by Emma Nichole
“Were you being a creep again?”
“Again? What am I missing here?” Rose interjects.
“I just came to look around and boom, there you were. It’s like it was meant to be, and I must add, I’m fucking impressed. The upper body strength to do that shit is insane. Nicely done.”
“It’s the best workout I’ve ever had. Minus one thing, of course,” Rose says with a wink.
“Rose. Jesus Christ.” Faith laughs.
“Speaking of…” Rose looks at her imaginary watch again. “Look at the time. I will leave you two kids alone for your workout. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, which means be as nasty as possible.”
“See. I knew I liked her,” I say.
“She’s about to be in time-out.”
Rose blows Faith a kiss. “Be safe. Seriously. And text me later. Falcon, take care of her.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
We both watch as Rose makes her way down the glass hall and back toward the women’s locker rooms, leaving Faith and me completely alone now.
“So…pole dancing?” I ask.
“It’s so hard. Really. And it takes coordination, endurance, balance, strength, plus it makes me feel sexy. I’ve been doing it for years. It’s been like,” she pauses then shrugs, “therapy.”
She doesn’t have to elaborate for me to understand why feeling sexy and strong is important to her.
It’s why she wants to learn to fight with me.
She wants to be confidant that she can take care of herself.
That she’s still whole.
“Always do what makes you happy.” I kiss her forehead. “All right. Let’s head down for our workout.”
***
“We are going to work on basics today, all right?” I tell her with my hands on her shoulders, steadying her right in front of me.
“Basics. Got it. I can do that.” She shakes out her arms and bounces a bit. “Let’s do this.”
I just smile at her. Fuck she’s cute.
“All right. This is a heel palm strike. It’s the most basic of self-defense moves that you can know, but it is incredibly effective.” I bring my hands up, palms facing her and my finger just slighting bent. “You’ll take the heel of your palm and thrust it forward into the attacker’s nose. It won’t incapacitate them completely, but it will make them black out or at least double over in pain long enough for you to get away.” I slowly go through the motions, letting the heel of my hand tap her barely on the nose.
She smiles at the light contact. “Easy enough.” She takes her stance and repeats the motion, just as I did it, giving me a tap on the nose.
“Good girl, but remember to put all your force behind it and be sure to recoil your strike. Pull your arm back quickly. That will cause whomever you’ve hit’s head to swing back, which will give you give more time to get away.”
She nods and strikes again, moving in toward me slowly then recoiling her hand away. “Can we try it with the hand pads? I want to be able to really hit.”
“Sure.” I walk over to the other side of the mat and pull on the pair of hand pads. I make my way over to her and tap them together. “All right, baby. Let’s do this.”
She gives me just the briefest of reactions on her face to the term of endearment that I didn’t even consciously say. It just slipped out, and I wouldn’t take it back if I could.
She takes a breath then I come toward her. She thrusts her palm forward, but it’s just a little late. I’m able to tap her on the stomach with the pad.
“You delayed a little. Let’s try again.”
“Shit. Okay. I will get it right.”
“I have no doubt you will.”
I hold each of my hands up and give her a nod, letting her know I’m ready, and then I lunge forward and she slams her palm into the pad perfectly timed.
“There you go! Again!”
She hits me again, this time harder.
“Give me a punch now, Faith. Give me everything you’ve got.”
She does just that, hitting each of the pads with alternating hands, stepping toward me until I’m forced to take a step back.
But she keeps coming. Hit after hit on the pads, causing me to step back and back until my back connects with the wall with an oomf.
“I win,” she says, before she launches herself at me, wrapping her arms around my neck, and planting a perfect kiss to my lips.
Faith
“Oh...oh my fucking God.” I drop my head back and it thumps off the shower wall. Falcon is on his knees in front of me with my leg swung over his shoulder and his face buried between my thighs.
We barely made it in the door of my house after leaving the gym before he was dragging me into my bathroom for a shower that ended up getting us way dirtier.
I slide my hands over his head, the strands of his hair slick through the spaces between my fingers. I curl them under and tug hard when he sucks my clit between his lips.
He groans in response, which sends vibrations from his lips all over my body, throbbing in my veins and singing on my skin.
The warm water is pouring from the showerhead and sending a hard stream directly into my chest, giving my nipples a bit of attention they are desperately craving right now.
I can feel that familiar heat building deep in my core and radiating down into my thighs. My pussy begins to squeeze tightly, contracting at the mere thought of orgasm.
“Falcon, ohhhhh...I’m going to come,” I announce to him and just as I crest that delicious peak I’ve been chasing, he pulls away. “Nooo. Please,” I beg shamelessly.
He just gives me that laugh of his that makes me go weak in the knees and says a few simple words, “My favorite thing is to feel you come. I want to feel it.”
He hoists me up, my back sliding easily along the slick tile, and coaxes my legs around his waist. With a skilled shift and a push, he sinks into my body like it was molded just for him.
And that’s all it takes. My body, so on edge, and so needy from his time between my legs, I can’t hold on a moment longer when the fullness and power of him rips me to shreds. I come violently, loudly, clawing at his back. I think he likes the pain because that just makes him fuck me harder. So hard I think I may split in half.
And when he captures my lip between his teeth and bites down, I do just that. I splinter into a million pieces as I come again, contracting down around him.
He grunts and tugs my lip again before releasing it and buries his face in the crook of my neck, whispering delicious, dirty things to me, “Christ, baby. You feel so good coming on my cock like that. So fucking tight. I love fucking you. I’ll never get enough.” As he gives me one pump, two pumps, then stills, coming with a harsh groan.”
I squeeze my arms around him and let the aftershocks ripple through us, my pussy still trembling and milking his cock as it pulses deep within my body.
Our chests begin to move in total unison, breathing matched perfectly, hearts in tune with one another.
He pulls back just a little, just enough to see my eyes, and pushes wet strands of hair from my face.
“Where did you come from?” he asks.
“I could ask you the same thing,” I tell him.
He kisses along my neck before he leans back, eyes wide in shock.
“What?” I ask. “What’s wrong?”
“We didn’t use a condom. Fuck, baby, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have got swept away… I…”
I stop his train of thought with a firm kiss on the lips before pulling back.
“Are you clean?” I ask him point blank.
“Yes. I always use one and we have to get tested all the time for fights. Blood and all, ya know?”
“I’m clean and I’m on birth control.” I slide my hands through his wet hair. “So relax. I liked it better anyway.” I smile.
“You are…wow. You’re incredible.”
He rests his forehead on mine until his cock is soft enough to slide naturally from my body. We don’t
want to separate, so we don’t, not until nature does that for us.
We take a bit of time to wash each other, using our hands, of course, because I can’t stop touching him, he’s addicting, and when we finish, we get out and fall into bed together.
I honestly expect him to make another move, considering I’m all warm, pliant, and naked, but he doesn’t.
He just pulls me into his chest, tucks an arm around me, and kisses the top of my head.
“Goodnight, baby,” he whispers, and my chest tightens.
This just feels so right.
Everything feels so right with him.
But then that dark, gross pit bubbles in my stomach when I remember he’s leaving soon, and this, whatever this is, can’t last.
Chapter 15
Falcon
It’s amazing how quickly time can pass when you spend your days with your sister whom you adore and your evenings with the most incredible woman on the planet.
It feels like I just rode my bike into the warm, humid, salty air of Savannah, but that was three weeks ago, and I’m leaving tomorrow.
I try to ignore the expanding black hole in my stomach at the inevitable goodbye I will be saying to not only my sister, but also to Faith.
It’s been hard to avoid the fact I’m leaving with every day that passes, but somehow, she and I have managed to bury it underneath dinners together, the best sex of my entire life, intense, real conversations, and the most amazing laughs I’ve ever had.
But with the time ticking down on the clock, the glow in her face is leaving and her ever-present smile is lowering into a frown.
It’s the first thing I notice when she walks out onto her front porch dressed in a pair of tight blue jeans and this drapey white top with her helmet in her hand. She’s left her hair down and it flows over her shoulders. I want to wrap my hands in it.
She steps down the stairs toward me and I catch her chin in my hand. “Hey.”
She looks up at me and gives me a small smile. “Hi.”
I lean forward and press a kiss to her lips. “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
“Are you all right?” I ask her, even though I know the answer.
“I am.”
“Don’t lie to me, baby. I can see it in your eyes.” I slide my thumb over her lip.
She blinks her beautiful eyes up at me and answers, “I’m just not looking forward to tomorrow, but I want to enjoy tonight as much as we can. I don’t want to even think about it. I want to have fun with everyone. With you.”
“But, Faith—”
She cuts me off with a hand to my chest. “No. I don’t want to think about it. I just want to enjoy the night. Can we do that?” she asks. I let my shoulders hang, releasing a breath. I understand why she feels the way she does, and why she’s reacting in this way, because it’s exactly what I want to do as well.
Tomorrow hangs in the air like a thick fog for so many reasons.
“Okay then.” I bend forward to kiss her lips then take the helmet from her hands. “Let’s get you strapped on.” I place it on her head and fasten it below her chin.
“How do I look?” she asks.
“Fucking perfect.”
She climbs onto the back of my bike like she belongs there. She’s so at ease and so sexy. There’s so much power in watching a woman mount something like that. Especially when it’s a motorcycle...or me.
I reach back once I’m settled in front of her to grip her thigh, asking if she’s ready. She wraps her arms around my middle and squeezes, signaling she’s all set.
I rise up just enough to thrust the kickstarter downward, and the bike roars to life beneath us, and with a flick of my wrist, we are off.
***
Everyone is already at the restaurant when we arrive.
Case and Nora, of course, as well as Amelia and Grayson are all seated in this round booth in the corner, and they’ve left a little extra on the right side, so Faith and I can sit together.
As soon as we step into their view, Amelia’s face lights up. “Marco Polo!” she shouts the nickname she gave me years ago across the restaurant.
“Milly Bean!” I shout hers back, with a huge grin on my face. Amelia is by far my favorite friend Nora has ever had. I’d do anything for her. In fact, we are all lucky I’m not in prison right now over that ex-husband of hers.
I approach the table with Faith at my side, unapologetically holding her hand in mine, and of course Nora and Case take notice.
Nora’s eyes lock on mine, and a smile grows on her face. No matter how careful she has told me to be, I know that deep down she is pushing for this.
“Faith. Long time, no see,” Case jokes, because obviously they just saw each other at work this morning.
“Right? It’s like you’re a stranger,” she teases. “Hi, everyone.” She gives them a polite nod and wave.
“I went ahead and ordered drinks for us. Faith, I got you a peach tea and Marco, I got you a beer,” Nora says, as we slip into the booth beside them, Faith next to Nora and me on the outside.
“Perfect,” Faith and I say in unison, then look at each other and laugh.
“Damn, you two are really in sync, I see,” Amelia says, with a grin.
“Just a little,” I agree, sliding my arm around Faith. To my surprise, she leans into me, nuzzling into my side.
“How’s your little girl, Grayson? Cadence, right? She’s so adorable,” she asks. Her voice so soft and sweet compared the music and noises all around us.
“Yeah, Cadence,” Grayson confirms. “She’s a mess, that’s for sure, but she is wonderful. Thanks for asking.” He tips his beer over his lips and takes a swig.
“She’s sassy. I like her,” Faith adds.
I put my hand on her thigh under the table and give it a squeeze. She looks my way and I just smile. This feels good. It feels right.
“So what’s on the agenda when you get back to the West Coast, Falcon?” Grayson asks, as he wraps one of his arms around Amelia, twirling a piece of her fire red hair around his finger.
“Well, I’ll get back into training pretty much immediately. I have a fight in Dallas, Texas pretty soon after that,” I tell him, and I can feel Faith deflate next to me. I give her another reassuring squeeze.
“Which he shouldn’t be doing,” Nora chimes in.
“Fuck’s sake,” I huff out and lean back against the cushioned booth seatback.
“What? It’s true,” she says, giving no fucks at all.
“Nora. Maybe now isn’t the time,” Case adds softly in her ear, but we can all hear it.
“No, it’s okay, Case. She’s just being my sister and she’s worried. That’s fine. She and I have had this conversation time and time again. My doctor has expressed some concern about the toll my career has taken on my body. That’s really the long and short of it,” I defend myself.
We all sit silently for a moment, and I look over at Faith. She angles her face toward me and gives me the smallest, most beautiful smile.
“Well, I say we all drink up, eat some bad for us food, and enjoy the night now. Who’s with me?” the ever-positive ray of sunshine that is Amelia chimes in.
The awkwardness that was there at first slips away, along with the flowing booze and endless supply of incredible food. There are laughter, jokes, stories, and everything in between, but the highlight of the evening is when I’m just staring over at the beautiful soul beside me.
She was so sad and ominous when I picked her up this evening, but now she’s laughing. Not a small one, but the cackling laughs you can’t help. The ones that go on so long they hurt your sides and make others laugh with you.
“So what’s going on with you two? No bullshit, because I can smell bullshit from a mile away,” Amelia asks with a giggle.
“I’ve been asking him this for two weeks.” Nora adds. “Maybe he’ll answer you.”
I go to speak, but Faith chimes in before I can.
“We are having fun. We l
ike spending time together. It’s pretty simple, actually.”
Is it? Because I feel the exact opposite. What I feel right now, for this girl, is anything but simple.
Faith
He hasn’t said much to me since we walked out of the restaurant. We just took our walk in a comfortable, yet still awkward silence, hand in hand.
It’s late, very late now in fact, and the streets grow more and more quiet the farther we get from the main hustle and bustle of the City Market area.
The air, even with the sun long since asleep for the night, is sticky and humid, but there is nowhere else I’d rather be right now than side by side with this incredible, surprising man.
“Wow,” he says, and it pulls my attention up to him as we stop on the sidewalk.
“What?” I look around to see what has him so captivated.
“That fountain is amazing.”
“That’s Forsyth Park. It’s one of my favorite places in the entire city.”
He gives my hand a squeeze and looks first right, then left before tugging me into the street so we can cross. “Come on then. Don’t keep all the good places to yourself.” He smiles.
We make our way across the empty street, lit only by the streetlamps, and to the tree-covered sidewalk that leads into the park.
Forsyth is a large, rectangular-shaped, stunningly green park in the center of the historic district. It’s the home of many concerts, birthday parties, children getting out all of their energy in the many play structures. There’s a large open grass field perfect for picnics, Frisbee, playing with your dogs. Really, this is the perfect space for anything you could possibly want to do.
But the landmark feature is the white fountain on the north end.
It’s a large, round fountain, decorated with sculpted statues shooting water from long horns in their mouths, gated all around, and dotted with multicolored flowers. It’s a beautiful backdrop for wedding photos, selfies, prom photos, or staring longingly into while you try to sort all the madness that is in your head. That last one is my main usage for it, to be honest.
