by Terra Kelly
Maybe my life led me here to meet Brooks.
Now I was afraid all this would be ripped from my grasp.
I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to let go of the negative thoughts, and then I rolled over to face Brooks. He was watching me as I snuggled in beside him. “Want to talk about it?” he said and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.
“There’s only one thing I want to discuss?”
“Tell me.”
I leaned up and pulled my tank top off. Then I pushed his body so he was on his back. “I’m sorry,” I said and straddled him.
He placed his hands on my hips. “For what, baby?”
“My head takes me to dark places lately. My family creates emotions that I wish could be avoided.” I hopped off him for a moment and removed my shorts and panties. Then I quickly hopped back into place and bent to kiss him.
“Charlie, I knew what I signed up for when I met you.”
“You didn’t sign up to deal with a head case.”
“Sunshine, you are not a head case.” He curled his hand around my neck and brought me closer. “We can visit a hospital full of head cases if that would help.”
“Let’s not and say we did.” I touched my forehead to his and then lifted up. “This needs to go.” I laced my fingers around the hem of his T-shirt and inched it up higher. I rubbed my hands over his abs and teased him by placing one finger in the waistband of his shorts. Suddenly, my body was flying through the air, and I was on my back.
“That can be arranged.” He threw off his shirt and pushed his body to the side to kick off his shorts.
“Brooks.”
“Yes.”
“Think we are making the right choice by going to that bar?” I rubbed my hands up and down his chest.
“I don’t know.” He inched lower and moved his body in between my legs. “We’re fighters sure, but not street fighters. It’s not our job to cause harm to innocent people.”
“Wait?” I placed my hands on either side of his face. “If this is a drop-off location for Hill Enterprise, none of the individuals in that building have an innocent bone in their body.”
He placed his hand over my breasts and squeezed, causing my body to buck up. “Hey, let’s discuss who’s innocent and who needs to have the shit kicked out of them later.” Then he bent and took one nipple in his mouth and sucked hard.
I missed this. The way he made me feel.
“More,” I cried out. “Harder.” He bit down, causing the pain to shoot to my core. I reached down and started to stroke his hard length, loving how he felt in my hand. Brooks lifted up and stopped. He just stared at me for the longest moment. “What are you thinking?”
“Just how happy you make me feel.”
I lightly squeezed his balls. “Yeah, do I?”
He flashed that sexy smirk that made my insides squirm. “I won’t last long if you keep that up.”
“We have all night.” I positioned my butt and let the tip of him just barely touch my most sensitive spot. “I miss you inside me.” He didn’t hesitate. One second he was teasing my core, and the next he was plunging deep inside me. “Fuck. Yes.”
He moved back and forth slowly. Then he increased his pace and at the same time bent to capture my lips. I felt hungry for more and wrapped my arms around his neck to pull him closer. We both looked like we were grappling on the bed, fighting for the perfect position.
“Brooks, faster.” I could feel every part of my body ignite, and then suddenly I was being taken over the edge. He didn’t stop which caused every nerve ending to go into overdrive. The feelings running through my body as he continued to plunge deep inside me were almost overwhelming and yet still completely erotic. When he cried out my name and slowed his pace, I felt sad. “More,” I whispered beside his ear. I thought he would protest, but he didn’t. Instead, he shocked me by sliding down my body. “Brooks, wait. What are you doing?”
“You said you wanted more.”
“But…” I knew I sounded confused. “You just came inside me.”
“Yeah, so.” He brushed his tongue over my clitoris. “What my baby wants, she will always get.” Then he bent his head and answered my demands.
I wasn’t prepared for the feelings coursing through my body. I wanted to stop him because the feelings were so intense, but then he would do this swirl motion with his tongue. Somehow this man had a gift. He was able to do what no man before him could do: make me come twice without a rest session in between.
It took me a few minutes to recover. I lifted up on my elbows and looked down at his shit-eating grin. “You feel pretty proud of yourself, don’t you?”
“Just a little.” He lifted up and moved to position his body behind mine.
“Brooks.” I pulled his arms closer and snuggled my behind against his already hard erection. “Can I tell you I love you yet?”
He turned my body to face him. “What? Why couldn’t you tell me before?”
“I was afraid. I mean, what if something happened to us after professing our love.”
“Sunshine, I knew the moment I met you.”
“Knew what?”
“That you were the one.”
All the years in my father’s house seemed to make sense now. My determination to be a fighter had a purpose. There was a reason for everything in life. Sometimes it didn’t make sense and you had to weed through the bullshit to find the answer. I placed my palm on the side of his face and knew what I wanted. I wanted to let go of the negative in my past and fight to win that damn championship belt.
And do it all with Brooks by my side.
Twenty-Five
“Turn your foot out,” Brooks yelled from the side of the ring. “This is basic stuff, Charlie. You should know this shit.”
I was bouncing back and forth on the balls of my feet, gearing up for the move. The moment Brooks started yelling, I stopped and turned to face him. I noticed Tyler slap his brother on the back and quickly walk away.
Instead of saying anything, I pointed my index finger in Brooks’s direction and then moved it, indicating for him to come here. When he stepped up beside me, I didn’t hesitate; I performed the cut kick on him, causing him to drop to the floor. “What the fuck was that about?” He was now on his knees, looking up at me.
“Don’t talk down to me.”
“I wasn’t,” he said and stood up. He lifted his hands in front his body, probably worried I would kick him again.
I dropped my hands to the side. “Brooks, you know how much I care about you, right?”
“Well, I’m questioning that right now.” He was still protecting his body with his hands.
“When you say, this is basic stuff and I should know this shit, how do you think that makes me feel?”
“I’m not your father, Charlie.” He stepped forward and grabbed my hand. “I’m here to help you win that belt.”
If Lily was here, she would tell Brooks to get used to my outbursts. Then she would put me in a headlock for accusing Brooks of treating me like my father. I realized at that moment I was the worst. Of course I knew Brooks was trying to help me. I stepped closer to him. “I’m sorry.”
“How can I prove to you that I’m not like your father?”
“You have. It’s me I need to work on.” The moment I dropped my head, he placed his finger under my chin and lifted it up. “What?”
“Should we have a stop word to help when this happens?” He circled his hand around my neck and tugged me closer.
“Or better yet, just sucker punch me.”
“I do it all the time,” Lily said, stepping into the ring. I noticed how she was gearing up to punch me.
“And you fail every time.” I laughed and turned my foot out one hundred and eighty degrees, preparing to perform the cut kick. “Which is why you should think of a new plan.” Then I lifted my other leg and delivered the perfect kick right above her knee.
Lily leaped back. “You’re evil.”
“Just proving to B
rooks I know how to perform the kick just fine.”
“He doubted you?” Lily turned at the same time as I did to face the man in question.
“What? I never said I doubted you.” He had his hands up in surrender.
Just as Lily and I were about to advance on Brooks, my eyes caught sight of someone. A man. “Who’s that?” I whispered and turned toward him.
“Well, make it obvious you’re looking at him, C.” Lily laughed and turned my body away.
Brooks stood there for several moments, and then he jumped down from the ring and walked over to the guy.
“Think he knows him?”
“Sure looks that way.” I placed my hands on my hips.
I watched as Brooks’s face changed a few shades of red. “Somebody grab me some popcorn.” Right as I said that, Julian stepped in between the mystery guy and Brooks. “This seems bad.” Right before the guy left the gym, he turned in my direction and stared at me for the longest time. “Who the hell was that?”
“Let’s go find out,” Lily said and jumped down from the ring.
“Brooks,” I said and lightly touched his shoulder. He surprised me by pulling my body close. “What am I missing?”
“Nothing,” he said and kissed the top of my head.
I knew the answer nothing always meant something, so I placed my palms on his chest and pushed him away. “Do you plan to build our relationship on lies?”
“What? No.”
“Really?” I pointed toward the door. “He looked at me before leaving. Who the fuck is he then?”
He let out a deep sigh. “Let’s go into Julian’s office.”
“And you plan to tell me everything there?”
“Yes, I promise.”
Julian, Lily, Brooks, and I piled into the office when I noticed Jackson enter the gym. “Hey, bro, come join us.” I looked over at Brooks. “I mean, I assume that’s okay.”
“Of course, he needs to hear, too.”
Lily and I sat in the two chairs available by the desk, and I turned my body toward Brooks. “I’m guessing you remember him somehow?”
“Charlie, he was standing behind Mason after we escaped the house.”
“Are you sure about that? I thought the cops found everyone involved in that mess.”
Brooks knelt down and grabbed my hands. “He’s the one that shot you in the leg.”
“How the hell do you remember him?” I rubbed my fingers over my temples. Whenever I got a little too excited, my head would threaten to make my life hell for a few days. “Why can’t I remember the asshole?”
“He shaved his head and grew a mustache.”
I stood up and pulled a Lily move by pacing the room. “Wait.” I stopped to face Brooks. “I joked about a mole at the gym when we were in that shit-hole room together. Is that him? Please tell me no.” A part of me wanted to be wrong, but then if I was right, maybe we could get some answers.
“I don’t know. We will have to check our security camera footage.”
“Let me go talk to Tyler,” Julian said and left the room.
“Yeah, I never worked with him,” Brooks said and leaned against the desk. “He does look different, but I will never forget those eyes.”
“So what now?” I sat back down in the chair. “If he wasn’t a mole before, he was attempting to become one today.” Jackson was standing by the door, staying silent. “Any thoughts over there, bro?”
He pushed off the wall and stepped closer. “There’s a flight leaving tonight for San Francisco.”
I knew that meant, we should go to the bar and get to the bottom of this. We were fighters not killers, though. The thought took me by surprise after what my dad and brother put me through. Maybe a little part of me felt scared. Which seemed odd since I never let myself feel afraid. I always stood my ground on everything and made sure to get what I wanted. Like the flyweight championship belt. It would be mine soon.
“When does the flight leave?” I stood up and headed toward the door.
“How did you finally convince her?” Brooks said from behind me.
“He didn’t,” I said and placed my hand on Jackson’s forearm. “I had to convince myself.” Jackson grabbed my hand. “If we don’t stop Dad and Mason, who will?”
It was true. My family needed to be held accountable for their actions. Since Jackson and I were family, it would be easier to attempt to take down my father and his business. We both knew where the bodies were buried. Well, not literally, but I did know enough details to take them down for good.
“There better be room for five fighters,” Brooks said and stepped up behind me.
The door opened and Tyler walked in. “Make that six.”
I turned my head to the side because I obviously looked confused. “Um, how did you—”
“I pay attention,” he said and placed his hands in his pants pockets.
Tyler was pretty quiet, and damn he was hard to read. He was Zoe’s trainer, and she even struggled working with him. I knew there had to be a reason for his distance and hopefully someday I could figure it out. For now, we had a flight to catch.
“Like I would say no.” I patted my hand on his chest and turned to grab the door handle. “Wait,” I said and spun on my heel to face Tyler. “You worked with that guy that just left, didn’t you?”
“Yeah,” he said and dropped his head.
I stepped closer to Tyler. “Talk to me.”
“You’re not going to like it.” He turned and sat in the empty chair.
“Tell me something new,” I teased and leaned against the wall, anxious to hear this story.
“He started working out here about six months ago,” Tyler said and combed his hands through his hair. “He was looking for help in mixed martial arts moves.”
“That’s what he said?” I laughed and tried to hold back from rolling my eyes. “He didn’t say MMA?”
Tyler stood up and crossed his arms over his chest. “No, but it was obvious he didn’t know much about the sport.”
I pushed off the wall and walked to the door. If my dad had sent someone to watch over me, he sent the wrong guy. “Did the asshole ever mention my name?”
“Nothing.”
“So he managed to stay under the radar.”
“And we all were oblivious,” Julian chimed in.
“If he never mentioned my name or asked any unusual questions—”
“Well, he did ask unusual questions,” Tyler quickly said and dropped his hands to his side. “He was fascinated with your fight in Liverpool.”
“So he did mention me?” This conversation was starting to give me the creeps.
“A few weeks ago, I had a session scheduled with him. Before we even jumped in the ring, he was commenting on the fight. Talking about how you should get a main fight ticket.”
I put my hand up to stop him. “He only asked about me? Never mentioned Lily or Zoe?”
“Yeah, but now that I think about it, he never said your name directly. He just talked about the pre-lim fight and the female fighters. So he did technically avoid saying Charlie somehow.”
“And this didn’t make your warning lights flash bright red?”
I watched Tyler as he tried to answer that question. He seemed to be choosing his words before finally speaking. “Charlie, there are several men in this gym who ask about you and Lily all the time. His questions didn’t feel any different.”
The creep-O-meter just rose to extreme. “I seriously can’t wrap my head around this information.” Instead of continuing the conversation, I threw the door open and left the room.
“Charlie, wait,” Jackson said from behind me.
“Why?” I turned on my heel to face my brother. “Dad has this crazy hidden agenda against me. I fucking don’t understand why, but I sure as shit plan to find out.”
“His men are tougher than you, Charlie,” Brooks blurted out and stepped up beside Jackson.
“Are they? Are you sure about that?” The anger I felt insid
e was rising. “My. Father. Tried. To. Kill. Me.” The moment the words were yelled, I knew there were no options for take-backs. The do-over button had failed. The gym felt like the air had been sucked out of the room. I couldn’t hear music playing anymore, and the sounds of punching had died away. My outburst was extreme and inappropriate. I glanced around at everyone staring directly at me and let out a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry. Ignore me.” What was I supposed to say? Yup, my dad was an asshole.
“Charlie,” Lily whispered from the office doorway.
“Lily, my dad continues to get away with everything. Men like him believe they are untouchable.” I glanced over at Jackson. “It’s time to prove him wrong. The only people who can truly take him down are his family.”
“I already have my plane ticket,” Jackson said and headed toward the front door. “You don’t need to convince me, so is it you you’re trying to convince?”
“Tapping out is not an option anymore.”
“Then what are we all waiting for?” Brooks said and reached for my hand.
“Me to get my head out of my ass.”
“Have you been successful at that task?”
His question made me laugh. “Shut up.” I grabbed his hand and headed for the door.
“Charlie.” I turned to find Jenny running toward me.
“Jenny. I’ve been meaning to connect with you. I’m so sorry.”
She placed her hand on my shoulder. “It’s okay. Malik let me know where you’ve been.”
“Are you okay?”
“Um, I guess. Listen, there was this fighter that taught me how to fight for what I believed in.”
I knew she was talking about me. Jenny’s husband was ruthless and could someday succeed in killing this innocent woman. When we trained, I pushed her to see the importance of fighting for what she wanted. Here she was throwing my words back in my direction. Smart woman.
“That’s true.” I placed my hand on top of hers. “Whoever this fighter is, she’s pretty damn smart.”
“I think so.” She winked and ran back to the mat. I stood there for a moment, watching her and thinking about all that Jenny’s husband had gotten away with so far. If I could fight to stop my father, maybe I could also convince my new friend to find the strength to leave her abusive husband.
