Battered Not Broken Read online

  Steph agreed and at her request, Ally promised to do the same.

  “Maybe you should call the gym,” Maria suggested. “She might’ve lost track of time.”

  It was unlikely, but where else could she call? Maria was sitting close to the corner of her booth seat rather than the center, her shoulders slightly rounded, as if she were expecting a blow. An emotional one, not a physical one – the lines around her mouth made that clear.

  Dual threads of alarm wove their way through Ally’s thoughts, for both her mother and Melissa. Instead of calming Maria and helping to distract her from worry, the trip to Annalisa’s was simply compounding her anxiety, adding concern for Melissa to the ever-present burden of fearing for her husband.

  “Maybe she’s still working out,” Ally said, dialing Cameron’s office number. “She had to work this past Saturday, but I know she wants to get in top shape for the next event.” Her words sounded hollow to her own ears, but Maria nodded, sitting the tiniest bit straighter.

  “Knockout MMA Gym.” After five rings, Cameron’s voice came clipped and faintly gruff from the other end of the connection. He sounded more like he wanted to knock someone’s head off when he spoke on the phone than he ever did face-to-face. He’d mentioned once that he hated talking on the phone, so Ally didn’t take it personally.

  “It’s Ally. Hey, is Melissa around?”

  “She left almost two hours ago.”

  Ally gripped the phone a little more tightly. “Did she say anything about where she was going?”

  “She works evenings, doesn’t she?”

  “Yeah. She didn’t say anything about any other plans or errands?”

  “No. Is something wrong?”

  “She hasn’t shown up for her shift at work and nobody’s heard from her.” The reality of the situation unfolded inside Ally’s skull, sparking an instant headache that didn’t quite distract her from the knotted feeling in her gut.

  Across the table, Maria dropped her shoulders a little lower, frowning down at the wooden table top, a mostly-smooth surface that bore the random scratches and nicks of years of service.

  “Shit,” Cameron huffed, sounding angrier than before, “you don’t think something happened to her, do you?”

  “I don’t know.” Ally’s ignorance hit her like a ton of bricks.

  “Her neighborhood isn’t exactly Roland Park, if you know what I mean.”

  “I know.” Ally struggled not to snap, but her reply came out sounding terse anyway. Hearing someone else voice aloud the same thoughts that’d been lurking in the back of her mind seemed to bring the grimmer implications of Melissa’s absence to life.

  “Have you tried calling her?”

  Cameron’s words had her fighting the urge to plant her forehead against the table top, but she didn’t hang up. If she did that, she’d truly have exhausted the short list of people she could call about Melissa, and then there would be nothing to do but wait. “That was the first thing I did.”

  “You know what? Moore left around the same time as Melissa. Maybe he saw where she was headed.”

  “The new guy?” Ally’s stomach drew even tighter, a knotted battleground for conflicting emotions – the brief bout of nervous excitement when she thought of his blue eyes and inked back, plus a flood of darker emotions like suspicion and dread. “Did they leave together?”

  “No, not together. He walked out the door a couple minutes after she did. He mighta seen what direction she went in. Maybe he even spoke to her. Or maybe not, but it’s the only thing I can think of that might help.”

  It didn’t help to ease the tension in Ally’s middle. Her stomach felt like a snake pit. Each new direction her increasingly dark thoughts took amped up her worry. Melissa had left the gym on foot and the new guy – Moore – had walked out the door just minutes after her. He was bigger, stronger and more dangerous than Melissa – that was for sure. Before, Ally had admired the way his powerful body moved in the ring. Now, it was impossible not to think about the atrocities his size, muscle and training would allow him to commit with ease on the street.

  Maybe she was way off base, but it was a possibility. After all, nobody at the gym really knew him. Where was he even from, and where had he trained before he’d come to Knockout? More importantly, why had he left his old training facility? She’d never asked. Now the possibilities haunted her.

  “You still there?”

  “Yeah.” She willed herself to regulate her tone of voice like an out-of-breath runner might regulate her breathing. “You have Moore’s number, right?” Cameron kept papers on all the members – legal documents they were required to sign to release him from any liability for injuries occurring in the gym. Those forms included contact info, too.

  “Lemme give him a call. Stay on the line – I’ll use my cell.”

  Tense moments ticked by as sounds of shuffling and dialing came from the other end of the connection.

  By the time Cameron picked up his desk phone again, the results of his efforts were already painfully clear. “Sorry. No answer.”

  “Just let me know if you hear anything, all right?” Ally hung up after Cameron agreed.

  “What did he tell you?” The mixture of knowledge and suspicion in Maria’s eyes said that while she hadn’t heard the entire conversation, she knew that Cameron had said something that’d leant a sharper edge to Ally’s worry.

  “He said she left the gym almost two hours ago.” Ally’s mouth was dry, almost cottony. She couldn’t mention the rest – it would only dredge up memories of something she’d rather walk over broken glass than talk about. Besides, there was no reason to make her mother worry over a detail that might mean nothing, or to needlessly blacken Ryan Moore’s reputation in her eyes.

  “Is that all he said?”

  “Basically. He tried to call someone he thought she might’ve spoken to, but no luck.” Moore was probably an upstanding guy. If she admitted that she’d so much as considered that he might hurt Melissa, Maria would never look at him the same way again.

  Most other people didn’t think the way Ally did – she was more suspicious than most. Maybe even overly-suspicious at times, but telling herself that didn’t ease her worry. Everyone had a dark side, and it had long since become second nature for her to look at people and wonder exactly how dark theirs was.

  “I guess all we can do now is wait.”

  The familiar note of resignation in Maria’s voice sent another sliver of regret lancing through Ally’s chest. But what could she do? Melissa had been seen less than two hours ago. It wasn’t like she could file a missing persons report, and technically, there were a thousand possible explanations. “Melissa’s tough.” She said it for her mother’s sake. “She’ll probably call me back any minute.”

  When their waitress came, Ally asked for a glass of water and placed her automatic order for the chicken parmesan. If Melissa showed up anywhere any time soon, it would probably be Annalisa’s. Meanwhile, Ally needed something to fill the aching void in her stomach.

  The minutes seemed to drag by as Ally’s mind automatically ran through a list of horror scenarios regarding Melissa. In reality, their food was prepared in record time. The waitress – Sarah – brought them their meals and set them on the table with a smile that was too bright for Ally’s dark thoughts. She thanked her anyway, feeling guilty as her stomach growled, teased by the scent of hot chicken and savory sauce on top of a generous heap of pasta.

  She’d taken two bites when a familiar figure approached the glass front door and stepped inside.

  In khaki pants and her favorite jacket, Melissa looked as if she might have just left the gym and walked straight to work, as she sometimes did. Her duffel bag was even slung over her shoulder, as if she hadn’t stopped by her apartment after her workout. There were no clues painted across her pretty face as she hurried across the tile floor. She looked a little rushed, but anyone who was late for work would. Her expression didn’t change until she glanced to the left,
her gaze lighting upon the corner booth.

  Ally was already out of her seat.

  “I didn’t know you two were coming for dinner tonight,” Melissa said, her eyebrows raised in apparent surprise as she halted near the edge of the table.

  “I called,” Ally said. “You didn’t pick up, and your manager said no one had heard from you. We were really worried. What happened?”

  Melissa pressed her full lips into a thin line and smoothed away a stray lock of hair that had made its way into her face. She hadn’t put her hair up into her usual ponytail or bun for work. “When I left the gym today, some guys tried to jump me on my way home.”

  Ally’s stomach constricted around the two bites of dinner she’d had. “Are you all right?”

  Melissa nodded. “I’m fine.”

  “Are you sure?” Maria stood too, her dark eyes gleaming with suspicion, as if she wasn’t quite ready to believe that Melissa really had escaped unharmed.

  “What happened?” Even though there wasn’t so much as a scratch visible on Melissa, Ally braced herself for the details.

  “There were two of them. I have no idea who they were. I was only a few blocks from the gym when it happened. They’d just surrounded me when Ryan came around the corner.”

  “Ryan Moore?”

  “Yeah. He left the gym right after me, apparently. He got within striking distance of one of the guys, and I think he broke his nose. They both ran after that. Ryan stayed with me to make sure I was okay and they got away. Then he called the police and we had to answer some questions. It took a little while.”

  Melissa glanced toward the kitchen. “He walked me here when it was over. I was lucky he was around.” Her lips curved thoughtfully and she shuddered ever so slightly, as if a shiver had just gone down her spine.

  “I’ll say you were.” Maria reached out and wrapped Melissa in a shoulder-squeezing hug. “We’ll have to thank him. Is he coming inside?”

  “I don’t think so,” Melissa said. “He said something about going home.”

  Ally’s heart leapt in the direction of the door at the thought of Ryan on the other side of it, making his way down the sidewalk to spend his evening alone at home after saving Melissa from possibilities Ally was trying hard not to think about. “I’ll go see if he’ll come in. I’ll buy him dinner – it’s the least I can do.”

  Melissa shook her head. “Forget about buying him dinner – it’s on the house, if you can get him to come inside. I’ve got to get to work. I’ll tell whoever’s taking care of you that I’ll take over now. See you in a few minutes.”

  Ally started toward the door, her heart maintaining a rushed tempo. Her pulse had sped when she’d heard of Melissa’s near miss, and the mention of Ryan Moore’s role as her rescuer hadn’t done anything to ease it.

  Her heart had fallen somewhere into the cavernous pit of guilt her stomach had become. Ryan would never know that she’d considered that he might harm Melissa, but the knowledge of just how wrong she’d been during those moments of suspicion stung. She owed him. Not just because he’d rescued her friend, but because she’d seriously misjudged him.

  The night was colder than she remembered it being when she and her mother had walked to Annalisa’s. She quickly scanned the sidewalk for any sign of a tall male. Her heart slammed against her ribs when she spotted such a silhouette about two blocks away. Much like earlier that day at the gym, she simply knew it was him.

  She started in his direction at a light jog. “Hey,” she called when she’d halfway caught up to him.

  He turned to face her. Somehow, his eyes were bright despite the fact that the evening light was dull. “Hey.”

  His monosyllabic reply sent a wave of satisfaction through Ally. Tall, fit and graceful body – check. Blue eyes – check. Voice that set her nerves on edge, in a good way – check. She was definitely approaching Ryan Moore.

  “Melissa told me what happened.” She cut to the chase. “Thank you.” Her words became mist that hung in a cloud in front of her lips, heating the air as the full force of his gaze sent unexplainable warmth shimmering over every inch of her skin. “Why don’t you come inside for dinner?”

  His lips quirked in a half-grin. “Are you asking me on a date?”

  “No.” She threw the word out there like she might have shot out a hand to parry a blow. “It’s not like that. I mean, dinner is on the house – it’s the least anyone can do. You might’ve saved Melissa’s life.” Melissa was tough and might have survived whatever the two strange men had planned for her, but even then she probably wouldn’t have come away unscathed.

  He took half a step toward her, his gaze still locked with hers. The way his blue eyes shone was crazy – streetlights didn’t flatter anyone like that. Except for him. “Ally Rivera,” he said, all traces of his recent grin gone from his mouth, “if I sit down and have dinner with you, it’s going to be a date. So if that’s not what you’re offering, I’m going to have to say no thanks.”

  The next breath of air Ally drew seemed too cold – it froze inside her lungs, turning her tongue into a useless weight in her mouth. She exhaled, but no words came out – only mist that billowed in the space between her and Ryan, nearly touching his chest, over which he’d zipped a plain black jacket. Several minutes passed before she regained the ability to speak. “I’m twenty-three. That’s a little too old to go on a date with a parental chaperone, don’t you think?”

  “Ah,” Ryan said, “you’re spending the evening with your mother again?”

  “Yeah.”

  “That’s fine. I’d be happy to take a rain check from you. Have any nights coming up this week that you were planning to spend alone?” The way he said the word ‘alone’ made it sound like a curse word – one so bad it should be erased from her vocabulary forever.

  She nodded. “Pick any night this week and it’s yours.” After all, she owed him. That was what she kept telling herself as her heart sped at the thought of spending an evening with him.

  “Thursday.”

  “Okay.”

  “Think about what time you want me to pick you up. Then let me know next time you see me at the gym.”

  “Okay. And hey…” A coherent thought actually managed to penetrate the haze he’d reduced her mind to. “How’d you know my last name?”

  “It’s written on your gym bag,” he said, his grin returning.

  He bid her goodnight and she stood frozen for several moments, watching him disappear. He moved with the same grace he harnessed in the ring. Did the same sureness and ease of movement flow in everything he did with that perfect body? The thought hit Ally like a physical blow – one that sped past her defenses and crumbled her former resolve not to be swept off her feet by a stranger, even a gorgeous one. She might not know where he was from, or what his tattoos said, but by rescuing Melissa, he’d given her a huge reason to trust him. And it had been a long time since any man had done that.

  Chapter 4

  Seven twenty-nine. Ally’s gaze was drawn toward the clock hanging on the kitchen wall like iron fragments to a magnet.

  “Is that him?” Maria had abandoned the kitchen and stood at the front door, peering out the window like an aproned sentinel, a wooden kitchen spoon in one hand.

  Ally drifted across the kitchen to peer over Maria’s shoulder – an easy feat, considering she was a couple inches taller. “I don’t know. I’d have remembered that car if I’d seen it before.”

  A vehicle had pulled up to the curb, a muscle car painted electric blue from grill to bumper. A mustang. Ally didn’t know much about cars – she hadn’t driven one in years, and had never personally owned one – but it looked new, gleaming under a streetlight, and had to have some serious bells and whistles.

  And it was Ryan’s. He rose from the driver’s side, shut the door and rounded the car, walking toward the house.

  “Sports cars can be dangerous,” Maria said. “I hope he’s not a reckless driver.” But there was no note of conviction in her voi
ce. Any real suspicion she might have harbored toward Ryan had probably evaporated a couple of nights ago when he’d come to Melissa’s aid.

  It was a mark of how appreciated his heroics were that Maria was now willing to overlook his tattoos and his muscle car, which looked like it was made for speed.

  “I’m sure he’s not,” Ally said. He had plenty of self-control in the ring. He wasn’t one of those guys that went half-crazy trying to beat the crap out of their opponent, relying on sheer viciousness and will to win to carry them through the fight. He had skill, and he used it – the right moves at the right time. If he could manage his body and instincts when faced with the possibility of physical harm, surely he could control a car responsibly.

  Still, she wondered what it might feel like to speed down an open highway with him, the hum of the car’s engine vibrating throughout every fiber of her being and causing her nerves to buzz as she sat just a foot or two from him, a temporary prisoner of speed.

  “Here he comes.” Maria pointed out the obvious and turned, retreating to the kitchen.

  Ally unlocked the door and opened it, letting cool air waft in from the porch.

  Ryan’s gaze locked on her, causing the overhead porch light to feel more like a spotlight than the single standard bulb it actually was. His blue eyes were as show-stealing as his car, and as she stared into them, a bolt of sensation shot straight through her, every bit as electric as the mustang’s blue paint.

  “You look great,” he said, climbing the short flight of steps that led to the porch.

  The porch boards were older than she was and shifted ever so slightly beneath her feet, letting her feel the motions of his stride as he approached.

  “Thanks.” She’d put more effort into selecting an appropriate outfit than she would’ve cared to admit. Eventually, she’d settled for a pair of flattering jeans, boots and a dark red sweater she liked to think hugged her curves and played up her feminine side. She’d pulled on her favorite jacket over that to ward against the chill. It seemed appropriate for the dinner and movie he’d promised her earlier that day at the gym.