Fighting Hard

by Marysol James

  I need to be close to her, as close as I can be. Right now.

  He lifted her chin and kissed her, fierce and desperate and almost harsh. She didn’t flinch from his rough touch: she understood what he needed and what he felt. She responded and he moaned.

  She broke away and pulled him in to the bedroom. He followed, pulling at her clothes, shedding his own. He pushed her on to the bed, almost panting in his need to be sure that she was there with him. He had to hold her close, know that she was safe and real and whole.

  Hands shaking, he rolled on the condom and stretched out on top of her. She opened her arms and legs and he entered her in one impatient, thick movement. She gasped and took him fully, loving that they just got down to what they wanted, no waiting, no words.

  They stared in to each other’s eyes as he thrust and she lifted to meet him, over and over again. For Nick, nothing in his life had ever felt like this: he was totally connected to another human being, emotionally open and naked. He blinked at the sudden tears in his eyes.

  Mia saw them and felt a huge rush of tenderness for him. She lifted her hand and wiped the tears away gently, whispering that everything was OK. Nick buried his face in her throat and drove in to her harder and harder, desperate to be as deep inside of her as he could. He closed his eyes and marveled that being with Mia was a whole different experience than being with any other woman. This wasn’t fucking and this wasn’t sex. For one of the first times in his life, Nick truly understood what it meant to make love to someone.

  Mia clutched his back as the pressure built inside of her. He twisted his hips to find her secret spot, hidden so deep, and she gave a cry. Again and again he plunged his cock in her, and he was shaking now with the effort to not give in to his own pleasure, to wait for her.

  “Come for me, babe,” he whispered. “Come hard and take me with you.”

  At his words, she lost all control. Her pussy responded to his command, helplessly, and she screamed as her climax broke over her. He grunted and slammed in to her as hard as he could, loving how her muscles caressed and pulled at him. He gave one final thrust and exploded inside of her, shuddering and calling her name.

  They lay holding on to each other, Nick’s body pressing down on hers, Mia relishing his weight. She stroked his hair and kissed his neck.

  “Nick? You OK?”

  He gave a strangled laugh. “Umm. Debatable.”

  She pulled back and looked at his face. He looked amazingly soft and bewildered right now and she kissed him, her lips lingering on his.

  He carefully pulled out of her and covered her sweet body with the sheet. He went in to her bathroom and looked in the mirror, wiped tears from his cheeks. His eyes widened as he suddenly realized that he wanted to go back in to the bedroom and tell her that he loved her.

  Holy fuck. No, no. That’s too much, too fast. I’ve only been with her for two months!

  He held on to the sink and stared at himself.

  Shit. How did I let myself get in this far, this fast? Goddammit. I need to get out of here, now. I need to think.

  “Nick?”

  “Yeah… I’ll be out in a sec.”

  He returned to the bedroom and looked at Mia curled up in her bed. She was so beautiful and sweet and amazing and he couldn’t be anywhere near her. If he went to her now, he’d say something fucking stupid and irretrievable.

  He started to put on his clothes. Mia sat up, a puzzled look on her face.

  “You’re going? Now?”

  “Yeah.” He put on his jeans, looked around for his t-shirt. “Yeah. I…ummm. I want to get to the club early tonight. Do some inventory.”

  She watched him, took in his panic and discomfort. “Nick… what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. I just need to go.”

  Mia watched, silent. She was sure this had to do with his tears, with his heartbreaking show of vulnerability, and she wasn’t about to push him.

  “OK. Do you still want me to drop by the club tonight?”

  “What? Oh, yeah. Yeah, sure. Whenever.”

  “So I’ll see you later.”

  “OK. Bye.” And he was out the door.

  Mia lay back in bed, hurt and upset, but trying to see it from his side. She was sure Nick would think things through and be fine again. After all, admitting that they had come to care about each other wasn’t a disaster, right?

  **

  Fucking disaster. Jesus Christ. How did this happen?

  Nick was on auto-pilot: pouring drinks, smiling at women, taking credit cards and giving correct change. The only thing he could think about was Mia reaching up to wipe his tears, so gentle and tender, and he felt like dying of embarrassment all over again.

  You are wide open, Spencer. Wide open and primed to be hurt when she moves on or when it all ends. You fucking idiot.

  “Well, hey there, handsome.”

  He blinked and looked at the gorgeous woman in front of him.

  Long blonde hair, deep tan even in December, huge breasts, slim hips. Her skirt barely covered her crotch and that top she was wearing gave him more than a glimpse of luscious cleavage. He looked down and saw her nipples winking up at him.

  “Hi,” he said. “What can I get you?”

  “An Appletini.”

  “Sure.” He moved away and started to mix the drink. She sat down at the bar, her large blue eyes watching his every move.

  “So,” she said. “How’s your night tonight?”

  He glanced at her. “Not bad. You?”

  “Hmmm. A bit dull.” She smiled. “I’m looking to shake things up a bit.”

  “You don’t say.” Nick brought her the drink. “How are you thinking about doing that?”

  She looked him up and down. “I’m not sure. Maybe you have some ideas?”

  He was back on familiar ground now; this was how his life had been for twelve years – until two months ago, when Mia walked in to this club.

  God, this is just so much easier. Dumb flirting, stupid come-ons, easy sex, no names, no strings. And nobody fucking cries.

  He knew that his old devastating smile was on his face and he walked around the bar now to sit next to her. He leaned forward to give her the best view of his arms and chest. Her eyes roamed over his muscles hungrily.

  “I may have an idea or two,” he said.

  “Oh, yeah?”

  “Yeah.”

  They gazed at each other and the distance between them lessened. He touched her leg and she made a sound of assent. He moved closer and kissed her. He flicked his tongue in her mouth and she gasped.

  “How’s that for an idea?” he said.

  “Not bad for a start, handsome,” she said. “Any more ideas like that?”

  “Many.” Nick ran his hands between her inner thighs. “Many. I’ll show you.”

  **

  “Hey, Mia. How’s it going, sweetie?” Adam grinned down at her and thought how cute she looked all bundled up in her huge coat.

  “Good, Adam. You?”

  He shrugged. “Freezing my ass off out here.”

  She laughed. “Maybe you need to become a bartender. I hear they have a cushy deal.”

  His eyes twinkled. “You here to see our favorite bartender?”

  “Yeah. Just for a minute. Can I run in and out?”

  “For sure. Go on in…”

  **

  Mia stood and stared, in total shock. She just couldn’t believe what she was seeing: was that Nick?

  He was whispering to some woman, running his hands up and down her long legs. Now he was moving closer… closer.

  My God. He’s kissing her.

  Mia’s first impulse was to run before he saw her, but then she felt a spark of anger. Why should she be the one to duck the situation? She didn’t have some guy’s tongue in her mouth, did she?

  She walked over to the bar and stood right next to their stools, between them, observing the kiss from less than a foot away. They pulled apart and their eyes opened.

  Nic
k saw Mia standing there and he jumped.

  “Hi, Nick,” she said. “What are you up to?”

  The blonde blinked at Mia. “Ummm. Who’s she?”

  Nick got to his feet, totally panicked now, as the force of what he’d just done hit him. “Mia… look. This isn’t – it’s not…”

  “Are you going to tell me that it isn’t what it looks like, Nick? Because it looks like you’re kissing this woman.”

  He stared at her, horrified, dumbstruck. Slowly, a feeling of shame and rage at himself began to creep in to his chest.

  You are such an asshole. She deserves better than this. She deserves better than you.

  Mia looked down at her feet. “Is this about – about earlier? What happened when we were in bed?”

  He didn’t answer. The blonde looked interested.

  “What happened in bed earlier?” she asked Nick. “Can we do it, too?”

  Mia flinched and Nick’s fury at himself went up a notch at her pain.

  “Nick, you just told me today that you didn’t want to lose me, you made me promise not to leave you, and now you’re kissing another woman? I don’t understand.”

  OK, this is your one chance to make her angry enough to go, to make her move on to someone better. Make it count.

  Nick’s voice was as cold as he knew how to make it. “Guys will say a lot of things to get some pussy.”

  Mia gasped; it was like he’d physically hit her.

  “Nick. You don’t mean that…”

  No. I don’t. Fuck, what am I doing?

  “Yes. I do.” Nick shrugged. “Look, we had fun, OK? But we never said we were exclusive.”

  “So… wait. You’ve been with other women while we’ve been together?”

  No. I never even thought about another woman. You were it, babe.

  “Yeah. Of course.”

  Mia glanced at the woman now and saw her curled lip as she looked her up and down. The woman was stunning: tall and blonde and with a body to kill for. Mia knew how she looked in comparison, in her jeans and oversized coat and clumpy winter boots.

  “OK.” Mia fought to keep from crying in front of them. “I get it. I understand now.” She looked at the woman and then back at Nick. “So, have a good evening.”

  “Oh, I know I will,” the woman said.

  Mia ignored her. “Bye, Nick.”

  She turned and walked out of the club without another look at him. Nick watched her go and felt sick.

  What am I doing? What have I done? This was a mistake. I have to stop her.

  “Hey, Spencer!”

  His head snapped around to see his boss Allan staring at him, a very annoyed expression on his face. “What the hell, man? Can you keep your dick in your pants long enough to serve the customers?”

  “Allan, I’m sorry… I need to talk to someone. I’ll be right back.”

  “Do that later, Nick. Right now? Work.”

  Nick stared at the door that Mia had just walked out of. “I’m sorry. I really am. But I’ve got to go.”

  The blonde pouted. “You’ll come back? Finish what we started?”

  “I’m sorry, but no.” Nick shook his head. “I don’t want this. Not anymore.”

  He turned on his heels, ignoring Allan’s howls of protest, and hurried to the exit. He had to catch her.

  **

  Adam saw Mia emerge from the club. She was crying and looked upset and shaken.

  “Mia! Are you OK?”

  She wiped her tears and tried to smile. “Yeah. I’m fine.”

  “What happened?”

  “I made a mistake, Adam. That’s all.”

  He stared down at her face and he just knew. Nick. You fucking moron. “He’s in there with another woman, isn’t he?”

  Her lip trembled. “Yes.”

  “Shit. I’m sorry, Mia. When it comes to relationships, Nick can be a real idiot.”

  “Yeah, he said. But I thought he’d try with me.”

  “He did try, Mia. I know he did.”

  “Well, maybe he did. But he’s stopped trying now.” She took a deep breath. “Bye, Adam.”

  “Goodbye, Mia.”

  She turned and he watched her walk down the street.

  Jesus Christ, Nick. Come on, man. Come and stop her.

  Right on cue, Nick came shooting out the door. Adam leveled him with a glare and nodded at Mia disappearing down the street.

  “You’d better go get her, man, I swear to God. Whatever you have to do, you better do it.”

  Out of nowhere, a car pulled up next to her. The back door opened and a man emerged and headed straight for Mia.

  Unable to believe what they were seeing, Nick and Adam froze for a second.

  “Mia!” Nick shouted. “Mia!”

  She turned to look at him and the man hit her from behind. She gave a small scream and fell forward, her body limp. Nick saw her eyes close and he knew she had been knocked out.

  He and Adam tore down the street but it was too late, the car was too far away. The man hauled her in to the back seat with him and the door slammed. Tires squealed and the car flew around the corner, out of sight.

  Nick and Adam ran after it but it was useless. They stopped, panting.

  “Who the fuck was that?” Adam said.

  Nick stood staring in to the darkness where the car had disappeared and all he felt was fear. “I know who it was. And Mia is in terrible trouble, Adam.”

  Chapter Eight

  Adam raised one huge foot and kicked Mia’s door open. The wood splintered and the lock exploded and the door smashed in to the wall.

  Adam and Nick entered her apartment. Nick flicked the light and hurried over to the dining room table piled high with papers, books and post-its.

  “It’s over here somewhere… an address somewhere in East Colfax.”

  “No surprise there, I guess,” Adam muttered.

  The flipped through everything, dumping papers on the floor as their search became increasingly frantic.

  Adam stopped. “Nick.”

  Nick looked up. Adam was holding a yellow post-it.

  “I got it. Let’s go, man. We’ll call the cops on the way.”

  **

  “Wake her up, for fuck’s sake. Throw water on her or something.”

  “Danny, please… she’s hurt.”

  “Yeah, I know. That was the whole point. Now wake her up, or I’ll do it.”

  “I don’t think…”

  “Yeah. Yeah, I know you don’t, you dumb whore. I do the thinking. Fine. Go stand over there.”

  Mia slowly became aware of the pain in her head. She tried to move but her hands and feet were tied to something. A chair?

  A wave of freezing cold washed over her and she gasped in shock.

  “Wake up, bitch.”

  She forced her eyes open.

  “About time. Jesus.” He set down the dirty pail.

  She was soaked through, and started shivering. He must have used the coldest water he could find.

  “What… where…”

  “Shut up. I’m the one asking the questions.”

  Mia looked around the room and saw Justine standing in the corner. She looked away quickly, trying not to let any spark of recognition cross her face.

  My God. This must be Danny… and if he has any idea that Justine tipped me off… oh, my God. We are in big trouble.

  “So.” His black eyes glared down at her, furious. “Who gave you this address?”

  “Nobody.”

  He shook his head. “Liar.”

  “Nobody. Really.”

  Justine watched from across the room, shaking. She had been shaking for hours now, ever since she and Danny had sat outside Mia’s building, waiting for her to come out. They had followed her to that club and Justine had watched in speechless horror as Danny hit Mia and threw her in to the back seat. Justine had prayed for a cop to see her erratic driving and pull her over, but no luck.

  Danny knew a lot about Mia, but Justine had no idea
how. What Justine did know, for sure, was that sooner or later, Mia would have to crack under Danny’s questions; there was no way once Danny started hitting her that she’d be able to hold out. Justine was sure that tonight was the last night of both of their lives. She wanted to run, but if she did, Danny would kill her before she got to the parking lot.

  Danny moved closer to Mia, his large body tense with anger. “I’m going to ask one last time: how did you know this address?”

  Mia’s eyes met Justine’s and Mia saw the sheer, all-consuming terror in them.

  I’m not going to tell, Justine. I promised you that.

  “I figured it out… I put all the pieces together.”

  “You’re fucking lying, you bitch.”

  She swallowed her fear, fought to stay calm. Nick and Adam will have seen what happened to me outside the club; they’ll have raised the alarm by now. All I have to do is hang on until the cops talk to Tom and he gives them this address. Just keep him talking. Keep Justine safe.

  “No, I’m not lying. I’m not new to this game, you know.” She tried to look believable. “I’ve done this kind of work before in Asia… lots of it. I know how to ask questions and connect the dots. I have my sources on the street. This was me. All me.”

  Justine closed her eyes in relief.

  The man regarded her calmly for a few seconds and nodded.

  “OK, so you’re going to keep lying to me. I don’t like that very much.”

  “I’m not –”

  He punched her in the face and the force of it snapped her head back. She cried out in pain.

  “You are. You are lying.”

  “I don’t –”

  Another punch, this one to her mouth. Mia tasted blood and the fear became real and huge now. She struggled against the ropes and the man stuck his face right in hers.

  “You know how I know you’re lying, you fucking bitch? Because I have my sources, too. And my favorite source told me quite clearly that you told him about how you got the address.” His eyes bored in to hers. “That you have someone on the inside.”

  What the fuck? I have told exactly two people on this planet about Justine: Nick and Tom. Tom… no. No way. He works to save these kids! Why would he? So, Nick? No. Impossible. It’s Tom.

  He saw the shock on her face and he grinned. “Yeah. Always helpful to have someone on the inside myself.”