"Good luck, hun," I said, peeking my head through the door and interrupting Neron's time with Aria.

"Thanks, Gunner."

Neron turned around and, looking angry with me, he scowled, "Go sit down. I'm trying to explain to Aria how her challenger fights. And I can't do that when you're interrupting us. So now, go sit in your damn seat."

I laughed, shook my head, and smiled. "Some things never change."

"Yeah, well, things will change if you keep interrupting me."

Without hesitation and a grin, I closed the door and then headed down the narrow hallway—the hallway full of memories. Seeing Aria in the room with Neron talking to her and walking down this hallway brought back memories from when I last fought here ten years ago. My father was here, and he did the same as I—interrupting Neron's prep talk and Neron snapping at my father to leave the room.

I'm not sure what it is about this place, but I have never won a match here, so I hope Aria can break the bad luck this arena brings.

I sat in my seat between Walter and Nikki. And as I leaned back in my chair, Walter had me choking when he asked, "Were you able to give Aria the ole purple helmeted love warrior?"

I lowered my head and covered my face, not wanting him to see me finding humor in his question. "No, Walter. I did not go back there to give her my dick," I laughed, choking as I spoke.

"Such a disappointment you are. Did you know the key to bringing in luck on winning is by having sex?"

I turned my head, facing Nikki, and smirked while pointing at Walter. "Can you believe this guy? Don't listen to him; he doesn't know what he's talking about."

Walter smacked my arm. "Don't lie to her. You all know I'm right. Sex is the key to everything. It slashes stress levels and reduces anxiety. Something that's needed before a big fight such as this one."

I disagreed and turned back to Walter. "According to the greatest fighter of all time, Muhammad Ali refused to have sex six weeks before his fight. He felt it made you tired and weaker. He also thought it weakens you mentally."

A disappointed look appeared on Walter's face, and he waved his hand across his face.

Pfft. Walter huffed.

"I'm going to disagree with him. He didn't know what he was talking about. Besides, who would you rather listen to? Muhammad Ali, or me?"

I wasn't about to sit here and argue with Walter. So, knowing Nikki has never been to one of Aria's fights, I turned to her, smiling, "So. Are you excited to be here and watch Aria take this woman down? I know she's extremely excited that you finally decided to be here for her support."

Nikki's expression on her face didn't go unnoticed—the look of worry. She sat in her chair, looking forward, twiddling her fingers while staring at the ring in front of us. "I am, but I'm a little nervous for her. I still can't get over that she's doing this now."

I draped my arm around her shoulder and pulled her to me. "Relax, Aria will do fine. And if it makes you feel any better. I can't get over it either. I never expected the love of my life to enjoy taking hits to her face, either. But she's her own person and feels the need to show everyone she's not the person she once imposter'd for so many years."

"I feel terrible that Justin is missing this. I know how badly he wanted to be here."

I chuckled. "Why feel guilty? Justin was the one who offered to watch Wyatt, insisting that you be the one to come here tonight."

She bit her bottom lip and lowered her eyes away from the ring, looking down at her twiddling fingers. "I know. And I've seen firsthand what she can do, but I have a bad feeling about how tonight will go for her, so now I'm wishing I was the one who stayed behind to watch Wyatt."

"Ladies and gentleman..." the announcer said into the microphone, grabbing my immediate attention. I lowered my arm from Nikki's shoulder and turned toward the opening where Aria would be walking out from. Then, hearing Aria's entrance song play, my lips curled upward. Thunderstruck is a much better choice for Aria than Eye of the Tiger—the one I had chosen for her.

It seems more fitting, and the crowd is loving it.

I scooted to the edge of my seat when the referee gave them the go-ahead to start. Aria, as usual, took a hit to the face.

I hate when they do that shit to her.

Aria fired right back, showing her opponent a one, two, three—jab, right-cross, left hook. But, unfortunately, it didn't phase her, and Aria's challenger fired right back with a fucking four-punch combo—jab, cross, jab, cross—knocking Aria down. I jumped from my seat and yelled for Aria to get up and strike back.

She got back up and immediately showed her opponent a left uppercut, only for it to be blocked. I jumped from my seat again and yelled, "Come on, Aria, you can do it! Get her! Get her good!" I know she didn't hear me as loud as the arena was, but it felt good to yell and cheer her on.

I was growing more nervous for Aria after each round. And the more I watched Aria take a beating, the harder and faster my heart thundered against my chest because these first four rounds were not looking good for her. But then again, that's okay; she still has six more rounds to redeem herself.

I hadn't heard Nikki for a while, so I looked at her. Her eyes were wide, and her lips were pressed tightly together and spread back. So I nudged her, encouraging her to relax and to help bring luck to Aria. "Come on, Nikki, cheer for Aria. She needs to hear us."

I then looked over at Walter and grinned after seeing how into it he was and how he was throwing punches in the air like he was the one fighting. Then he yelled, "That's it, Aria! Give her those famous combination punches I enjoy seeing you do! Yes! Yes! Yes! Show everyone, Nora the Nightmare is not as tough as she's showing she is and how she has a glass jaw!"

I chuckled. Now that's the spirit I enjoy seeing and hearing.

During these last three rounds, Aria seemed to have redeemed herself, showing this nightmare bitch she wasn't taking her shit.

Until this round.

Aria was looking tired—extremely tired.

Come on, Aria. You can do this.

Aria continued taking shots to her face and abdomen. She bobbed and weaved, threw punches, and fought back until Nora the Nightmare caught Aria off-guard and lead right punched her, knocking her down to the mat.

Aria remained lying on the mat, trying to push herself up to stand and fight back. I looked at Neron, and he was yelling, urging her to get up. Walter and Nikki were shouting the same.

Nikki grabbed hold of my arm and yelled as loud as possible, hoping for Aria to hear her, "Aria! Get up! I didn't come to watch you lose; I came here to watch you win!"

Aria continued trying to push herself up, but kept dropping every time she tried. Finally, the referee ran over to Aria, got to his knees, and began counting to ten.

Come on, Aria, come on.

Get up. Get up. Get up.

Just as the referee counted to ten, I lowered my head, dropped to my seat, and rubbed my face.

What is it with this fucking arena?

"She lost, didn't she?" Nikki heavily breathed as she sat.

I nodded. "It's okay. You can't win 'em all," I responded, feeling bad for Aria after seeing the look of disappointment on her face.

I stood from my seat and walked over to Neron's corner, watching and waiting for him to walk Aria out of the ring. Even though Aria lost, the crowd still chanted her name as if she had won the fight. Then the spectators roared even louder after Neron helped her stand, and she started walking toward me.

My heart felt broken, and my stomach dropped when I saw her face was swollen, cut, and bloodied. And when Neron helped her out of the ring, I reached for her, helping her out of the ring.

I brought Aria to me and held her tight, comforting her. "You did good, hun."

"I still lost the fight," she replied sadly, sounding and looking disappointed in herself.

"It's okay, Aria. You still did the best you could. I've never won a fight here if it makes you feel any better. Ever..." Her head raised, she looked me in the eyes and then lowered her head back down in shame while wiping the blood away from her lips.

I looked at Neron, then over at Nikki and Walter. They looked bummed Aria lost, but hopefully, they'll be smart enough to praise Aria for what she still managed to accomplish tonight.

"I've got it from here, Neron. If you could please grab Walter and Nikki for us, that'll be great."

I walked Aria back to the room, sat her on the bench, then grabbed some supplies to stop the bleeding from her lips and eyebrows. I dipped the rag into the bowl of cold water, squeezed, then began dabbing the blood away from her eyebrows.

"Did you say that you've never won a fight here?" Aria quietly asked.

I nodded, dipping the rag back into the cold water; then, I affirmed as I rested the rag on the corner of her lip. "Never. I'll admit, I was hoping you'd be the one to break the curse, but that's okay. I strongly feel that you'll win the next time you fight here."

"If there is a next time," she mumbled.

With the rag in my hand dripping onto Aria, I raised her chin, furrowing my brows. "What do you mean by that? You can't just let a loss keep you from fighting again."

"You don't want me fighting anyway," she responded, lowering her eyes.

"Hey," I uttered, having her look me in the eye. "It may be hard for me to see you getting beaten and punched. And it may take all my energy to keep myself planted in that fucking chair to keep me from going inside the ring and beating the shit out of your opponent. But it is what it is. You are a fighter, Aria. A smart and strong one at that. Nora just showed you where your weaknesses are and where you'll need to improve for your next fight. It's like I told Nikki. You can't win 'em all—something I also have to remind myself."

She sighed. "One thing is for sure. Nora lived up to her name—she's a fucking nightmare." She looked down, and then she looked up with a smile. "And will you please squeeze that rag? You're making me extremely wet."

I smirked and leaned forward, kissing her lips. "That nightmare will leave your beautiful mind shortly. I'll make sure of that," I assured. "And if you think you're wet now? Just wait until after we get back to the hotel. Then you'll be fucking soaked."

***

On our way back to the hotel, Aria was quiet. Then there's Walter, running his mouth the entire time, hoping to turn Aria's frown the opposite way. I thought he had that sullen pout on her face turning into a smile a couple of times, but nope, she was being hardheaded.

"Aria. Did I ever tell you about the time my mother grounded me for a month?" Walter asked, finally grabbing Aria's attention.

"No," she quietly said, slowly turning to face him. "What did you do?"

A devilish smile formed on his face, alerting me that what he had to tell her would be a good one to hear. "Well then, I better fill you in on what got me in trouble."

She sat taller, and a look of curiousness filled her face. "I'm eager to hear this one."

As am I.

"So, my parents had their friends over for dinner one night, and they brought their no-good-for-nothing son over. He thought he was the shit, and he always claimed that women would flock to his feet. Yeah. He really thought he was a ladies' man," Walter chortled, shaking his head.

"So, he's like you," Aria teased, a small smile forming.

"No, he's nothing like me," Walter fired back. "He was one of the ugliest guys I knew in town. Anyway, we were in my room, and he started in by mocking me, saying, 'I'll bet you're still a virgin, aren't you?' I laughed in his face and responded by telling him, 'Yeah, I was a virgin until last night. Would you like to know with who?' The idiot laughed, and then he mocked me again by saying, 'Yeah, right. Nobody wants to get laid by you.' So, do you know what my comeback was?"

Aria shook her head. "No, but knowing you, it was most likely a smart-ass remark."

Walter chuckled, "It wouldn't be me if I didn't say it like it is, right?" he grinned, then continued telling his story. "Anywho, after he said what he did, I got in his face and grinned like the devil I am and said, 'Yeah, I got laid all right. And your claim of every woman wanting you to bed them? Well, maybe you need to think again because that's a lie. Just ask your sister.'

Aria's eyes grew wider.

"Looking confused, the moron responded, 'I don't have a sister,'"

Oh, this is going to be good; I just know it...

Walter continued, "So I grinned wider and returned, saying, 'Well, you will in about nine months.' The little prick ran to my parents, told them what I said, and the next thing I knew, I was getting beaten with my father's belt, and my mother grounded me for a month... those were the days," he smiled in awe, his eyes intensely on Aria's, waiting to see what she'll say.

I laughed.

Nikki laughed harder.

And then there was Aria, looking at Walter with widened eyes and a fallen mouth. "You're not serious, are you? I didn't think kids talked that way back then."

Walter's bushy eyebrows raised, and then he looked at her with seriousness in his eyes. "Would you expect anything else coming out of this mouth of mine?"

She shook her head. And then she stared at him for a few minutes before laughing—a laugh that came straight from the pit of her belly. "No way. You actually said that?"

"Yeah. There's no fucking way I would have said that to anyone. Especially to my parents," Walter grinned devilishly.

"You mean you didn't say that?" Aria asked, causing me to chuckle.

I had a feeling he was feeding her a bullshit story to get her to quit being so quiet and to hear her laugh.

"Hell, no. After he mocked me for being a virgin, I thought about saying that to him. But instead, I punched him in the face. I know you all know me as a goofball, but back in the old days, if something were ever to come out of our mouths like that, we would have gotten more than just a beating by a belt and a grounding for a month. It would have been way worse. Worse enough, had I said anything like that, I wouldn't be here today to tell you about it."

"You ass," Aria huffed, folding her arms against her chest.

"You like my ass, did ya say?"

"That's not what I said, Walter."

"My hearing aids might still be turned on low, but it sure sounded like you said something about my ass."

"You're just trying to be funny."

"Got you to laugh, didn't I?"

One thing I can always count on with this man is that he's comical. He knows how to bring life into our lives. Not only with his humor, but his expertise in everything that he brings to our attention. Ever since I met this man, he's never been wrong about anything. And now he has me thinking; maybe I should have sexercised Aria before the fight.

Nikki looked at me. "Why don't you and Aria go out for the night? I'll bring Walter up to his room, and Justin and I will take Wyatt for the night," Nikki said, then looked at Aria. "I refuse to take no for an answer. You and Gunner deserve to have a night of fun. Wyatt will be fine with Justin and me, and so will Walter. So go out, have fun, and regret nothing you choose to do."

I think that was a hint for Aria to go out and drink—a few drinks—and get drunk, which I'm also thinking. But, of course, that's if Aria's up to it. She doesn't want to break the rules like she used to, so we'll see if she'll finally be up to it since her night didn't go in her favor.

Nikki helped Walter out of the car, shut the door, and just as the driver was about to leave. The back door opened, and then Neron peeked his head inside and pointed at Aria and me, sternly saying, "No drinking."

Really?

My face wrinkled, and I waved my hand for him to go away. "Go help Nikki bring Walter to his room, and then make sure he's settled and has everything he needs before you leave his room. Don't worry about what Aria and I will be doing tonight. We'll be fine..."

Neron pointed one more time without saying a word, then closed the door.

I looked at Aria and audaciously smiled. "What he doesn't know won't kill him. If you want to have a drink tonight, I'll join the party."

Aria snuggled as close to me as possible, then lowered her cheek to my shoulder. "I'm game. What could go wrong?"

I chuckled. There are lots that could go wrong, but I'm in the mood to live a little tonight.

"If something were to go wrong, it'll be because Neron can't help himself. I know Neron and how he thinks. He'll be waiting for us down in the lobby. And I'm fucking looking forward to it. Especially when he witnesses me fireman carrying you back into the hotel. But you know what that means... come tomorrow, he'll insist on taking us to the gym where he'll work our sorry hungover asses until we're blue in the face."

"Sounds fun. It's been a while since you and I broke the rules, so I'm all for tearing it up and upsetting Neron," Aria giggled.

Break the rules... there's my girl.

***

Break the rules and make new rules. That's my motto tonight.

Life is too short to live by daily rules. So tonight, I want Aria to break every rule she's mastered—she deserves it.

I had a feeling if I brought up having a drink, Aria would be for it. After working so fucking hard these last few weeks, then for her to lose her first fight, I couldn't resist wanting to take her out to have a few drinks.

The moment we stepped into the alehouse and started walking toward the bar, we were immediately recognized by fans who attended tonight's fight, not only by her fans but also by mine. It was expected, but I wasn't in the mood to have my night with Aria interrupted. So ignoring them, I slid my hand from her lower back up, my arm hugging her shoulder, and continued walking us to the bar—anxious fans following us close behind.

Usually, I don't mind fans coming up to me, asking for an autograph, but tonight, I wanted us to be left alone.

"Hey, Gunner!" An over-enthusiastic fan shouted, tapping me on my shoulder. "Can I get an autograph and a picture with you and your wife?"

I stopped walking and turned around. "Not tonight. I'm here to enjoy time with my wife, alone, with no one bothering us."

His eyes lowered. "Please? I'm your biggest fan. I follow you everywhere your fight takes place. I heard your wife was fighting tonight, so I drove from Miami, Florida, to Texas just to watch her fight."

He looked at Aria with a sincere smile. "I'm sorry you lost tonight, but I want you to know I thought you did very well."

Aria looked at me instead of responding to him, saying, "Just sign an autograph for him."

"If I sign one for him, the next thing that'll happen, I'll be signing autographs the rest of the night. I didn't come here for that; I'm here to enjoy my free time with my wife. So if sign one, the domino effect will happen, and what we came here to do won't happen."

Aria sighed. "Just sign an autograph for him."

I looked from her to the puppy-dogged-eyed fan wanting an autograph and groaned, "You're lucky. If my wife weren't here, I'd punch you in the mouth for bothering me outside of the arena."

The fan smiled. "I'd treasure that forever."

Of course he would.

I reached for the pen and paper he held out for me. "Turn around, please," I ordered, then used his back to sign his autograph.

"Thank you so much," he smiled, staring at the paper I signed for him. He looked up, still smiling widely, and then held up his phone, asking, "Now can I ask to get a picture with you and your wife?"

I started shaking my head no until Aria used the back of her hand and smacked my chest. "Let's take the picture with him so we can finally accomplish our mission."

After Aria talked me into granting the fan's wishes, I did what I had to do to enjoy the rest of my night with the most beautiful wife and mother one could ask for and ignored the other fans wishing for the same. I rested my hand on the small of Aria's back and walked her over to the bar.

"What can I get for the two of you?" the bartender asked, placing drink coasters in front of us.

Aria looked at me and giggled. "Why does it feel like we're being two little kids, doing something we're not supposed to be doing?"

"Because we are..." I grinned. "We're getting ourselves drunk, and then we plan to give Neron one hell of a show when we get back to the hotel. Now tell the cowboy what you would like."

I hope you enjoyed the chapter!!