Bad Boy's Honor: An MMA Bad Boy Romance (10 page)

I’d grabbed my things from the locker room with the intention of never coming back, but when Gayle asked me if I was leaving, I knew I couldn’t let her win. Not that easily, anyway. I’d made the snap decision to go back tomorrow, but I wouldn’t be able to stay there all summer.  

I woke up the next morning with every intention of leaving at the end of the week. I could keep some dignity, but still get the hell out of there before Gayle killed me.  

Gayle messed all that up by being nice to me the next day. Apparently bullies really did respect you more if you stood up to them. I’d always assumed that was an old wives’ tale.  

Gayle made it clear I could treat the gym as if it were my own, and she even started introducing me to people she thought I would want to speak to.  

I still had to leave soon. Someone had me scared and it wasn’t Gayle.

The more time I spent here, the more I found myself watching Riker training. My body was doing it without my brain even being aware of it. Whenever I sat down, I conveniently sat somewhere in line of sight of whichever bench or workout station he was using at the time.  

Watching his muscles bulge and pulse as he lifted weights was hard enough to look away from, but the real soul crushing moments were when he was helping others.

Women were always asking Riker to spot for them, which meant he spent half his time perched over them with his huge legs straddling their faces. What I wouldn’t give to get that up close and personal with the insides of his thighs.  

Then there were the combat classes he taught. The first few had been quiet, with only a handful showing up, mostly men. Then word must have gotten around, because suddenly he had a class of twenty, and a good two-thirds of them were women. Toned, athletic women who apparently thought combat attire included low cut tops and loads of make up.

The women often seemed to have difficulty with the most basic of moves, and would call over Riker for some up close and personal instruction during and after class. I didn’t know whether to hate them for being so pathetically obvious, or hate myself for not thinking of it first.

Worst of all, my feelings were easily read by everyone I spoke to at the gym. Alonso sat with me and explained how he’d ended up in prison by defending himself in a fight after a few guys decided they didn’t want a gay guy in their bar. I must have been checking Riker out while he spoke, because at the end of the conversation Alonso offered to put in a good word for me.

I didn’t like this side of me. It felt unprofessional. I’d made it the entire way through college without mindlessly lusting after men, so I could manage a few more months.  

I couldn’t even justify this as a social experiment anymore. Most of the time, I just sat around talking to Duke and the other regulars. I’d enjoyed finding out their backstories, but after that it felt like we were just hanging out.

“You alright?” Duke asked as he sat down next to me on one of the workout benches. “You look a little bored.”  

“I’m fine,” I replied.  

I wasn’t looking forward to breaking the news to Duke that I wouldn’t be coming by so often. He was bound to take it personally, and I didn’t want him to think I’d grown bored of my father after just a week.

“Want to get stuck in?” Duke asked, as he motioned to some of the nearby dumbbells. “I’ll spot you if you like.”  

“No, that’s okay. I’m so weak and feeble compared to everyone else here. You probably don’t have any weights I can lift.”  

“Nonsense. I’m sure you can hold your own. You should take the opportunity to work out more though. There’s not much point hanging around a gym all day if you’re not going to get in shape.”

I had been ridiculously lazy. Every morning I got changed into gym clothes, but compared to everyone else here my workouts were tame. Some time on the exercise bike, and a few small weights were about the limit of it.  

“I was actually thinking about not coming in so much anymore,” I said, looking away from Duke in case I saw disappointment in his eyes.  

“Oh,” Duke said softly. “That’s a shame. I’d kind of gotten used to having you around.”  

“I think I might have overstayed my welcome. And you’re right. I need to be a bit more productive. Can’t just sit around here all summer.”

“How about you spend the summer learning a new skill? One that will set you up for the rest of your life.”

I frowned and looked at Duke curiously. He looked excited to tell me something, like a kid who couldn’t keep a secret.

“I’ve just finished a college degree. I need a break from studying.”

“This is better than any college degree, and you won’t be stuck in the library reading books.”

“Okay, I’m intrigued,” I admitted. “What do you have in mind?”

“I run a gym and a fight club. I wouldn’t be much of a father if I didn’t teach my daughter how to look after herself.”  

That was the first time Duke had referred to me as his daughter since he introduced me to Riker and Gayle. He might have done it deliberately to get me to go along with his idea, but I didn’t think he was that devious.  

We’d gotten close over the last week, and while we were a long way from being a proper father and daughter, our relationship was already stronger than I thought it ever would be.

“You want to teach me to fight?” I asked.

Duke laughed. “No, not me personally. I’m too old for that shit. You could probably kick my ass already, and if not all you’d have to do is run away. I’m not too quick on my feet these days.”

Women grunted at the far end of the gym as they threw punches into pads Riker held in each hand. I had an awful idea I knew exactly what Duke had in mind.

“You want me to join Riker’s training class?” I asked.

Duke nodded. “Kind of. But I want you getting private one-on-one lessons. None of this group training nonsense. That pays the bills, but between you and me, none of them are learning that much. To really learn how to fight you need personal tuition.”

Alone time with Riker. It sounded like heaven. I would get to look at his half naked, sweaty body, and also punch him as often as I wanted. That was one way to take out my anger at him for his comment about my inheritance.

But that was an awful idea. My fascination with Riker was my main reason for leaving the gym. Spending more time with him—alone—would not help me get over him. Just look what had happened last time we were alone together.

It was bad enough wanting him to satisfy me physically. If I got to know him better and found that he wasn’t a complete jerk, I’d be hopeless to resist him.   It sounded like hell.

“He’ll never agree to it,” I said, trying to take the decision out of my hands.

“He already has,” Duke replied. “I asked him earlier. He actually seemed quite keen on the idea. I don’t think he’s having a lot of fun teaching these lot, so when I offered to cut back on the group classes to teach you instead he jumped at the idea.”

“Won’t you lose money?” I asked. “Maybe I could just join in the group classes with everyone else.”
And sneak off when no one’s looking.

“Don’t worry about the money. Cutting back on a few classes won’t do too much harm. So you’ll do it?”

“I don’t think I’m cut out for fighting,” I insisted. “Look at my arms. They’re tiny.”

“You can still do damage if you know how to throw a punch. Just promise me you’ll give it a try.”

How long could I stand training with Riker before he drove me crazy?  

“I could take a few classes for a week or two I suppose.”  

“You’ll need more than that. Five days a week for two months. Then twice a week after you’ve started your job.”

“Two weeks,” I bargained. “And I promise to keep visiting after I start work.”

“A month,” Duke replied. “I guarantee you won’t want to stop.”  

That’s what I’m worried about.

“Okay, I’ll do it.”  

Duke patted me on the back and walked back to his office looking rather pleased with himself. What had I just agreed to?  

Alone time with Riker. I hadn’t even spoken to him for a week and yet I still found myself obsessing over him all the time, especially at night.

My own hope was that his personality would end up being so off-putting that it would overcome my body’s desire to pounce on him at the first opportunity. He’d have to be a real asshole for that to happen. Puppy-drowning levels of asshole. Even then…

I couldn’t believe he’d agreed to do it. He’d barely looked at me over the last week, and when he had, his eyes had been full of contempt. Gayle had made her peace with me, but Riker still seemed to resent the time I spent with Duke.  

This was going to be a whole lot of awkward, but what choice did I have? I was the one who’d thrust myself into Duke’s life, so I couldn’t run the first time things got uncomfortable. He wanted to have me around a bit more. Spending time with Riker was just the price I had to pay for rushing into all this.  

A hot, sweaty, muscular price.

Each of the combat classes were only supposed to last an hour, but after each session, all the women would stay behind to ask questions until the entire thing had dragged on for ninety minutes.  

I shouldn’t complain. This was still better than fighting once a week. I just hadn’t expected to be treated like a prestigious university professor that all the students wanted to talk to after class.

“Riker, I still can’t get the hang of the throw you showed us today,” a petite, young blonde asked. I hadn’t bothered to learn anyone’s name; I should have made them wear name badges.  

She couldn’t do the throw because she barely weighed more than one hundred pounds, and had no muscle on her at all. I could teach anyone to defend themselves, but unless she was attacked by a man weighing only one hundred and thirty pounds, she wouldn’t be throwing anyone anywhere.

“I think you should focus on just getting them off balance instead,” I replied to the blonde. “Do the exact same maneuver, except instead of pressing your hand onto their chest, get behind them and jam your foot into the back of their knee. It works a treat.”

Blondie looked disappointed at my explanation. “Could you show me the throw one more time? I really want to get the hang of it, but I need to improve my technique.”

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Of all the moves I’d taught so far, the throw was the one thing all the women apparently struggled with and wanted a personal demonstration.  

“Sure, sweetie,” I replied, feigning enthusiasm.

At some point, the women would figure out that I referred to them affectionately to avoid learning their actual names, but for the moment they found it endearing.  

I stood opposite Blondie with the soft padded mat behind me. Blondie came at me as we’d rehearsed. I used her momentum to fling her up into the air and over my shoulder, bringing her down onto the mat as gently as I could.  

I landed on top of her, my large arms either side of her thin body, making her look frail and delicate in comparison. She panted heavily, but let it sound more orgasmic than was natural. Her tiny breasts heaved under her skin tight top as she did her best to look irresistible. I wasn’t in the mood.

I wanted to wrap today’s class up as quickly as possible. During the class, I’d seen Duke and Nora having a rather intense conversation. At one point, Duke had looked quite upset. I knew what had happened.  

Duke didn’t want to admit it, but he’d grown rather close to Nora this last week, but now she’d had enough. She’d done her bit hanging around with the poor people and now she wanted to go back to her more comfortable life. Can’t say I blamed her.

Blondie was quite content to lay under me all day, so I stood up and dragged her to her feet.  

“Thank you, Riker,” she said cheerfully. She paused, no doubt hoping I would offer further lessons or see if she was free to go for a drink. When I stayed silent, she gave a disappointed smile and headed in the direction of the locker rooms.

Once the final few stragglers had dispersed, Duke made a beeline right for me. I thought the conversation with Nora had upset him, but now he looked excited. It took a lot to get Duke excited.

“I’ve got good news,” Duke said as he approached with a spring in his step. When a man of Duke’s size had a spring in his step, you tended to know about it.