“Ouch, what the fuck?” Justin growls at him.
“That’s for making your sister sit through something she hates.”
I try but fail to cover my grin. “It wasn’t all bad,” I admit as I think about getting to watch Hudson twist and turn as he threw practice punches at the air in front of him.
Justin raises his brow at me in question, and I shake my head. “Never mind.”
Hudson is still watching me, and it’s beginning to make me nervous.
“Are you carrying any injuries?” I ask, trying desperately to distract myself from his intense stare.
He points to his face.
“Anything less obvious?” I say with a roll of my eyes.
“My leg.” He tips his head towards the leg he has propped up on the chair. “I thought it was just from throwing kicks, but I think there might be some damage to the calf muscle… why? Do you like seeing me in pain?” He smirks.
I let my eyes trail over his lean leg. “I’m a physio,” I explain, “so call it a morbid curiosity… I treated a few fighters while I studied.”
“You should go see Ramsey in a few days.” Justin smacks Hudson’s arm excitedly, like he’s a genius for coming up with the idea.
“I’m sure he already has someone more qualified than me to take care of that,” I reply quickly.
“Nah, the guy we have is shit, right, H?”
I let my eyes wander back to the man in question. “He’s actually terrible… would you mind?” His dark menacing stare is hard on me, weighing me down, and I don’t know how I could say anything but yes. So I do.
God help me.
I’m going to have to lay hands on this scary, sexy man and be required to remain professional while doing it.
Yup, Juliet is going to have a field day with this.
CHAPTER THREE
Hudson
This was a bad fucking idea.
A really bad idea.
I might look like one hell of a tough bastard, and don’t get me wrong, in the cage, I am, but just the thought of letting my best friend’s little sister put her hands on my body is making me break out in a sweat.
“What’s up with you? You’re jumpy as shit.” Justin scowls at me as he drives me across town to the house Ramsey is sharing with one of her friends.
I shake my head in reply.
“Those ribs giving you grief?”
I’m pretty sure one of them is cracked, but that’s nothing I haven’t dealt with before and won’t deal with again. A couple of dodgy ribs is the least of my worries.
Injuries like these are the reason I only fight a couple of times a year – I make enough money from the fights I do take to be able to afford my body that luxury. Because of that, getting hurt is no big deal – I’ve got time to recover.
I don’t think I could fight every couple of months like I did when I was twenty. My twenty-seven-year-old body doesn’t take a beating quite the same way it used to.
“It’ll be right.”
“We’ll have Ramsey strap it nice and tight.”
I nod. “Sure.”
Fuck.
That’s the very reason I hadn’t mentioned it. I don’t know how I’m meant to handle her fingers touching my leg, let alone my chest.
If Justin knew the thoughts I was having about his sister and her sexy ass, I’d be a dead man – regardless of how many title belts I might hold, I don’t think a fighter in the world could stop J from defending her honour.
“We need to get you right so we can get back in the ring, work on your striking.”
I glance at the window as he turns down a quiet street.
“I’m on break, you mad fucker.”
He chuckles and pulls up outside a small, white weatherboard house.
“No rest for the wicked, Horror, you should know that.”
He jumps out of the car and comes around to my side to help me get out.
I really should be using crutches, but I’ve always been one to take medical advice with a grain of salt, so I’ll limp instead.
“She’s working from home?” I question as we approach the front door.
“Yeah, she’s got a massage table set up in the front room.”
“So she’s staying put then?” I ask casually. “Not taking off again?”
“Yeah…” He raises his brows. “She’s here to stay… what’s with the sudden interest in my sister?”
I clear my throat as he knocks on the door.
It could be because she’s beautiful, or because she set me on fire with just a look… or it could be because I’m imagining her hands on my body in ways that have nothing to do with fight injuries.
His eyes narrow as though he can read my thoughts.
“She’s your sister.” I shrug. “You’re always going on about her…”
His eyes narrow further. He’s not buying it.
“If you’re thinking about Ramsey in any way that isn’t like a little sister, then you better shut that shit down, right now… you’re like a brother to me and—”
“Hey!” Ramsey swings the door open and cuts off her brother’s threat.
“Ramsey, hey,” I offer with a wince.
She’s wearing the shortest shorts known to man, and it’s going to be a problem.
“Hey, sis.” Justin leans in and kisses her forehead.
I wonder to myself what I’d have to do to get my lips on her soft skin, before mentally giving myself an uppercut – as shitty as Justin tells me it is.
This girl is off limits.
End of fucking story – and the sooner I figure that out, the better.
“You look like shit.” She raises a brow at me. “We better get you checked out.”
“Tell me what you really think.” I grin at her.
She points to the closest door to us, off the hallway.
“His ribs are giving him trouble, don’t let him tell you otherwise,” Justin says as he strolls down the hallway, away from the room I’m going to go into. All alone. With his sister.
“Don’t eat all my food,” Ramsey yells after him. “Come on in.” She holds the door open for me and I hobble in. “That doesn’t look good.” She frowns.
“Kinda comes with the territory, I’m afraid.”
She pats the side of the bed and offers her arm to help me scoot onto it.
“Never been able to figure out why anyone wants to be a punching bag for a living, but hey.” She smirks as she picks up a clipboard from the desk in the corner.
“You’re a lot more confident when I’m not bleeding,” I inform her.
She laughs lightly. “You just keep your blood inside your body, and we’ll be fine, you and I.”
You and I. I like the sound of that.
Shit, I can’t think like that.
Maybe we could be friends. I could deal with spending time with a woman like Ramsey.
“So, what are we looking at here?” she questions. “The calf, ribs… anything else?”
“My neck hasn’t been feeling the best and I think I might have sprained my ankle as well.”
She scribbles down what I’m saying onto the sheet of paper. “Okay… nothing like injuries spanning the entire length of your body.”
“Never been one to do things by halves.” I smirk.
She shakes her head, a small smile playing on the corner of her lips.
She sets down the clipboard and crosses the room to close the door.
I watch her every movement like a hawk.
“Let’s get your shirt off,” she instructs, and I swear I hear a slight tremor in her voice.
“I might need a hand.”
She nods and moves towards me from the spot she was lingering in by the door.
It’s as though she’s afraid to get too close to me.
I can’t say I exactly blame her – I do scary well.
She stops directly in front of me, my legs splayed wide so she can stand in between.
She reaches for the hem of my shirt a
nd slowly drags it upwards, being careful not to touch me.
“Lift,” she instructs.
I lift my arm on my good side and she slides the shirt up, over my head and back down on my bad side until I’m half naked in front of her.
“Alright then,” she breathes, her eyes raking over my torso.
I should know better, she’s only doing her job, but when her eyes linger on my skin, I feel it.
She leans in, her thigh brushing my knee as she glances at the side of my neck.
Our faces are so close, if I were to turn my head my lips would brush hers.
I can smell nothing but her sweet floral scent, and my head is swimming.
“Any pain down your shoulders or back?” she asks, and I’m reminded that this isn’t an intimate moment; this is recovery – rehab – with a woman I’ll never be allowed to touch.
“Not at the moment,” I reply, my voice hoarse.
“Good,” she says as she steps back a little bit, giving me space to clear my head.
“I think we should get these ribs taped up first and then we’ll move onto your neck and then the rest of you, alright?”
I nod.
She turns and grabs some tape from her desk.
“Sitting up nice and straight,” she instructs as she rips a length of blue tape from the roll.
I do as I’m told.
“Breathe in.”
She runs her hand ever so gently across my abdomen, and I feel goose bumps breaking out in its wake.
She stretches the tape across my black and blue rib cage and sticks it down tight.
It hurts like hell, but I know it’ll feel better once she’s done.
She repeats the action until she’s satisfied that I’m held together firmly.
“How does that feel?” she asks softly.
She’s back standing between my legs – in a position that is far too tempting to wrap her in my arms and kiss her.
I twist gently, testing it. “Better.” I nod. “Thanks.”
She smiles. “Do you think you can lie face down?”
I eventually get settled on the bed, and her hands start kneading and massaging at my neck, and the entire time I have to lie to my dick and pretend that she’s Bruce, the overweight man that usually takes care of my injuries.
***
“Did you make him cry?” Justin asks as Ramsey helps me down to the living room.
He’s laxed on the couch, his feet on the coffee table and his arm slung over the back of the couch. Next to him is a sweet-looking brunette girl.
“Get your feet off my coffee table and your arm away from my friend, you little skeeze,” Ramsey fires at her brother.
Justin just chuckles. The girl blushes.
“Hudson, this is my flat mate Juliet, Juliet – Hudson.”
She gestures between the two of us.
“Nice to meet you, Juliet.”
She blushes deeper. “It’s so good to meet you.”
She kicks at her brother’s feet and pushes past him.
He scowls as he loses his footstool.
“Juliet is a big fan.” Ramsey sniggers as she helps me lower into a chair.
“Oh yeah? You like watching the fights?” I question her as I watch Ramsey disappear into the kitchen out of the corner of my eye.
Juliet shakes her head, and before she gets a chance to explain, Ramsey calls out. “She’s a fan of your abs, champ, not your fight record.”
“Oh my god, make her stop.” Juliet groans and covers her face.
Justin chuckles and drops his arm from the back of the couch, onto her shoulder. He drags her into his body, and she buries her face in his chest.
He strokes her hair, a huge grin on his face. “Don’t sweat it, Juliet, Romeo’s got you.”
I roll my eyes at him.
Ramsey appears in the living room again, and my focus instantly shifts to her.
“Get your filthy little paws, off of her,” she demands, scowling at her brother as she does.
Juliet giggles and attempts to wiggle free of Justin, but he isn’t having it.
“Fair’s, fair, sis, you just had your hands all over my best mate, so I’m returning the favour.”
“You’re an idiot,” she retorts, but I don’t miss the slight pinking of her cheeks.
“How’s the battle wounds?” Justin asks me, his arm still firmly around the woman next to him.
“She didn’t make me cry, but it was fucking touch and go for a few minutes there.”
“I’m going to need to see him back, at least twice a week for a while yet.”
What a damn shame that is.
“I’m not his keeper, what are you telling me for?” Justin frowns at her.
“You’re his coach, aren’t you?” she demands.
“You realise I’m right here?” I raise my brows at the two of them. “And I’ll be here,” I promise, Ramsey, “whenever you want me.”
She smiles wide.
“Maybe I’ll tag along after all,” Justin grumbles to himself.
Ramsey narrows her eyes at him.
He doesn’t notice. “What are you girls doing on Friday night? We’re going to a party.”
“Good for you,” Ramsey quips.
“I thought you might want to come, smart ass.”
“Then why don’t you say, ‘We’re going to a party Friday night, do you girls want to come’?” She slides onto the couch next to me and tucks her legs under her body.
I’m hyper aware of her now, ever since her hands touched my skin.
I’m drawn to her in a way that makes no sense to me.
“That’s what I said,” Justin argues.
“No—”
“You two make me so happy to be an only child,” Juliet interrupts Ramsey and Hudson’s argument. “Seriously, do you have to fight about everything?”
I chuckle.
“Fine.” Justin runs his hand through his hair in exasperation. “Do you want to come with us to the party on Friday?”
I don’t know whether I want her to say yes or no.
On the one hand, I hope she comes, so I can get to know her better, but on the other, I’m not sure I can handle knowing more – I’m already teetering on a thin line.
This attraction is purely physical right now, and I’m in control of myself – physically at least. If my head and my heart get involved, I’m not sure I’ll have the self-control to stop.
“Depends who’s going to be there.” She smirks.
“I’m going to be there. That’s all you need to know.”
“Will there be any hot guys?” Juliet questions.
Justin looks between her, his sister, and me.
“No,” we both growl in unison, for different reasons, I’m sure.
The girls giggle and look at each other – some type of silent conversation goes down and Ramsey pops a shoulder. “I guess we could make an appearance.”
“Good. You’ve missed out on three years of partying with me.”
“That’s probably a good thing, J, I’ve seen the way you party,” she says, her tone wary.
He chuckles. “Horror here throws the best parties, so we’ll show you a good time.”
I watch Ramsey’s gaze shift to me. “It’s your party?”
I shrug. “Yeah… everyone expects a victory party.”
Juliet says something to Justin, but I don’t catch it; I’m too busy staring at his sister.
“You sure you don’t mind if we crash?”
“Come,” I insist.
“It was his idea to invite you, Ram-Ram.”
“Don’t call me that. I’m not a sheep,” she scolds him, without looking in his direction.
I hear him chuckle.
“You’re always welcome,” I reassure her.
“Told you, sis, you two are like family now.”
“Yeah,” I say with a frown, “family…”
CHAPTER FOUR
Ramsey
“Oh my god, spill! Is he as ripp
ed as he looks?” Juliet cries as she bounces up and down excitedly on the couch. “I can’t believe ‘The Horror’ was just in my living room. Most people shit the bed when they get a look at your brother up close, but Hudson Scott is on a whole-nother level – no offence.”
I shake my head in amusement and tuck my feet back up under my butt.
He’s on another level alright. A really fucking dangerous one.
Everything about the man screams trouble, yet my entire body keeps telling me to get closer.
I never have known what was good for me.
“He’s even more ripped.” I sigh and drag my hand over my face. “Seriously, it’s like he’s made from solid granite. The abs on him… they’d be enough to have male models everywhere weeping.”
“Remind me again why I didn’t study to be a physio?”
“Because you like animals more than people.”
“This is a valid point.” She nods in agreement. “But I think I could grow to like people more if they all looked like the two that just walked out our door.”
I groan. “Don’t talk about my brother, that’s gross.”
She rolls her eyes. “Fine, but me keeping quiet isn’t going to make him any less hot.”
I ignore her, my mind drifting back to the way Hudson told me to come to his party. He seemed genuine, like he really wanted me to be there.
“So… this party, it’s going to be full of sexy fighters and bitchy girls, right?”
“Without a doubt.” I sigh.
I’m not so sure about it now that Hudson isn’t here to make me feel welcome.
The fight scene isn’t one I feel comfortable in – in fact it’s a big part of the reason I chose to go to school on the other side of the country.
Everyone here knows who my brother is, and my father too – or more to the point, who he was in his day.
There’s a whole room in my parent’s house dedicated purely to my dad’s sporting achievements. He was a king in the sport of mixed martial arts.
He works for the UFC now and owns a fighter gym, so if anything, he’s more passionate about the sport now than he was when he was the one in the cage.
Mr. July: An MMA Sports Romance (Calendar Boys Book 7) Page 2