Page 50 of Dare to Dance
I swallowed hard. “Am I still fighting?” Given that I was late, I wasn’t sure. I would prefer to put all my effort into becoming the best damn waitress in Boston. By doing that, I could show Ms. Waters I was responsible and prove to myself I could stand on my own. But I had a deal with Tommy first. Nausea began to churn.
Someone tapped me on the shoulder. If it were Tommy, Pete wouldn’t have a warm smile on his face.
Norma cleared her throat. I turned to find my best friend with a scowl on her face.
“Before you yell or tell me how worried you were, I’m sorry. You know how I get after—” My voice dried up when I spotted Tommy. He and I locked gazes.
I had bigger problems than Norma. Tommy’s dark features grew darker with every step he took in my direction. He paused in the doorway between the hall and the main part of the club. “Get your ass downstairs right the fuck now.”
Well, crap. I was still fighting.
“Don’t fight,” Norma whispered.
A war battled inside me. If I didn’t fight, then I would be out on the streets again. I wouldn’t have food in my belly. Above all else, my case to get Raven back would take even longer. “I made a deal.” One last fight. One last deal.
I pushed off the bar as I remembered a conversation I’d overheard between Tommy and Trent that very first night I’d hidden in the dumpster.
“The fight should yield us close to fifteen thousand dollars,” Tommy had said.
“Just make sure she shows. I’ll be taking your nuts if she doesn’t,” Trent had added.
Granted, that conversation hadn’t been about me then, but somehow I got the eerie feeling that it was tonight. Sweat beaded on my body. If Tommy’s nuts were on the line because I was late, then he would hold me responsible. I just wasn’t sure how.
“We can find another job,” Norma said at my back.
Time was our enemy and so was the storm brewing in Tommy’s dark eyes. I weighed my options. I could either run or take my licks until Tommy decided for me. When I was within his reach, he grasped my arm hard.
It was time to fight.
Thick cloudsof cigar and cigarette smoke billowed out of the boisterous room as Norma and I approached.
“You can still back out,” Norma said. She’d been telling me that nonstop during the two minutes Tommy had given me to change into my workout gear.
“Chill.” I blew out a breath as I entered the room. In my mind, I couldn’t run. I’d made a deal, one that would allow me to at least keep waitressing whether I won or lost the fight.
“Holy Moly. You’re fighting Sasquatch,” Norma all but screeched.
Vickie, the very large girl I had told to fuck off the first night I’d found Firefly was cracking her knuckles and bouncing on her feet. Her body gleamed with sweat. She regarded me with a bone-chilling smile as though she was ready to beat my head into the dirty floor.
Suddenly, I berated myself for not spending more than thirty minutes training with Kross. “She’s not seven feet. She’s six.”
“You can’t fight her.” Norma’s voice hitched. “She’s going to seriously damage your body parts.”
Vickie had the advantage. Her sports bra was stretched tight over her well-toned chest. Her biceps reminded me of Kross’s, big and cut. Her short shorts revealed thick thighs. But her muscles weren’t what had me shaking where I stood. Her hands were big. One punch, and my entire face would be bruised. Then Ms. Waters might think it wasn’t safe for my own daughter to be around me. Heck, I didn’t want Raven to see me all black and blue. I was also beginning to think Tommy had gotten me all excited about winning two thousand dollars when he knew I didn’t stand a chance. A psychopathic laugh broke out in my head at something Tommy had said. “You have potential and great footwork.” Those two attributes did nothing to quell my nerves.
“Kross gave me some good pointers,” I said to Norma as I looked for Kross in the crowd.
Norma chewed on a long nail. “If you’re looking for Kross, he’s banned. Remember?”
“He said he’d be here.”
“He’s not walking through the door upstairs. Pete will kill him this time.”
I’d gotten in through the alley door, which had been wide open earlier.
Tommy circled the police-taped ring, extending his arms. “Sorry that we had a snag.”
Whistles and shouts erupted from the throng of men gathered around the ring. The room was packed, but not as much as it had been the last two times I’d been there.
