Laid Out

by Sidney Halston

  JL snorted. “If Travis is getting that injured that frequently, maybe he’s not doing a great job with the fighting thing.”

  “That’s what I said to Slade when he came in with Enzo, whose shoulder was dislocated. Poor guy—it took both me and Chrissy to pull it back in place.”

  “Enzo? Really? Now that guy makes my girl parts tingly!” JL said almost dreamily.

  “He’s charming too.” Violet finished her juice. “You should ask him out.”

  “No thank you. I’m done with men.”

  “Really? You’re going to start dating women now?”

  “Ha. Ha. After my last experience with a guy, I’ve decided I don’t need the aggravation. Especially with a man like him.”

  “Like what? Hot, gorgeous, successful?”

  “No. Judgmental, snobby, boring.”

  “I don’t get that impression. Well, maybe boring, but judgmental?”

  “He looks at my tattoos like I’m trash.”

  “No. He looks at you like he wants you. All of you. Tattoos included.”

  “Trust me. I know the look. He wants sex—all men want sex. But at the end of the day, he hates my tattoos and my job, and he’s boring. He doesn’t get me. Every time I quote a movie, he looks at me like I’ve grown a second head. We couldn’t possibly be more incompatible. Anyway, we’re not talking about me and Enzo. I’m not dating for a while.”

  “You’re telling me I need to date. You’re throwing men at me. But you refuse to put yourself out there? Kinda hypocritical, don’t ya think? And let’s not forget how obscure your little movie quotes are at times. Maybe he really doesn’t understand what you’re talking about.”

  “My situation, or whatever, with Enzo is completely different from your situation with Cain, and you know it. By the way, you left John hanging last night. Not cool. I hope you’ve come to terms with going stag to the reunion.”

  “Nice subject change there, JL.” Violet smiled and picked up the plates. “Can you please tell him how sorry I am? Explain that Cain’s just a friend and that I’d like to go out with John again.”

  “Again?”

  “Okay, not again. More like the first time. Tell him I’d like to finish our date.”

  “I don’t know. John’s a nice guy—are you just going to find some weird flaw and bolt?”

  “No! I was having a good time. Really, I was.”

  “Okay, I’ll think about it.” JL finished stacking the dishwasher and wiping the table. “You want a lift to work?”

  “Nah, I want to have my car so I can go to the gym after. See you later.”

  “Can I add one last thing about Cain?” JL asked.

  “As if I could stop you.”

  “Make him sweat a little. He needs to remember how it feels like to lose you so he doesn’t ever think about leaving again.” She winked.

  —

  Cain yawned and stretched his arms over his head early the next morning. A soft knock on his bedroom door startled him. The door slowly creaked open, and Violet walked in wearing nothing but her best smile. “Vi?” He rubbed his eyes, trying to get the sleep out.

  “I missed you so much, Cain.” She placed one bare knee on his bed and then the other; her motions slow and bold. Her body was just as he imagined it to be: soft, unmarred perfection. Her full tits and perky nipples hung perfect on her chest and her hips flared, creating a perfect hourglass. His mouth watered and his dick hardened. He reached for her waist and pulled her against him, her legs on each side of his thighs. He wanted to question why she was here but thought it best not to say anything that might ruin what would undoubtedly be the best night of his life.

  “I missed you so much, love.” He nuzzled her neck as she ground her body against his rock-hard cock, causing a moan to escape. Her familiar scent flooded his senses, and he wanted—no, needed—to be close to her. On her. In her.

  “Cain,” she whispered breathlessly. “I need you. Make love to me. Please.”

  “Are you sure that’s what you want? Is that really a good idea?” His hand ran down her back to the base of her spine, causing her to shiver.

  “Yes. I’ve wanted you for so long. Those months you were gone made me realize how much I need you.”

  He sat up higher on the bed and pulled her against him, her thick thighs—the same ones he fantasized about all the fucking time—wrapped around his waist. He could impale her with one move if he wanted, but what he really needed was a kiss first. The kiss all those years ago was something he dreamed about all the time, and now he needed to finish it properly. In the darkness of his room, his lips found her soft full lips, and unlike that first kiss, this kiss was all wanton desire and need. All innocence was gone, replaced by pure sexual desire. He felt her warm wet pussy grinding against his hardened cock, and every time she sucked on his bottom lip his dick twitched. “Violet. God, Violet. My sweet beautiful Violet.”

  She ran her fingers through his hair and then leaned forward to take more of his mouth. He tongued her mouth over and over, making her melt closer to him. “Cain. I’ve loved you for so long and I can’t wait any longer.” Even in his wildest dreams, he’d never imagined that tiny little Violet had such a naughty side to her. She lifted a little, grabbed his cock with a firm and sure grip, and positioned it against her warm pussy before sliding down. Her soft head full of blond curls fell down her shoulders as their bodies finally joined after so many years. Both of them let out a soft moan as their bodies came together, her plump breasts pressed against his chest. Her tight pussy was almost too much to handle, and when she began to move he almost—

  Beep beep beep.

  BEEP BEEP BEEP.

  Cain jumped up and fell right off the bed. His cock was hard, his heart pounded roughly against his chest, and he was a sweaty panting mess. “Motherfucker!” He slapped the off button on his alarm clock so hard it bounced off the nightstand and crashed down to the floor.

  One day back in Tarpon Springs and he’d already have to start the day by jacking off. It was the sweetest kind of torture, dreaming about making love to Violet. It was slowly going to kill him. It had been one of the reasons he’d left four months ago. He’d thought distance would help. It had, for a little while, but apparently it only took seeing her for a few hours in the bar last night to flood his brain with all things Violet again. It seemed as if his sleep would be fucked once again.

  The sun was barely up when Cain’s feet hit the pavement. He liked to run alone and without music—it helped clear his head. These days, sleeping past six in the morning was nearly impossible, and not just because of the Violet-filled porn reel that inhabited his subconscious. All those years in the military had him programmed for early morning wake-up. As he got a nice rhythm going, he thought about Violet’s reaction last night when he’d walked into the Pier. Talk about surprises. She’d run toward him as if he’d gone to war and survived—well, that was actually somewhat true. The things he’d seen since leaving the armed forces and joining the private contracting company were worse than what he’d witnessed during his two tours.

  He had missed Violet; that hadn’t been a surprise. But that she’d missed him, especially after he’d been such a dick—that was surprising. Well, maybe that wasn’t entirely true. She was, after all, the most forgiving person he knew. It never ceased to amaze him how both of them, having been raised with fathers who were so similar, had turned out so different. Cain had grown into a distant and reserved man who had no idea how to voice any sort of emotion, while Violet was—as Cain’s own father used to tease—“disgustingly affectionate.” Last night, holding her in his arms had been bliss, but a bliss that he couldn’t indulge in—ever. She was Jeremy’s girl. Always had been, always would be.

  Learning about her father had been a punch to the gut. The only family she’d had was gone, and he should have been there. He was so mad at himself it had taken all his self-control not to yell or punch something. He had tried hard to keep his distance since she arrived in Tarpon Springs
about a year ago—hell, he’d even fled the country—but he was being selfish. He just had to suck it up, change his sourpuss attitude, and remember that they were friends. Only friends. Last night she’d made it clear that he’d hurt her, and that wasn’t something he could live with. He’d masked his emotions for years, and he could do it again. He had no other choice.

  The six years she had dated Jeremy had been hard for him, but he had survived. So maybe all he needed was to see her dating again. Or maybe he just needed to get laid. It had been far too long. Perhaps that was the reason he was so tormented. Excessive horniness could make a man crazy, right? He needed to call Paige. She was a friend—well, really just a woman he’d been sleeping with on and off for a few years. It was a no-strings-attached non-relationship, and after this morning he knew it was beyond time for him to give her a call. She had a nice smile, too; maybe she could help him get his head out of his ass.

  Cain wiped his forehead with his forearm as he finished the four-mile run from his apartment to WtF Academy. Before opening the door to the gym, he inhaled the familiar ocean breeze; he’d missed it while he’d been away. He stepped inside, and the clanking of metal weights and the hum of music in the background made him eager to begin training again. From the tapping sound of high heels connecting with the cement floor, he knew Francesca was headed his way.

  “Hey, Cain. I have to be in school in an hour, so I can’t stick around, but I left a list of scheduled fights with Tony. There are a few openings still available in your weight division.”

  Cain nodded, then asked, “How’s law school going?”

  “Kicking my ass. But I love it.” She smiled at him, then went toward the door. Over her shoulder she called out, “Good to have you back.”

  Cain walked further inside the Academy and saw Enzo, one of the newer fighters and Francesca’s cousin, with his arm in a sling; he was leaning against the monster-sized cage in the middle of the room. Inside the cage, Slade, the other owner of WtF, was sparring with someone who appeared to be a new fighter. “What the hell happened to you?” Cain asked Enzo.

  “Hey buddy, welcome home.” Enzo patted Cain’s shoulder. “Dislocated my shoulder last week practicing some jiu jitsu moves with Slade. Hurt like a bitch. I’m out for a few weeks.”

  “That sucks.”

  Travis, another fighter and JL’s brother, walked over with a protein shake in one hand, an apple in the other, and butterfly bandages covering a few parts of his face. “He also missed a shitload of training.”

  “Some of us have to work,” Enzo replied.

  “And you?” Cain asked Travis, gesturing toward his banged-up face.

  “Tony kicked me in the face while sparring. Only a few stitches. He could’ve broken my jaw.”

  From inside the cage, his hands gripping the fence, Slade said, “It was good to see you yesterday at the Pier, brother. I hear you want in on a fight.”

  “Yeah, man. I’m ready,” Cain answered. It seemed the entire Academy was there. “But you guys’ve seen better days.”

  “I know. Everyone’s banged up.” Tony, who was taking more of a management role in the gym now that Francesca was in law school, had come over. “We need fighters who can actually fight. Francesca left me a list of fights for you. You think you’re ready? Have you trained at all in the last four months?”

  “We don’t need any more injured fighters. This is starting to look like an old folks’ home instead of an MMA training gym,” Slade added.

  “I’m ready. Someone has to save your sorry Academy.” Cain smiled wryly, and Slade grinned and gave him the finger before turning back to his student in the cage.

  As Cain set his bag down and began to tape his hands, Tony said, “I can fight.”

  “Nah. You’re too old.”

  “I’m retired.”

  Cain chuckled. “That’s what old men say.”

  “We’re almost the same age, so be nice to me. You’ll be standing right here in a couple of years,” Tony hissed.

  “I’m in as soon as my shoulder heals,” Enzo said.

  “No!” Slade and Tony said at the same time.

  Travis took a bite of his apple and chuckled.

  Enzo glared at his friend before looking at Slade and Tony. “Why the hell not?”

  “You’re not ready. This next one is for professionals and you’re not committed enough. You come in and train a few days, then miss a few weeks. We can’t afford any more injuries. At some point you’ll have to choose between those corporate suits and this sport. Until then, you stay amateur,” Tony said, then looked over to Cain. “I hear Ortiz has been asking around. He wants his belt back.”

  “Ortiz wants a rematch?”

  “That’s the word on the street. You up for that? Could be big. Easily thirty grand if you win. You’ll have to commit to coming in at least six times a week, and you’ll have to deal with the media shit. You may have to cut weight.”

  “I’m in.”

  “Okay, I’ll talk to Francesca and Slade and to Ortiz’s people and set that up.”

  “When?”

  “Next year.”

  “I want something sooner.”

  “There’s nothing. You should focus on killing Ortiz and getting your belt back. I don’t want to risk you getting injured and then being unable to fight. These big fights take a lot of planning, and you need to be patient.”

  Cain wanted to get back in the game. He needed to fight. He had all this energy he needed to burn…with his fists. Instead, he nodded.

  “Okay. Going to make some calls.” Tony walked toward his office, saying over his shoulder, “You know what to do—you’ve trained most of us. Start soon, because we’ve got work to do.”

  Chapter 4

  Violet was almost finished with inventory in the back of the clinic when she heard the bell chime from the front. She climbed off the stepladder and went out front.

  She shook her head when she saw Cain by the empty receptionist’s desk holding a bloody towel by his lips. “I was just thinking it was too quiet across the street. Come on.” She gestured toward the door that led to the two examining rooms.

  “You alone?” Cain’s voice was muffled though the towel.

  “Yes, but don’t worry. I handle all the most basic stupidectomies these days.”

  Cain’s brow furrowed, and Violet laughed. “It’s what Chrissy calls all the little injuries from the gym. She’s not a big fan of the fighting.”

  “I never doubted you could handle it, by the way.”

  “I like to let the patients know. Make sure they’re comfortable with a nurse rather than the doctor.” She patted the examining table. “Sit.”

  He sat, and she took the towel away and began patting the area around his lips with gauze, which caused him to wince. “Don’t be a baby. It’s just some alcohol so I can see what’s going on.” She continued to work, concentrating on his injury and not his blue eyes, or his warm breath inches from her lips, or his musky smell, or the way his tongue darted out a few times. “You’re already training? Isn’t it too soon? You can rest for a few days, you know.”

  “Why does everyone keep saying the same thing?”

  “Because you just came from doing your super-secret spy thing, which I know you’re downplaying. You should get some R&R before you go full-out Rambo.”

  He laughed and then cringed. “Ow!”

  “Try not to move,” she said.

  “I like to keep busy,” he mumbled.

  “You always have, Cain. But sometimes we need rest. You’re not indestructible.”

  He pointed to his lip. “Trust me, I know.”

  “It’s an ugly gash, but you don’t need stitches.” She reached for some antiseptic ointment and applied it. “All done. Try not to get hurt anymore today, please. I’m leaving soon.”

  They looked at each another for an awkward moment.

  Cain broke the silence first. “This feels—”

  “Unfamiliar. Weird.”

  �
�Yeah.” He let out a breath and patted the examining table, and she hopped up next to him. “You were right about everything. I’m sorry.”

  “I know that, Cain. I just don’t know what to do. How to act around you.”

  “Can we start again?”

  She was supposed to be making him sweat it out. Instead she looked at his sad blue eyes, which made him look so lost, and she just wanted to pull him into her arms and fight off anyone or anything that would make this giant of a man miserable.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I was leaving. I just…I needed to leave. I needed space. But I missed you while I was away,” he said.

  A smile lit her face.

  —

  When Cain saw Violet’s smile, just like that he knew things would be okay between them. She had been this bright beacon of sunshine in his life. No matter what, she was always optimistic, always happy. He’d missed that smile, those freckles, her pink lips, her unruly hair…he could go on forever.

  “I missed you too, Cain. Why did you need space? Space from whom, from what?”

  He shrugged. “So you’re dating?” He needed to change the subject.

  She was clicking the top of her pen repeatedly. “Yeah, I am. I’m trying to, at least. Apparently I’m difficult,” she said with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.

  “Doubt that, Vi,” Cain said as he took the pen from her hand, forcing her to look at him.

  “No, seriously. The guy last night seemed like a good guy, but obviously it didn’t work out, seeing as I left him in the middle of our date in order to literally throw myself at another guy.” She laughed. “And this one guy about six months ago, he was very nice, and then we went to dinner, and he had the funniest haircut and weirdest ears. I just…I couldn’t.” She laughed.

  “Who wants to date someone with weird ears?”

  “That’s what I said!” she squealed, finally looking relaxed and more like herself. “I get so nervous on dates. I say all the wrong things. I wear the wrong clothes. I get flustered.”