by T M Kelly
“You okay, Lily,” Julian said, touching my leg.
I sat up. “I am.” Then I looked over at, Chuck. “That’s it?” The words popped out before I had a chance to think about what I was saying. “I mean—”
“Well, we could do two and half million per year. If that’s better?”
I burst out laughing. “Yes,” I stood up and twirled in place. “Yes, yes, yes.”
Chuck reached for my hand and spun me around. “You’re just like your father, Lily.”
I stopped in my tracks. “I am?”
“Your dad always wanted more,” Chuck said, grabbing a pen. “And he won the fights to back up his ego.” He handed me the pen. “We look forward to having you a part of AFC. If you’ll have us?”
I quickly grabbed the pen and scribbled my signature on the dotted line.
Now I had to prove I was good enough to win the Bantamweight championship.
31
“Stop falling forward,” Julian yelled from the side of the ring. “Lean up. Take control. You know better, Lily.
I was grappling with Charlie in the ring at Fight It Out. My best friend currently had my head locked in place, and I was unable to get out of the fucking triangle choke. “Fuck,” I breathed.
“Lily, lean up,” Julian barked again.
“I can’t,” I screamed back.
Charlie almost loosened the hold when Julian ran over and stopped her. “No. Stay put.”
“But—”
“She needs to figure this out if she wants to take home the belt.”
“I hate you right now,” I said with my head pinned between Charlie’s chest and left leg.
“Good,” he said, kneeling beside me. “Now use that anger and get out of the fucking hold.”
Charlie had my head locked in place pretty tightly. I let out a deep sigh, closed my eyes, and released my anger running through my veins. Instead of warning them, I found a way to pull my body up which in turn made Charlie loosen her hold. As I pushed my arm back to give myself space to maneuver out of the hold, Charlie tried to tighten her grip, but I found a way out and jumped back.
Before anyone could cheer after I released myself from the damn hold, I sprang forward and pushed Julian down onto his back. The room erupted in laughter instead of cheers.
“You’re mean.”
“You need to get this right.”
I bent down closer. “Thank you.”
“I love you,” he whispered.
I jumped up to my feet. “I love you more.”
Everyone in earshot gagged and walked away. “Guess you just found a way to clear a room,” he teased.
Charlie was sitting to the side, catching her breath. “When you lifted up, wow, I lost the ability to hold on anymore.”
“Let’s hope Cheyanne hasn’t perfected her hold.” I sat down beside Charlie and reached for her water bottle. “I can’t believe my life is taking a full circle.” My last fight with Dad was the one against Cheyanne, and she won because of the triangle choke submission.
“Well, the upside is you know what to expect with her,” Julian said, reaching for his towel. “The unknown can be worse.”
“One week,” I moaned.
“One week and everything changes.” Charlie rested her head on my shoulder. “I talked to a few organizations about the logistics of putting together a memorial fund.”
“You did? Already?” I knew we needed to find out the answers. A part of me was worried we were putting the cart before the horse. “Should we wait till I officially win a championship fight?”
“Why?” Charlie sounded confused.
“I don’t want you all to run it by yourself, and I don’t know how to put my name on it.” Standing up, I started to head toward the locker room. “I know, I know, I’m overthinking again.”
Julian pinched my ass. “You do love to do that.”
I swatted at his arm. “Fine. I’ll stop overthinking, but you all can’t talk about it with me until after the fight.”
“Deal,” Charlie yelled from the receptionist desk.
“Deal.” Julian grabbed my arm and pulled me against his body. “I have just the thing to help with all that overthinking.”
“Oh? And what is that?”
“Swimming.”
I scowled. “Swimming?” Personally, I would much rather have sex than go swimming.
“Yeah,” Julian said and pushed open the door. “Did you have something else in mind?” He stepped into the men’s locker room.
I snuck my head around the door and noticed two men walking my way completely naked. They quickly covered themselves and moved out of sight. “Yeah, I do Mr. Moore,” I yelled from the doorway. “And the second letter does not start with W.” Then I let the door close and headed into the women’s locker room.
I heard two ladies gasp. Before I could turn around, Julian pushed his body up against me. “And the third letter is not an I?”
“You play dirty,” I said in a hushed tone. My body wanted him, and there was nowhere to go.
“Come here.” He grabbed my hand and tugged me all the way to the back of the gym.
“Where are you taking me?”
“You’ll see.”
There was a door at the end of the hall. He opened it and led me inside. “Is this a storage room?”
“Maybe.”
He opened another door where a bed and night stand sat in the corner. “What is this? Why is this here?”
“I stayed overnight several nights during the construction process.” He pushed me toward the bed. “I left it just in case anyone needed a place to crash.”
“Or let go of some pent-up rage.”
“See, it serves its purpose perfectly.”
“Julian,” I whispered.
“What is it, Lily?” He tugged my sports bra up over my head.
“Do you really think I can win the fight on Saturday?”
He dropped his hands to the side. “Honest?”
“Is there anything else?”
He pushed me down onto the bed. Leaning down, he looped his fingers around the waistband of my leggings and pulled them down slowly. With each tug, Julian would kiss the freshly exposed skin. Finally, I lay there in the nude. “Lily, baby, I see a Little Punisher emerging.”
“What?” I giggled, reaching for the hem of his shirt to tug it up over his head. “Did you finally decide on a nickname for me?”
“You fight like your dad, Lily. It’s amazing to watch.”
I wrapped my legs around his waist. “Little Punisher, eh?”
“Oh yeah, and I know you will live up to the name just like your dad did.”
32
“Have you heard of pork rind nachos?” Charlie said, grabbing a chip and dipping it into the queso sauce.
“Wait. What?” Zoe set her chip back on the plate and turned to Charlie. “You didn’t just say what I think you said, right?”
“It does sound disgusting, C,” I said, digging my fork into the guacamole. “I mean, pig skin as my nacho heaven. No.”
“How can you judge something you’ve never had?” Charlie rolled her eyes and continued eating.
“Oh, I can judge.” I grabbed my water and took a sip. “How’s training going, ladies?”
I couldn’t have the nachos while I was cutting for the upcoming fight. Girls night, though. No one could deny me that. Four days and I would be making an appearance in my first AFC championship fight. Freaking out was the least of my worries. Which was why I was currently drooling over their dinner and eating guacamole by the forkfuls.
“Good,” Zoe said, sitting back in her chair. “You probably know Tyler pretty well by now, right Lily?”
“No, not yet. He hasn’t been coming over to Julian’s place since we started living together. Brooks said it’s because he’s busy.”
“Julian feels differently?” Zoe asked.
“Yeah, I guess Tyler is not very social and keeps his life private.”
Charlie wa
ved our server down. “Can I get a refill?” She glanced around. “Actually, can we all get a refill?” She rested her arms on the table. “Sure. I mean, he is super sweet. Yet, I don’t know jack about him.”
“Exactly,” Zoe said, holding her glass out for the server to pour some more water. “He’s supposed to be my trainer.”
“But is he doing a half-assed job?” I was a little concerned because I knew Julian would want to know about this conversation.
“Nah, not that bad. He is present a couple days out of the week. Then Devon jumps in the rest.”
“If you need me to talk to Julian, just let me know.” I reached for her hand and squeezed it.
Zoe moved into the house Charlie and I rented. I was so thankful Charlie was not living alone anymore. Several months ago, Charlie suggested we start a weekly girls’ night. Since then, we have been pretty much inseparable. I was still getting to know Zoe, but she meshed with Charlie and me perfectly.
“Excuse me.” A young girl who looked around ten years old tapped me on the shoulder.
I turned to face her. “Hi, sweetie.”
The girl held out a napkin. “Can I have your autograph and picture?” she said in a whisper.
Her question made me stop for a moment, and then I smiled and stood up. “Of course. Should we show my good or bad side?”
The girl’s eyes lit up. “Bad side.”
There was a woman taking a picture who was more than likely her mom. I knelt down beside the girl and put out my fists in front of me. “On the count of three,” I said. “Let’s give our best mean face.” When her mother counted to three, the girl and I scowled. “Now a nice happy picture.” I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her beside me. Her mom said, “One two three,” and then we both smiled.
She jumped up and down. “Thank you so much.”
I gave her a high-five. “Are you into fighting already?”
“I am. I want to be just like you someday.”
As they walked away, I let her words tumble around in my mind. If Spartacus had made me a rising star, what was AFC about to do to my life? Whatever it was, I couldn’t wait.
I took in a deep breath and then let it out slowly as I sat back down. “This is all too surreal.”
“Seriously, the look on the little girl’s face will be etched on my mind forever,” Charlie said, handing me her phone. When we were supposed to scowl, I was but the girl was looking at me in awe. “She looks up to you.”
“That’s so much pressure,” I said, shaking my head.
“It’s only going to get worse,” Charlie said, reaching for my hand. “You ready?”
“I want it all.”
“I need more than guacamole,” I teased, reaching into the refrigerator. “Want a burger with me?”
Julian had his head bent, looking at something on his tablet. “Uh huh,” he mumbled.
“With a side of dirt?”
“Uh huh.”
“And top it with a fried grasshopper?”
“Uh huh.” Then he looked up. “What?”
I burst out laughing. “I knew you would catch that one.”
“Sorry, I was reading this article.” He passed me his tablet. “Did you see this?”
“Where is Lily Waters’s family? Does anyone see who comes to her fights?” I scowled. “What’s this shit?”
“The tabloid paper that I never give the time of day.”
“I see that.”
He pointed at one line. “This is why I grew curious.”
I read the part he was pointing at out-loud. “Her mom may be in jail, and there are rumors her mom is tied to organized crime.”
“Well, fuck.” I sat down next to him. “Guess that was bound to happen sooner or later.”
He grabbed my hand. “Listen, I respect your decision to keep your fighting life separate from your real life. Authors do it all the time. Sometimes it’s just safer.”
“I’m sensing a but here.”
“What if those pieces of information help your career?” He turned to face me and pulled my legs on his lap. “Hell, just think about what people will do when they find out The Punisher is your dad. They will go nuts.” Before I could continue, he held his hand up. “Your fight is in four days. We have so much riding on this fight. Just let it all soak in before you say anything.”
I leaned back. “Okay, first the fight. Then we think about my path.”
33
“Fuck.” I breathed and threw my towel against the wall.
“Hey, it’s one pound over,” Julian said, grabbing my shoulders. “We can get that off before the weigh-in.”
“Dammit. I’ve been so careful.” I stepped up onto the treadmill and hit the increase button. As I started to run at a good pace, Julian hit the button to increase it some more. “Are you trying to kill me?”
“We have twenty-four hours until weigh-in. This isn’t about leisure.”
“Yes, sir.”
The treadmill was facing a wall with a mirror. There were other fighters running on either side of me. I envisioned we were at a race, and I needed to get ahead. I felt like I needed to run faster, so I hit the button two more times.
“Over-achiever,” Julian said from behind me.
I ignored him and kept my mind focused on the end game.
Throwing a pair of sweats and T-shirt over my blue bikini, I tapped Julian’s fists. “Here’s hoping our scale is the same as theirs.”
“It is. I promise.” He cupped his hand behind my neck and squeezed. “Go out their looking confident. You know you have this in the bag?”
That was how Chuck Anders had taught Julian to present himself when he was starting with AFC. From what Julian told me, Chuck was possibly psychic the way he just knew shit. For the last few days, Julian shared all the things Chuck had taught him. Now that AFC was bigger after a decade of working with amazing fighters, Chuck was not working one-on-one anymore. Julian was lucky to have had his experience with him, and I was lucky to get to hear all about it.
I pushed my shoulders back and held my head up high. Kicking the door open with my foot, I watched the room erupt in cheers, and flashes went off in all directions.
There was an announcer at the front of the room on a stage, several AFC workers, and a scale placed right in the center of the stage. As I walked up, I didn’t let myself think about my clothing choice. I lifted my shirt up over my head and slid my pants down, pulling them off with my feet. I walked to the scale, stepped up, and waited.
“One thirty-four point five.” the AFC official yelled loud enough for the room to hear.
I held my arms up and flexed my muscles. Fuck, I did it.
I stepped back down off the scale and walked over to where Cheyanne was waiting for the photo-op. I was in fight mode as I looked over at my opponent. Holding up our fists, we faced off for the cameras. Then I stepped back, shook her hand, and walked away before she had a chance to say some shit.
As I stepped off the stage, Julian handed me my clothes so I could quickly put them back on. He gave me a slight smile but made no move to touch me. When we reached the locker room and the door was closed, Julian picked me up and spun me around.
“How the hell did I manage to drop a pound?” I said, wrapping my arms around his neck.
“Hey, who the fuck cares,” Julian said and kissed me. “You did it and that’s all that matters.”
Twelve hours before the fight would take place and I get a call from my lawyer. “I can’t do this right now,” I said, pacing the length of the living room.
“I’m sorry to bother you, Ms. Waters,” my mom’s lawyer said. “Your mom was put into hospice care yesterday.”
I sat down on the edge of the couch. “Fuck. I have a fight in twelve hours. Why did you call me today?”
“She is asking for you.”
“Of course she is.” I sighed and stood back up. “How long did the doctors give her?”
“They said her one kidney is shut down. So it will h
appen in stages more than likely.”
Mom had apparently been squirreling food away, basically making it look like she was eating. She collapsed two days ago and now was in hospice care. Her body was shutting down, and she wanted to say goodbye to me.
I didn’t need this before a fight.
“Thanks.” I knew he was just doing his job. “I will get over there as soon as I can. I can’t promise anything.”
“I understand. Have a good fight.”
I threw my phone on the other end of the couch. Throwing my hands over my face, I muffled out my screams. A light touch on my shoulder startled me, and I glanced around to see who was there. The room was empty.
“Dad.” I sat back down on the couch. “I have tried to hate her, but I can’t.”
I knew I was talking to myself or if you believe…my dad’s ghost.
“She doesn’t deserve to die alone and without family. It’s not how you raised me.”
There was a brush across my cheek. I reached up and touched the side of my face.
“Let me focus on this fight, and then I will take care of Mom. I promise.”
The back door was open, but only the desert heat was showing love today. Suddenly a gust of window blew my hair in a few different directions.
I smiled and blew a kiss toward the door. People would think I was crazy if I ever told them this story. I was just thankful to have my dad still by my side.
“Who was that?” Julian walked in from the backyard.
“The lawyer.”
He turned his head to the side. “You look…what?”
“Sad.”
“What is it?” He wrapped his arms around my waist.
“Mom.”
First the fight. Then family.
I felt like I had my priorities ass-backwards.
34
“Take control. Where’s your arms?” I heard Julian yell from the outside of the octagon.
Cheyanne was looming over me, punching my face and chest. It was hard to avoid the blows. I knew I needed to get control of the situation. I wrapped my legs around her body and tried to push her down.
