Chapter 23

Phoenix

Iput McKenzie's arm on mine and guide her down to the basement of the warehouse. Her attitude is in full force and I smirk. I let her go to the personal bathroom attached to my office and stood inside while she relieved herself. I did give her some privacy. I faced the door since I'm not a complete ass. Kenz didn't agree and she told me so.

I chuckle at the memory, and she glares up at me. I lean down and kiss the side of her forehead because she turns at the last minute to look straight ahead. I release her arm and wrap it around her waist, then grope her ass. She bites her lip and sucks in a quick breath. My girl is turned on.

Leaning down, I whisper in her ear, "I love when McFeisty comes out to play." I cup her ass again and make sure when I do, my middle finger gets close to her pussy just to tease her a little more. She tenses a little, then pushes back into my hand. I remove it immediately and she huffs. This is what I've missed over the past several months. This side of her.

What she doesn't know is I'll make sure she's satisfied tonight and I don't think I'll be able to wait until we get home. There's a crowd beginning to form at the entrance, but no one has been allowed in except the fighters. Rex pushes through, guiding us in, and Jason follows us. I hold Kenz close to me, looking at every face we pass. I wonder if my mother shows up at these fights.

I still have a lot of questions for McKenzie. How did my mother get into auctions and I didn't see her? Granted, we wear masks, but I would think I'd recognize my own mother. But I lost her not too long after McKenzie lost her mother, so maybe I wouldn't. It's been over a decade since I last saw her. She may look completely different now. Still, I continue to look for her dark blonde hair and eyes the same color as mine.

People move out of our way, recognizing who I am. The vibe down here is completely different from the one upstairs. Excitement is in the air. There's laughter; some from enjoyment, others from the high they're getting off whatever drug they just took. People are dressed comfortably, but more skin is showing.

We walk past a group of guys that are throwing punches in the air, but they all stop when they spot McKenzie. She doesn't notice at first because she's taking in all the sounds, noise, and smells. I have to remind myself that this is the first time she's been here. At least that's what she thinks. She doesn't remember the other times I've brought her. After a few seconds, she realizes it got unnaturally quiet, and she looks toward me, but pauses when she sees the group of men staring at her.

She's a sight to behold in her ripped jeans and red top that hugs all of her curves. To top it off, the collar around her throat makes me want to fuck her right here, right now. Her fingers come up and touch the collar and the men's eyes follow. The disappointment that's evident in each of their eyes makes me smirk. She seems to realize they're disappointed and her mouth tips up into a small smile.

As we pass, she shrugs at them. "Sorry, boys," she says in that sexy raspy voice of hers. I enjoy watching them watch her. Like I told her, I don't mind others looking, but if they touch, I'll make sure they won't be able to touch anything ever again. I stop when we get a little ahead of the guys and McKenzie looks up at me with a question in her eyes.

I lean down and kiss her; long, hard, and dirty. Wrapping my hand around her throat and my other arm around her waist, she sucks in a breath and kisses me back with enthusiasm. I force myself to pull away and she gives me a curious look. I run the back of my knuckle from her temple, down her cheek, and jaw.

"Such a good girl." She beams up at me, loving the praise. I kiss her one more time, then grab her hand, interlocking our fingers, and lead her to the locker room. There are fighters getting their hands wrapped while others are warming up. I greet those who greet me and continue through until we get to my office.

Felix is waiting for me, sitting in the chair in front of my desk. He's sprawled back, his ankle crossed over his knee as he looks through some papers. Felix is a tall skinny guy with hair as black as a raven. He looks like a young James Dean, but with black hair. Many of the girls would love for him to take them home, but he doesn't pay any of them any attention.

When he notices me, he raises his hand to greet me as he continues to leaf through the papers. He doesn't look up until I sit in my chair and pull Kenz into my lap. He does a double take when he sees her.

"Kenz, doll! I was wondering when I'd see you again. Feeling better?" I stiffen, hating myself for not warning her about him.

But McKenzie doesn't flinch. She smiles broadly at him. "I am. Thank you for asking." She leans back into me and I pat her thigh lightly so she knows I'm proud of her.

"Felix," I say his name so McKenzie will know it and she relaxes a little when she realizes it. "Who do we have tonight?"

He leafs through his papers again like he wasn't just looking at them. He knows all of these fighters inside and out, but he still studies their papers just in case. He's good at his job, that's why I hired him. "The one to beat will be Bill. Everyone is placing bets on him."

I nod. He'll win unless we have someone off the streets that hasn't made a name for themselves yet. It's happened. That's how Bill got here. He came in one night and upset so many people because of the thousands, some millions, they lost. But since then, he's earned them so much more.

I glance at McKenzie. I didn't prepare her enough, but I can't back out now. "How many girls are here?" Kenz doesn't react, which surprises me a little. I did tell her a little about this months ago, so maybe she's going to take this better than I'm giving her credit for.

"Twenty. Shay won't be here, though. She sent a text saying she wasn't feeling it tonight." He shrugs and reaches into his pocket, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. He takes a pull before speaking again. "I think it's time to talk to her. She hasn't been here in a while. If she doesn't want to do this anymore, maybe she can work somewhere else?"

Kenz moves and I glance up at her and she arches an eyebrow at me. She wants to know if she should know who Shay is. I give a slight nod. She pulls her lips between her teeth. She wants to say something, but she'll wait. I rub her thigh. She's doing so well. She just got punished, but I'm definitely going to reward her for how well she's doing.

"I agree. When's the last time you saw her?" I haven't been to a fight in a few months. Not since that night I left on my motorcycle and I stared up at McKenzie in her room. Felix takes another pull from his cigarette as he thinks.

"Shit, it has to be going on three months, maybe four." He puts the cigarette out in the ashtray next to his chair and stands. "I'm going to tell the guys to begin taking bets. We'll be ready for the first fight in thirty minutes or so." He gives us a small salute and walks out, closing the door behind him.

I kiss McKenzie's neck. "You did so well, love." She smiles at me, but I can tell she wants to say something. "Go on." I encourage her.

"Who's Shay?" She asks. I look away. I hate that she can't remember, but it's not her fault.

"Shay was one of the first girls we rescued." McKenzie's eyes widen slightly. She twists her lips to the side.

"We rescued her? How?" I rub my hand up and down her thigh.

"One of the reasons I forced you to marry me is because if you're married, you can choose not to have sex with the person you buy. I forced you to marry me when I did because I was told there would be someone from Brighton being sold at the next auction, but I learned her father decided he couldn't go through with it. It was my intention to rescue her, but I wasn't having sex with someone that wasn't you."

Her mouth opens and closes several times. "Why didn't you tell me that? Instead of forcing me?" She finally asks, her eyes narrowing. "I remembered you telling me if you're married you don't have to have sex with the person you buy. But I wasn't sure if it was because you cared about me or not." She pulls her lips between her teeth and glances away.

I shake my head and inhale sharply. Wrapping a hand around the side of her neck, I pull her down until I can rest my forehead against hers. "I was an asshole." She snorts in agreement. I kiss her just below her ear. "You're the only one I've ever wanted. If I could go back and change the way I acted those first months with you, I would."

She smiles and kisses me. It's short and quick, but I needed it. "We're going to be okay." I run my fingers through her hair and pull her to me, kissing her long and slow. She whines and pulls away. "Nix." I chuckle and she huffs.

"I promise I'll take care of you." Her eyes brighten, but I push her off my lap. "Later."