Fighting to Forget

by Jenika Snow

  “You know about his…” Tasha didn’t finish, because although she was pretty sure Sunny knew about Larson’s past from being a part of the gym, she didn’t want to confide something to the other woman that Larson didn’t want said.

  Sunny nodded, let go of Tasha’s hand, and breathed out. “I know about everything Larson went through, as does most of the town. But it isn’t because he shared any of it with anyone. He’s a private person, as I’m sure you know, and it was all over the news. I heard about it while working in the gym when some of the newer fighters were asking about it when they realized who he was.” This sad look crossed her face.

  “He is a private person, but things have … progressed between us.” She stared at Sunny. “I love him,” Tasha said softly, so only Sunny heard. The sound of men fighting together, fists and legs hitting punching bags, and of curses in friendly banter, filled her ears.

  “And he loves you,” Sunny said without question.

  A smile covered Tasha’s face. “He does.” She felt her cheeks become hot and knew she was blushing.

  “I’m glad you’re happy, and I’m glad he finally found someone that can make him feel like he deserves to be loved.”

  “Sunny, can you help with these?” Mack called out.

  Sunny stood, smiled down at her, and patted her on the shoulder. “If you want to talk I’m here. I know we haven’t really sat down and talked other than gym related stuff, but I’m here.”

  “Sunny,” Mack called out again, the Russian fighter sounding sterner.

  Sunny smiled again and turned to leave.

  For several moments Tasha sat there, thinking about everything Sunny had said, and wanting to see Larson at that very moment. She stood, looked into the gym, and saw that everyone was occupied with their own workouts. She looked at the locker room door, thought about how she’d do this, then grabbed a stack of freshly laundered and folded towels and headed to where Larson was.

  ****

  Larson got out of the shower, grabbed his towel, and quickly dried off. He wanted to take Tasha out tonight, maybe for a drive, or maybe just spend the evening with her inside, watching a movie, and holding her close. It had been so long since he’d been able to even think about doing that with a woman again. And although it may seem bland in comparison to what he could have done with her and where he could have taken her, sitting on the couch with her in his lap, holding her, and just enjoying her company and presence, was what he yearned for.

  Yeah, he fucking yearned for it. It was almost enough to have him chuckling at how romantic he had come to feel when it concerned Tasha. He left the shower room and headed out to where the lockers and his clothes were, but he stopped when he saw her standing just inside the door. She held the towels close to her chest, and he knew by her stance and the way her fingers tightened in the material of the towels that she felt a little uncomfortable standing there.

  “Tasha,” he said softly, and moved toward her. He had the towel wrapped around his waist, so he willed his dick not to harden just from the sight of her alone, and moved closer to her still. She didn’t move, and although he should have told her being in here wasn’t the right move since they were at the gym, he didn’t give a shit.

  “I don’t care that anyone could come back here right now. I just wanted to see you.”

  He smiled, loving this woman so much that she’d never really know the extent of it. “Come here, baby.” He held his hand out to her, gesturing her to come forward. He needed to hold her, to kiss her, and he didn’t care where he was.

  Yeah, he might have nearly kicked London’s ass back in the day when he’d found out he was in the locker rooms making out with Sunny, but this was different. He knew that London had just been so in love with Harlond’s daughter that he hadn’t been able to help himself. Larson had been in his dark place back then, not sure he’d ever be able to understand that kind of need again. But now he understood it with a passion, and was going to show Tasha how much she meant to him.

  He pulled her closer, tangled his hand in her hair, and kissed her senseless. While he continued to devour her mouth, he pulled her away from the door, around the row of lockers, and past the showers. Stepping into one of the empty stalls in the corner, he reached out and closed the curtain, sealing them in the shower. Pressing her to the wall, he smoothed his hand down her chest, cupped her breasts, and loved how she moaned into his mouth.

  “I feel how hard you are,” she whispered.

  “I’m hard for you, always for you, and only for you,” he responded, and ground himself into her belly. She was so damn soft, so curvy, and so his that he could have come just from dry humping her like a damn teenager.

  The sound of the locker room door slamming open pierced his lust-fogged brain. And the sound of some fighters coming in cursing, laughing, and talking about what their plans for the weekend were, could have, should have made him stop. But he continued to kiss her. What surprised him was when she pushed on his chest, got to her knees, and pulled his towel away.

  He stared at her, his chest moving up and down from the force of his arousal, and watched as she smoothed her hands over his lower abdomen.

  “You’re so hard, so defined.” She continued to run her hands over his body, then higher until she was touching his pecs. “This is pretty bold for me to do,” she whispered, clearly mindful that there were guys right on the other side of the wall.

  “I like this bold part of you.” He was having a hard time breathing due to how aroused he was.

  She grabbed his cock, and before he could even formulate an action she had his dick in her mouth. She sucked at him, stroked him with her tongue, and then cupped his balls with her hand. He groaned, snapped his mouth closed and gritted his teeth. Slamming his hand on the tiled wall in front of him, he watched her hollow out her cheeks and take more of him into her mouth until the head of his erection bumped the back of her throat.

  They were both mindless with desire, and he couldn’t handle this right now. He didn’t want to come in her mouth in the shower stall of the gym, even if it was hot as fuck. He wanted her in a bed and under him so he could worship her.

  He lifted her off the ground, slammed his lips against hers, and speared his tongue in her mouth. For several long seconds he didn’t do anything but fuck her mouth with his. When he heard the other men leave, he hauled her ass out of that shower, quickly got dressed, and turned her to face him.

  “I have to have you now, Tasha.”

  She breathed hard. Her mouth was red and swollen from his kisses and sucking his cock, and finally she nodded. “Good, because I need you, too.”

  Chapter Eleven

  He inhaled deeply, took in the light floral scent of her hair, and closed his eyes. He’d never thought he’d find a woman that made him feel alive again, that made him feel like he didn’t have to fight to try to survive. Just being with Tasha made things good, better, and he didn’t want to let that go.

  Larson was used to taking what he wanted when he wanted it, but he’d always be gentle with her, show her every second of every day for the rest of his life that she meant so much to him. He’d tell her about Melanie, about his past, and let her know that he wasn’t replacing her with the memory of his deceased wife, but making new, glorious memories with the woman he’d grown to love. He’d show her that she meant more to him than anything else on this planet.

  She pulled back and looked up at him, and he cupped the side of her face, smoothed his thumb along her cheek, and reveled in the fact her skin was buttery smooth. He leaned down and kissed her soft and slow.

  “I want you so much,” she whispered against his mouth. “It seems I just want you so much more than the last time, and those feelings grow every second I’m with you, Larson.”

  He groaned, kissed her hard and long, and loved that she was being honest with him. “I have things to tell you, too, but right now let’s just worry about the here and now, baby.”

  She nodded, and he smiled against her
lips.

  With her hands still on his chest he felt her smooth them down his abdomen until she pressed her fingers against his erection that all but demanded to be free. She unzipped him, undid the button, and then she was wrapping her fingers around his erection. He groaned at the fact it she was bold enough to just touch him, to go after what she wanted. It made it that much more pleasurable.

  Moving his hand behind her head, he cupped her, held her as he deepened the kiss, and moved his tongue faster and harder against hers. His mind and body screamed for more, to be rougher, harder, but he fought those urges because right now he needed to show her that he could be a gentler man when it came to her.

  When she moaned against him he moved his hands to cup her ass, squeezed the globes, and then lifted her easily. She wore these terrycloth type workout pants, ones that he’d seen her in at the gym as she worked the front desk. He’d imagined touching her, seeing how they felt as they molded to her ass.

  Lifting her off the ground easily, he loved that she was all curved, all his. She wrapped her legs around his waist right away, ground her pussy on his cock, and he grunted from the contact. The hard length of his dick prodded between her legs, and he wished the material that separated her from him were gone. With their mouths still fused, and her legs wrapped around him firmly, he started to move them toward the bed. He laid her on the mattress, took a step back, and looked his fill at her.

  “Take off the clothes, baby. I want to see every part of you.”

  She breathed in and out fast, her breasts rising and falling from the force. She slipped her pants and underwear off, tossed them aside, then went for her shirt and bra. The thatch of trimmed dark hair that covered the top of her mound beckoned him, but the sight of her bare pussy lips had pre-cum slipping from the tip of his cock. The way her legs were wide open, giving him that prime shot of her wet, swollen, and red pussy, made him feel feral. He grabbed his shaft, started stroking himself from root to tip as he stared at her luscious body, and groaned.

  She sat up and reached for him. Tasha pushed his hand away, and although he wanted to be in control, he let her lead the way. She was the one who started moving her hand up and down his dick, grabbed his balls with her other hand, and made him on the verge of coming just from the gentle pressure and motion she tortured him with.

  When she leaned forward and wrapped her lips around the crown of his shaft, he about came right in her mouth. Throwing his head back, he closed his eyes and let the feel of her working him over wash through his entire body. She sucked on his cockhead, stroking the root of his erection, and he speared his hand in her hair. Larson thrust back and forth into her mouth gently at first, but the way she hollowed out her cheeks, sucked him in good and deep, had him nearly losing it. He pushed her back on the bed until she was lying on it once again, her legs spread, and her lips parted as she breathed in and out harshly from her arousal.

  Tasha rested against the mattress and watched him. Larson lifted his hands and smoothed them down her legs. The sound of her swallowing filled the too quiet room. He quickly removed his clothing, not wanting to torment them any longer, but also impatient to be with her. When he stepped up to her again and touched her legs, all he did for a suspended moment was stare at where his hands rested on her inner thighs. A tightening started at the base of his spine the longer he stared at her pussy. He felt the same way she did, his feelings growing exponentially with every passing day, and the more time he spent with her.

  “Please,” she whispered into the darkness. “I need you, Larson. I think I’ll always need you.” She closed her eyes and let her head fall back when he moved his fingers along her silky folds.

  He needed to make this good for her because she didn’t deserve any less. “Look at me when I’m touching you, baby,” he said in a hard voice. He was hardened naturally from the experiences he’d gone through, but he was trying to be the man she deserved … the man that he deserved for himself.

  She lifted her gaze to his, and for several long seconds he didn’t speak. They just stared at each other while he continued to keep a firm, yet gentle hold on her inner thighs. Slowly he removed his hands from her. Sliding his palms up her body, he stopped right below her breasts. Larson could feel how fast and hard her heart was beating. Moving onto his knees between her legs, he leaned forward and ran his tongue along her cleft. He loved eating her out, loved licking the cream from her pussy, hearing her moan, and reveled in the fact that it was because of him she felt such pleasure.

  She tasted sweet and slightly musky, was soft beneath his lips, and he felt this rope in him draw tight before snapping in half. He started licking and sucking at her, wrapped his lips around her clit until she was pulling at his hair and moaning. She moved her hips back and forth, up and down, thrust her pussy firmly against his mouth, and then he felt her explode around him as she came.

  “Please, Larson” she whispered, pleaded and begged into the darkness. “I need to feel you inside of me.” She lifted her head and stared at him.

  “You’re so beautiful, Tasha, so giving and warm … so mine,” Larson whispered. “You’re mine, baby. No one will have you but me.”

  “I don’t want anyone else to have me … ever.”

  Although being gentle with her was coming more naturally than it ever had in his life, Larson still had to rein in his desire to thrust right into her. He caressed her in gentle sweeps of his fingers, mouth, and tongue, until goosebumps formed along her skin.

  “Every part of you is mine.” He moved his hands up so they rested right under her breasts. He couldn’t help but continue to tell her that she was his, irrevocably, undeniably. “Look at me.” He waited until she obeyed, and then he caressed her breasts, stroked her nipples, and loved that she arched into his touch.

  He leaned up and took her mouth again, and Larson became lost in the sensations of their lips, tongues, and hands moving along each other’s bodies.

  She ran the pads of her fingers across his bare chest, and he shook slightly when she moved over his scar. “I hope one day you’ll tell me how this happened, but until then I just want to love you, and when you feel comfortable telling me, I’ll love you even more.”

  He froze at her words and the earnest, honest expression on her face. It had only been a short time since meeting her, but he knew, deep down, as soon as he touched her, let his emotions consume him, that this was the one woman he could be with truly. No woman had ever made him feel like that, feel like if he didn’t have her he’d lose his fucking mind, lose his sanity and not be able to return. But it wasn’t just about sex. It was about claiming Tasha as his.

  “Tell me this is right, that you want this, too,” she said, as if she was delirious and trying to prove that what they were doing was right, that what they felt wasn’t wrong.

  He gripped her chin in a soft hold, waited until she stared into his eyes, and then he spoke. “This, right here, you and me, is what is right. It feels good because you are meant to be mine. Only the best things in life are worth fighting for, and if there was no battle in securing what you want, then it really isn’t worth it.” He stared into her face. “It took me a long time to realize that, Tasha.”

  “Larson,” she said his name softly.

  “You are worth fighting for.”

  She swallowed, her throat working as she did.

  “Now, just say you’ll be mine no matter what.”

  “I’m yours, Larson.”

  And then he kissed her hard and possessively, and knew that good things in life didn’t happen every day. He wasn’t about to take this for granted. Never again.

  Chapter Twelve

  His big body rested against Tasha’s, pressing her into the mattress and sending a lovely, heavy sensation coursing through her. She thought about what he’d said, about what she’d just said to him. It wasn’t strange to be in love with a man that she hadn’t known for very long, that she had also been pining after for the last year. There was something about him something that
made her feel whole when she knew there was a part of her that was broken. But there was this darkness in Larson as well, a darkness that called to her, as strange as that seemed.

  “I want you so much, baby,” he murmured against her throat, and she loved how his stubble scraped along her skin. He was so muscular, so big and heavy that she felt her breath leaving her. It was a pleasurable sensation, a safe feeling.

  Warm, hard male flesh molded into hers, making the sweet anticipation of release just a reach away. Whatever it was about Larson didn’t frighten her, didn’t make her question why she felt this intensity. It just was, and she accepted that.

  Larson’s narrow hips fit perfectly in the cradle of hers, and the hard, impossibly thick length of his cock parted her lips. He moved his hips back and forth, rubbed her slickness along her pussy with his dick, and coated his shaft with her arousal. She was so ready for him she was about to scream. She was wet, unbelievably so. A guttural groan left him, and he jerked his hips forward.

  “It feels so good, Tasha baby. You feel so good.” He curled his fingers around her upper arms and pressed his hips into hers again, but harder this time.

  Over and over he did this, his length sliding up and down her cleft as he rocked against her. The tip of his erection bumped her clit on every upstroke, and Tasha had to bite her lip or she would have begged for him to move harder, faster. She rose up slightly and stared down the length of her body. She saw his cock moving between her folds, watched the tip of his shaft rubbing her clit, and saw the pre-cum spilling out of him.

  “My need for you is so damn intense.” He was dry humping her, and bringing her closer to an orgasm. Another bump to her clit and she squeezed her eyes shut. So, so close to feeling that explosion. She fell back on the bed and breathed out as the sensations moved through her. He had his mouth at her throat, was kissing and sucking at her skin, and she loved that he was erotically abusing her flesh.