“I think the neighbors know my name now.” Mickey winks.
My only energy left has me shaking my head with a soft smile. I’m weightless in his arms as he takes us back to bed. Mickey refused to get a room with two single beds, and right now, I’m grateful that he did. The last thing I want is to feel cold in the same spot where he set me aflame.
He arranges us so our legs are tangled, and the blanket reaches up to my chin. Even though I’m fighting sleep, he kisses me senseless: my forehead, cheeks, lips, shoulder, the top of my head, anywhere he can reach without moving me.
There’s one question weighing on my mind, and I know once I ask, the post-orgasm delirium wrapping around us will end. But it needs to be asked.
“Damien told me you lost some bad people a lot of money.”
He grunts, and as I expected, the warmth in the air evaporates. “I’ve lost a lot of people a lot of money. He needs to be more specific.”
I shift my head to look up at him as unease rolls through my stomach. “There was a man with a scar on his face.”
“The Vargas Gang—or cartel, depending on who you ask.” He tucks my hair behind my ear. “Don’t worry about them. Everyone thinks they’re a joke. No one will lay a hand on you. I’ll keep you safe.”
“It’s not me I’m worried about. It’s you.” He’s the one who steps foot in the ring and becomes an animal under the spotlight.
He smiles smugly. “I like it when you’re thinking about me.”
“This is serious, Mickey. You’ll be front and center, taunting them each time you take a breath. You have to be careful.”
He holds me tighter. “I am. They won’t get to me, Princess. We’ll get out of here before they get the chance.”
“I still don’t like it. You’re a target in the middle of the arena.” I shake my head slowly.
He turns us so he’s on top and our gazes tangle. “They won’t take me away from you. I promise.”
The boulder in my throat doesn’t get any smaller. Roman is just one person against an army. Despite his fighting name, Ares, he’s not the god he thinks he is, and he sure as hell can’t take on a whole cartel by himself.
“What did you do to piss them off?”
He sighs like it’s a distant memory. “A car came into the prison garage. I was the first one there that morning—and the rule is, first in, first serve. The form said there was something wrong with the suspension. I started working and noticed a tire was a bit fucked and needed to be replaced. I found a kilo of coke glued to the wheel.”
I brows pinch. “Did you tell the guards?”
“Shit, no. I’m no snitch.” He laughs. “Rico saw and claimed it as an Alvarez import. Guess it belonged to the Vargas.” He shakes his head, chuckling to himself. “It wasn’t even the first time someone else claimed their shipment.”
“Then shouldn’t they be mad at Rico, not you?”
He kisses my forehead and pulls me back on top of him, with my head on his chest. “It isn’t Rico’s name on the form.”
“Is there anything you can do to fix it?”
He scoffs. “Hand myself over to them and let them beat the shit out of me so they feel better. Or give them the half a mil they lost.”
“But isn’t it their fault for not getting to it first?
He winks. “My thoughts exactly, baby girl.”
“Just promise me you’ll be careful, Mickey,” I sigh.
“For you, anything.”
“Say it.”
“I promise.”
“And you better mean it. Don’t be stupid tomorrow, okay? We go in, you do the match, and we get out. Which means no getting into fights with anyone else.”
“Okay, I can’t promise that.”
“Mickey!” The definition of staying out of trouble is not starting beef.
“I get a free pass to punch Rico.”
I’m on board with that, actually. “Just a punch?”
“Good point. Punches, plural. I can kick him as many times as I want as well.” He holds his hand out, and we shake on it. “You, Miss Garcia, have yourself a deal.”
I smile and settle back on his chest, feeling the way his chest rumbles as he talks. Mickey tells me about the Cadillac he got to work on in prison, as well as all the other types of cars that came through the garage. He also tells me about his English classes and how boring he thinks Shakespeare is. Yet, I don’t have it in me to mumble any response.