by T M Kelly
“Lily, you have to know that your career would be amazing if you used your father’s name.”
As I strode to the door, I never turned to face Angela. “Yeah, who’s career would that be? Not my own. Something my father was against.”
She tried to say something, but Julian and I were out the door in a flash. I was done. If fighting in the AFC meant having my father’s name, then the championship belt was not meant for me. I was struggling to keep it together, and I’m sure Julian noticed. He wrapped his arm around my waist to steady me as we made our way to the car.
Right before I sat down, I looked up at the sky. What would Dad say to me right now? At that moment, I could hear a faint whisper beside my ear. “I’m so proud of you, Lils.”
I needed a new goal.
A new plan.
14
“Well, that went well,” Julian said sarcastically. “Charlie will have a cocktail waiting in there I’m sure.”
We were sitting in my driveway. My butt was glued to the seat, unable to move. I noticed Charlie peek around the curtain in the front window. A part of me wanted to get out of the car and run into her outstretched arms. The other part…
“Lily.” Julian reached for my hand. “Want to talk about it?”
That was the problem: I didn’t want to talk. What happened at the office should’ve made me pissed, and it did to an extent. Angela’s words also made me think about what I wanted going forward. I was tired of doing what was right or what others may expect. What did Lily Waters want?
Julian placed his hand on my thigh and immediately my body reacted. At that moment, I wanted him. “Take me to your place,” I said in a whisper with my head facing forward.
“Lily, are you sure.”
I turned my head and looked right into his green eyes. “I’ve never been more sure about anything in my life. Take me to your place.”
He didn’t hesitate, just put the car in reverse and backed out of the driveway.
My phone was tucked deep in my purse, so it took me a moment to dig it out. After pulling up Charlie’s name, I sent her a text message to not wait up. She only replied with a heart emoji.
We stayed silent. I had my head turned and was watching as every house flashed by. I let my mind replay Angela’s words. Lily, you have to know that your career would be amazing if you used your father’s name. She didn’t get it, obviously. I wanted to create a Lily Waters empire just like my father did with Johnny Adams. I knew I had the skills to be a great fighter. The trouble was, how could I convince everyone else I was worth the money for admission?
The car slowed, and I turned my head to see Julian pull into a long winding driveway. I could only see the top of the roof at first, but then he continued until his four-story mansion came into focus.
I burst out laughing. “Really?”
“What?”
“You live in a mansion?”
“Well, yeah, I guess.”
Opening my door, I stepped out and let my eyes roam over the whole property. There were three people tending to the yard. The front yard actually had some stunning landscaping. I noticed a rose bush against the side of the house and started walking toward it. “My mom loved roses.” I brushed my finger over one of the flowers and watched as a petal detached and fell to the ground. “I loved helping her tend to them every spring.”
“I have more around the back if you want to go look at them.”
I lifted my head to face him. “Yeah, I do.”
Julian reached for my hand and guided me to the backyard. “My mom loved flowers, too.”
His words caught me off guard. “Loved?”
“Yeah,” he said, stopping in front of a large garden with every color rose imaginable. “She died last year.”
I stepped closer but still not close enough. “I’m so sorry, Julian.”
“It’s weird to be that guy that has a well-kept yard, but my mom used to love coming here and sitting in front of it for hours. I almost tore it up but stopped myself right before pulling the first bush.”
I placed my palm on his cheek. “I’m glad you changed your mind.”
“Lily, do you want to talk about it?”
I felt the kindness in his words and knew I could trust him. Talking wasn’t on my mind at the moment, though. Glancing around, I made sure we were alone. Then I did a running leap up into his arms and wrapped my legs around his waist.
“Or not,” he said, chuckling.
“I’m not really in the mood to talk.”
“Yeah, tell me what you have in mind?”
I bent my head and captured his lips. Rubbing my hands over his bald head, I moaned, demanding more before pulling away. “I want you inside me. No phone. Just you, me, and maybe your bed.”
He turned and headed up the sidewalk that lead to what I assumed was the back entrance to his house. “Maybe a bed,” he said. “What else do you have in mind?”
“A kitchen counter, shower, floor, you know, anything that can hold the both of us.”
“Are we planning to use all those surfaces today?”
“Maybe.”
“Should we talk about—”
Before he could finish his sentence, I kissed him. I wasn’t in the mood to talk about what had happened. Honestly, I was over it already. The AFC wasn’t going to take away what I worked so hard to achieve. I knew we would get the shit straightened out eventually. Right now, though, I wanted what I kept telling myself I couldn’t have. Julian fucking Moore.
I lifted my head. “You talk too much.”
He closed his eyes and lightly laughed. “All I was going to say was, I think we should add the pool to the list.”
“Oh, I like how you think.”
I tightened my legs around his waist and struggled to control my need. One second my mouth was over his, and then I moved to the sweet spot behind his ear and back to his mouth. When he moaned, my body reacted. I couldn’t remember the last time I felt this much need for one person. What was it about this man that had me wanting to climb his body and fuck him until I couldn’t see straight?
“Lily, I’m not going to make it to the bedroom if you keep that up.”
I lifted my head to see what was around and then pointed to the rug. “We can just test this pretty thing out now?”
“Um, no,” he said, pushing open a door. “Bed first. Plus, in here is where all the condoms are stored.”
Forcing my eyes away from his beautiful face, I looked around the room. It was enormous. “You could fit my whole house in this room.”
He let me down. “I doubt that. You have a cute place.”
I rolled my eyes and mocked him. “I have a cute place. Well, la de da, Mr. Moore.”
Before I had a chance to say another word, he flung my body over his shoulder and walked over to the bed. “Ms. Waters,” Julian said, throwing me on the bed. “We need to stop this charade.”
I sat up on my legs. “Oh yeah, and what charade is that?” He surprised me by lifting his shirt over his head and starting to unbutton his jeans. I let my body fall back against the headboard to enjoy the show.
“The real deal.” He slid his jeans down. “Don’t get me wrong, phone sex with you is fucking amazing.”
“But,” I teased.
He dropped his boxers, and my mind went blank. He was erect, beautiful, and I wanted to devour every inch of him. Julian looked down and then back at me. “Eyes up here while I’m talking to you, Ms. Waters.”
“Huh?” I kept my eyes glued below his waist line.
Julian started to crawl toward me. “I want you naked and under me in like ten seconds. Think you can handle those demands?”
“You know I don’t take direction well.” I reached forward and stroked his erection.
He grabbed both my hands. “You can’t touch me with clothes still on.”
I didn’t hesitate. My clothes ended up flying in every direction. I threw my hands out to the side. “Better?”
“Much.” Before
I could take back what I wanted, my body magically ended up under him.
“Can we discuss these stealth moves you have?”
“Why, you want to learn a few?”
“Maybe.” I lifted my leg and rubbed it back and forth over his hard length.
“Lily,” he breathed.
I placed my hands on either side of his head and pulled his face closer. “Julian,” I said, kissing him but this time it felt different. We didn’t have the gym, a phone, or any apprehensions in the way. Just two people who obviously craved one another. “Can we get the first round out of the way?”
“Why the rush?”
“Because I know the first round will clear away all the pent-up desire. Then the second round”—I wrapped my legs around his body—“will allow us to explore all the things.”
“What do you want me to do, Lily?”
“I want you inside me and now.”
After our phone sex, my dreams had been amazing. All I could think about was how he would feel deep inside me. Then without warning, I felt the tip of his erection touch the entrance to my core, and I sucked in a breath. “More,” I breathed.
He pushed carefully, and every time he would go deeper, my body screamed for a release. “You feel amazing, Lily.”
“I want to be on top,” I demanded.
Julian didn’t argue, instead he wrapped his arm around my body and turned us carefully so we didn’t separate our already joined bodies. Once we were settled, I sat up and started to move back and forth, trying to find a perfect rhythm. I reached my fingers down and started to create little circles over my sex.
“Let me,” he said, reaching his thumb up and taking over.
I stretched my arms back and placed my hands on his thighs. We started to move at a faster pace. My head fell back, and I let my body take what it had craved for several weeks.
“Julian,” I breathed.
“Don’t stop, Lily.”
Oh, I had no plans to stop. Instead, I increased my pace in need of a release. His thumb continued to pleasure me, and I found I couldn’t get enough of the feelings running through my veins. My orgasm crashed through me, but I needed more. I felt Julian grow bigger deep inside, and I cried out his name. Then he yelled and pulled my body down closer.
We lay there entangled for several minutes, and then I felt movement in my core. I lifted my head. “You can’t be ready yet?”
“Why not?” He chuckled.
“I should’ve told Charlie I wouldn’t see her until next week.”
He burst out laughing and rolled me onto my back. “I do have plans for you that could take a while.”
“Show me.”
15
“This is where I struggle,” I said uncomfortably. My head was squished in between Julian’s legs. My one arm was stretched out in front of me over his chest.
He loosened his grip. “Always be at the ready and keep your torso up. Don’t fall forward because that will make it easier for me to tighten my hold.”
“Like this.” I put my body back in place, but this time I avoided leaning over.
“Exactly. Now lift up.” His legs loosened their grip around me, which enabled me to free my body.
“Shit, I let my body always sag forward.”
“Yeah, I would need to look at your old fights, but that’s my guess.” He motioned for me to get back in position. “Now, another thing, your arm can’t be out in front. You need to have control of every limb, so you’re prepared to free yourself at any moment.”
“Show me what you mean,” I said, reaching my arm over his chest in front of my body.
“Well, you can lift your torso up, but you still are not focusing on your arm.” He used his left hand and pulled me down onto his chest. “So, if you are not in control of your arm, the move with the torso won’t mean a damn thing.”
“From the top,” I insisted.
“You don’t tire easily?” Julian said, wrapping his legs around my body.
“Haven’t you already figured that out? I mean”—I rubbed my hand over the bulge forming only inches from my face. I licked my lips and patted my hand on the mat—“we could test this out just to prove a point.”
“Focus.”
We ran through the move several more times until I felt comfortable with how to free myself. I stepped away, needing a break, and grabbed my water. “I’ll practice with Charlie at the gym.”
It was nine at night, and we’d had sex six times. At around seven, Julian had joked about practicing in his home gym. My idea of a home gym and what I was standing in at the moment were two completely different images. His gym took up the whole area of the basement and mirrored his gym I went to every day.
“My brothers just arrived,” Julian said, walking over to a bench in the corner of the room.
“You must have super-human hearing?”
He pointed to a monitor on the wall. “They never knock.”
“So you installed a monitoring system.”
“Well, it was better than what used to happen.”
“They loved walking in on you when you were getting it on with some hot chick.”
“Something like that.” He reached for my hand and tugged me close to his body. Right as he was about to say something, both of his brothers moaned. “And then there were four.”
“Five actually,” Brooks said, rounding the corner and coming into view.
“C, you’re here.”
“And you’re fully clothed,” Charlie teased.
I pushed at her shoulder. “Shut up.”
Julian walked back over to the bench and turned off the music on his phone. “Why are you all here?”
Charlie wrapped her arms around my waist. “Because of you.” She kissed my cheek and leaned back. “So the meeting blew like a five-dollar hooker, eh?”
I rested my head against hers. “Something like that.”
She stepped away and sat down, patting the mat in front of her. “Tell me everything.” I groaned. “Shut up and sit, woman.” Reluctantly, I finally sat down and crossed my legs. “Tell Momma Charlie everything.”
“You know I hate Momma Charlie, right?”
“Fine, tell me then, dammit.”
I let out a deep sigh. “The woman only wanted me because she found out my father was Johnny Adams.”
“Wait. What?” Charlie said, sounding confused.
“Yeah, she really pressed the notion that changing my name would help my career.”
I noticed her scowl. “What a fucking bitch.”
Brooks sat next to Charlie. “Wait, so let me get this straight. You get a call from AFC, and they only want you because of your father’s last name? And your father is The Punisher? This is breaking news.”
“Yup. I’m sorry. I made Julian and Charlie promise to keep the information to themselves for now,” I said, standing up and walking over to the heavy bag. “My dad was against me fighting with his last name, and I don’t plan to change it anytime soon.” I started to punch the bag, visualizing Angela with each blow to the leather. “There are several small fights coming up. I’ll enter them.”
“We’ll both enter,” Charlie said, grabbing a hold of the bag. “We’re in this together remember.”
Brooks stepped up beside us. “You could go above Angela and talk to Chuck Anders, the owner of AFC.”
I stopped and turned to face him. “I’m not here to fuck with the system. I want to do this on my own.”
He put his hands up in surrender. “I didn’t say that to piss you off.”
“My father started fighting on the street.” I shook my head at the thought. “He had to work his way up. The Punisher wasn’t famous from the start. It took him almost fifteen years before he finally could say he made it.” I felt my mind wander back in time.
“You coming, Lily Bug,” my dad said, reaching out his hands.
“I’m here, Daddy.” I jumped up into his outstretched hands. “Where are we going?”
He beeped me o
n my nose. “What did you say you were dreaming of the other day?”
I turned my head to the side, trying to remember. “Ice cream.”
He chuckled as he locked the door to our apartment and carried me down the long hallway. “You always want ice cream,” he teased. “When Momma cooked us that delicious steak dinner—”
“I said, I wanted to try lobster.” I felt my eyes go to the size of saucers. “Are we going to have lobster, Daddy?”
“We are, baby. Your momma is going to meet us there.”
The thought took me by surprise. “But didn’t you say it was really expensive and was just a special treat?”
“That you can finally enjoy, Lily Bug.”
“Lils, you there?” Charlie squatted down in front of me.
I was now sitting on the bench with my arms resting on my thighs. I lifted my head. “Yeah, I am.”
“Where did you go this time?”
Charlie knew I had a habit of letting my mind wander. “Just a thought about Dad.”
She squeezed my knees. “Hey, seriously, fuck this Angela chick. You don’t need her, Lily.”
I placed my hands on top of hers. “I can’t have the lobster yet, but maybe I’m almost there.”
“And now you are speaking gibberish.”
Bending down slightly, I kissed her forehead. “Don’t worry about it. It’s fine.” I stood up to face Julian. “Maybe I need to head home.”
This whole time, he kept his distance, letting me work this out with Charlie. When I mentioned leaving, he shook his head in protest. “I think you should stay.”
His words caught me off guard. The emotions of my father running through me and then everything with Julian, I felt like I had read too many Nicholas Sparks books in one sitting. My chest felt tighter with each step he took toward me. The moment he cleared the distance and wrapped his arms around my body, I had to pull out The Punisher in me and be tough. I wasn’t ready to show my emotions to Julian, and I most definitely did not want his brothers to see my tears.
