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“That is your first mistake,” he says from behind me. “Thinking we can control Dima. You better tell us where Liam is before this gets really ugly.”
“Well, well, look who’s come to pay us a visit.”
Liam walks through the door, and before Nikolai can stop me, I’ve crossed the distance and already thrown a punch. I barely have time to register his smug face turn to one of pure shock or the ache in my hand from hitting his jaw. It happens in a split second, and all I feel is rage. Liam instinctively throws his hands up to protect his face and shuffles backwards before regaining his balance. I don’t hesitate. Preparing for another punch, I let out an angry yell when a pair of arms wrap around me from behind, pinning me in place while Anton and Aleksei step in close to Liam, making sure he keeps his distance.
Nikolai’s voice cuts through my rage. “Easy, Dima. This isn’t the way to get back at him.” I cling to the familiar sound of Russian. It’s the only thing that makes sense right now.
“That little fucker has to pay,” I yell, looking straight at Liam. His lip is split, and there’s a steady stream of blood running down his chin and onto his nice, white shirt. It’s not enough, though, not even close.
“He will,” Nikolai says.
“Enough of the fuckin’ Russian,” Paddy cuts in. He waves his hand at me and adds, “And no more punchin’ if it’s not in the ring.”
“That’s how we settle this,” Nikolai says, switching to English. “We set up a fight between Dmitri and Liam. No rules. They fight till one of them doesn’t get up.”
“Let me go,” I say to Nikolai while Paddy studies us, probably thinking about what his chances are of making any money on this.
Nikolai hesitates for just a second before releasing his grip on me. I notice that he doesn’t move, staying right behind me with Anton on my left, watching me like a damn hawk.
“I’m fine,” I tell them, taking a deep breath and circling my shoulders to relieve some of the tension.
“When would the fight be?” Paddy asks. He eyes Liam’s split lip, and I wonder if he actually thinks the Irish have a chance of winning this.
“One week,” Nikolai says, patting my back in ashut the fuck up and let me handle thiskind of way. “We can even have it here at your club. We’ll invite our own people, of course, who want in on the betting, but the fight can be here in your ring.”
I look at Liam and resist the urge to take the few steps between us and kick his sorry ass. I don’t care where we have the fight. It makes no difference to me which ring we’re in when I make him pay.
Paddy turns to Liam. “Are you sure you can take him? You better tell me now if you have any doubts.”
Liam smirks and turns aside to spit out a string of blood. I’m guessing he’s got a few loose teeth from the punch, and I’m looking forward to adding more in a week.
“Yeah, I can kick his Russian ass.”
As pissed as I am, I can’t help but laugh. “Okay, laddie, we will see in a week.”
His face turns red at my words, and when he charges forward, Aleksei is there to stop him with a hand on the chest.
“I suggest you enjoy the one week you have left of good health and back the fuck off.”
Liam eyes Aleksei before turning his attention to me. “Your girlfriend sure is pretty.” His bloody mouth spreads into a grin. “Feisty too, just like I like ‘em.”
Nikolai’s arms are around me again, pulling me away before I even get a chance to move.
“Are you fuckin’ insane?” Paddy asks him, smacking Liam in the back of the head like a disobedient child. “You really want to fight him now when he’s this angry. Take the fuckin’ week they’ve given you and let the bastard cool down.”
Anton steps closer, grabbing one of my arms so Nikolai can grab the other and lead me to the door. I don’t fight them, but they’re not stupid enough to let me go. Aleksei waits until he’s sure Liam isn’t going to do anything stupid before following us out.
“One week, Paddy,” Nikolai shouts back before we shut the doors. “Can I let go now?” he asks me, switching back to Russian. “Or are you going to run back in there like a jackass and ruin this whole thing?”
“Ruin what?” I ask, shrugging their arms off. “You should have just let me kick his ass, and then we’d be done with it.”
“No, and then your ass would be in jail because Paddy would’ve called the cops and had you arrested, and you damn well know it. Now, thanks to yours truly, you have a fight set up that they’ve agreed to, a fight that ends with one of you unconscious most likely, and Paddy can’t do a damn thing about it. There will be a shit ton of witnesses to say that it was an agreed-upon fight and that you both knew what you were getting into. Plus,” Nikolai adds with a big grin, “you’ll be able to make a killing off the Irish. You’re going to hit them where it really hurts, and it’ll take them years to recover from the blow, if ever.”
He waves a hand at the rundown exterior of the club. “I mean, look at this place. They’re obviously hard up for cash.”
When I don’t argue, Nikolai laughs and elbows Aleksei. “I made him speechless.”
“I’m just glad you were able to stop him,” Aleksei says, digging his keys out of his pocket and heading for his car. “I did not want to be in the middle of that damn fight.”
