Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 78725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
Just when victory seems within our grasp, the underground fighting world proves it has one last sucker punch to deliver.
The West Coast Circuit promises legitimacy, fame, and the chance to prove ourselves on the biggest stage. But nothing comes without a price. Dirty money. Corrupt sponsors. Threats that could destroy everything we’ve built.
Frankie still burns with the intensity of Freakshow, his protective instincts warring with his need to see us succeed.
Bones fights through pain and loss, his determination to make his father proud pushing him beyond his limits.
Lotto calculates every move, orchestrating our survival while dancing with devils who wear business suits.
And River... he brings something new. Something dangerous. Something that could either complete us or tear us apart.
They’re no longer just fighting for me – they’re fighting for us. For our family. For our future.
But Vegas is calling, and Sin City isn’t known for playing fair. To reach the top, we’ll have to risk it all.
And this time, I’m not sure if even their obsession will be enough to save us
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Chapter
One
LOTTO
Smiley’s Gym had never been quieter.
We’d been through a lot in this place—contracts, training, trees that had a mind of their own, losing, rebuilding, and winning.
But none of those had rendered us as speechless as Beau “River” Fitzpatrick’s offer for the big leagues.
Only a few weeks had passed since we finished renovations to Smiley’s after a storm nearly wiped us out. Even more recently since River and Perk’s Gym tried to do the same in the ring at Heathens Hollow. Now River had dropped something even heavier than a 203-year-old oak right in our laps.
He wanted us to tell Troy Godwin to shove his headliner offer where the sun didn’t shine.
He wanted Smiley’s to go legit and join the West Coast Circuit.
And even better, he wanted to join us and get it done.
If someone had told me we’d be in this position not even a week ago, I’d tell them to book a consultation with a psychotherapist.
I scrolled through my phone, reading and re-reading posts on social media. River wasn’t the only one talking about the circuit. Tons of other gyms and contacts were discussing the “return of the phoenix.” The previous time they’d tried the circuit, it had been a goddamn disaster. Lack of sponsors, fights in dingy high school gyms and people’s fucking driveways, barely a blip on the radar. It had come and gone without fanfare or anyone really giving a shit.
But this time, they promised bigger. Better. More action, more money, more primetime spots. A few huge companies around the West Coast were offering sponsorships for an “up-and-coming boxing league” that could rival the big dogs. “This isn’t your mom’s backyard brawl” one guy wrote in his recruitment post. I’d sure hope not. My mom would lay out anyone who tried to bleed on the prized petunias in her backyard garden, Bones and me included, and not blink a damn eye while doing it.
The thought made me smirk.
“Find something funny?”
I blinked back into reality. Bones leaned over in his plastic chair to check out my phone. I let him, while I admired his thick build and cropped hair. He looked much better than a few weeks ago. Hell, even a few days ago. Heathens Hollow had fucked all of us in one way or another. Bones had just gotten his right hook back to full power and stopped walking with a slight limp in his right leg. Ari’s bruises faded back to that beautiful body I loved, while Frankie stopped looking like someone had shoved a stick up his ass and forgotten to pull it out. The Perks siblings had finally quit their bullshit and let me scroll my usual online haunts for fights in goddamn peace.
There was nothing better than a little room to breathe after everything we had gone through.
Well, except for all the fun we’d had in the club beneath Heathens Hollow.
I highly doubted repeats of that night could happen if we chose to fight for the West Coast Circuit.
“People talking about the same thing River did.” I handed over my phone and leaned back in my plastic chair. “Have you thought about it, Ari?”
“It’s been a day.” She sighed. Playing with the ends of her high ponytail, she muttered, “I don’t even know if we can trust him.”
“We can’t.” Frankie sat next to Ari, eyes closed and arms crossed over his chest. That “stick-in-his-ass” frown was back. I had half a mind to crawl over to him and make it disappear. He couldn’t frown when I was sucking the life out of him, could he? “I never knew River to be a fairweather fighter.”
“We don’t really know much about him at all. He disappeared for a while. I thought he retired.” Bones turned my phone off and handed it back. “What do you think, Lotto?”
“It’s a gamble.” I palmed my phone but didn’t look at it again. “He was our enemy barely a few weeks ago.”
And an insane enemy at that. River was a top fighter, and Smiley’s would be better with him as our ally. With River and Bones on the team, we’d become kings of any circuit we entered. But the circuit wasn’t the only offer we had.
Headliners. After two wins at Heathens Hollow, we were sitting pretty and had enough money in our pockets to last a while. If we promised to fight exclusively for Troy Godwin, we wouldn’t have to worry about much ever again.
But that meant tying ourselves to that bastard for more than just one simple contract.
Goddamn, I needed a drink.
“I don’t think we should do it.” Frankie sat up in his chair, his thin T-shirt flexing against his muscles. “It’s a liability.”
“So is fighting at Heathens Hollow,” Ari argued. “We all know Troy would have us on marionette strings.”
Bones sighed and flopped back in his chair. “And put you back in the ring, Ari.”