any of them? Because I have. And if you aren’t nervous then you’re a damn fool.”
My heart raced the second I stepped through the door into the meeting with the Heathens Hollow team, because each had a stern expression. Unlike Frankie, I had never met a Godwin, so I had no idea who was who. But by the looks of the older man in the group with a suit and watch possibly more expensive than everything I owned, and the pure power he exuded from every one of his pores, I guessed he was Troy Godwin—the patriarch.
They were clearly already annoyed about everything, which was going to make this so much harder. Was I going to be able to make them see Bones’ stats and understand the extra revenue that he could bring to the event if they’d already made up their minds about him?
Frankie took the lead with the introductions, and my assumption had been correct.
Troy Godwin stood before me.
I suppose I should have been happy that his entire family wasn’t present, but even his entourage was terrifying.
“I think we all know why we’re here,” Troy Godwin said, frustration and anger dripping from his tongue. “We need to discuss the latest… addition to your lineup.”
I felt sick to my stomach, totally afraid I might not be able to work through this after all. It was all well and good having an idea of what I was going to say, but now that I had all those black, beady eyes staring into my soul, everything was just… floating away. I tried to discreetly draw a few, deep calming breaths, but it wasn’t working one bit. Nerves were bursting through my body, sending trembles through my limbs, and my heart was beating at epic proportions.
