Page 48

Hands grabbed at my shoulders, pulling me back as Morales lay blinking up at the lights.

The Pit exploded with noise.

Avila lifted my arm.

I barely registered it.

Because Bett hadn’t moved.

His fingers remained curled tight around the chain. His breathing looked shallow. And there was something wild in his expression now. Something raw.

He’d worn that look when I’d pushed him too far in our room, and he’d snapped back at me with quiet, furious heat.

Like he wanted to fight me.

Or submit to me.

Or both.

I dragged my mouthguard out with my tongue and spat it onto the ground, never taking my eyes off him.

His gaze dropped to my mouth for half a heartbeat.

Then back to my eyes. Heat flared between us, pricking my skin and turning the volume up on my heart rate again until it jackrabbited out of my fucking chest.

The current between us felt almost visible. The same electricity that had charged the air those nights when he’d watched me with someone else—only now there was no pretense. No distraction.

Now it was just me. And him. And the chain-link between us.

I hadn’t wanted to fight tonight, and I sure as shit hadn’t wanted him here to see it.

But standing there with blood drying on my skin and the crowd chanting my name, I felt something settle into place.

If Bett McNeely was going to look at me like that, he was going to have to stop fucking hiding from me.

And let me have him once and for all.

“Vaughnie!” Avila’s voice caught my attention. “Dalton’s on the phone for you.”

Fuck. I turned away to deal with my uncle, and by the time I was finished getting chewed out for tonight’s clusterfuck, I realized Bett was gone.

And when I returned to the room to confront him about everything, he wasn’t there either.

Bett McNeely was a ghost again.

I stared over at his empty bed and let out a short laugh. Babygirl was scared. He must have been having some big feelings about being attracted to another guy. Or, hell, maybe his big feelings were about being attracted to someone he hated.

Either way, I wasn’t going to wait around for him to get his shit together.

If McNeely didn’t want to admit how much he wanted me…

I’d find someone who did.

And I’d make McNeely watch while I did it.

13

BETT