Heavyweight (Hallow Brothers Book 3) Read online

  He jumped up the steps of the porch and enveloped her in his arms. “Dee, I promise you I won’t flip out. I won’t let him have control. You keep me grounded. As long as I have you, I’ll stay me. Okay?”

  She nodded with a sob. Henry looked at Samuel. “What are your brothers going to say?”

  “I’m not telling them until after the fight. Promise me you’ll stay by them and Littlefoot and Littlefoot’s nephews at the weigh-in. And for the love of all that’s good and holy, don’t drink anything. They’re building an army that way. That goes for you too, Delilah. I’ve seen what it does to women. I don’t want it happening to you. Let’s get through the next two days, and then we’ll figure out what to do about the Heka.”

  Samuel hopped up the steps and strode past them. He didn’t stop until he was in the bathroom with the door shut and locked. Henry was indeed the Heka. Fuck. That was all he needed. He spun the knob to hot and waited for the room to fill with steam. Then he stepped into the warm stream. He let out a groan as the water gently pelted his sore muscles.

  He didn’t know how long he stayed in there. He didn’t think it was very long, although he had been lost in his thoughts. He stepped out of the bathroom with only a towel knotted around his waist so he could get dressed. He was greeted with a whimper and a guttural moan that made him instantly hard.

  He leaned against the doorframe of the bedroom door and then nudged his towel aside until his hand was wrapped tightly around his cock. He bit his lower lip to stay quiet.

  He watched as his mates made love to each other. He stroked in time to their motions, fighting the urge to fill Henry like Henry filled Delilah. Henry drove hard into Delilah as he stared into her eyes. Samuel could see the delicate bumps of her knuckles under the sheet as she buried her fingers into Henry’s ass. Suddenly her neck arched back as she cried out his name.

  Samuel’s hand quickened as he bit back a growl. Watching her come was always so incredibly sexy. Listening to Henry’s grunts as his body tensed and his brow furrowed nearly pushed him over the edge.

  Henry slowly lowered himself and held Delilah tightly in his arms. The way his body shifted under the covers, Samuel could tell he was still buried deep in her. They whispered to each other between soft, deep kisses. It wasn’t the sex that aroused him. It was the intimacy they shared, the connection that sparked between them.

  Delilah laughed. Her voice was a breath. “Look who’s watching us.”

  Samuel looked up to see both Henry and Delilah watching him. Henry grinned. “Come here, Sam.”

  Samuel wandered to the bed, his hand still gripped tightly to his erection. “I don’t have time to get into…”

  His words died as Delilah peeled his hand free. Henry licked up the length of him back and forth before swallowing him. They took turns sucking him between kisses. Sam buried his fingers in Henry’s thick hair. He noticed Henry’s hips roll against Delilah. Her soft sighs against his cock echoed Henry’s strokes. Watching their bodies writhe together, digging deeper, searching for pleasure while feeling their warm mouths worshiping him was too much. He roared as he came. He barely heard Delilah’s cry or Henry’s muffled grunts. Did they all come together? It seemed like it.

  “Sam, come to bed,” Delilah begged, her voice husky.

  “I wish I could. I need to find something to eat. I have to go to work. I need to end this. I need to keep you safe. Tonight I’ll hold you both.”

  She smiled at him and lifted her head for a kiss. Then he kissed Henry, tasting himself on his lover’s tongue. He crossed the bedroom to search for clothes in the drawers. He heard the rustle of the bed sheets behind him but thought nothing of it.

  That was until Henry appeared beside him. “Mind if I tag along? I’m starving.”

  Samuel looked behind them to Delilah sitting up in bed with the sheets tucked around her. “You’re picking food over sex?”

  Henry shrugged. Delilah laughed and shooed them away. “Go eat. I’m going to go find Meg and Eve and find out what a girl wears to one of these. I’ve seen the world. I haven’t seen the weigh-in for an MMA fight.”

  The guys chuckled as they left the room, taking a second to gaze at her bare ass as she climbed out of bed. They chatted to each other as they slipped inside the family building and made their way to the kitchen. Samuel scrambled nearly a dozen eggs while Henry chopped up fruit. Then they hopped up on the counter and started to feast.

  Henry laid his fork on the counter. “I’m sorry.”

  Samuel frowned. “For what?”

  “For getting stuck with me and this craziness. For the Heka. I honestly didn’t know my great grandpa times a thousand was a bloodthirsty maniac set on ending the world.”

  Samuel laughed as he set his bowl down. He jumped down from the counter and braced his hands on either side of Henry’s knees. “Henry, you’re talking to a living, breathing werewolf. Like a legit werewolf. I brought crazy to the party a long time ago.”

  Both of them laughed and then shared a kiss. They parted when they heard someone clear his throat. Micah stood in the doorway. There was a slightly stunned look on his face.

  Samuel rolled his eyes. “Dude, you’re going to have to get used to it. He’s my husband. He’s not going anywhere.”

  Micah frowned. “When did you get married?”

  “It’s not official yet. But in my eyes, it is.”

  “It’s great. I’ll get used to it. You guys are cute together. Josiah wants you to get your stuff so we can go. He wants you to get this over with.”

  “Got it. Thanks.”

  Henry hopped off the counter and took Samuel’s hand. Together they made their way through the building and back to the cabin.

  Like earlier that day, Delilah met them on the porch dressed in a Hallow Brothers T-shirt and a pair of jeans. Henry’s face fell. “Shit. Not more bad news.”

  She beamed at them. “No, I’m the bearer of glad tidings this time. My associate at the Tibetan Department of Archeology messaged me. He knows a Buddhist monk who will marry us. We have to let my friend know when we’ll be there, and he’ll inform the monk.”

  “Wait. So they’ll marry three Americans in Tibet?”

  “No. One of us needs to be a resident of China and has to present a Chinese resident permit.”

  Samuel shook his head. “I’m confused. Which one of us has that?”

  “I do. Remember how your brothers moved Henry’s things? Well, mine are in Beijing right now. Well, the stuff that isn’t immediately necessary at the moment. We should probably pack that stuff up while we’re there.”

  Samuel gaped at her. “Okay.”

  She stepped down from the porch and kissed each of them. “You guys leave the planning to me. Have your passports ready.”

  “What passport?”

  “You don’t have a passport?”

  “I’m a werewolf. What would I do with a passport?”

  Delilah sighed. “We’ll expedite one.”

  “Okay. I’m going to go get ready for my weigh-in.”

  “And I’m going to change,” Henry interjected.

  “Fine. You should probably hurry. And no hanky-panky.”

  Henry took Sam’s hand in his. “Can’t promise anything.”

  Both men laughed as Delilah strode off exasperated. They jogged up the steps and into the cabin, closing the door behind them.

  »»•««

  The club was packed wall to wall as Samuel expected. Although he noticed the ancient decanter had been put high on the top shelf, there were still couples getting nasty on the dance floor. The stuff must have a residual effect. The quicker they could get out of here, the better.

  He glanced over at Delilah and Henry standing below the stage beside Meg and Eve. Both were dressed in jeans and Hallow Brothers T-shirts. It wasn’t a look he was used to seeing on either of them, but seeing them sport his family’s colors was a turn-on for him. As far as he was concerned, they were the two hottest people in the place. No, the planet. Behind
them, Littlefoot and his nephews built a wall with their bodies to protect them. The crowds around them tried their worst to get by, but they didn’t budge.

  He felt his stomach flip. He wished someone had built something around him and his brothers. He shoved away the hand touching him as he noticed Bowser McNamara ascend the opposite staircase.

  “It’s show time,” Josiah shouted over the noise as he nudged Samuel up the stairs. Samuel stormed up them with his brothers on his heels.

  They stood on the edge of the stage as Bowser stripped down to his fight shorts and stepped on the scale. Rock and Cort waited at the back of the stage, observing the entire process. He locked stares with Cort. The vampire smiled at him. Samuel growled under his breath.

  “Two hundred and sixty-five point five pounds,” the announcer shouted into the microphone. Bowser stepped off the scale and turned to sneer at Samuel. He finished it off with a dog bark.

  Samuel scowled. “I will smack that look off your face.”

  Josiah shoved him gently toward the scale. “He can’t hear you. Save it for the cage.”

  Samuel strode across the stage. The cheers and catcalls were nearly deafening. They got louder as he slowly peeled his clothes off. He glanced down at the floor below him. Delilah was clearly annoyed with the attention other women were giving him. Henry was fixated with Samuel stripping. He elbowed Delilah, who shot him the nastiest look Samuel had ever seen her flash. When Henry pointed at the stage, the expression disappeared. His little wifey stared at him wide-eyed as he dropped his jeans, leaving him in his fight shorts.

  “Sam, get on the scale,” Josiah demanded.

  Samuel stepped on the scale and stood stone still. A hush fell on the crowd. The physician muttered to the announcer who then called it out to the crowd. “Two hundred and sixty-four point five pounds. This will be an epic battle. Let’s face off, gentlemen.”

  Samuel stepped off the scale and spun on his toe to face Bowser and his team. He could see his brothers flank him out of the corner of his eye.

  Bowser stepped up to him until they were nose to nose. “I’m going to crush you, Hallow. Then I’m going to feast on your bones.”

  “I’m gonna put you down like the dog you think you are,” Samuel replied. “You won’t be getting up, son. They’ll have to carry you out.”

  Bowser shoved against Samuel to push him back. Samuel stood his ground, his whole body cold and calculating. Security guards lining the stage and their own teams pulled them apart. “Drop into fight stances for pictures, boys,” one of the guards instructed.

  Samuel’s stare never left Bowser as he lifted his fists and dropped into fight stance. When the sea of cell phone flashes died, they were ushered to opposite sides of the stage. He started dressing and noticed a brother missing. “Where’s Cay?”

  “He took off to take a leak before we go,” Abraham reported.

  Samuel looked at Josiah and Micah as he tugged a boot on. “Can you get Dee and Henry safe through this crowd to my truck? I’ll go get Cay.”

  “We’ll get them out,” Josiah replied. Samuel pulled his second boot on and then launched himself off the stage toward the restrooms. He slapped hands away as he went. It helped a little. He couldn’t stop the ones that grabbed his ass. He shook the final hand free as he stepped into the cold, dim hallway.

  He heard Rock’s voice before he saw him. It made the already cool hall downright frigid. “I know you want to be world champion. You don’t need your brothers. I can do that for you. I can pave the way to the greatest stage there is. Let me do that for you. What I need in return is simple. Bring me the amulet and the librarian. That is all I require.”

  Samuel flattened himself against the damp wall. He peered around the corner to find Caleb standing still, the championship belt he had brought strapped across his shoulder. His face was stone as Rock slowly circled him, crooning to the fighter. Sam’s heart fell in his gut. If Caleb wanted no part of it, he would have already cussed out the vampire and stormed off. His younger brother was seriously considering the offer.

  Rock cocked his head and studied Caleb. “Nothing? What else do you require? Maybe I should reiterate my deal. I will make you the greatest fighter alive. Power, riches? They are yours. But I can also take away the dearest things you love. That blonde who was standing next to the librarian tonight. She’s beautiful.”

  Samuel watched Caleb. To anyone else, he was stone still. But Sam knew him. Caleb bristled at Rock’s words. Unfortunately, the vampire noticed too. His smile widened. “The daughter she bore you is lovely also.” He ran his tongue along his fangs. “Something of that exquisite beauty usually has the sweetest taste.”

  Caleb’s nostrils flared. Before he could act, Samuel stepped out and grabbed his arm. “Walk away, Cay. He’s not worth it. He and his kind aren’t going to touch any of our mates.”

  Rock laughed. “Our kind? After your fight tomorrow, we will own you too. You Hallows are too stupid to walk away from the battle. It’s typical of your kind. Mangy mutts.”

  Samuel huffed. “Mutts? Shit. At least we can walk outside during the day, you asshole. A meeting in the middle of the night? How about we meet at noon next time? Oh, wait. I bet you’ll go up in flames, huh? You’re not smiling anymore. Guess I hit a nerve.”

  Rock growled. “Watch where you tread, Hallow.”

  “You don’t scare me. We don’t fight because we’re too stupid to walk away. We fight because we’re the alpha males. We are the top of the food chain, and a bunch of bloodsuckers aren’t going to knock us off the mountain. So go crawl back in your coffin, Drac. We’ll see you tomorrow night.”

  He tugged Caleb with him. His brother offered no resistance. They shoved their way through the crowd and out the door, not stopping until they reached the others waiting for them.

  “What’s going on?” Josiah demanded.

  “We’re not talking about it.” Samuel glared at Caleb before he hopped behind the wheel of his truck beside Delilah. “Let’s go home. I need some sleep.”

  He slammed the door and started the vehicle. He pulled out and down the road before any word was said.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The crowd in the stands above was deafening, even in the little cement-walled locker room. Samuel sat on the long wooden bench and closed his eyes. Despite the chaos up above and in his heart, he forced himself to meditate.

  Not much was said on the journey home the night before. As he promised, he held both of his mates tightly as they slept. He, however, barely got a wink. All he could think about was what he witnessed in the hallway of the club. Caleb was the worst of the seven. His ethics were constantly in question. What was he capable of? What lengths would he go to become world champion? Would he manipulate Henry away from Samuel? Would he sacrifice his wife and child? Did his little brother have a soul?

  This wasn’t the shit Samuel needed on his mind the night before a number one contender’s fight. Eve, Meg, Delilah, and Henry made a huge breakfast as a treat, but he could barely eat. He forced himself to graze the rest of the day to keep his energy.

  He went out of his way to avoid Caleb. Every time he saw his little brother and that belt, he wanted to shake the shit out of him. When they arrived at the arena, he banned everyone from the locker room, including his mates.

  He was so lost in his thoughts that he never noticed the hand on his shoulder until it gripped tightly and shook him. “Hey, champ.”

  He looked up to find Josiah standing over him with athletic tape, wrap, and scissors. “You’re still several fights out, but I thought we’d get your hands wrapped so you could warm up.”

  Samuel nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”

  Josiah grabbed the closest folding chair and spun it around. He straddled the seat and settled in it backward. Setting Samuel’s first hand on the back of the chair, he got to work wrapping it. The two brothers sat in silence through the first hand.

  Samuel broke the silence as Josiah started on his second hand. “Henry i
s the Heka.” He sighed. “Delilah and Eve did a genealogy search. They traced Henry all the way to the son of a bitch. And according to what they found, the Heka’s spirit is passed down from generation to generation.”

  Josiah glanced up. “Is that so?”

  Samuel frowned. “That’s all you have to say? You wanted to kick him out of camp before.”

  Josiah chuckled. “Yeah. Then Sarah came into my life. I couldn’t kick her out if I tried. The pull that possesses us won’t allow it, and neither will my heart and soul. We need to keep up the research between the amulet and the Heka. We need to figure out why the vampires want it. Until then, there’s no reason to send him off. How are things going with you guys? I saw the ring earlier.”

  “Couldn’t be happier. Seriously.”

  “Are you expecting like Cay and Meg?”

  Samuel cringed at Caleb’s name. Josiah dropped his hand and continued. “What’s wrong, Sam?”

  Samuel took a deep breath. “Rock cornered…”

  His words were cut off by the door slamming open. Joshua leaned against it, panting. “Joe, you need to come out here. Now.”

  “Why?” Josiah questioned.

  “Come on.”

  Both Josiah and Samuel stood and followed Joshua out of the locker room and through the dark corridors. They stopped at the mouth of the tunnel with the rest of the brothers. Inside of the cage, two women traded wicked punches. Samuel recognized the smaller of the two from the meeting at the club. He turned to look at Josiah. “Did you know?”

  Josiah’s gaze was locked on the cage. “That Sarah fought? No. I didn’t. I knew she was a school teacher. She told me she had meetings every evening. She lied to me.”

  “You didn’t see her at the weigh-in?”

  “I was busy with you and trying not to get sick.”

  The whole arena gasped in unison as the smaller fighter connected with Sarah’s chin. Sarah’s body went limp as she crumpled to the ground. Josiah took off for the cage in a sprint before anyone could catch him. He got inside the cage and by her side before her corners ordered that he be thrown out.