Page 3 of Saving Stella

Cliff had barely stepped out of the cage before his coach, Del Williams, seized his forearm in a firm grip. “S-sorry, Del. Must be an off night.”

Del’s face scrunched up in rage. “Don’t you fucking lie to me, Cliff.” Despite the cheers of the thousands of people around them, his coach’s voice boomed straight into his ears.

“I’m not.”

“I’ve been with you for four years. Four fucking years, I’ve taught you and watched every move you’ve made. You could’ve easily evaded that last hold. If I didn’t know any better, I would say you lost deliberately.”

Cliff swallowed, the blood draining from his face. He’d always been a terrible liar. Though he tried to make the loss convincing, anyone who’d followed him over the last couple of years would be suspicious. If he’d had enough time, he could have done a better job at faking it, but all he could think about during the entire fight was Madelyn.

“Cliff.” Del’s expression was deadly serious as he moved in closer, their faces centimeters apart. “You have to tell me the truth, son. Or else I can’t protect you.”

His stomach turned to stone as it dawned on him what Del was trying to say without saying it out loud. Though gambling was legal in Nevada, it was strictly regulated. If the authorities even caught a whiff of fraud, things would end badly for him.

It doesn’t matter.

This had been life and death. He would face prison time if it meant protecting Madelyn.

“Just leave me alone, okay?” Tugging his arm away from Del, Cliff brushed past his coach and the rest of his entourage. He couldn’t bear to look any of them in the eye because he knew what he would see in them—disappointment.

They don’t understand.

He managed a deep breath as the tightness in his chest loosened. Madelyn was safe. That was all he cared about.

“Madelyn!” he called as he burst into the locker room. Relief poured through him when he saw her sitting on the bench in the middle of the room, all alone. Rushing toward her, he pulled her into his arms.

“Baby … did they hurt you? Touch you?” His teeth ground together, remembering how that man had put a gun to her head.

Madelyn remained stiff in his arms, silent as the grave.

“I’m so sorry you had to go through that.” Releasing her, he cupped her delicate face in his hands and peered into her beautiful brown eyes. Any ordeal he had to face ahead, whether it was an official investigation or the loss of his career, would be worth it, now that she was no longer in danger. His father and uncle would understand, especially when they found out he did it for the woman he loved. “You’re safe now. I made sure of that.”

“I know.” She swallowed hard, then pulled his hands away from her face. “And I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” He frowned at her. “You have nothing to be sorry for. Those men took you and?—”

“No.”

“No?”

Madelyn took a deep breath. “I know you’re going to hate me, Cliff, but I did this for us. I wasn’t going to say anything, but now I just … I was thinking … I can’t lie anymore.”

What the fuck was she talking about? “Are you in shock, baby? Maybe we should bring you to the ER?—”

“I’m perfectly fine, Cliff.” She ran her fingers through her hair, shaking the wavy locks back into place, then stood up. “I didn’t tell you so you could always claim you were coerced into it if anyone ever found out. But I realized I won’t be able to keep lying to you.”

“What are you saying?”

“This was my idea.” Her expression turned impassive. “I knew you would never go for it, so I went to Mr. Bonetti. He and I were … friends before we met.”

A pressure began to build in his temples. “Friends?”

She nodded. “I went to him and asked about what would happen if you ‘lost’ the fight and someone bet big against you. After we talked about it, he offered to front the money and make sure the bets were all legal and above board.”

Cliff had heard of the expression of having one’s world tumble down around them, but this was the first time he’d actually felt what that was like. As if he could literally feel his future—both his professional and his life with Madelyn—crumbling before him.

“Oh, Cliff … just think of the money we’ll get. After Joe pays off his expenses and gets his cut?—”

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” he bellowed. “You’ve just ruined my career! I’ll never fight again.”