Page 73 of Savage Desires

"That was amazing," one of the women says to Willow as soon as we are out of the ring.

Willow gives her a forced smile. "Thanks."

"Did you learn how to fight like that here?" she asks.

"No," Willow answers shortly, not elaborating.

"We have a self-defense class every Thursday. It's part of your membership," I tell the woman.

"I take that class… It's not like—" she waves her hands at the ring "—that."

"Is there a kickboxing class here?" Willow asks.

"Every other Saturday, but there's not a big turnout. Most of the members here are men."

Willow wrinkles her nose. "You should change that. Offer more classes. Different types of self-defense and kickboxing are good places to start. You have space to set up for martial arts… krav maga is a favorite of mine."

"Sounds good. Make any changes you want, love."

"Wait, what?" Willow says, looking at me like I'm crazy.

"They are good ideas."

"Not that, the part about me making changes…"

"Willow, love, what's mine is yours now. If you want to tear this place down and build a McDonald's that only serves fries and vanilla milkshakes, that's what I'll do."

She laughs. "You're nuts! You can't be serious."

"I'm dead serious. Don't ever doubt me, beauty. Everything I have is yours to do what you will with it."

She shakes her head, exasperated. "You really are crazy. I can't be in charge of all of this!"

"Too bad, love. My lawyer is already putting your name on my assets. When I told you I'd take care of you, I meant it." I pull her into my arms and kiss her gently. "Don't overthink it. All that matters is that you're mine now. The rest will come with time."

Since the gym is packed and Willow doesn't let me clear out the locker rooms, we leave the gym in our sweaty clothes. Well, I pull an oversized hoodie over Willow's head because there's no way she's walking outside this gym in those tiny shorts and sports bra. It was bad enough having the men in the gym watch her fight wearing them.

By the time we get out of the shower, Willow's exhausted. I dress her in one of my t-shirts since she prefers that over the pajamas Annie bought her and lead her to the couch. I hand her the remote and tell her to relax while I fix dinner. I smile when I hear the sounds of a UFC fight on the TV, definitely not like other women.

She's still and quiet when I come back into the room. I think she's sleeping until I hear a quiet sniffle. I circle the couch and see tears tracking down her cheeks. She's staring at the TV with a far-off look.

"Willow, love, what's wrong?"

She startles at my voice and quickly wipes away her tears. "I'm okay."

"Don't lie to me," I growl.

She looks at the TV again, and I realize she has it paused. It takes me no time to put together why she's upset. The man on the screen has the same ocean-blue eyes as Willow. It's her father. A man I quickly recognize as Felix Morris. He's a big fucking deal in the fighting world. When he got injured, it was a tragedy. He had more UFC championship wins than any fighter in the sport's history. Now, he trains the best fighters in the country. No wonder Willow is so fucking good.

I remember when his daughter went missing. He offered a huge reward and hired the best private investigators to look for her, including the Savage Knights MC. The Savage Knights are a ruthless group of bikers who spend their time hunting traffickers like I do. Slade has a history with them, and we've stayed connected, helping each other out over the years when our leads bring us into each other's territories.

Small fucking world.

I know Gunner and his guys would've done everything in their power to find Willow. I wonder if they found the men who took her off the street or if they are still out there somewhere. I'll have to find out later. Right now, Willow needs me.

"Your dad?" I ask even though I don't need her to tell me.

She nods, still staring at the screen.