Spar

by Nikko Lee

Tyler seemed hell bent on teaching Jaime some kind of lesson, but Jaime was in no mood. He wasn’t about to let someone force him to do anything.

  “You left the dojo because of Steve, right?” Tyler’s grip was strong enough, Jaime considered using an evasion technique to get away, except that would just remind Jaime of their time together. “I saw the look on your face when you saw him coming at you in the bar. This won’t end until you stand up to him. If you keep running, it will only give him more power over you.”

  “What does it matter?” Jaime pulled again to get free, but Tyler’s grip was secure. “As long as I stay out of his way, there isn’t a problem.”

  “Except that it keeps you from doing what you love,” Tyler said. “I know you love practicing karate. Even after Sensei Melissa threw him out of the dojo, you still left, why?”

  Jaime’s eyes focused on Tyler’s feet. Part of him did feel ashamed for giving up something he loved because of someone else’s narrow-mindedness. Sensei Melissa had promised him no one would ever hurt him in the dojo. Steve was gone. But what happened when the next Steve joined? Jaime couldn’t find the strength to fight for something that had meant so much to him, because it would mean being reminded of what he’d lost with Tyler twice a week.

  “You don’t know what it’s like,” Jaime said. After all the time they had spent together, he couldn’t hide behind his wall with Tyler. “For every guy like Steve who is an ass about someone like me, there’s always three more who think it and just don’t say anything. How long before someone else didn’t like training with a fag?”

  “Sensei Melissa will deal with those students.” Tyler tried to assure him.

  “She will lose students because of me. What makes you think she wants me around? “

  “Those aren’t the kind of students we want in the dojo,” Tyler said and relaxed his grip. “They are ruled by their fears and aren’t ready to face them.”

  “What about you?”

  “What do you mean?”

  This time when Jaime pulled his arm, Tyler let it slip from his grasp.

  “You can’t stand the idea of anyone knowing about us.” Jaime looked Tyler square in the eyes as he spoke.

  Tyler’s mouth dropped open, he seemed at a loss for words.

  “Isn’t this sweet?” Steve and two of his friends from the dojo were about fifteen feet from them. There was no doubt they had heard at least some of the conversation.

  Adrenaline surged through Jaime’s body as Tyler stepped in front of him. Tyler looked ready to fight for Jaime, but the odds weren’t in their favor. Jaime wanted to run, but he wouldn’t leave Tyler to face the three of them alone. Maybe he could take two, but not three of them.

  “You boys run out of beer money?” Tyler took a defensive stance at a forty-five degree angle, his hands open and raised. “How about I buy you a round?”

  Jaime had been in enough of these situations to know that de-escalation wasn’t going to work. Guys like Steve and his friends got off on an unfair fight. They had probably had enough to drink to even consider attacking Jaime and Tyler. Alcohol fueled courage, no doubt. If not now, then when they least expected it. Jaime took a step toward Tyler to let the man know he wasn’t alone in this fight.

  “Maybe after we have a word or two with Jaime.” Steve smirked.

  “You got something to say to him, you can say it inside.”

  “I don’t think so.” Steve’s demeanor hardened with anger. “Step aside. This is between me and the fag.”

  Tyler visibly bristled. He seemed to always hate it when Jaime had used the word jokingly. Coming out of Steve’s mouth there was no humor, only rage.

  “Fuck off, Steve,” Tyler said.

  “What are you, his boyfriend?” Steve took a step toward Jaime.

  “So what if I am?”

  The rest of the world condensed into the few feet between Steve and Jaime. They might be one punch away from a brawl, but all Jaime heard was Tyler’s words. It wasn’t exactly a declaration. It wasn’t a denial either. Tyler looked ready to defend Jaime at any cost, even if it meant revealing what he feared anyone knowing. Jaime couldn’t let Tyler get hurt on his account.

  “This isn’t your fight.” Jaime’s voice was low but steady as he placed a hand on Tyler’s shoulder.

  “Fucking right,” Steve said.

  Jaime had spent too long running. That someone was willing to stand up for him, made him feel strong enough to do it himself. Jaime stepped around Tyler and faced off with Steve. Tyler hung back, but Jaime knew he’d jump into the fight in a heartbeat if either of Steve’s buddies made a move. “Let’s get this over with”

  As many times as Jaime had sparred in class or been jumped by some homophobic Neanderthal, he’d never willingly stepped into a fight. His body shook from the adrenaline spike, and he tried to remember his years of training. The words had barely left his lips when Steve threw a wild haymaker that connected with Jaime’s jaw. Jaime stumbled backward, swimming in a twilight haze. He’d been clocked a few times, even by Tyler when sparring. It hurt, but it would hurt even more if Jaime went down.

  “You going to cry, fag?” Steve taunted. Jaime was vaguely aware of laughter from the other two, but they kept their distance.

  Jaime licked the blood from his lips. Steve was going to have to do better than that if he wanted to shake Jaime. He wasn’t going to run. Jaime knew he would win this fight. Losing wasn’t an option. Jaime waited for his opening. Steve threw several more punches, narrowly missing Jaime as he sidestepped. Each time he let Steve get a little closer until Jaime was able to catch Steve’s arm. In a fluid motion, Jaime guided Steve past him and straight into the door of a parked car. The crumple of aluminum was punctuated with a stream of curses.

  Steve turned and lunged at Jaime, throwing wild punches. Some of them landed but most missed. Each time Steve extended himself, Jaime found an opening and connected several shots. Jab to the nose. Right hook to the ribs. Each impact rocked Steve’s body and slowed him but didn’t stop him.

  “It’s your goddamn fault I was kicked out of the dojo,” Steve yelled as he threw a flurry of punches. “You’ve got no business being there.”

  “I’ve got every right to be wherever the fuck I want to be,” Jaime said. “Not you or anyone else gets to decide that for me.”

  The next time Steve moved in, Jaime ducked his punch and swept Steve’s legs out from beneath him. Steve hit the ground so hard his head bounced off the pavement. Bloodied and panting, Steve stared at Jaime standing above him. The swelling cuts and bruises on Jaime’s face barely registered. He would hurt tomorrow.

  “Kick his ass!” Steve screamed over to his buddies. They looked as shocked as Steve that Jaime was beating his ass.

  “Not a good idea.”

  Jaime turned and saw Sarah holding up her cell phone. “The police can be here in less than five minutes.”

  Beside her, Randy was holding onto Tyler. Even Erica was standing next to them. Jaime hadn’t realized there was such an audience gathering. Jaime looked back at Steve, who seemed to be calculating his odds.

  “And it will take less than that for us to kick your collective asses,” Randy said.

  The testosterone brothers weren’t the brightest, but they looked like they could add up well enough. They pulled Steve to his feet. Jaime didn’t move a muscle as they backed Steve away.

  “This isn’t over,” Steve screamed.

  “It is for me,” Jaime said.

  * * * *

  It took everything Tyler had and a hand from Randy to keep Tyler from jumping into the fight between Jaime and Steve. It looked like Steve might overpower him, but Jaime remained calm and waited for his opening. For every punch he took, he dealt out two. Soon it was over, and Steve was being dragged away by his friends.

  Sarah and Erica came over to join them.

  “That’s one nasty black eye,” Sarah said. “Maybe I should have gone into medicine.”

  Tyler stood apart from Sarah as she
examined Jaime. He wanted to be the one making sure Jaime was all right.

  “I might end up needing a lawyer if that idiot decides to keep coming after me.” Jaime winced when Sarah touched the side of his face.

  Then Jaime turned to Tyler and gave him a shy smile. “I think I might need a few more classes after all.”

  Tyler’s heart bounded in his chest. That was all the invitation Tyler needed. He walked over to Jaime and took the man’s face in his hands as tenderly as he could.

  “Hold still, I don’t want to hurt you.”

  Jaime’s eye went wide as Tyler leaned in and kissed him. He probably wasn’t the only one shocked, but no one else’s opinion mattered as much to Tyler as Jaime’s.

  Chapter 17

  Jaime was so engrossed in adjusting the vocal tracks from Death OverLord’s latest recording session he didn’t notice Leila until she swatted him across the back of the head.

  “What did I do now?” Jaime said as he set aside his headphones. He could still hear the track coming out at a high volume. No wonder he was lost to the world when he was editing.

  “You’ve been holding out on me.” Leila leaned against the mixing table with folded arms and a scowl that would make a schoolmarm proud.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Jaime searched his memory for what he’d done or not done that could have upset Leila. She hadn’t done any damage with her slap, so she couldn’t be too mad at him. “I warned you those Lindt chocolates were going fast. Don’t blame me if you didn’t get any.”

  “Oh, I got some of those.” Leila tapped her foot. “When were you going to tell me about Mister Hottie from karate class?”

  The smile that instantly appeared on Jaime’s face must have been huge because Leila burst out laughing.

  “I knew it,” Leila said as she slapped Jaime’s shoulder. “You’ve got a boyfriend.”

  Boyfriend. That wasn’t a word Jaime was used to hearing in relation to the guys he was with. And yet that’s exactly what Tyler insisted on introducing himself as. Not that Jaime minded. It made his heart ache and his body stiffen every time he heard the word.

  “Don’t think I’ve forgiven you for dumping Tomas,” Leila said as she headed for the door.

  “I’m really sorry about that.” Jaime still felt guilty for going on those dates with Tomas. At least they hadn’t hooked up. As soon as he knew things with Tyler were heating up, Jaime called things off with Tomas. “I hope he didn’t think I was leading him on.”

  Leila’s eyebrow rose. “I think it was actually a confidence booster for him. Tomas has really started putting himself out there. I know he’ll find the one, someday.”

  Jaime was relieved to hear it. Tomas was a good man, just not the right man for him.

  “I’ll tell Mr. Karate you’ll be right out.”

  After saving his work and returning the sampling disks to the archive, Jaime headed to reception. He spotted Tyler patiently receiving the third degree from Leila. All in all, Tyler seemed to be handling it well. The scarlet blush on his cheeks assured Jaime Leila had asked some suitably inappropriate questions. To his credit, Tyler sat there talking to her politely. Leila was among the few friends Jaime had, and it mattered to him what she thought of Tyler.

  “There he is,” Leila said as Jaime hovered in the doorway. “You’d better show Jaime a good time tonight.”

  “That’s the plan.” Tyler looked up at Jaime and smiled.

  “Good, because I need to live vicariously through someone.” Leila walked over to Jaime and paused before leaving. “He’s a keeper.”

  “Ready to go?” Tyler asked.

  “Sorry about that,” Jaime said. “She’s a little overprotective.”

  Tyler met Jaime halfway across the reception waiting area and caught him in a kiss. For a moment, Jaime forgot where they were and what they were going to do tonight. The only thing that mattered to him was holding onto this feeling and this man as long as he could.

  “I missed you,” Tyler whispered as he broke the kiss.

  “I missed you, too.”

  Jaime lingered in Tyler’s arms, enjoying that neither of them cared who saw them.

  “Let’s go.” Tyler took Jaime’s hand. “Randy and Sarah are going to meet us at the movie theater, and then after we can catch up at my place.”

  “I like the sound of that.”

  Jaime couldn’t resist one more kiss before he had to share Tyler for the evening. As long as they went home together, Jaime didn’t care what they did.

  * * * *

  As much as Tyler hated to admit it, he was a little nervous about their double date with Randy and Sarah. The way Jaime beamed whenever Tyler grabbed his hand or called him his boyfriend was worth it. Randy and Sarah were cool to hang out with, and the four of them fell into some serious analysis of the martial arts in the latest spy thriller they saw. It felt natural. For once, Tyler had a lover he could share all of himself with.

  “How did that elbow lock go?” Jaime asked as Tyler opened the door to his apartment. “I just can’t get it to work.”

  Tyler watched Jaime practice the maneuver on an invisible partner. He was trying to replicate the move Randy and Tyler had been experimenting with in the parking lot after the movie before Sarah called it a night. ‘Don’t you have a sparring partner?’ was all she had to say for Tyler to blush. Randy hadn’t said much about Tyler’s new relationship. The fact he still treated Tyler like nothing had changed was more than enough reassurance that Tyler was on the right path, finally.

  “Here,” Tyler said as he took Jaime’s wrist and pulled him into the apartment. “The secret is in the wrist. Once it’s torqued, all you have to do is put a little pressure on the elbow and twist.”

  In one fluid motion, Tyler rolled Jaime’s elbow. Jaime dropped to one knee, tapping Tyler’s thigh. Tyler relaxed his hold and helped Jaime up.

  “Now you try it.”

  Jaime’s expression was one of complete concentration as he attempted the move several times before Tyler felt the zing of pain shoot through his arm, and his knees buckled. Tyler loved it when Jaime got something he’d been working hard on. Tyler loved everything about Jaime. In the months they’d been together, Tyler found himself happier than he’d ever been with anyone else.

  “Brilliant.” Jaime’s grin was priceless. “You’re an amazing teacher.”

  “You’re pretty amazing yourself.” Tyler felt on the verge of something more and felt his stomach clench. He pulled Jaime close and stroked his hair.

  “Why are you looking at me like that?” It was Jaime’s turn to blush.

  Tyler took a deep breath. “Because I want to tell you something, but I don’t want to scare you.”

  “What?”

  Closing his eyes, Tyler leaned in until their foreheads touched. He could feel Jaime’s breath on his lips.

  “I think I love you.”

  His heartbeat counted the seconds as his words hung in the inch between them.

  “You don’t have to say anything,” Tyler said. He didn’t want Jaime to feel obligated to return the expression. Tyler wouldn’t have said anything except he’d come so close to blurting it out since they had gotten back together it felt inevitable. “I just wanted to tell you.”

  Tyler had barely finished speaking when Jaime caught his lips in a deep kiss that set Tyler’s heart racing. His hands grasped Jaime’s neck, and he pressed his body against Jaime’s.

  “Let’s hit the shower,” Jaime said when he finally pulled away for air.

  * * * *

  Their clothes were quickly discarded on the way to Tyler’s bathroom. Jaime fumbled with the faucet while Tyler nipped at his shoulder. The shaft of Tyler’s cock jutted between Jaime’s legs and pressed against his balls. The thrill of feeling so vulnerable and exposed, yet completely safe, drove a shiver of excitement straight down Jaime’s spine and into his toes. It was only intensified when Tyler reached around and started stroking Jaime’s cock.

  B
efore long, the room was filled with steam, and they hadn’t even set foot in the shower.

  “We’d better get in before I run out of hot water.” Tyler broke away from Jaime only long enough to step into the shower. He reached out his hand. “Come on, there’s something I’ve always wanted to try.”

  Jaime paused as he was about to step over the edge of the tub. He wondered what Tyler had in mind. There was only one thing Jaime hadn’t given him, and Tyler had never asked for it.

  “If you’ll let me,” Tyler said so sweetly, Jaime felt all his trepidation melt away.

  “I trust you.”

  Jaime stepped into the streaming hot water and was showered by kisses.

  Tyler grabbed a sponge. “First a little soap. Just relax and let me take care of you.”

  “Don’t make me wait too long,” Jaime said as he closed his eyes.

  Tyler took his time lathering every inch of Jaime’s body. He started at the top and worked his way down. In rhythmic circles, Tyler massaged and washed in turn, only pausing when he reached Jaime’s full erection. Jaime opened his eyes just enough to see Tyler kneeling before him as Tyler worked around the mass of flesh. It was torture. It was heaven.

  “Turn around.”

  Jaime took a deep breath and did as asked.

  Standing once again, Tyler pressed the sponge against Jaime’s back and sucked on his earlobe. “Spread your legs.”

  Jaime planted his hands on the shower wall and prepared himself. He remembered the words he’d told Tyler the first time he’d penetrated the man. Telling someone to relax was a hundred times easier than actually doing it. The few times Jaime had been too drunk to protest had been disastrous.

  “Just go slow,” Jaime said.

  “I plan on it.”

  Tyler detached the showerhead and rinsed the soap off Jaime’s body. The pounding water against his muscles did wonders. Jaime had never felt so well-cared for or well-loved before. The jet of water against his anus made Jaime jump, but he tried not to let it show. He was determined to give Tyler all of himself.

  “None of my girlfriends ever would have let me do this,” Tyler said. He turned off the water and let the showerhead rest on the shower floor. Then his hands cupped Jaime’s ass cheeks.