Letting Lox In

by S. M. Donaldson

  He nods to me. “Congrats, man.”

  I nod. “Thanks.”

  I pass by, making my way into the locker room. Sly is getting ready for his match after Huck. I nod to him as I come in and sit down on the bench. A few big guys come in the locker room. I tip my head up and notice they aren’t fighters. They are dressed in expensive suits and walk over to me as I wipe my head down with my towel.

  Sly steps over to where I’m at. “Can we help you?” He knows I like a few minutes after a match.

  A thick linebacker looking black guy steps over. “Hey man, we just wanted to meet you guys.” He sticks his hand out. “I’m Sid Calvin, offensive lineman for the Panthers.” He points to me. “You did awesome out there, man. These are some of my team mates.”

  I nod and finally speak. “Thanks, man. You guys are looking pretty good this season, too.”

  He smiles. “Yeah, thanks. A lot of it is thanks to this guy right here.” He points to a shorter, leaner, dark-haired guy. “This is Lucas Smith, he’s our new quarter back. He wanted to meet you guys, too.”

  I shake hands with Lucas and then nod to all of them as they start introducing themselves. “Nice to meet you guys. I’m gonna grab a hot shower.”

  Sly steps over to them like a kid on a sugar high. “So why don’t you guys stick around for the after party? There will be some hot women there.”

  I don’t hear the rest of the conversation as I walk into the shower. I think about sweet Sloan as I scrub the sweat from my body.

  I mentally scold myself for thinking of Sloan yet again while I jack off. She’s way too good for me, even though I’d love nothing more than to make her mine. I’m so pumped from the fight and she’s all I can think about. I really have to stop this.

  After I’m dressed, I step out into the locker room and see Huck fuming. “Hey, man. Sorry I didn’t make it back out there in time. You look pissed. What in the hell happened?”

  “That son of a bitch got food poisoning. He threw up in the damn cage. They had to forfeit the fight.”

  I nod. “Okay, so what’s wrong?”

  He paces around the locker room. “This was my first match in this division. I wanted to nail his ass fair and square. This is just bullshit.”

  I stop him, putting my hands on his shoulders. “Hey, believe me, I understand. We’ll get Marco to schedule a rematch.” It hits me and I start to laugh. “Wait, you said he threw up in the cage?”

  He nods. “Yeah, they were trying to clean it up.”

  I start laughing harder. “Sly had to fight in there after that. You know he is about puke.”

  He lets out a deep chuckle. “Thanks, man. That almost makes it worth it. Turn on the monitor, let’s see if he hurls.”

  An hour later, we are headed out to the cars waiting for us. Sloan, Elizabeth and the Becks make their way out to our cars. I can’t keep my eyes off of her. I take Sloan by the arm, putting my lips close to her ear as I speak. “Ride with me.”

  I feel her shiver and she looks up at me. “O- okay.”

  Once we are seated in the car, I pull her close to my side. “Are you ready to eat?”

  She laughs. “Again? They had that huge spread out before the fight.”

  “Yeah, but most of the fighters didn’t eat much and are starving now.”

  She giggles. “Oh, that makes sense I guess. I’m not really that hungry though. I snacked earlier and then I watched Sergio hurl in the cage. Then I watched Sly try not to hurl during the next match.”

  I raise my eyebrows. “Oh yeah, I can see how that would kill your appetite.”

  She takes a deep breath. “What kind of cologne do you wear? It always smells so good and I thought about getting my brother some for Christmas.”

  Well that was a shot to the nuts. I smell good, but she wants her brother to smell the same way. I grin when I think about that again. “Sweetheart, I don’t wear cologne. That’s all me, soap and deodorant.”

  She laughs, “Well thank God you wear deodorant and bathe regularly.” I could watch her laugh every day, all day. She’s intoxicating.

  I brush a stray piece of hair back behind her ear. I lean forward, about to place my mouth on hers, when there is a knock on the window. We must’ve arrived and I didn’t even realize it.

  The door swings open and I step out, holding my hand out for her. Taking my hand, she steps out of the car and I pull her tight into my side. Making our way inside, I introduce her to many of the people I know and have met through the years fighting.

  Marco makes his way over to me with a man in a very expensive suit. “Lox, this is Trent Snell. He is here from Bellator and Spike. He’d like to talk with you and the twins for a few minutes.”

  I’m shocked. “Wow, thanks. I’ll go grab them.”

  Marco turns to Sloan. “Sweetie, will you go keep Elizabeth company while we talk? She doesn’t know many people and I want her to feel comfortable. She’s thinking about moving to be near me, I’d like for her to make some friends.”

  Sloan, being Sloan, smiles. “Sure thing, Marco.” I watch as she makes her way across the room to Elizabeth.

  Huck takes her place beside me and lets out a huge huff of air. “So Elizabeth is planning on moving to Bakersville? I wonder how long it will be before she takes the gym out from under us.”

  I glare at him. “Dude, you’re being an asshole. She’s Marco’s daughter, and I’m sorry that you don’t trust her but he has every right to want a relationship with her.”

  Huck walks ahead of me, mumbling a list of cuss words.

  After talking with the man from Bellator, we are all excited. We agree to have a more serious sit down with him once we are back home.

  I am so freakin’ happy right now, I can’t stand it. I’m on such a high, I feel like I can do anything. I know I’m going to make something of myself. Maybe I do deserve it and I can do right by someone like Sloan. I stand up and try to make my way back over to her. She’s talking to Elizabeth and seems to be having a great time. I walk over to her, turn her around and kiss her.

  We finally pull apart and time seems to freeze. We are in a trance with each other.

  I look up to see some of the Panthers walking up behind her.

  “Hey, man, thanks for the invite. This is a great party.”

  Sloan goes completely still. She looks scared, almost petrified, and she’s shaking.

  “Sloan, are you okay?” I lean down, whispering into her ear. “Is this about the kiss? I’m sorry.” She shakes her head and I see tears in her eyes.

  I look up to see Lucas Smith staring at me and then to Sloan’s back. “Sloan Foster?”

  CHAPTER 18

  SLOAN

  Lox senses something is off with me. What is the only thing that could ruin a perfect kiss from the perfect guy? A kiss I didn’t even really know I wanted?

  Lucas Smith saying my name. “Sloan Foster?”

  I take a deep breath and turn around. “Yes?”

  He gives me that signature grin. “Long time no see.”

  GOD THIS FUCKER MAKES ME WANT TO PUKE AND KICK HIM IN THE MOTHER FUCKING BALLS!

  “Yeah, not long enough.” I spin around and storm toward the ladies’ room.

  Terms to describe what emotions are going through my body:

  Anger

  Rage

  Fear

  Hurt

  Frustration

  Cold

  Lonely

  Heartbroken

  Bitterness

  Elizabeth follows me in and I stop, bracing my hands on the vanity. I feel like I’m going to throw up. All the wine and food feels like it’s in the back of my throat. I’m shaking and sweating.

  Elizabeth grabs a towel and wets it. “Sloan, are you okay? You look like you’re about to pass out.” She hands me the towel. “Who in the fuck is that guy? More importantly, what did he do to you?”

  “He’s just a fucking piece of shit from my past.”

  Suddenly, the bathroom door flies open and
slams into the wall behind it so hard that I will be surprised if the tile isn’t cracked. In walks Lox, Sly and Huck. They all look like they are going to tear the room apart. Elizabeth steps in front of me. “What in the fuck are you doing in here? This is the fucking ladies’ room!”

  Huck glares at her. “Then what are you doing in here?”

  Sly looks at him. “Shut up, douche bag. That’s not why we’re in here.” He steps over to me and touches my shoulder. “Sweetie, what happened out there? I look over and finally you and my boy are kissing, then you run away. Lox is about to tear the damn quarterback of the Panthers apart. Then it takes me, Huck and a couple of other guys to separate him and the quarterback, along with the damn linemen.”

  Holy crap. I look at Lox. “What did you do?”

  He steps over to me, touching my cheek. “You looked scared to death, like he was going to hurt you. So when you ran, I asked him what the fuck he did to you. He laughed at me, fucking laughed at me, then told me you must still have a crush on him from college.” He pulls me into his chest. “So then I knew. I fucking knew.” He takes both of my cheeks into his hands, wiping tears I didn’t know I was crying. “He’s Sage’s father, isn’t he?”

  All I can do is nod.

  Sly punches a wall. “That smug ass mother fucker! He can stroll around the damn globe with plenty of money and,” he points to me, “this wonderful girl right here works her ass off to take care of his kid.”

  Elizabeth looks at them. “Wait, guys, maybe he didn’t know.” Huck glares at her, but I understand why she’s asking. She’s asking because of Marco.

  I shake my head. “No, he knew. He knows. I need to go.” I shake my head. “Can someone please take me back to my room? I really need to get out of here.”

  Lox takes my hand with his and leads me out of the bathroom, carefully walking me around the room to avoid everyone. The car is waiting on us when we get out front. He never says a word to me, just helps me into the car and holds me close.

  He strokes my hair as we go back to the hotel, holding my head to his lips.

  Once we get back to the hotel, he quietly walks me to my room. I go in and look back at him, willing him to stay with me. I haven’t felt this lonely and heartbroken in a very long time. Please stay with me. Please. Don’t tell me our kiss was a mistake.

  “Can I come in and sit with you?”

  I nod. “Yes, please.”

  Once we are inside, I make my way to the bathroom. I strip out of the beautiful dress I’m wearing and step into the shower. I scrub my face to get all of my make up off and try to scrub away my tears. After my body is raw from scrubbing, I wrap my hair in a towel and slide on my robe. Walking out into the room, Lox has taken off his tie, jacket and shoes. He looks up at me. “I hope you don’t mind I ordered us some dessert. You looked like you could use some ice cream.”

  I have to give him a smile. He’s really trying to cheer me up. He motions to the TV. “I ordered us a comedy and we have a shit ton of ice cream. Fight nights are the only nights I really allow myself to have much sugar. So please come help me out so I don’t end up in a diabetic coma or something.”

  I smile. “Thanks, Lox.”

  We sit like kids on my bed, eating ice cream and watching the movie. Once the movie ends, I finally look over at him. “I’m sorry I never told you who Sage’s dad was.”

  He shakes his head. “Hey, it was none of my business.” He leans closer. “But now that I know, I need to know why you allow him to parade around with a model wife and an NFL contract while you have to live on a budget.”

  I sigh. “I’d always been an honor student, I’d always planned on going to UF for Sports Medicine. When I got to college, I ran into Lucas. He was from my hometown.” I shrug. “He’d always been popular and sexy. He was the same age as my brother, Jacob, so I was shocked when he remembered me. He was a junior at the time we started dating. Then during my sophomore year, I found out I was pregnant about the time he got drafted for the NFL.” I shake my head. “He wasn’t happy about it. I was on the pill but I’d taken some antibiotics for a head cold. He told me to get an abortion, he even gave me a five hundred dollar check to have it done. I told him that wasn’t what I wanted to do. He told me that was all I would ever get from him. I’ve never cashed that check. I keep it in my jewelry box as a reminder of what a dick he is. I haven’t laid eyes on him since then, until tonight.” I let out a harsh laugh. “Funny thing is his attorney contacted me about his trade. He wanted to make sure that if we ran across each other, I wouldn’t let anyone know of our situation. He offered me money to not let anyone know. I told him to shove it, that I didn’t want my child to know he came from a spineless bastard like him. That I surely wouldn’t tell anyone willingly. Then I hung up.”

  “What a fucking asshole. I’m sorry that I even spoke to him today. Now I really wish I would’ve beat his ass tonight.” He stands up and starts pacing. “I can’t believe any man, a real man, could act like that.”

  I shake my head. “It’s in the past now.”

  He steps over to me, holding my face gently in his hands. “Is that why you moved?”

  I swallow hard to keep from crying. “Yes. I couldn’t stand the thought of running into him and his model wife. I couldn’t bear the thought of Sage somehow finding out that his father is a famous athlete. A hero to some people, but doesn’t want anything to do with him.” I shake my head. “The only people who know that Lucas is Sage’s father is my family, Lucas and Kara. People had their suspicions in college because they watched it play out but I never confirmed or denied it. I just walked away.”

  He sits down beside me, grabbing my hand. “Well, I think the cat is out of the bag now. I asked him in front of his teammates when we were being pulled apart.”

  I groan while flopping back on the bed. “What did he say?”

  He lies back beside me. “He barked out an asinine laugh and said, ‘She’s still spreading that rumor?’ Then I replied, ‘no, you asshole, he looks just like you, she’s never breathed your name. But by the look on her face you’ve hurt her.’” He sighs. “If it’s any help, his teammates pulled away from him after that. Sid Calvin even apologized for getting involved. Then walked away, shaking his head.”

  I throw my arm over my eyes. “Ugh. I was having a really great day. Hell, a really great weekend, and he had to go and ruin it. Can we just talk about something else?”

  He rolls up on his side and faces me. “How about our kiss that was so rudely interrupted?”

  I giggle. Actually giggle like a high school girl. One who was just told by her friend that another friend said that another friend said that cute boy liked her. “I liked it.”

  Really. This is my life. To quote Meredith Grey…SERIOUSLY!

  CHAPTER 19

  LOX

  “Well that’s a plus, I guess.” I chuckle out.

  “I’m sorry. It’s been a while for me.” She giggles again.

  I give her my signature grin as we lie facing each other like school kids. “I kinda like it when you giggle. It means you’re happy and that you’re smiling. You have a beautiful smile and I like seeing you that way. You’re too good of a person to have to deal with the shit that douche did to you.”

  She gives a soft smile. “Thanks.” She rolls to her back, talking up to the ceiling. “You know, I would say that I regret it all. That I wish I’d never met him or had sex with him, but--.”

  “But, you wouldn’t have Slick. Right?”

  She smiles. “Right. As horrible as Lucas is and was to me back then, that little boy is the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to me.” She wipes a small tear that has formed and rolled down her cheek. “He’s everything to me.”

  “He’s a great kid. I mean that, Huck normally steers clear of kids and he freakin’ adores him. You’ve done an awesome job raising him.”

  She lets out a soft sigh. “I had a lot of help from my parents and brother.”

  I grab her hand. “Yes
, and that’s great, but you were the one pregnant. You were the one who went through labor and gave birth to that awesome kid. That was you.”

  She turns back on her side to face me. “Thank you.”

  I brush a stray hair back from her face, cupping her cheek. “You. Are. So. Beautiful.” I lean into her further, taking her lips with mine.

  Our kiss becomes wanton and needy. I pull us up further on the bed. My hands roam all over her body, slipping inside her robe, touching her naked body, ending with my hand cupping her breast and my thumb grazing her nipple. She moans, but then pulls away. “I’m sorry. I’m not ready to-.”

  I shake my head and slide my hand out of her robe, pulling it back closed. “It’s okay. We don’t have to do anything you’re not ready to do.”

  She screams through gritted teeth, shaking her head and kicking like a kid throwing a tantrum. “AARRRHHH. I hate him, he’s taking this moment from me. What should be a great, sexy moment and I can’t go through with it.” She groans again. “And believe me, I want to go through with it.” Then she covers her mouth with both hands in shock. “I can’t believe I just said that. I’m sorry, you can have anyone you want and here I’m just assuming you want to have sex with me. Just because we’ve had a couple of really hot kisses and you kind of felt me up.”

  I burst out laughing. “Believe me, I would love to have sex with you right now. My cock and my balls are ready to disown me. But you aren’t ready and that’s okay. We can just stay here and sleep.”

  She looks at me with soft eyes, so different from the hungry ones she had only moments ago. “Just sleep?”

  I nod. “Just sleep. You’ve had a very shitty day for the most part.”

  Her eyes start to flutter at the thought of sleep. “Thanks.”

  ~*~*~

  Sunlight breaks through the windows of the room. I feel her warm body still tucked against mine. I try to will down the erection that is pushing against her ass but she starts to wake up, moving her ass against me. “Babe, you need to stop that. I’m trying to make it go away, but it’s not working with you doing that.”