“Relax. Close your eyes and breathe.” I follow the sound of Briggs’s deep voice during our session, and I settle in. I know what’s coming. He’s going to attack when I least expect it.
I let out a grunt as two glove-clad fists hit my chest, almost knocking the wind out of me. I’m punching before I even open my eyes. Right, left, right, left, right, left.
“Enough!” Briggs bites out, and I stop. I still haven’t mastered the art of being attacked when you least expect it and maintaining control. I still get startled, but my recovery and response time are getting quicker.
“Relax. Breathe,” he says slowly. He isn’t even breaking a sweat yet. I’m hit again, and again I fight back. I picture Aiden’s face, tossing me into the cab, the way he dismissed me.I don’t want to have to bury a body tonight…Fuck him. I keep hitting.
“Enough, Mia!” Briggs’s command cuts through my anger and I freeze.
“Full of fire today, aren’t you?” he queries, a little breathless himself.
My chest heaves, and I breathe noisily through my nose as I nod. “Guess so.”
“I called you off twice. It was like you didn’t hear me.”
I look up at him, ready to apologize. He grins.
“Whatever’s got you riled up, that was your fastest response time yet. Good job. Keep it up. Now, let’s go again…”
I close my eyes and focus. I go back and forth with Briggs for the next hour, until I’m worn out and much calmer than I was when I arrived, and he only gets the better of me twice.
“Best session yet, Mia,” Briggs says, offering me a water when we’re through. “Keep fighting like that, and you’ll be going for the next belt before you know it.”
I smirk as I take a sip. At least Aiden Foxx is good for something.
Rage fuel.
* * *
“Tonight’s five-dollar beer night. And it’s gonna be packed.”
Roz hands me a tablet. “Did Cara go over how to work this?”
I nod. “Yeah, similar to the Palm. I’ve got it.”
“Great.” She lifts a case of Bud onto a stool behind the bar and starts placing the tall cans into the cooler. “You’re taking VIP rooms three and four tonight. Three is already reserved. It’s a bachelor party. Those rooms are your priority. You serve them well, and you could make a killing.” I nod. That doesn’t sound so bad.
“When the girls get asked to come in for private dances, you stay out, let them make their money then.” I nod, looking around. The place is already filling up and it’s only seven.
The music is loud but sultry, and the men look right at home, loosening their ties after a long day, watching girls dance.
“Oh, and those three guys in the corner? They’re a specialbunch. Tread lightly,” Roz adds. I look over at them discreetly. They’re wearing Wretched Souls MC cuts. I don’t see the one who whispered in my ear last night, but I see my other target clear as day, sitting at the table, tall and lanky with graying spiky hair and a full, gruff beard, watching me intently as he sips his drink. I never really looked at him that day at the Yard. But I remember him from the clubhouse last night. His eyes make me feel uneasy.
“What’s their deal?” I turn back to Roz.
“Dagger, Mr. Salt and Pepper, he’s known to…collect things. He’s their prez.”
I cock my head, not understanding. “Collectthings?”
Roz leans in a little. “By things, I mean…women. I don’t know firsthand, but rumor is, he’s into some crazy shit.”
I wait for more.
“Shit, youareinnocent, aren’t you? Orgies, drugs, weird shit you don’t want to know about.”
“I’m tougher than you think,” I coax her, curious.
Roz sighs. “One of the girls did a private party at his clubhouse, and they asked her to piss on a glass table while he laid underneath kinda fucked.”
