by Tasha Black
“Keisha,” Brooke cried, hugging the girl back.
“We’re so glad you’re entering the tournament,” Keisha squealed.
The other students, emboldened by Keisha’s reception abandoned their tasks to approach.
Brooke had just enough time to look over at Conan.
He was smiling at her, pure happiness in his eyes, and she felt a connection between them that was stronger and more resilient than the steel cables on the Benjamin Franklin Bridge.
This was real. This was something good.
Even her damaged heart could feel it. And the puzzle pieces in her chest clicked together with such finality, that she wondered if he could hear it.
Conan was more than a handsome face, more than an exotic alien, more than a damned good free assistant.
He was her partner. And he cared about her.
And if she didn’t give this mate thing a try, she would regret it for the rest of her life.
13
Brooke
Brooke was hitting the pads with Hal Watkins, one of the serviceman scholarship guys from her advanced class.
Of course all of her students were training for free now. It was the only way to operate without going behind Captain Henderson’s back.
And besides they were only here to help her.
The thought drove her to push harder.
She knocked out a pretty good reverse punch with her bad arm.
“Day-um, Sarge,” Hal chuckled. “Nice one.”
She grinned at him.
Her shoulder was really feeling more like the old days. She was trying to work on techniques that favored it. If she could focus on moves that she could do without stressing the shoulder it ought to be okay.
She had a flash of pain yesterday when working it, but it felt better right away so she hadn’t said anything to anyone. The last thing she wanted was to freak them out.
And the dreams had stopped ever since she’d begun training in earnest. No more nights in Afghanistan, and her days were spent with Conan.
Things were really looking up.
She tapped the pad with a jab and then let loose with a serious overhand right.
Her glove met the pad with a thud.
Hal whistled.
The momentum shot back up her arm but this time it didn’t dissipate. Pain spread like lightning through her shoulder.
She managed not to wince or grab her shoulder.
“Let’s take five,” Brooke said.
“Good one to go out on,” Hal said. He gave her a salute and jogged off to grab his water bottle.
Brooke wiped the sweat from her forehead and looked around while she stretched her arm and shoulder. The shoulder would be okay, of course it would.
She instinctively looked for Conan, hoping he hadn’t seen her ask for a break after that hit. He would worry.
The gym was full of activity. Some of the high school kids were teaching Conan throws in the ring and they were all laughing and cheering for each other.
She smiled and headed for the locker room to grab an ice pack.
Once she was on the bench with ice on her shoulder, she felt better.
Footsteps approached, so she stowed the ice pack under the bench.
Keisha appeared in the doorway.
“Hi, Miss Singleton,” Keisha said. “Can I come in?”
“Sure, Keisha, what’s new?”
“I, um, wanted to tell you something,” Keisha said, her brown eyes sparkling.
“Okay, what is it?” Brooke asked, smiling encouragingly.
“Well, my senior project is coming up,” Keisha said. “And I’m doing it on this.”
“Doing it on what?” Brooke asked, confused.
“You know, your comeback,” Keisha said. “We’re supposed to participate in something community outreach related and this place is sure part of the community. And you do outreach with the American Legion.”
“Wow,” Brooke said, blown away.
“Besides,” Keisha said, leaning in confidentially, “I think it’s going to be the most interesting project in the whole graduating class.”
Brooke laughed.
“Seriously, Miss Singleton,” Keisha said. “I’m so glad you’re going for it. You’ll never know how much it means to all of us out there. This place is our sanctuary.”
Brooke wrapped the girl in a big hug.
Keisha was a really smart kid. She was enthusiastic and in Brooke’s eyes, her strong, statuesque physique and happy smile were stunningly beautiful. But she worried that Keisha’s peers in school might not appreciate her the way Brooke did.
“Thank you for helping me, Keisha,” Brooke said, letting her go.
“Anytime, Miss Singleton,” Keisha smiled. “You’re my hero.”
The girl turned and went back out to the gym.
And Brooke was left alone.
Alone with the knowledge that these people were counting on her.
Suddenly the locker room felt like it was getting smaller and smaller.
Brooke wrapped her arms around herself and rocked back and forth on the bench.
It’s not the same. If I lose this fight, it’s not the same as what happened in that courtyard in Afghanistan.
But no matter how many times she said it to herself, she couldn’t bring herself to believe that she wouldn’t let them all down, down, down.
14
Brooke
Brooke was too freaked out to go back to the dorm, so she told Conan she had to run back to the academy to complete some paperwork and would meet him at home.
He had offered to walk with her, but when she insisted she wanted to take care of it on her own he agreed and gave her a big smile before sending her on her way.
Now, an hour later, she had finished every possible bit of paperwork she could do, cleared off her entire desk top, organized her pen drawer and even refreshed her bulletin board.
There was nothing left to do but go home.
She locked her office, and headed out to the yard.
The night sky was studded with stars and the heat of the day had lifted a bit. The scent of night jasmine hung rich in the air.
She headed through the field, past the kennels and toward the dorm. Warm light poured from the second floor windows, telling her that her roommates were home, eating dinner or watching television.
She passed the rhododendron hedge and headed in the front door. Sounds of excited talking drifted down the stairwell to her.
She jogged up the stairs and pushed open the door to the women’s suite. The rich scent of pizza greeted her.
“Brooke,” Conan called out, spotting her. He was smiling so hard his eyes crinkled up in the corners.
“Hey,” Veronica said. “There’s news.”
“Hi. What news?” Brooke replied.
“Hang on, hang on.” Trinity was pounding away at her laptop. “I’m going to show you. Someone turn on the TV so I can airplay.”
Hawkeye grabbed the remote and the screen flashed to life. A music video began to play.
“Shoot, I can’t find it, go ahead and tell her,” Trinity said. “I’ll have it up in a minute.”
“Sit down,” Veronica advised.
Brooke took her regular seat on the sofa.
The others smiled at her expectantly.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“The tournament just got interesting,” Veronica said. “Someone very high profile just entered.”
“Really?” Brooke tried to think of what high profile female fighter would be in Philly at this time of year and want to fight with amateurs. “Who?”
“Jade St. Vincent,” Trinity said, her dark eyes sparkling over the top of her laptop screen.
“Holy shit,” Brooke breathed.
Jade St. Vincent was kind of a legend. The MMA star had a stellar early career and the kind of sassy attitude that interviewers loved. She’d built enough star power by the time she was in her mid-twenties that she’d wound up on the c
over of Sports Unlimited’s swimsuit edition, which celebrated her muscular, “unconventional” body.
But after a break-up with MMA fighter Chance Harkness, Jade had quietly checked herself into rehab and hadn’t been heard from in a long time, except for a brief stint in a series of somehow terrifying tampon commercials.
“She’s having a comeback too,” Veronica offered. “Which means that there may be some press and attention paid to this tournament.”
“She’s been out for so long,” Brooke murmured. Even a few months was considered a long time in the fight game, and Jade hadn’t competed in even longer than that.
“Which is good for you,” Veronica prompted. “All of this is good news for you.”
Brooke felt the walls closing in. This was too much. The pressure to perform, the pressure to fight…
“Are you okay?”
Conan’s arm was warm around her, his whisper soothing to her ear.
“I’m fine,” she told him, taking a deep breath. “Sorry, guys,” she said to her friends. “I guess I’m just kind of… amazed.”
“Here we go, here we go,” Trinity said.
The music video on the TV disappeared and was replaced by selfie footage.
In spite of her time away from the camera Jade St. Vincent’s eyes still sparkled with the same infectious excitement Brooke remembered from her interviews after she won her MMA championship.
“So, guys, I know it’s been a while since you’ve seen me do anything but hock tampons,” Jade said, arching an eyebrow. “Anyway, I’m training again and figured there’s no better way to get back in the game than to… get back in the game. If you’re in Philly on the twenty-fourth, make sure to check out Fight Back the Night.”
She waved a form in front of the camera as she detailed the time and place.
Brooke watched the drawing of the woman with boxing gloves on the form swing back and forth across the screen as Jade spoke. Then it went black.
The others cheered.
“That’s amazing,” Brooke repeated.
Someone passed her a paper plate with a slice of pepperoni pizza and she took a bite, trying to focus on the warm savory cheese, the spice of the meat.
Don’t think about failing them. Don’t think about failing them.
“So we were thinking maybe you’d like to celebrate by watching a couple of her old fights,” Veronica said, sliding a can of Coke to Brooke.
“Sure,” Brooke nodded, cracking open the can.
“Why would we do this?” Conan asked.
“So that I can study the way Jade fights,” Brooke explained. “That may give me an advantage.”
“Will she watch videos of you fighting?” Conan asked.
“Um, there are no videos of me fighting,” Brooke explained. “I’m not famous.”
“This is an advantage,” he decided.
“Yes,” she agreed.
“Excellent, please proceed,” Conan said to Trinity.
The screen came alive again with grainy handheld footage of a fight.
Brooke looked around at her friends.
Trinity wore a pained expression. That made sense - she wasn’t really into violence.
Veronica and Lobo leaned forward, watching with interest, their hands locked together. Cute.
Conan studied the screen intently.
They cared about Brooke - she was lucky. It was good to have friends who wanted to hang out and help her try to accomplish her goals.
On the screen, Jade moved like a woman possessed, closing the distance and taking down her opponent with a thundering throw and continuing the fight on the ground.
“Whoa,” Hawkeye said.
Brooke winced as Jade wrenched up her opponent’s fist in an arm bar.
The other woman tapped immediately.
Jade practically levitated, launching herself onto the ropes and pumping her fists into the air, an expression of glee lighting her features.
They watched a few more matches.
Brooke’s pizza sat forgotten on the coffee table as she watched Jade win with another arm bar, and another.
In the fourth match Jade won with a Kimura.
Brooke gasped as she watched the other woman’s shoulder pop out of joint with the force of the powerful key lock.
The tiny victor on the screen again flung herself onto the ropes with delight. But Brooke only had eyes for the opponent on the floor, whose coach was trying to pop her shoulder back into place as she sat motionless, her face drawn in agony.
“Oh, wow,” Veronica said.
“That was back when Jade was in peak form,” Trinity said quickly. “She’s been out for a long time.”
“It’s okay, guys,” Brooke said, willing her voice not to weaken. “I know you aren’t into fighting but this is all standard stuff in the ring. It’s not like I’m going to die up there just because I have a bad shoulder.”
Veronica laughed nervously.
“She will not be allowed access to your shoulder,” Conan said firmly. “I am glad we are watching these movies. You will be able to master her strengths and weaknesses. You will be victorious.”
“That’s a big deal,” Trinity said softly. “With the publicity this will bring, you won’t just be saving the studio, you’ll be building up your business while you’re at it.”
Brooke took a big swig of her drink and nodded so she wouldn’t have to speak a reply.
Even if she’d wanted to answer, she was pretty sure her voice would have failed her.
15
Conan
Conan looked around the gym with a sense of deep satisfaction.
Brooke had slipped off to her room last night without giving him a chance to catch her alone. But they’d had a magnificent day of teaching the cadets at the academy. And now the night’s training at her gym was about to begin.
The students were joyfully discussing the tournament. Not only were they here to assist Brooke in her goal, but many of them were entering the amateur division as well.
And they were all amazed that Jade St. Vincent was fighting for the prize. The news had traveled like wildfire. It raised the prestige of the thing for all of them, even those who had no chance of fighting Jade themselves.
No one was more excited about the big turn of events than the pupil Conan suspected was Brooke’s favorite, Keisha. The young girl was alternately hugging herself and walloping the stuffing out of a gigantic bag. He was pretty sure she was more excited than Brooke herself.
Thoughts of Brooke had him scanning the gym again for her. She normally changed into her training clothes quickly, but today she was taking more time than usual in the changing room.
It was funny, but now that he was spending his days with Brooke and the cadets, and his nights alone with her, he found that he craved her company during their brief moments apart more than ever before.
He was reminded of the Complete Works of William Shakespeare and the character of the famous queen, Cleopatra.
She makes hungry where most she satisfies.
Except that Conan hadn’t been satisfied.
He was in no hurry. Though his body made imperious demands whenever hers was close, his heart was determined that Brooke should not be rushed. So he did his best to cherish his longing for her rather than succumb to it. He was resolved that until she accepted him as her mate, he would restrain himself.
At last she emerged from the locker room.
Her blue eyes were bright and there was a touch of color on her high cheekbones. But there was something anxious in her expression, something frenetic in the pace of her steps.
Conan chided himself for making too great a study of her. But the further she came into the room, the more certain he felt that something was wrong.
Before he could go to her, Keisha was already flying across the room, launching herself at Brooke with only slightly less force than she had been unleashing herself on the punching bag the moment before.
“I can’t believe it,” Keish
a squealed wrapping her arms around Brooke.
“Yeah, it’s pretty crazy, huh?” Brooke said.
“I’m dying,” Keisha sighed. “My two heroes, facing off in battle.”
“I don’t know about that,” Brooke said.
“Oh, you’re definitely going to beat her,” Keisha said. “No worries there. But it’s going to be epic. And I’m going to have a killer senior project. I mean, wow. How often do you get to cover the come-back fight of your childhood hero and your teenaged hero at the same time?”
Brooke’s jaw tensed.
“Hey, Keisha,” Conan said, moving toward them. “Can I help with your project?”
“Oh wow, thanks,” Keisha said, turning the sunlight of her smile his way. “I’ve been hoping someone would video my match. My dad wanted to but he can’t tell the difference between record and off. We have all these movies of the applause after all my clarinet recitals.”
“I’d be glad to learn how to operate your movie machine,” Conan told her solemnly.
She laughed at him and he wondered what he had said to amuse her so. But she trotted off to greet a friend before he could ask.
He turned to Brooke only to find her still frozen in place, a worried expression on her face.
“Brooke,” he said softly.
“I’m fine,” she whispered without looking at him.
“You’re not fine,” he told her. “But I’m here to help. Let’s go for a walk and figure it out.”
“I have to train,” she said. “They’re waiting for me.”
“They can wait a little longer,” he told her. “Come on, you need a little break.”
She met his eyes at last, and her expression relaxed a little.
“Okay,” she said. “Just a quick walk around the building.”
“Yes,” he agreed.
“Keisha,” she called out. “Lead the warm-up, please. I’ll be back in five.”
Keisha waved back excitedly. Then her booming voice filled the gym. “Warm up time. Bring it in, people!”
Brooke turned and headed for the stairs and he followed her up, trying not to notice the seductive sway of her posterior as she sailed up toward the foyer.
