The Fighter's Fierce Temptation (6 page)

“Right behind you, fight-boy,” Alice said, giving him a wink. “Okay, everyone pair up. We’re going to try some of the inside fighting techniques we worked on last weekend.”

Bryant watched as Alice unzipped and removed her black jacket. He sucked in a breath as she passed him, catching a whiff of her scent—a mixture of lemon and something herbal. The woman had just completed a twelve-mile run, and yet she smelled as refreshing as a spring day. Tantalizing!

“Hey, you here to train or stare at the trainer?” Zac whispered to him, amused to see his partner so befuddled. Since high school, Bryant had always been the more focused of the two, but it appeared the tables had turned.

Zac found himself watching Bryant’s trainer with a new curiosity. Something about her had touched Bryant in a way no other woman had in the last several years.
He was running with her, for crying out loud! Bryant hated running more than any other form of training!

He watched the two for another moment. He could feel something going on between these two—a tension that just about sizzled in the air, but not in a bad way. It was about time that Bryant met up with someone who not only could keep up with him, but also give him a good match outside of the sport. Picking up on what was simmering and building between these two, he smiled to himself.
Let’s see what I can do to encourage this—Bryant Burton needs this.

Alice had paired up with Sara, Mark was working with his cousin Chelsea, Steve and Jimmy were working together, leaving Zac and Bryant to pair up.

“Alright, so let’s try some of those back elbows we worked on last week. This first round, choose who’s going to be striking, and the other person needs to make sure they block.
Everything.
Remember, this is a spinning technique and strikes can come from multiple directions in a short span of time.”

“Back elbows? Really?” Zac asked a little too loudly, drawing snickers from the boys and girls when Alice turned and narrowed her eyes at him.

“Tavvy, toss me one of those head protectors.” Tavvy did as she requested and she snatched the black padded headgear from the air. Stalking across the mats to where Zac and Bryant stood, she faced them both. “You have a comment regarding the technique we’re working on?”

Zac smiled at her and shook his head. “Not really, it’s just that in an MMA fight…”

“This is the perfect technique, and one most of you knuckleheads totally forget about. Allow me to demonstrate.” She started to hand the headgear to Zac, but when she heard Bryant chuckling behind her, she turned on him.

“Put this on.” She waited patiently while Bryant pulled the headgear on and fastened the straps beneath his chin. Walking around him in a circle, she eyed him up and down, gauging her strategy. He stood almost eight inches taller than she and he had more weight on her. This technique was much easier to pull off on someone more her size, but she was determined to make her point.

Bryant watched her circle him, his fists relaxed by his sides as he prepared for her impending attack. He could see the calculating look in her eyes and he knew something was coming. He just didn’t know what.

He made the mistake of glancing in Zac’s direction for a brief second, and Alice launched toward him.

Alice saw his eyes slide away from her and knew she wouldn’t get a better opportunity. She bent her knees and turned into his chest, folding her arms across her chest; she let her back arm swing out and caught the side of Bryant’s head with her elbow.

Before he could grab a hold of her or block her attack, she bent her knees and spun the other way, drawing her arms across her chest again. This time, she released the other elbow, catching him on the opposite temple.

Bryant grunted loudly—he couldn’t believe that Alice had caught him not once, but twice with her elbows. Luckily, she was just short enough that her strikes lacked the full weight of her strength.

He placed his hands on her shoulders, intent on pushing her away from him, but she bent her knees once again, spun the opposite direction, and planted her elbow directly into his ribs. He gasped and reaching out for her. He was holding back, he knew, but dammit, he wasn’t going to hit her.

She twisted sharply to the inside as she ducked under his arm, pulling him off his balance and rolling him head over ass until he landed on his back on the mats. Hard! That did it. He grabbed her shoulders and rolled with her, tangling arms and legs. For a second, he wasn’t sure he could get her pinned. She was all lithe strength and sinuous muscle—and he wanted to be tangling with her in other ways. Her scent distracted him. Her sweat slicked his skin and made him think of better ways for them to be wrapped around each other. She took advantage of his distraction and slipped out from his arms.

Standing, she turned to Zac. “Any questions about how back elbows can be used?”

Bryant shook his head and swept out her legs with a kick, taking her to the ground and putting her underneath him. “Oh, I’ve got questions all right.” He grinned down at her.

From above him he heard Zac say, “I’ll leave you two to it.”

Alice looked up at Bryant and then wished she hadn’t. His eyes were dark, and as she watched him try to control the intensity that was threatening to boil up and spill over, she recognized the light in his eyes as that of determination to be the best.
No way is he going to take being bested by a female! Way to go, Alice. You just poked the lion and forgot to see if his chain was still on!

She opened her mouth to speak and was silenced by Bryant instantly. “Don’t,” Bryant said, looking down at her from his position on top of her. His knees held her upper arms pinned to the mats, rendering her arms useless.

She strained to lift her head and he gave a groan. He pushed his hips back as her warm breath flowed over his thighs.

Alice groaned this time when his weight shifted. She raised her eyes to his and then it dawned on her what had caused him to shift. She had raised her head, her eyes closed as she tried to gain leverage for her upper body, but doing so had brought her with inches of his groin and as she inhaled sharply, his scent rushed over her, and she dropped her head back to the mats in confusion. She realized he was not unaware that something in the realm of sexual connection had just taken place.

Bryant licked his lips. She knew he was watching her. Could he see the same confusion that was tying her in knots? Did he know just how far she was out of her league? He must because he smiled as if trying to lighten the atmosphere, rose to his feet, and offered her his hand to get up. “Want to show me how you did that thing with your elbows?”

Alice accepted his hand and let him help her to her feet. “Maybe I should have one of the guys work with you. It works much better when it’s someone your same height.”

“Oh yeah? Trying to give us both a breather? That sounds good.”

Alice wiped her sweaty hands on her pants, trying to control her ragged breathing and slow the pounding of her heart.

Bryant followed her hands, getting caught up as his eyes tracked down her chest, taking in the soft areas of tanned skin revealed by her sports bra, and the taut muscles of her abs. The gentle swell of her hips and the long legs that ended at her bright pink painted toes made him smile; he couldn’t entirely hide it. Raising his eyes back up to hers, he murmured, “You owe me.”

“What! No, you owe me. I won the race, remember?”

“Yeah, and you’re welcome to collect on that win. What you owe me for is taking me down in front of the kids.” Bryant met her gaze with a resolute look in his eyes. He would not take no for an answer, that much she could tell.

Alice swallowed and slowly nodded. “Yeah, I probably should have at least warned you what was coming. Okay, what can I do to make it up to you?”

Bryant grinned at her and leaned down so that he was close to her ear. “Lets go out to the lake. Fishing.”

Alice raised her head sharply, nearly colliding with his chin. “What? You want to go fishing?”

“Yep. After dinner tonight. I want you to take me back to the lake so we can go fishing.”

“I… well… okay.” Alice was totally confused about where this was coming from.
Fishing? Fight-boy wants to go catch a fish? This must be why I haven’t dated anyone in a long time. Boys and men alike are too confusing to figure out!
Nodding, she conceded. “Fine. I’ll take you and Zac fishing…”

Bryant shook his head. “Not Zac. Just me. Just you and me.”

Alice looked at him as he winked at her and then sauntered off to join the rest of the group at the cage. She couldn’t keep her eyes off the hard muscles of his back just beneath his shirt.
Just me and him? God, why does that sound so perfect and so scary at the same time?

The rest of the training day went smoothly. Alice did her best to keep from touching Bryant in any way. Marguerite fired up the barbeque at the back of the house and after a lunch of burgers with all the trimmings and chips, with plenty of water and Gatorade to keep everyone hydrated, the group returned to the training gym where they took turns working with each other in the cage or on the mats. Tavvy took charge of the cage ring, putting the men through their paces and showing Zac and Bryant several new ways of moving to help protect their heads.

Zac and Bryant returned the favor by helping the local guys with some of their ground techniques. Based on the sounds coming from the cage, Alice knew things were going well.

Tavvy took the men out behind the training facility to show Bryant and Zac the weighted rope conditioning area.

That left Sara and Alice the cage for the remainder of the afternoon. The girls padded themselves up well; chest pads, shin and instep pads, forearm guards, complete headgear with face shields, and groin protectors. As usual, Alice felt like she was gearing up to be the next Iron Man by the time she was ready to enter the ring.

Sara and Alice sparred together often. Safety was the first thing they always took care of.
You can’t train while you’re injured.
That was something Terry Anders had always reminded those who came to train with him, and it had become her mantra.

But it was hard to focus on sparing with Bryant watching her.

***

Bryant focused all his attention on Alice, her speed, her agility, and her determination. She was fierce in the cage, and quick like no other fighter he’d come up against. As he watched her spar the younger woman, he thought about trying to convince her to work with him in the ring.

Zac was thinking the same thing, and after seeing the look on his partner’s face, he strolled over to Tavvy. “Think she’d get in the ring with Bryant? She’s quick and she’d definitely make him stop thinking so much.”

“That’s for sure. She wouldn’t give him the time to think. I’ll check with her and let you know tomorrow. I think she’s probably had enough for today.” Tavvy watched as Alice, exhausted and distracted, finally gave in and allowed Sara to take her to the ground. But within a minute of being taken to the ground, she turned the tables of Sara and had the younger woman in a rear naked hold, forcing Sara to tap out or risk losing consciousness.

“Very well done,” Zac said as the two women climbed to their feet and shook hands.

“Thanks.” Alice turned to the local kids and gave them a smile. “Good work today, guys. See you Monday afternoon?”

With a chorus of “sure” and “you bet” from all around, the kids began to gather their gear.

“Be careful driving down the mountain.”

“We will,” one of them called out. The kids headed out the door.

Alice had a word with Tavvy and then darted out the back of the gym. She needed to check in on her father and she really needed to take a shower. As Alice entered the cabin, Marguerite was leaving, headed for the store in town.

“I’ll be back soon. I just gave your father one of the pills that helps relax his muscles. The therapist was here and your daddy was pretty tense when the young man left. If you want to stop in and see him maybe that’s a good idea now, because he is probably going to fall asleep soon.”

“I’ll do that before I head up for a shower. Thanks, Marguerite.”

Alice headed back to her father’s bedroom and smiled at him as she entered. “How are you doing today, Daddy?”

“Good. You train?” he asked, his words slurred.

“Yeah. The local kids came up and I sparred with Sara for awhile at the end of the day. She’s getting really good, Dad. If she keeps training like that, she’ll be more than ready for the MMA circuit when she turns twenty-one.”

Her father made a noise that was almost a snort. Alice laughed with him. He patted her hand. “No fighting.”

“I’m content to work with the kids. I don’t ever want to get in the ring again, Daddy.”

“Good. Everything else good?”

Alice strained to understand what her father was asking, his speech becoming even more slurred as the medication he’d just taken started to work. “Everything’s fine, Dad. We just need you to rest and keep getting better.”

Her father nodded and shut his eyes. Alice watched him for a moment and then stood up and retrieved the therapist’s notes on her father’s most recent session. He was showing good progress according to the notes. She smiled with relief. “Dad, sleep now. I’ll be back to see you in a bit.”

Heading for the shower, Alice’s mind changing tracks and she started to think about her upcoming fishing excursion with Bryant.
Fishing?
She entered the shower still chuckling that he wanted to go fishing after dinner.
Men. I’ll never quite understand the way their minds work.