Chapter 174

When we reach the door to the gymnasium, everyone stops to look at us. The roar of the crowd dims to more of a purr. I feel like I am in one of those nightmares where you feel like everyone is looking at you. Only I’m awake and everyone is actually looking at me. This isn’t my imagination!

“Uh,” I say eloquently. Are people waiting for me to make a speech?

Fortunately, before I can further embarrass myself, Archer shoves his way through the crowd, grabs me by the arm and drags me back the way he came from.

I turn to wave at Angela but she is immediately swallowed by the crowd.

Archer pulls me to the locker room then drags me inside of it.

“This is the men’s room!” I say, but the roar of the crowd returns and my words disappear.

Past the door, though, it’s blessedly quiet. The roar is a hum in here, like a dying appliance holding on for life.

Beau and Steven rise when they see me. I glance around, but it’s just the four of us in here, thank the Gods. I really didn’t want to accidentally see more man parts than necessary. Always a danger, walking into the men’s locker room.

As we stand there, I expect some kind of pep talk. Instead, Archer has gone very, eerily quiet.

Beau is a bundle of nervous energy, pacing around in a small circle. He’s talking, but speaking so fast that I’m having trouble following.

Steven has his tablet out. He has a calculator app open. I slide up to him to look over his shoulder. He seems to be calculating percentages.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“Determining your odds,” he says.

“He’s been doing that since he heard about your challenge,” Beau says. He turns to pace the other direction.

I glance up at Steven. He doesn’t deny it.

“How are my odds?” I ask.

He glances at me, then looks at the tablet. When I follow his gaze, I see a very, very low number. Something like a thousandth of one percent. He closes the calculator app.

Maybe I shouldn’t have asked.

“It’s ridiculous, that’s what it is,” Beau continues to rant. I purposefully go to him and step directly into his path. He stops when he sees me. I kind of thought he might walk around. “I can’t believe you are putting me through this.”

“Beau –” I try to say. I have no idea what I might have said after that. Maybe I’d roll my eyes or accuse him of being self-centered. After all, I am the one about to fight.

Whatever I might have said is immediately swallowed as Beau’s mouth descends over mine and he thoroughly kisses me right there in front of his brothers. His tongue licks into my mouth and I shiver, reminded by our evening spend together in that small office in the warehouse.

Beau should win awards for that talented tongue of his.

Even now, he seems to be kissing the nerves straight out of me. As he breaks the kiss, he sighs.

“That only helped a little,” he grumbles.

This time, I do roll my eyes.

“I’m stressed,” he says.

I roll my eyes harder. “I’m the one fighting.”

“I know that,” Beau says. “We all know that.”

“We do,” says Archer. His hand grips around my bicep, and suddenly I am pulled out of Beau’s arms and into Archer’s strong embrace instead.

As with Beau, Archer lowered his head and claimed my lips. His were domineering, demanding. He pushed my lips open and claimed my tongue as his own. His hands clawed at my back, leaving pleasant goosebumps across my skin.

He growled against my mouth.

“No fair,” Beau says. “My kiss was impulsive. Not planned for like this one.”

We part ways to breath. Before I can fully catch my breath, Beau swivels me back into his arms. He dips me as if we were in a dance, and then kisses me. He’s tender, coaxing open my lips with a gentle swipe of his tongue. I hold onto his shoulders, losing myself to him.

Steven clears his throat. “She has to get out there now, or she’s going to be late.”

I tap on Beau’s shoulder when he doesn’t immediately let up.

He sighs as he rights me. I roll my eyes at him.

“You guys are hopeless,” I say. “It’s one little fight. Not goodbye forever.”

Goodbye forever would come later. I am not thinking about that right now.

I sneak away from Beau’s arms, just to be caught in Archer’s once more. This time, the kiss is softer. It lingers, gently on my lips.

“Always has to have the last word,” Beau grumbles.

Slowly, I pull away from Archer. He doesn’t move an inch, not to chase me, nor to pull himself away. In leaving him, leaving them, I have to do all the work.

“I’m going to be fine,” I say.

I can’t look at them anymore, it makes my heart ache. How easy it would be to borrow myself in the safety of their arms and forfeit this challenge. I would be safe, might even be happy.

But that isn’t me.

I made this choice, and now I have to see it through. No matter the outcome.

As I reach for the door handle, I hear Archer behind me.

“Anything happens to her, I’ll rip that fucker’s throat out with me teeth.”

Beau snorts. “You’ll have to get in fucking line.”

“Agreed,” Steven adds, softer.

I open the door, and the roar of the crowd fill my ears. Anything else they say eludes me.

I march through the crowd toward the center of the gymnasium, where a small round ring has been arranged. Wyatt stands on the opposite edge of it, wearing basketball shorts and a white tank top. He’s not taking this seriously.

As I step into the ring, I notice the three brothers have followed along behind me.

“You better keep this clean, Wyatt, or you’ll regret being born,” Archer says. He doesn’t add a growl, but it feels implied. Archer is so intimidating, he only needs to say things plainly to instill fear into the hearts of others.

“I’m not the one you should be saying that too,” Wyatt calls back. “If I don’t win, we’ll know it’s only because she cheated.”

That asshole. Trying to set himself up as winner even if I win. Gods. Fortunately, he’s clumsy at playing the angles. The purists won’t believe I cheated. Or at least, they won’t think it matters. Even cheating, I shouldn’t be able to beat a male with a wolf.

Put me in my place? I’m about to put them in their place.

I glance back at the three brothers. Archer meets my gaze and nods. Beau gives me a thumbs up. Steven mouths, You got this.

They are worried for me, but I have their support. That means the world to me.

I won’t let them down.

I won’t let myself down.

“Keep it clean,” says the referee stepping between Wyatt and me. “I want to see a fair fight. We’ll go until someone taps out or goes unconscious. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” Wyatt says.

“Agreed,” I add in.

The referee backs away.

The crowd goes wild.

The bell rings.