Tap Out (Fight It Out MMA Series Book 2)

by Terra Kelly

  “Not everyone is going through rough family situations.”

  I lifted my head up quickly.

  “What I mean”—he put his arms up in surrender—“is she may be shy and timid. Her husband could be a good guy that is just overly protective.”

  I placed my hand on his check. “I adore that you search for the good in everything.”

  “Your dad was not a good person. I do see that.” He walked over and grabbed two bowls. “You’re lucky you left when you did.” Brooks placed the bowls on the table and turned toward me. “My hope is, he saw his kids leave and finally changed his ways.”

  “My dad becoming a nice guy and caring about his kids? That happens only in fairytales.”

  Three

  “Put your shoulders up. Drop your head,” Brooks yelled from the outside of the octagon.

  My back was plastered up against my opponent’s chest, and I was trying to prevent her from putting me in a complete submission hold. It was easy to teach the move, but when in the situation, my mind became muddled.

  Jackie Cantor was a skilled fighter. I had to find a way to prove I was, too. This was my second fight with Spartacus. The first fight I managed to win, but I still had no idea how that was possible. Probably because Spartacus matched me up with an amateur fighter which made my chances of winning stronger.

  Tonight, I was up against a skilled fighter. Jackie’s record was twelve wins and four loses. With how she had a hold on me, there was a possibility it would easily become thirteen wins.

  The bell rang right as she tightened her arm around my neck. I fell back and sighed with relief. Jumping up, I ran over to the little stool to sit down. Julian was my corner tonight. “You need to lift your shoulders and prevent the choke from even happening.”

  “I know.”

  Devon was a fighter and also part of my team. He placed an ice bag on my back and one on my chest. “The moment you see her starting to circle her arm around you, grab ahold of her wrist and push it back.”

  “Okay,” I said, still out of breath.

  Julian bent down to be eye level. “You okay?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Take this one home. I know you can.”

  “Okay.”

  Julian rubbed the sweat off my face and reapplied some of the Vaseline around my eyes. “Get it.” Then the bell rang and I stood up.

  I hopped back and forth, turned my head in a full circle to the right and then to the left. Jackie was leaping up and down. When she threw her hands up to get the crowd excited, something shifted for me. I wanted this win and needed to find a way to get it. Julian’s words were rolling around in my mind, “Take this one home.” That’s exactly what I planned to do.

  The referee had us tap our fists. Then the bell rang and we were off. Jackie leaped forward and threw a high kick that landed on my bicep. The blow knocked me back against the fence. She saw the moment of weakness and lunged forward to throw several punches on my face and chest.

  “Move away from the fence. Get out of there,” Julian yelled from the sidelines.

  I had to get out of this position or I was going down for the count. Stopping my mind from overthinking, I lifted my body up and threw a punch in her direction. I didn’t think it would land anywhere near her, but somehow it did. The moment I made contact with her face, she took several steps back, allowing me to move away from the fence.

  We started to do a dance in the center of the ring. I realized as we circled each other it was time for me to use the moves I was taught. Brooks had spent long hours helping me understand Muay Thai and how to achieve the perfect kick. The moment Jackie stepped forward, I did a spin and high kick. It missed her body by inches. I wasn’t done, though. Dropping the spin, I lifted my leg high enough to kick her against her ear.

  Jackie dropped to her knees from the blow. It was moments like this you wanted to check on the person and make sure they were okay. Instead, I ran forward, throwing one punch after another to her face. The referee pushed me aside and knelt down beside Jackie.

  Julian ran in and grabbed me around the waist. “Fuck that was amazing.”

  I was jumping side to side trying to free myself from the adrenaline rush. Glancing over at Jackie, I saw the on-site doctor was looking her over and helping her to a sitting position. At that moment, I knew she was okay, and I could celebrate fully.

  Throwing my hands up, I bent my head back and screamed.

  Lily was in the audience watching the fight. At one point, her name was announced, and I saw her raise her hand and wave to the crowd. Her championship title had pushed her to the next level in her career. Something I wanted and planned to get.

  When the referee lifted my hand and announced I was the winner by knockout, I ran over to the fence and yelled for Lily to join me. The moment she stepped through the octagon, I threw my arms around her waist. “How the hell did I win that fight? Wait,” I said and ran over to Jackie. I tapped her fist. “Good fight.”

  I made my way back to Lily.

  “Why are you shocked you won, C? You’re an amazing fighter.”

  “Coming from you that means a lot.”

  They took a group photo of my team, and I forced Lily to be a part of the action. She stepped away and encouraged them to take a photo without her in it. “You need the one without me for the frame that will be hung on the wall at the gym.”

  I wrapped my arm around her waist, and we made our way down the steps. Just as we reached the landing, Chuck Anders, the owner of AFC, walked over. He put his hand out for me. “That was a great fight, Charlie.”

  “Um, thank you.” It was weird being in the presence of Chuck. He had this way of knowing who the next big name would be in the fighting community. When Lily won the bantamweight championship, he predicted that would happen. “Shouldn’t you be at an AFC fight and not here at Spartacus?”

  “Funny you should ask that,” Chuck said, walking beside us as we made our way to my locker room. “I think we need to talk.”

  I stepped into the hallway heading to the locker room. “Me?” I threw my hand to my chest feeling a little confused.

  He chuckled, probably at my confused stare. “Yes, you.”

  “I have three more fights with Spartacus. I signed a contract.”

  “What if I said AFC wants to buy out the remainder of your contract?”

  “Holy shit.” I threw my hand over my mouth. “Sorry. I mean, really?”

  “We have a fight ticket happening in Liverpool, England. I would love to add you to the ticket. Lily will be a part of the main event to try to keep her title.”

  “Not trying,” I said, probably in a rude tone. “She will keep it.”

  “Exactly.” He nodded. “I think I want to add you to the preliminary fights for the flyweight division. It won’t be for the belt, but still, I think it would be a great opportunity for you.”

  “Um—”

  He placed his hand on my shoulder. “I’ll talk to Spartacus.”

  “I don’t know what to say.”

  “Say yes.” Chuck smiled and turned to walk away.

  “Fuck yeah,” I said rather quickly. “Well—”

  “I couldn’t have said it better myself.” He winked and turned to leave.

  Lily grabbed my shoulders and shook me. “You may be on a ticket with me, Charlie.”

  “Did he say Liverpool?” I said in a bit of a daze.

  “Road trip.” Brooks ran up and wrapped his arms around my waist to pick me up and spin me around. “Holy fucking shit.”

  “Holy fucking shit is right.” I didn’t know how to process this. I told Dad several years ago I would get into the AFC. He didn’t believe it could happen. A part of me wanted to send a letter that included two hands giving the middle finger. I was bigger than that, though. Instead, I needed to celebrate with my team.

  I ran down the hall to my locker room and opened the door to cheers. Devon walked over and pulled a champagne bottle he was holding from behind his back and shoo
k it a little. Before I had a chance to run in the opposite direction, he sprayed the champagne all over me.

  Covering my face, I burst out laughing. “So not fair. Where’s my bottle?”

  Julian handed me a flute full of champagne. “This may be safer.”

  I continued to laugh. As Devon walked toward me, I shook my head and threw my flute of wine right in his direction and lunged forward to hug him. He was soaked and I got my revenge.

  We celebrated for another thirty minutes and then decided to take the party back to Julian’s house. He lived in a mansion with Lily.

  Suddenly I was missing someone. Brooks. He was standing, talking to Julian and Lily. As I made my way over to him, I thought about all the things I wanted to see happen in my life.

  Win a title with AFC.

  Take a trip with Brooks.

  And maybe add continue helping with self-defense class.

  “Hey, sunshine,” he said in his sexy voice I loved so much and pulled me close to his body.

  “Hey, yourself.” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Should we go to Julian’s place or back home?”

  “To Julian’s place,” Lily whined.

  I pulled Brooks closer, loving the feel of his body next to mine. “But—”

  “How about we go for just a short time, and then I can take you home?”

  “And I can have my way with you?”

  “If you must.” He smiled.

  “Oh, I must.”

  Four

  “We need to get a pool.” I stepped into the bathtub. “Oh, better yet, a hot tub.”

  Brooks tugged me closer. “I have a hot tub at my place.”

  I sat up. “What? Then why the hell are we here?”

  He chuckled. “Um—”

  I stood up carefully. “Nope, let’s go to your place and skinny dip in the gorgeous hot tub.” I reached for his hand to tug him up. “What are you waiting for?”

  Somehow Brooks managed to pull me down on top of his body. The moment I felt his growing erection, my body reacted. “Oh, need to tend to a few things before we bail, eh?”

  “Pretty much.”

  I turned to face him and straddled his legs. “I know just what to do.” Right as I was about to touch him, my doorbell rang. “What the fuck?”

  “Expecting someone?”

  “No. You?” I teased and carefully stepped out of the tub. “I’m coming,” I yelled, and grabbed my robe sitting on a stool. I threw it on and headed for the bedroom door.

  “Did you have a hot date you forgot to tell me about?” Brooks whispered from behind me.

  I shoved at his arm and started down the hallway. As I approached the door, my phone started to go off. “What the fuck is going on?” Reaching for my phone, I lifted up on my tippy-toes and looked through the peephole. I stepped back quickly and read the messages on my phone. Jackson and Ethan were both sending me alerts. “Dad.”

  “What?” Brooks sounded confused.

  “My dad is here.”

  “Here, here?”

  I patted his shoulder. “Go put some pants on.” Pulling up the group text for my brothers, I sent them a message back, letting them know it was too late. He was here. Then I walked over to the door and swung it open. “Dad.”

  “Charlotte,” he said and stepped inside.

  I hated being called by my full name. “Well, come on in,” I said sarcastically.

  “Thank you.” He stepped into the living room and turned in a full circle. “You live here?”

  “Well, my name is on the lease.”

  “Haven’t changed a bit, have you?” He shook his head and stepped closer to me. “I needed to talk to you if you have a moment.”

  “You couldn’t call? This talk required an in-person visit?” I noticed Brooks peek around the doorframe. “Dad, this is my boyfriend, Brooks.” I reached out my hand encouraging him to come into the room.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. I thought you lived with Lily.”

  “We did, but not anymore.” I didn’t plan to offer all our personal details. He didn’t earn the right to hear them. “So, what was so urgent you needed to visit me after all these years?”

  He handed me an envelope. “This will share all the details.”

  Now I was curious. I pulled the folded documents out of the envelope and unfolded it. As I read each page, I knew my blood pressure was spiking. “You think you have rights to my royalties?”

  “I do.”

  “You don’t,” I quickly shot back. “I’m an adult and take care of my finances myself. Nothing goes to you.”

  “Well, I did set things up so I could get something from all my kids.”

  “Why the hell do you think that’s okay?”

  “After raising you and paying for everything. It’s a payback.”

  I was stunned by his words. “Wait, you raised me and took care of me like parents are supposed to do.”

  “Yeah, and I want some of that money back.”

  I burst out laughing. “Well, you are barking up the wrong tree.”

  “Excuse me,” he said, sounding a bit stunned.

  “It’s time for you to leave,” I demanded and walked over to open the door. He stayed rooted in the center of the living room. “Dad, I’m trying to be nice here.”

  “I’m not done talking to you.”

  “Oh, yeah ya are.” I pointed to Brooks. “And now we are taking the rude approach. Brooks will guide your ass out.”

  His arms were flailing as he was pushed toward the door. “I will have my lawyer talk to you.”

  “Whatever, you crazy fucker. Get the fuck out of my house.” Before he could say another word, I slammed the door in his face. Leaning against the wooden surface, I slid down to the floor. “What the hell just happened?”

  “We are getting out of the rental agreement and moving to my house.”

  “Time for me to go into hiding you mean?”

  Brooks sat down beside me. “We just need to make it more difficult to find you.”

  “I don’t know if that’s possible. My dad always gets what he wants.”

  “You okay?” Jackson said, sounding out of breath.

  “Um, I’m not sure at the moment.” I was still sitting on the floor in front of the front door tightly holding the phone. “How did this all transpire?”

  “You won that last fight. Plus, there are rumors you are going to get signed with AFC.”

  I shook my head, trying to process everything. “Did he ever try to get money from you, Grace, or Kennedy?” My brothers Ethan and Mason still worked with Dad, so they didn’t have to worry about being attacked.

  “It’s a long story.”

  “So it’s not about paying him back. It’s about greed and power.”

  “That’s my guess.”

  “Listen, I have to go.” I needed Brooks right now. Standing up and walking to the kitchen, I found him sitting at the kitchen table, talking on the phone.

  “We’ll be over soon.” He hung up the phone and reached for my hand. “Come here.”

  “Where are we going?” I climbed up on his lap and snuggled into his side.

  “Julian’s place for the night.” He kissed the top of my head. “You need Lily.”

  Brooks had figured out after all these months that Lily and I had a bond that was unbreakable. “Thanks.” I wrapped my arms tighter around his waist and pulled him closer. “Oh, they have a pool and hot tub, too.”

  “Julian is warming it up as we speak.” He winked at me.

  “Who’s the best boyfriend ever?”

  “Julian?”

  “Oh hush.” I swatted at his arm. “Now get me out of this place.”

  “Your father is bat shit crazy,” Julian said, stepping into the hot tub.

  “You’re just figuring this out,” I teased and scooted over to give him room. “It’s amazing the balls that man has, seriously.”

  “Well, people continue to ignore his actions instead of making him accountable,” Lily said and han
ded me a glass filled with sparkling water and a splash of wine. “You can’t have wine right now.”

  I rolled my eyes and took a sip. “Hard ass.” Of course I was teasing so I immediately blew her a kiss.

  Brooks had me pack like I was leaving on a month-long vacation. He decided I would not go back to the rental anytime soon. Which honestly was fine by me. I planned to get a P.O. Box and live either with Brooks or with Lily. If I had my way, it would be with Brooks.

  “Have you been to Brooks’s house yet?” Lily asked, splashing some water in my direction.

  “We went once in the evening.” I scowled. “Why have we avoided your house? Is there a bug infestation?” I burst out laughing. Brooks moved his foot in between my legs, causing me to scream. “You also don’t know how to play fair.”

  “We just stayed at your place. You seemed happy.” He shrugged his shoulders. “The house is not all fancy pants like here.”

  Julian coughed out, “That’s true.”

  “Screw you,” Brooks said, shoving at his brother’s arm. “I don’t have that girly side in me like you do.”

  “Boys, boys, boys,” I teased and moved onto Brooks’s lap. “Charlie Bear to the rescue. I will make that house amazing.”

  It was nice sitting with my friends and feeling safe. My father somehow managed to mess with everyone’s lives and not in a positive way. Hopefully someone could stand up to him someday soon and make him realize what he was doing was not okay.

  Five

  “You ready for your meeting, C?” Lily said, leaning on the front counter by the entrance to the gym.

  “I think so.” I threw my feet onto the counter and leaned back in the rolling chair. “A part of me is worried that Danny will say fuck no to Chuck’s offer.”

  Danny Green was the owner of Spartacus and not as giving as Chuck. Several scenarios popped up into my mind, and none of them good with how this meeting would play out. Chuck reassured me his offer was too good to refuse. We’ll see about that.