by L. P. Dover
“I’m here to see Mr. Rushing. I have a nine o’clock appointment with him. My name’s Michael Briggs.”
He looked nervous as probably most of the young men would be, knowing they were going to be training with the UFC’s Heavyweight Champion. “He’s right down there, Michael,” I said, pointing to Tyler’s back.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” I watched him walk down to Tyler and stand behind him for a minute before getting the courage to clear his throat. Tyler met him with a smile and shook his hand.
For the rest of the day, a seemingly never ending stream of guys came in to work with Tyler. I had made a list of the ones I had a hunch he would pick.
In the middle of writing down the last guy’s name, Kyle snuck up behind me. “What are you doing, love?”
Gasping, I jerked in my seat but he put his arms around me. “Dammit Kyle,” I hissed. “You scared the shit out of me.”
Letting me go, he circled around to the front of my desk and looked down at the paper in front of me, lifting his brows. “Is there a reason you’re writing a bunch of men’s names?”
I rolled my eyes and pointed to the ring. “Tyler’s going to start coaching and he had an enormous response from young men wanting to hire him. Knowing he can’t train them all, he decided to have an audition of sorts.”
Kyle kept his gaze on Tyler. “I see. It’s a shame he can’t accept them all. I think everyone should get a chance.”
“I mentioned to him about you coaching. Is that something you’d be interested in?”
His attention snapped back to me. “You said that to him?”
I nodded. “I did, along with telling him about me and you. I can’t say he’s happy, but at least he didn’t completely lose his shit.”
“Hopefully he won’t try to kill me before the day is over.”
“I give you a seventy percent chance of making it. It’s not as dire as you’d think. Although he did make the comment that he was surprised you were still talking to me after spending the weekend together. Apparently, your habit of hitting it and quitting it precedes you.”
“Well, then I guess it’s going to be fun to prove him wrong.”
It was almost time for our self-defense class, but the phone caught me before I could get up. Kyle nodded toward the weight bench and I waved for him to go. “Rushing’s Gym and Fitness, this is Megan, how can I help you?”
“Hello, Megan. How are you?” a deep voice replied.
“I’m fine, how are you?”
“Doing well. I wanted to call about your membership fees. I was interested in joining a gym, but I wanted to see if I can afford it.”
Grabbing our portfolio with all of our prices, I went down the line and explained to him the different options. Sometimes I wished I could say look it up online, but not everyone had the internet.
“Which package do you like, the big one I’d bet.”
I rolled my eyes. “I would probably sign up for the six month contract. You save more money and it doesn’t lock you in for a full year.”
“I have to say, you have a lovely voice, Megan. Do you work there every day?” His voice gave me the chills and not in a good way.
“Not every day, but when I am I work closely with the owner, Tyler Rushing. He’s always here to oversee everything.”
“Are you a personal trainer?” he asked with a slight moan. “I’d love to work one on one with someone.”
“Sorry, but no.” I stood impatiently, hoping the conversation was close to ending. The way he breathed sounded like he was enjoying more than the conversation. “I hope you find the prices satisfactory and we’d love to have you join us. Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“Yes, but you’re not here to receive it,” he grunted, his breaths coming out in rapid pants.
Taken aback, I slammed the phone down on the receiver, shocked. Was he seriously jerking off while on the phone? Sick bastard.
“Meg, you okay?” Tyler asked.
I looked down at the phone and then up to him. “Honestly, I don’t know. I had the weirdest conversation. I think the guy was jerking off while on the phone with me.”
His eyes darkened. “Are you fucking kidding me? Next time you get a call like that hang up the damn phone.”
“It didn’t start out like that at first. He asked what our prices were and I went through the whole spiel with him. Then he said I had a nice voice and all that shit. That’s when things started getting strange.”
“What the fuck is wrong with people? Has that happened before?” I shook my head. Kyle glanced up at me, his brows furrowed. “If you ever get a call like that again, throw something at me to get my attention and I’ll handle it. I’m not going to put up with that shit.”
“I will. I just hope the perv doesn’t try to come in here. Maybe it was just a sick prank.”
“Could be, but if not, I don’t want that fucker here creeping on you.”
My spine tingled with the thought. To change the subject, I showed him my list with all of his audition names on it. “On to more important matters, I wrote down who I thought you would choose. They all worked really well with you.”
He chuckled and glanced at the list. “They did, especially these two.” He pointed them out. “It was a great group of boys that came in. I just wish I had the time to work with them all.”
“Have you decided who you liked best?”
“Not yet. I need to think on it. I told them all to give me a couple of weeks until after I’m back in town.”
That made sense. Sherry walked in, followed by a few of the other ladies in my class and they all waved, blushing when Tyler waved back. Instead of coming to the desk, Sherry found Kyle and flirted with him. Tyler noticed the interaction and chuckled. “I have to say I’m glad Ms. Sherry’s focused on someone other than me.”
Kyle beamed at Sherry and she ate it up. “I think he enjoys it. It’s not like anyone else here is friendly toward him.”
Tyler stiffened and sighed, glancing over at Kyle. “Yeah, I guess. Now stop blabbing and get ready for your class. I’ll be watching.”
“Thank you.” I smiled and rushed down to save Kyle from Sherry’s clutches. Hopefully, he could do something to convince Tyler tonight.
***
“EVERYTHING OKAY?” I asked, pulling Megan into my side.
“Yeah, why wouldn’t it be?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. It looked like your conversation with Rushing was a little heated. I could only assume it was about me.” Stretch time was almost over, leaving us with only a few spare minutes left.
“No, it wasn’t about you, I promise. I just had some douche call and say some messed up shit. Gotta love prank calls.”
“Are you sure that’s all it was?”
She grabbed my hands and smiled. “Yes, now focus. It’s time to get our class started. I’m letting you take the lead tonight.”
“Then don’t go anywhere because you’re my partner. I want to demonstrate on you first.” Nodding, she stood off to the side while I walked into the center of the room. There were ten women, all of various sizes. When I looked at them, all I could see was Kacey with her wrists cut from the cable ties Liam had put around them. If I’d have known what was happening to her, I would’ve killed him that night. Looking around the room, any one of them could’ve been a victim of such a crime. For all I knew, some of them probably were.
“All right, let’s get started. First, I’m going to show you some moves with the help of Megan. Then, you can all practice on me.” They all regarded me seriously, including Sherry who had a determined look on her face even though she was dressed like a purple fairy. She didn’t hit like a fairy though.
Megan joined me in the center of the room and waited on me to begin. We showed the women several techniques on how to defend yourself if an attacker came at you from behind. I had a strange feeling the tops of my feet were going to be bruised for days to come, after every single one of
them jammed their heels into me.
When class was over, they all thanked me, including Sherry who wrapped her arms around me, squeezing tight. “Thank you for a good lesson tonight, sweetheart. Will you be here next week?” She let me go and I couldn’t help but smile.
“Yes ma’am. I’m not going to let you all get rid of me that easily. I just might not be able to walk after tonight.”
“Well, you shouldn’t have let us beat up on you, silly.”
“Don’t worry, I’m used to it. Besides, I’d rather you beat up on me than Megan.”
Megan said goodbye to the other women and joined us. Sherry hugged her and kissed her cheek. “You got a good one here, honey. Don’t let him get away from you.”
She winked up at me and smiled. “I don’t plan on it, just as long as he doesn’t do anything stupid.”
Sherry reached up and patted my cheek like I was a little boy. “He won’t, child. I think you’ve got a keeper here.”
Humoring her, I grinned and winked over at Megan. “Do you need us to walk you out to your car?” I offered.
“No, dear. I’m a grown woman. If someone tries to mess with me, I’ll just do what you taught me and kick their behind.” Starting for the door, she waved her hand in the air and disappeared around the corner.
“Love her heart, she’s the sweetest woman,” Megan laughed. “She sure does love you, doesn’t she?”
I brushed off my shoulders. “What can I say? It’s part of my charm.”
Rolling her eyes, she kneeled down to tie her shoes. “Part of your big head is more like it. You did great tonight. At first, you kind of zoned out for a bit. What was going through your mind?”
I sat down on the floor beside her and sighed. “Honestly? When I looked at those women tonight, all I could see was my sister. It made me wonder if any of them had been in a situation similar, or even worse. You know, I never thought Liam would hurt her. It’s been eating away at me for over two years. He knew I would kill any fucker who ever messed with her, and yet he went ahead and assaulted her. If it hadn’t been for Rushing . . .”
Megan grabbed my hand and squeezed, her gaze sad. “What would you have done if you’d known? Would you have stayed and fought just to get the title?”
“No,” I growled. “I would have given it all away, the title, everything, just to keep her safe. I may be a complete dick who never gave a shit about anyone other than myself, but I love my sister. I would’ve done anything for her. After she left California, I know she struggled to keep her and my grandmother afloat. I sent her money every month, but she never cashed the checks. I didn’t know what else to do so I kept sending them. My selfishness made me lose the only family I had left.”
“Not for much longer,” she whispered, her lip quivering. “We’ll get your family back.”
Clearing his throat, Tyler entered the room, his expression guarded. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”
Megan gasped and let go of my hand, placing it over her chest. “What the hell, Tyler, it’s not cool to sneak up on people.”
Crossing his arms over his chest, he kept his stony gaze on mine. “Megan, do you mind giving me a minute with Andrews?”
Sighing, she met my gaze before getting to her feet. “I’ll be at my desk, okay?”
I nodded and watched her walk out of the room. Taking a deep breath, I stood and waited for Rushing to speak.
He made sure Megan was out of earshot before beginning. “I take it you had no clue I was watching you tonight?”
What the fuck? I shook my head and he chuckled.
“I can see that now. I had a feeling Megan would tell you. It was her idea.”
“For you to spy on me? Why would she ask you to do that?”
Tyler moved closer and the tension between us was still there, but it was lessening. “Because she wanted me to witness how you’ve changed. She said I wasn’t giving you a fair shot. Either she’s right or you’re putting on one hell of an act. Which one is it?”
“I’m not pretending shit. This is who I am.”
“What about the stuff you said about Kacey?”
Closing the distance between us, I stared straight into his eyes. “Believe it or not, that is the truth. She’s my sister.”
He narrowed his eyes, studying me. “I think I might actually believe you. This may put you in a better position, but I can’t make Kacey forgive you.”
“I just have to believe someday she will. Megan’s been giving me hope.”
“I’m sure she has.” He looked guarded again. “You do know that if you hurt her, I will personally come after you. Megan’s been through too much as it is, and the last thing she needs is you fucking up her life.”
I held up my hand, stopping him. “I know all of that. She told me about her ex.”
His eyes went wide. “She told you?”
“Yes, so you can keep your threats to yourself. I’m not going to fuck with her like that.”
“Let’s hope not. Because out of all the girls you could’ve picked, you had to choose the one who’s best friends with your worst enemies.”
I shrugged. “I guess I like the torture.”
“I see that.” Side-stepping me, he strolled further into the room. “One of the other reasons why I watched you tonight is that I might have a proposition for you. We both know your chances of getting back into the UFC are done.”
Clenching my teeth, I closed my eyes as the thought made my chest tighten. I knew it was a long shot but to hear it only made it more real.
Tyler sensed my hesitation and turned around. “You do realize that, right?”
Lowering my head, I nodded. “It’s just something I don’t like to think about. I can’t imagine a world without fighting.”
“I believe that’s where I can help you. Have you ever thought about coaching, or even teaching classes to those who are interested in MMA?”
My head snapped up, excitement threatening to bubble over. “Why do you ask?”
“I plan on coaching a couple of young men full-time. They’re serious about training professionally and I want to give them that opportunity. However, there were others who are just as passionate about fighting but I’m not sure if they have the drive or not. I thought maybe you’d be interested in teaching them the basics, and getting a feel for who could move on to the next level.”
“Hell yeah,” I exclaimed.
“Good. Megan said you were going to be looking for a job so I figured this might be a good fit. At least this way we can make sure you stay out of trouble. I’ll get in touch with everyone and have classes scheduled to start next week.”
I held out my hand, hoping he’d take it. “Thanks, Rushing. It means a lot.”
Tyler looked down at my hand and shook it. “You’re welcome. Just don’t disappoint me, or Megan.” He let my hand go and started for the door.
Before he disappeared, I called out to him. He turned around, lifting his brows curiously. “I just wanted to say congratulations on the wedding this weekend. I know my sister is happy and will be cared for.”
He nodded. “I’m lucky to have her. I’ll tell her you said so.”
“Thanks.” I needed all the help I could get.
***
“WHAT ARE YOU doing over there?” It’d only been a week, and Kyle was already on the payroll. Currently, his pen was moving ninety miles an hour across the pad of paper in his lap. For the past hour, that was the only sound that came from him.
Blowing out a breath, he looked over at me and smiled. “I was working on my game plan for next week. I have a whole schedule planned out for my first class.”
“Kyle, that’s awesome. I can’t wait to watch you in action.”
Sliding up behind me in his chair, he wrapped his arms around my waist. There weren’t that many people in the gym and they couldn’t see what he was doing because the desk was in the corner, away from everyone. Trailing his fingers to the inside of my thigh, he slid them up under my shorts. “
Don’t worry, love. Once everyone’s gone tonight I’ll give you a special lesson.”
“Kyle, what are you doing? There are people still in here,” I moaned under my breath.
“No one can see, baby. Your legs are under the desk. Spread ‘em open a little bit wider.”
I did as he said and gasped when he slid a finger inside me. His warm breath hit the back of my ear as he chuckled. “It would appear you like this.”
Trying my best to keep my composure, I shook my head. “Nope.”
He pulled his finger out and smacked my opening, which made me inhale sharply. “You little brat, you know you like this.”
I giggled. “You didn’t let me finish.” I met his lips over my shoulder and kissed him. “I was going to say, I don’t like it . . . I love it.”
“That’s more like it.” His fingers worked the inside of me while his thumb rubbed circles across my clit. It took all I had not to cry out; it felt so damn good. Knowing I was close, I grabbed his hand and held it against me as I grinded on his fingers. “I’m so close,” I whispered.
“Then let me make you come.” It was a wonder no one could tell what we were doing, but Kyle was an expert. He worked me faster and I came so hard I bit my lip to keep from screaming. My chest rose up and down like I’d just run a marathon and my heart was beating out of control. Smoothly, Kyle slid his hand from under my shorts and adjusted his arousal, now very prominent in his flimsy workout shorts. Sliding back, he put his notepad across his lap. “It looks like I’ll be sitting here for a while.”
“Actually, I think you should walk to the back and get us some bottles of water,” I teased.
He smiled slyly. “I don’t think the guys in here want to see me pitching a tent while they’re working out. They might get the wrong impression.”
“But it’d be funny as hell.” My phone buzzed in the desk so I pulled it out and smiled when I saw who it was.
“I thought I was the only one who got that kind of smile.”
I rolled my eyes and read the text. “It’s Gabby, jackass. She and Paxton are coming into town tomorrow for the big party. Actually, everyone will be coming in. I’m sure Ryley will be calling next.”