Tear Down These Walls

by Carter, Sarah

  “Give them a fighting chance,” Teagan giggles.

  The friend finally bends over and takes a shot. He hits the 10 ball in. The cue ball then lines up with the 11 ball. Smiling, the friend bends over and hits the cue ball. Teagan grins because he hit it too hard. The cue ball falls into the hole, right along with the 11 ball.

  “Dude!” The guy exclaims to his friend.

  “My turn,” Emily chirps happily. She grabs out the cue ball. She puts it on the one side of the table. Emily lines it up with the 5 ball. Bending over, she eyes up the balls. Finally and carefully, she hits the cue ball. It sails across the table and hits the 5 ball. That ball darts across the table and slams into the pocket. Emily stands up and grins. “8 ball in the corner pocket.” She walks around the table.

  “You guys are cheating,” the guy angrily spits out.

  Emily turns around. “How does one cheat at pool?”

  “You are hustling us,” the guy snaps.

  “We warned you,” Emily replies. “The wager should have told you we were good. No one puts that much money down if they suck. You just underestimated us because we have boobs.”

  The guy sneers and steps up to Emily “You won’t take our money.”

  She never saw him move, but Teagan notices Trent come up behind Emily. “I believe it was a fair bet,” Trent growls. “We won’t have a problem here.”

  There is a moment of hesitation as the guy looks up at Trent. Teagan sees that Trent towers over the guy by a good 5 or 6 inches. She snickers to herself. The guy finally mumbles, “Fine, take the shot.”

  Looking very proud of herself, Emily bends over and hits the cue ball. It bounces off the side and skims the side of the 8 ball. The 8 ball slowly rolls over and then falls into the corner pocket. “That’s the game,” Emily calls. She turns and looks at the guy. “It was a nice playing you.”

  “This is bullshit,” the guy snaps.

  Trent steps in front of Emily. “I believe you owe these ladies some money.”

  “Whatever,” the guy snarls. He pulls out his wallet and takes out money. His friend does the same.

  Emily happily takes the money. “Thanks guys. One little suggestion, never doubt a girl’s skills just because she is a girl.”

  “Just go away,” the guy spits out.

  Trent and Emily turn and walk over to Teagan and Victoria. “We won,” Emily giggles.

  “Was there any doubt?” Teagan laughs back.

  “Nnaahhhh,” Emily draws out.

  Victoria winds her arm through Emily’s. “Let’s go celebrate a victory and a birthday.”

  Everyone starts walking back to the table. Trent bends over and murmurs, “How did you learn to play like that?”

  “The one good thing I learned from Justin,” Teagan replies. “He had a pool table in his basement. He hustled people all the time.”

  “I’m thoroughly impressed,” Trent retorts.

  “I do what I can,” Teagan says with a smile, nudging him with her hip again.

  They get to the table, and Teagan takes a seat. Trent steps up behind her and bends down to her ear. He barely whispers, “That is very hot, by the way.”

  Teagan blushes. Emily starts to divide the money around the table. “Everyone wins on this one.”

  Victoria holds up a shot, “Here is to our girls!!” Everyone picks up his or her shots. “Cheers!” They all down the shot.

  Teagan sets her glass down and says, “What now?”

  “Dancing,” Victoria replies.

  “You have to wait and visit with us for a little while,” Isaac states. “Michael doesn’t dance.”

  “What shall we talk about then?” Teagan asks happily.

  “I want to know more about Trent,” Michael interjects. “I swear I know you from somewhere.”

  Trent looks really uncomfortable. “I don’t know why you would.”

  “Trent Grayson,” Michael mutters. “I know that name.”

  “It’s actually Kellen Trent Grayson,” Teagan chimes in. Trent groans.

  Michael’s eyes widen and he yells, “HOLY SHIT, you’re Kellen Grayson! HOLY SHIT!”

  “What are you so excited about?” Teagan inquires, looking really confused.

  “You are standing next to an undefeated MMA champion!” Michael exclaims. “I mean UNDEFEATED!”

  “Dude….” Isaac starts. “It’s him. It’s The Cyclone.”

  Turning around, Teagan looks at Trent. “What are they talking about?”

  “I used to fight in the UFC,” Trent sighs, putting his hands in his pockets.

  “You were a fighter?” Victoria squeaks. “Oh my god, that is so hot.”

  “You never told me,” Teagan says, giving him a perplexed look.

  “I will tell you about it later,” Trent whispers.

  “Dude, I watched almost every one of your fights!” Michael shouts. “This is incredible!”

  Trent looks to the side and says, “Yeah, I don’t fight anymore, though.”

  “Yeah, what the hell, you just dropped off the face of the planet,” Michael stutters. “I mean…you fought Georgio and then bam, no more fights.”

  “My life changed unexpectedly, and fighting was no longer conducive,” Trent mumbles, obviously trying to drop the topic.

  “Dude, you have to have experienced so much!” Michael exclaims. “You fought everywhere. You fought in Vegas! That was an incredible fight. You won in two minutes! Knocked the other guy out cold in two minutes!”

  “It was actually one,” Trent corrects him with a slow smile. “Right hook, he never saw it coming.”

  Isaac stares at him. “I can’t believe we are out drinking with The Cyclone. You’re fast….so fast.”

  “Yeah, that’s how I won,” Trent replies, warming up to the conversation and loosening up a little bit. Teagan looks at him in bewilderment. “I also have been training since I was a kid.”

  “I knew you fought in high school,” Teagan says. “You said nothing about professional fighting.”

  “That’s the high school crowd I fell into,” Trent replies with a shrug. “A friend of mine’s older brother was a trainer in the MMA. He saw what I was capable of. I fought to train and got into a lot of fights outside of training, too. I knew I could win. Guys would mouth off, and I was always like, fine, we will settle it like men.”

  Victoria giggles, “And I didn’t think you could get hotter! Wow, was I wrong!”

  Teagan locks her eyes on Trent’s. She looks at him for a second and then says, “The things you find out about people. So, Justin should be really scared of you.”

  “Oh yes, he should,” Trent asserts. “Now that you know, if you can, throw that into conversation. If he finds out and then sees me, then maybe I won’t have to do anything to keep him away.”

  “Undefeated, huh?” Teagan can’t seem to get over it. “That is impressive.”

  “You must have gotten laid a million times!” Michael yells. “I mean the girls that you were around. I’m so jealous!”

  Teagan clams up, feeling very inadequate. Though she knows that nothing is going to happen with Trent, it makes her wonder if it’s because she isn’t good enough.

  “Yeah, there were a lot of girls, and I fell into that trap,” Trent sighs. Teagan can feel him staring at her. “I was young, and it was a free for all, but looking back at it, I regret it. It was stupid and meant nothing.”

  “That’s the whole point!” Michael says.

  “Trust me, you want it to mean something,” Trent states. “Hollow sex is fueled by stupidity, and shit happens when you do stupid things.”

  “Whatever,” Michael replies rolling his eyes. “What a life to have led!”

  “I need to do another shot,” Trent mumbles. He picks up the godfather shot. “Here’s to the past!” He takes the shot and drinks it down.

  “I think I need one, too,” Teagan murmurs. She follows suit and does the same shot. After she swallows it she starts to cough, “That’s horrible!”

>   Trent pats her on the back. “You’ll be okay.”

  A wave of euphoria sweeps over Teagan, and she giggles, “Oh my gosh, I’m starting to feel good.”

  Victoria holds up her godfather. “Here is to an awesome night!” She slams hers back. Isaac, Michael, and Emily follow suit.

  Emily gags and exclaims, “That is horrible!”

  “Sissy,” Michael laughs.

  “So, tell us more stories of your days of fighting,” Michael says, eyes wide. “I am enthralled.”

  “Oh boy,” Trent exhales. “It was a crazy time in my life. As much as I trained, I partied, and I mean partied hard. My trainer didn’t like that, but I was 18. They let me into the clubs and bars. I could get anything I wanted.”

  “You had to have banked,” Michael interjects.

  “Yeah,” Trent replies. “I made a lot of money.”

  Teagan looks at him. “I thought you made your money from your security business.”

  “I do, but that’s how I have my own business. I had enough money to start it.”

  “Wow, you are incredible,” Michael emphasizes.

  “I think Mike is more enamored with you than I am,” Teagan laughs at Trent.

  He gets a thoughtful look on his face. “I didn’t know you were enamored with me,” Trent whispers.

  That shuts her up quickly. Teagan looks away from him. “You know what I meant.”

  Trent leans over and murmurs in her ear. “I think you are more honest when you are drinking.”

  She exhales loudly and then says, “I need another shot.” She quickly downs another one.

  “Slow your roll there,” Isaac says, covering the rest of her shots. “You have had enough for a little while.”

  “I will take care of her,” Trent puts his hand on her arm. “Even if she pukes.”

  “I want to dance,” Teagan exhales, needing to get away from Trent for a moment, afraid of what she will say next.

  “I will dance with you,” Isaac chimes. Teagan stares at him, not knowing what to say.

  Victoria quickly interjects with, “Oh no, girls first.” She grabs Teagan’s hand and pulls her onto the dance floor, pushing their way into the crowd. Victoria leans in by Teagan and shouts over the music, “This is an interesting turn of events.”

  “Thanks for running interference with Isaac,” Teagan giggles. “I don’t want to dance with him.”

  “You want to dance with Trent, don’t you?” Victoria raises her eyebrows.

  “That’s not even an option,” Teagan hiccups. “Let’s just dance, while I am buzzed and feeling good!” Victoria laughs, and they start dancing with each other. The more they dance the more buzzed Teagan feels. She feels great and doesn’t shy away from dancing seductively with her best friend. Closing her eyes, she follows the music.

  After a few songs, Victoria grabs Teagan. “Trent is watching you.”

  “What?” Teagan giggles.

  “Don’t look, but Trent can’t take his eyes off of you.”

  “Well, he should come out here then. He can admire from afar for now.”

  Victoria shouts over the music, “You should get him out here!”

  “How do you suggest I do that?” Teagan inquires with a grin.

  She watches Victoria point to the right. There is a raised platform that can hold one dancer. No one is on it right now. “Go do your thing.”

  “Not in front of people,” Teagan hisses.

  “I triple dog dare you,” Victoria retorts. “I bet it will make him look at you as more than a friend.”

  “You think?” Teagan asks. Victoria nods. Teagan eyes the platform, not one to turn down a dare, especially one that may get Trent’s attention. She turns to Victoria, smirks and winks. Victoria laughs. Teagan starts to push her way through the crowd. When she gets to the platform, she carefully walks up the steps. As soon as she gets up there, she gets nervous, but then a heated song comes on, and she can’t help herself.

  The alcohol buzz helps remove Teagan’s apprehension. She starts to move her body as seductively as she can, knowing all eyes will be on her, but not caring in the least. She runs her hands up both sides of her body and then puts them in the air. As the song goes on, Teagan drops down to the floor and then back up. Another song comes on, and she keeps moving. Suddenly, someone is next to her.

  Teagan opens her eyes to see a guy she does not know standing there. He grabs her hips and pulls her against him. “You can really dance,” he purrs in her ear.

  Before Teagan can reply, the guy is yanked off the platform. Trent has him, and he throws him onto the floor. The guy scurries away. Trent sticks his hands up to Teagan. She bends down. Trent picks her up and brings her down to the floor. Giggling and blushing, she looks up at him. “What do you think you are doing?”

  “He had his hands on places they shouldn’t have been,” Trent replies, darkly.

  “I was dancing,” Teagan hiccups.

  “I saw.”

  Giving him a pouty face, Teagan says, “What if I wanted to dance with that guy?”

  “Seriously?” Trent asks, unable to hide the disbelief in his voice.

  She brings her finger up and traces it down Trent’s chest. “I want to dance with someone.”

  Trent is silent as he stares at her. He finally murmurs, “Isaac wants to dance with you.”

  Teagan looks into his eyes and whispers back, “Isaac isn’t the one I want to dance with.”

  “Are you drunk?” Trent inquires softly.

  Shaking her head, Teagan replies, “No, buzzed.” She pauses and then says, “It’s all right. With all your talents, I doubt dancing is one of them, so I will find someone else to dance with.”

  “You think I can’t dance,” Trent asks her, his eyes hard. Teagan smirks and shakes her head. Abruptly, she is pulled into Trent’s arms, and he takes her onto the dance floor. He starts moving to the music, and Teagan realizes he can dance, and dance well. He spins her out and back again. Teagan runs her hands up his chiseled chest and then wraps them around his neck. They press up against each other and dance through the crowd. Teagan feels everything in her tense up. It has been a long time since a guy has touched her, and it never felt like this. Justin never made her feel this way. Every inch of her is tingling in pleasure and anticipation of what pleasures could potentially be coming.

  The heat from Trent comes through her dress as he moves his hands around her. It makes Teagan’s pulse race and her breath quicken. They dance to the music, feeling each other’s bodies pressed together. It is the most sensual thing that Teagan has ever felt. Trent makes her feel things she never has before. A yearning starts to grow in her, making her press up against him more.

  Finally, Trent whispers, “Teagan,” in a breathy tone. She looks up at him. His eyes hold the same heat that she is feeling. Every inch of her wants to kiss him, every inch, but then the fear comes. The fear of what he could do to her, the fear of the pain that could come if she lets herself feel, allows herself to fall. Teagan quickly lets go and steps back. Trent instantly says, “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” Teagan replies, running her fingers through her hair. “I just need to take a break.”

  Trent brings his hand up and traces his fingers down the side of her face. “Is that really it?”

  Forcing a smile on her face, Teagan says, “Yeah, come on. There are more shots to be had.” She grabs his hand and leads him off the dance floor. They get to the table, to find everyone drinking bottled water.

  “We needed something other than liquor,” Emily declares. “We were parched from dancing so much.”

  Teagan grabs a bottle of water. “Yeah, me too.”

  “You guys looked like you were having fun out there,” Victoria slyly says. “Trent can sure dance.”

  “Yup,” Teagan exhales. “It was fun. It sure surprised me.”

  “I actually love to dance,” Trent states. “Especially with such a beautiful woman.”

  “Awwww!” Victoria exclaims.<
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  Moving her gaze to Trent, Teagan looks at him. He is staring back at her with that heat still in his eyes. She nervously looks away. Michael finally says, “Is the birthday girl having a good birthday?”

  “Totally,” Teagan replies with a grin.

  “I say it’s time for another shot,” Michael declares, picking up one of his. Everyone joins him. “To Teagan!” They all down their shots and put the glasses back on the table.

  “Drink some more water,” Trent whispers in Teagan’s ear. “I don’t want you to get sick.”

  “Okay,” Teagan giggles. She takes a sip of water and looks at Trent. The desire she was feeling starts to boil up again, and she doesn’t know how to fight it.

  Trent stares at her and then murmurs, “What do you want to do now?”

  She gulps and replies, “So much.”

  He stares at her for a second and is about to say something, when Teagan hears, “I want one dance with the birthday girl. You guys have to share at some point.”

  Both Trent and Teagan look across the table. Isaac is staring at them. “Oh,” Teagan chirps. “Ummmm.”

  “One dance,” Isaac retorts with a frustrated look on his face.

  “Sure,” Teagan says.

  “Excellent.” Isaac comes around the table and sticks out his hand. Teagan hesitantly looks at it, not wanting to hurt Isaac’s feelings.

  “Keep your hands in appropriate places,” Trent articulates.

  Isaac’s eyes widen. “Yeah, of course man.” A little nervous, Isaac pulls Teagan out onto the dance floor. She follows him reluctantly. When they get into the crowd, Isaac turns her around and pulls her against him. It isn’t as close as Trent, but it’s a little too close for Teagan. As they start to dance, she takes a step back. Isaac doesn’t seem to notice, which makes Teagan really happy. They dance, but halfway through the song, Teagan’s head starts to get cloudy. She stumbles a little and falls into Isaac. He grins and starts to move with her more. Teagan shakes her head to try and clear it up a little. It doesn’t help. Isaac starts to run his hands up her back.