Black Belt Knockout

by Winter Travers

  He shrugged and pushed off the door. “I’m still deciding if this is where I want to be.”

  I looked over my shoulder at him as I moved further into the apartment. “You’re not going to stay in town?”

  “Staying here, just not sure about staying in this place.”

  He lived in a ritzy neighborhood, so I didn’t see what the problem was there, but his apartment was only a studio, and it was smaller than mine. I felt him move behind me as I looked out the window.

  “At least you have a nice view.”

  “That’s about the only thing I like about this place, except for one other thing.”

  I turned around and looked up into his piercing blue eyes. “What’s the other thing?”

  “I’m looking at it.”

  “What do…” I looked over my shoulder out the window. What in the hell was he talking about? I looked back up at him.

  His hand cupped my chin and tilted my head back. “Can I kiss you?”

  Can he… What in the hell was going on? Roman Yeck wanted to kiss me? “I think you might be the drunk one now.”

  “That isn’t a yes or no.”

  What the hell? When was I ever going to get an opportunity to kiss a ninja again in my life? “Um, yes?”

  His fingers delved into my hair, and my hands went to his waist. “Thank Christ.” His lips touched mine, and everything else disappeared.

  “So, that means you have to leave, now?”

  Roman pressed a kiss to my forehead. “As much as I would love to stay, baby, I think I need to go.”

  Well, that was a disappointment. “Okay.” I stepped out of his arms and moved to stand on the other side of the coffee table. “Uh, when is Sam’s next class?” I combed my fingers through my hair and tried to get a grip on my body screaming for Roman’s touch.

  “Thursday. Did you want to come with? I bet he would love to have you there.”

  “Urgh, am I allowed to be there?”

  He laughed and pulled his keys out of his pocket. “Of course.”

  I held up my hands. “Sorry, didn’t know if there was like top secret ninja stuff going on.”

  “You and Molly are ridiculous with this ninja stuff.”

  I shrugged and shuffled into the kitchen. “Kennedy went to one of those tournaments you guys do, and she said people were like spider monkeys jumping around and basically kicking the ceiling.” That might have been a bit of an exaggeration, but I don’t think it was off by much.

  “You girls are always talking like you’re drunk.”

  “Kellan, Tate, and Dante don’t seem to mind Molly, Hadley, and Kennedy calling them ninjas.”

  “That’s because Molly, Hadley, and Kennedy keep them warm every night. Pretty sure they could call them assholes, and they wouldn’t mind it.”

  I glanced over my shoulder at him. “I can guarantee you they have. Multiple times.”

  “Not surprising.”

  I grabbed a tub of mint chip out of the fridge and set it on the counter. “You sure you don’t want to stay and have some ice cream with me?”

  “As tempting as that is, baby, I really do need to go. Since you basically told me I need to get back on the circuit, I need to get my ass back in the gym and get into shape.”

  I turned around and looked him up and down. “This is you not in shape?” The man was insane if he thought he was out of shape. Out of shape was me eating this whole container of ice cream then going to bed and doing it all over again tomorrow.

  “I stay in shape, but I’m not in tournament shape.”

  “You’re insane.”

  He shrugged and tossed his keys up, catching them mid-air. “You’ll see what I’m talking about.”

  I turned back to the cabinet and pulled out a spoon. “I’m still on the fence about the whole you calling me baby thing. I’m almost five years older than you.”

  “You’ll get used to it. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  He slipped out the door before I could ask him what he meant about seeing me tomorrow. Sam didn’t have class until Thursday, and he wasn’t going to see me unless he decided to make an appearance at the café.

  I leaned against the counter, devouring half of the container of ice cream while I thought about everything Roman said tonight.

  And that was a lot.

  The man was so damn confusing.

  I spooned another bite of ice cream into my mouth and sighed.

  Confusing as hell, but also sexy as hell.

  I was screwed.

  *

  Chapter 9

  Roman

  “You got a fucking horseshoe or something shoved up your ass, don’t you?”

  “No, I’m just fucking good at what I do.”

  Dante pulled the bowl of chips toward him and shook his head at me. “No more chips for you. You got about ten pounds to lose and about five pounds of muscle to put on.”

  “I really doubt eating a few chips is going to make a big difference.” I reached for the bowl, but he knocked my hand away.

  “Not happening, fucker. You’ll thank me when you’re pulling gainers and not panting on the mat.”

  Thankfully, I had ordered the burrito special plate, so I knew I was going to have plenty of food. “You have a point, but I doubt three chips are going to make a difference.” I sat back in the booth and looked around the restaurant.

  Tate and Kellan had agreed to meet us at Taco Waco for lunch, but they had yet to show up. Dante had heard from Kellan I had an offer from SKW, and he was an ass about it. He was taking it upon himself to be my personal trainer. I was fearful he was going to take my burritos away and order me a damn salad.

  “When is the first tournament?”

  “Chicago Open in the middle of January.”

  He nodded and shoved another chip into his mouth. “You got about seven weeks to get in shape. How many divisions are you doing?”

  “Four to five. I don’t know if I’ll be able to swing extreme weapons this time.”

  Dante smirked. “I suppose not. You don’t want to go out there and look like a total tool.”

  “You both look like tools.” Tate slid into the booth next to me, with Kellan sitting next to Dante.

  Kellan grabbed the almost empty basket of chips from Dante and shook his head. “Jesus Christ, man. We’re only ten minutes late. You think maybe you could have saved some for us?”

  “They’re all you can eat. Just wave the waitress over for more.”

  “You really think eating a basket of chips is good for you going into the tournament season?” Tate asked me.

  I pointed at Dante. “I had two chips before the fucker took them away from me.”

  Tate nodded. “Good job, Dante. We can’t have Roman stepping out on the mats with a beer gut.”

  “I have never in my life had a beer gut. You must be confusing me with Dante.”

  Dante rubbed his stomach and blew a kiss at me. “Don’t be jealous, asshole.”

  Kellan waved over the waitress and asked for more chips.

  “Um, were you guys ready to order?” she asked. She flipped her hair and batted her eyes at Tate. Typical.

  Tate cleared his throat and looked down at his menu. “My girlfriend told me to try the quesadilla.”

  The waitress’ face fell, and she turned her gaze on Kellan.

  “Our girlfriends told us the same thing,” he replied pointing at Dante.

  “Yeah, they totally did,” Dante agreed.

  “Two quesadillas it is, then,” she mumbled as she wrote. She looked up, her gaze connecting with mine.

  Aw hell. Looked like I was going to be the last one she tried to charm with her hair flip and fake smile.

  “Was there anything else I could get you?” She double-timed batting her eyelashes, and instead of looking sexy, it looked like she had shit in her eye.

  “No. I ordered enough to take some over to Sage. She’s been craving Mexican lately.” I leaned forward. “You know how pregnant chicks can be.”


  I don’t think I have ever seen a chick more rejected. Four guys and she didn’t get a wink or smile from any of us.

  “Okay, I’ll get these orders in.” She flounced away from the table, and all eyes turned on me.

  “Did you really just reject that chick?” Kellan asked me.

  I shrugged and took a sip of water. “She’s not my type.”

  Tate chuckled. “Last I knew, your type was standing upright and breathing.”

  Dante wagged his finger at me. “No, I think his type is pregnant and a raging bi—”

  “Say it, and I punch the shit out of you. I don’t care if you’re a champion sparrer. I’ll take you down, asswipe.”

  Dante’s eyes bugged out, and Kellan and Tate chuckled.

  “I do think you might have touched on a sensitive subject there, Dante,” Tate rumbled.

  “She’s not a bitch,” I insisted.

  “Maybe not to you, but I’ve had a different experience with her.”

  “Lay off him. I really don’t think you would appreciate it if he started calling Kennedy a bitch, would you?” Tate asked him.

  “Kennedy is nice, Sage is a bi—”

  I leaned forward and slammed my hands down on the table. “Fucking try me, Dante. Say it, and see what happens.”

  He held up his hands. “All right, all right, I get it, brother. Satan’s ex-wife is off limits.”

  Kellan chuckled and shook his head. “You really are asking for it. You might not want to mess with the man’s baby mama anymore. She’s going to sic Roman on you from now on.”

  Dante sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. “Oh, how the tables have turned. You were the one giving each of us shit about bowing to the almighty pussy, and here you are, ready to beat the shit out of me over some chick.”

  “Pretty sure she’s more than just some chick,” Tate mumbled.

  Damn straight she was more than just some chick. “We aren’t here to talk about Sage and me. I figured we could talk about what the sponsorship from SKW means for Powerhouse.”

  “And doing it over tacos works for me,” Kellan smirked.

  The waitress came over with more chips and salsa, setting them on the table without looking at any of us.

  “Is anyone else afraid we might have an extra ingredient or two in our food?” Tate chuckled.

  Dante grabbed the basket of chips and put up his arm to block me.

  “Dude, I get it. Eat your damn chips.” I really wanted to knock his arm away and eat the whole damn basket, but I figured I could pig out on chips when I got home if I wanted to.

  “So, did you call SKW today?” Tate asked.

  “Bright and early this morning. I talked to Mick Front, and he was beyond ecstatic to know I was ready to take them up on their offer.”

  “That offer still includes you repping Powerhouse, right?” Kellan asked.

  “Sure does. They have no problem having people associating Powerhouse and SKW together. He said he’s been watching us from the ground up, and the company is impressed with the recognition and following we’ve gotten in less than a year.”

  “Well, I’m glad he sees that. The only place Powerhouse is going is up from here on out. I’ve been thinking of offering a winter camp over the school break.” Kellan dipped a chip in the salsa and shoved it in his mouth. “I figure we’ll be closed down for that week and go for about four to five hours a day focusing on a different thing each day.”

  “Four days?” Tate asked. “Each day one of us could head it up with the other three helping.”

  Kellan nodded his head. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”

  “We should get the word out now,” I suggested. There were only five weeks before the school break started.

  “Molly helped me make the flyers and sign-up forms last night. I already thought the same thing you did, Tate, and planned on the four days. Day one would be forms, day two will be sparring, day three, I thought we could head over to the trampoline park to work on tricking, and then day four can be weapons.”

  “I call weapons day.” Bo was my deal. I was gonna take that day.

  “I planned on you taking that day, Roman. The kids only know bo so most of the day will be working on that, but we could also show them other weapons they could start learning when they get higher belt ranking.”

  “So, I’m tricking then?” Tate asked.

  “Yeah. You know you’ve got the cleanest trick patterns out of all of us,” Kellan told him.

  Tate glared at me but nodded his head. “I guess I can handle that. Although I hope I get to be the one to show the kids kamas. If you have Roman do it, you know none of them are going to want to do it.”

  “Fuck you, asshole.” If I were to put the time into kamas, I know I could be better than Tate. I just didn’t like the damn things.

  Tate smirked. “You just keep twirling your baton, princess, and let me handle the deadly shit.”

  “You’re such an ass,” I chuckled. “Pretty sure my baton twirling skills can beat the shit out of you.” I didn’t have a strike called “the death stab” for nothing.

  “You two done flexing your muscles?” Kellan asked.

  We both nodded our heads. Tate and I going back and forth of whether kama or bo was the better weapon was a common occurrence.

  “Here ya go.” The waitress appeared at our table with a tray on her shoulder laden down with delicious Mexican food. She set out plates in front of us, not making eye contact, and flounced off.

  “You think she’ll get pissed if I call her back and ask for extra sour cream?” Kellan chuckled.

  “Pretty sure she’ll dump it over your head,” Dante mumbled.

  Tate wearily looked at his quesadilla. “I really wanted to have a burrito.”

  “Guess you need to rethink your way of getting chicks off your back from now on.” I cut into my burrito and piled rice and beans on top of a bite. He eyed my plate, and I scooted away from him. I wasn’t able to have any chips and salsa, so no one was going to take my fucking burrito away from me.

  “I take it you talked to Sage about going back on the circuit?”

  I looked up at Kellan and nodded. “Yeah, she was cool with it. I don’t think she really understood how much of a commitment it was, but she told me to go for it.”

  “You mean Sage actually had a logical thought?” Dante’s jaw was dropped, and his fork was in midair piled with food.

  “Dude, you gonna start this again?” I asked.

  “Hey, I didn’t call her names. Just asked a question. Is a man not allowed to ask questions?” he retorted.

  “When they are dick-ish, no.” I was totally going to end up punching Dante before the baby came.

  “So, what’s the deal with you two then?” Tate asked.

  I shrugged and shoveled more food into my mouth. My workout this morning had drained me, and I was downright starving. “She’s letting me in the door when I go over there.”

  “That’s a good start,” Kellan laughed.

  I sat back and wiped my mouth. “I don’t know what’s going to happen with us.”

  “But you want something to happen, right?” Tate pointed his fork at me. “If you don’t want anything to happen, then stop going over there.”

  “She’s having my kid, Tate. Pretty sure I can go over there.”

  He balled up his napkin and tossed it on the table. “No, you can’t go over there. Not like you are. You’re getting her kid involved in this. Yes, she may be pregnant with your kid, but Sam is not yours. You’re going to confuse the hell out of him if you don’t plan on sticking around, Roman. This shit is way bigger than just you.”

  “Dude, I don’t even know what Sage wants. We can’t exactly hop from zero to a hundred because of Sam.” I got what he was saying, but how was I supposed to know if Sage and I were going to work unless I went over there and spent time with her?

  “You can get to know each other without involving Sam. Go over there after he’s asleep.
She can get a babysitter, so you two can go out. Sam won’t understand what is going on.”

  Dante cleared his throat. “He’s got a point, man. As much as I’m not a fan of Sage, I think the little dude is pretty awesome.”

  “So, what are you going to do?” Kellan asked.

  I looked at their grim faces. I wanted to be there with Sage. Even before I found out she was pregnant, I knew I wanted to see her again. There was something about the way she held herself and the fierce attitude she had. She was sassy as hell and sexy as fuck. She was more than half a foot shorter than me, and whenever she tilted her head back to look at me, all I wanted to do was kiss her ‘til she forgot whatever she was arguing with me about.

  That was what had done me in that first night. She knocked on my door, pissed as hell, and my dick hardened with each word she spit at me.

  “I’m in. Even if she doesn’t want me. I have no plans of going anywhere.”

  Tate patted me on the back, and Kellan and Dante both nodded.

  “About fucking time you grew the hell up,” Tate teased.

  I picked up my fork and dug back into my food. “Fuck you, assholes.” I had grown up a long time ago.

  I just never had anything worth having before. Now I had Sage and Sam to live for. And our baby.

  *

  Chapter 10

  Sage

  I gently shut the door to Sam’s bedroom and leaned against the door.

  Crap it had been a long day.

  Once I had picked Sam up from Mary and Dale’s, he had thought he was going to karate. He threw a four-hour tantrum when I told him there wasn’t any karate.

  It broke my heart when he did this. He still didn’t have the concept of time down yet, so he always freaked out when things didn’t go the way he hoped. Halfway through, I was tempted to call Roman and have him come over, but I didn’t want to do that. If I started that now, Sam would think every time he freaked out Roman would come over. I couldn’t have that. I didn’t know how long Roman would be hanging around, and I didn’t want Sam to get any more attached to him than he was.