Totaled (29 page)

“They already knew! Can you believe that? They actually had some sort of stupid bet going. I guess we’ve been more obvious than we thought. But they took it well. We all just sat around at dinner like we were a big happy family. It was nice. Anyway, my dad gave Drew a stern warning about not hurting me if he wanted to continue walking this earth, but ultimately, he didn’t seem mad about it at all. I think he really likes Drew.”

“Okay, so…? Get to the good stuff. I want the juicy details.” She looked like a kid on Christmas morning that couldn’t wait to open her presents.

I giggled at her excitement. “I am. I am. So, we went back to his house that night after dinner. I sort of knew it was going to happen. Or at least, I wanted it to. There’s just been all of this build up. The sexual tension has been getting more and more intense between us lately and there’s only so much you can take, ya know?”

“Of course I know! One or two heavy make out sessions is enough for me, girl. You’ve been giving that poor guy blue balls for over a month now!” She sipped her drink and laughed at herself.

“Well, it’s not that I’ve stopped him or even told him to slow down. It just has never been the right time or place. And half the time, I wished he had taken things a little further, but he was just so respectful, or nervous, I don’t know. I think we both felt a little relieved that everything’s now out in the open with my family and we have their blessing to date each other.”

“Okay, so you get to his house, start making out, and go!”

“Would you stop?” I whined. “I’m getting to that! We got to his house and started kissing, and I don’t know what came over me, but I just got brave. I stripped my dress off.”

“Hell yeah! Go, Bree! That’s my girl.”

“I know! I knew you would be proud of me. I was just so done with waiting. And horny. I was definitely horny.” I laughed at how ridiculous I sounded.

“What did he do? Did big, bad fighter boy just let you take charge?”

“Oh no. He quickly flipped it and took over. Actually, he uh…well, he went down…uh, you know.”

“Took a trip downtown? Dined on the clam? Had a pink taco? Ate the fur-burger? Went muff diving? Carpet munched? Sampled your box lunch?” she joked, making me more and more uncomfortable with every mocking description of oral sex she said. Sue was laughing hysterically and I was surely fifty shades of red with embarrassment.

“You know what? You’re not helping! You know this is hard for me to talk about. You’re just making fun of me.” I was beginning to regret being so open about all of the details.

“Oh, lighten up. I’m just kidding. Stop taking me so seriously. I think it’s awesome that you have finally experienced all of this. Keep going. I’m sorry. I promise, I’ll stop.” She held up her hands in surrender.

“Thank you. Anyway, yes, he went downtown, as you call it. And holy Christ. It was amazing!!! Like, seriously phenomenal. After he was finished with that, I would’ve done just about anything he asked.” I chuckled.

“It can be life changing, if done correctly,” she agreed. “I’m glad he knew what he was doing. And the sex? Get to the penetration!”

“Jesus, Sue. Do you have to always be so brash?”

“Yes. Yes, I do. This is why you love me.” It was true. I did love that she always said whatever the hell was on her mind.

“The sex was great!” I enthused. I had no other words.

“What do you mean, great? It didn’t hurt? Not even a little bit?” She seemed both shocked and skeptical.

“Well, yeah. At first I was scared shitless because he’s freaking enormous! Not that I have any comparison, I guess, but I’m pretty sure his…you know…is uh, proportional.” I looked down. I couldn’t believe I just said that. “But he was gentle,” I continued. “It was just that initial moment, and then it was nice. Awesome, actually. He made up for it with a couple orgasms.” I closed my eyes, remembering the feeling of pure ecstasy.

“A couple? Goddamn it, Bree. I hate you! Not only do you manage to land a nice guy who happens to be mouthwateringly hot with a giant cock, but you lose your virginity and it’s actually good sex? I damn sure didn’t have an orgasm with my first time. Or second. Or third, for that matter.” She paused and threw her flip flop at me. “You suck!”

“Sorry. Don’t hate me. You’ve got a few years more experience than me.
Years
of good sex to hold over my head.” I tried to reassure her but she sat there pouting anyway.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s six dozen of one, half of the other.”

“Wait, what?” Here she went again with her nonsense.

“What, what?” She didn’t even miss a beat.

“What did you just say?” I asked, absolutely losing it with laugher.

“It’s six dozen of one, half of the other. What?”

“Okay, no. Just…no! It’s six of one, half a dozen of the other.”

“That doesn’t sound right.”

“Well, it is. That’s the idiom. You’re hilarious.”

“Whatever,” Sue dismissed, not even bothered a little bit.

We sat there next to the pool at Analise’s house and fell right back into place. That is one thing about Sue that I loved. I appreciated that she got pissed enough to call me out on my shit but not so pissed that our friendship would be irreparably damaged by my neglect. And I knew that she was genuinely happy for me.

A few minutes passed of quiet relaxation and I felt the stress evaporating off of me as the sun warmed my skin.

“Oh, I didn’t tell you yet. Drew got a fight. An actual UFC fight.”

“What?! Are you kidding me? That’s…wow. That’s incredible! When?” she asked, sitting up in her lounge chair.

“Saturday.” I heard the slight undercurrent of disappointment in my voice.

“
This
coming Saturday? No way!” Her mouth was agape, astonished.

“Yes. In Atlanta. And I can’t go, so you have to help me.” I gave her my very best pleading eyes.

“Help you do what?”

“I want to get Morey to buy the fight and show it at Flip Flops. I need you to ask him for me.”

I knew what her reaction was going to be and sure enough, immediately she responded, “No way! That guy is so creepy.”

“Oh, shut up. He’s a harmless old man with an affinity for your ass. Don’t act like you don’t love the attention. And you haven’t had a bar tab since before you even turned twenty-one!”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” She sat, apparently quietly contemplating whether she was willing to forgive the old man for his handsy flirting. “Fine. I’ll work on Morey. But the first time he pinches my ass, I’m kicking him in the balls. I swear to God, Bree.”

“Thank you.” I smiled. She truly was a great friend.

“So, why aren’t you going to the fight?”

I hated even having to answer the question, wanting more than anything to be there to support him. “I can’t,” I said with a sigh. “I have an exam that day. I can’t reschedule it and if I don’t show, I get a zero and will fail the class. It’s a final, so it’ll probably be four hours or so and there isn’t a flight out to get me there anywhere close to where I could be on time to the fight. He’s the ticket opening match.”

“And you’re comfortable with Drew going up there by himself?” She looked like she was already preparing for my crying phone call when we break up.

“He won’t be alone. My dad is going, and Liam. And two of the trainers from the gym too.”

“That’s not what I mean. It’s just that, well, this is the UFC, not some amateur shit. There are going to be people at every turn trying to take advantage of him and capitalize on his newness to the environment. And there’s going to be girls. Beautiful, fast, aggressive girls. Everywhere. You’re not concerned with that? Come on, Bree. You can’t be that naïve.” She pulled off her sunglasses, really looking at me, a pitying expression of defeat in her eyes.

“I know. I just can’t think about that. I have to trust him. I love him.” I hated that these thoughts had already crossed my mind and now Sue was bringing them back into the forefront of my thoughts. Was she trying to torture me?

“You love him? Are you sure? Don’t confuse the sex with love,” she replied curtly, putting her sunglasses back on with force.

“No. I’m not. I love him. And he loves me. I’ve never felt this happy before. He’s all I can think about. He’s all I dream about. It’s as if nothing else matters when we’re together. He makes me feel appreciated, cherished, worshipped. And good God, the way he touches me…I can’t get enough.”

“Oh, you’ve got it bad!”

“I do. I totally do. I know I don’t even know him that well yet, but I feel like one of those silly clichés that you read about in romance novels. When you know, you just know, right? I think I know. I think he’s it for me. I feel safe with him, like he would never dream of doing anything to hurt me.”

“Okay girl, pump the brakes a little. Just don’t go all in just yet. You need to know things. What was his childhood like? Who’s his best friend? When’s his birthday? How many girls has he slept with? Dated?” she rambled and I paused, trying to consider what she was saying, but she just had no idea. I felt like I really did know him.

“That’s all stuff we’ll learn as we go along. I may not know his favorite color, but I know the curves of his jaw line and how the left side of his lips curl up when he smiles. I can hear his laugh in my head. I can feel how protective he is just in the way that he holds my hand. I love this man, with all of my heart.”

“I just don’t want you to get hurt,” she said, with all seriousness. “Just jump in feet first, okay? Give it some time.”

“I didn’t even have a doubt until you planted one there,” I lied. “You’re making me second guess myself. Should I be worried about all of this UFC stuff? I mean, really worried? I can’t stress out about that yet. It’s all going to be okay. It has to be,” I said, hearing my voice shake as the lying words came out. I knew that I had to be worried. It had nothing to do with trusting him and everything to do with not trusting the industry and fame.

“Okay, girl. I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m sure it’ll all be fine. And I’ll be here to pick up the pieces if it isn’t.”

“Thank you, Sue. I’m lucky to have you in my corner.”

“Yes, you are. Now enough of this sappy shit. Let’s go see what Analise’s dad has stashed in his wet bar.”

Chapter Thirty-Two

DREW

If you could build the perfect mixed martial artist from scratch, I wasn’t what you would end up with as the finished product. I wasn’t long and lean, but tall and stocky. My father, may he rot in hell, used to constantly tell me that I was built like a brick shit house, whatever that means. I was precise and powerful, but not as quick as I should be, not as agile as the world’s greatest. I had very little actual wrestling experience, but had worked overtime with some great jiu-jitsu coaches to try and make up for it. I was creative, unorthodox, and spontaneous. I felt my opponent rather than watch him. I observed the ebb and flow of his body and anticipated his next movement. Whether it be a slight change in his stance, or a look in his eyes, I could often see what he was about to throw my way. I have studied Muay Thai and watched tape after tape of UFC footage. Rather than rely on my physicality and natural talent, I had put in the work and trained hard to perfect my technique.

Awake but my eyes still closed, I settled myself. Inhaling the scent of my hotel room, I took in a few slow breaths. I thought about how important this day was for me. It was now. This was the morning of the most important day of my life. I was ready for this. I was ready to go to battle. Sitting up, I cracked my neck from side to side and opened my eyes. I stretched out my legs and rolled my ankles, continuing to breathe slowly, all the while reflecting on what got me to this point and where I wanted to go from here. Not here to defend a belt or title, but here to make a name for myself, I had nothing to lose and everything to prove.
If only Bree were here with me.

Last night, at the weigh-in, I met my opponent for the first time in person. He was someone I knew much about. In fact, I idolized him and had often tried to imitate some of his techniques in training while experimenting with different take downs and striking combinations. He was spectacular and despite my poker face, I couldn’t help but be a little starstruck. At 6′5″, Stefan Purifoy had an inch on me in height and a near two inch reach advantage, but I had twelve more pounds of lean muscle to put into my attack. What was going to be the most trouble for me was how unpredictable he was in the octagon. Often described as spastic, he was near impossible to read. He had one of the most unique styles and his unusual technique was very difficult to emulate in training. I had prepared my body and mind for him, though he was certainly an enormous challenge for me, especially for my very first professional fight.

Before we entered the weigh-in room, he’d shaken my hand and looked me in the eyes.

“Drew Dougherty. It is nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you, but you’re a difficult man to find any tape on. I wasn’t quite sure how to prepare for you. I guess we’ll just have to see tomorrow,” he said in earnest. “You are about to enter a circus. You sure you’re ready for this, man?” he asked me. I nodded and he said, “Welcome to the UFC.”

I had walked in first and followed the lead of the handler with Pat, Liam, and our team following behind me. The officials directed me to where I was supposed to stand. It was uneventful. Cameras flashed, but no one really even said anything to me. So I just did as I was told, stepping up onto the scale when prompted to do so. The moment Purifoy stepped into that room, he became someone else. He morphed into a cocky character of shit talking, showboating craziness. He was quite different, personality wise from the man I had just met. As we stood on the stage after weighing in, staring each other down and posing for pictures, it was clear that he had a large fan base. The room was filled with media personnel, officials, and fans, all clamoring for a piece of him. My small group of trainers, coaches, and, ancillary staff was laughable when compared to his entourage. He was even followed by a trail of groupies. While I wasn’t interested in such attention, it was shockingly intimidating. He had been at this game for years already and here I was, an infant, showing up to the playground for the first time. I put on my t-shirt and ball cap when we were done with all of the official stuff and sat at my spot on the panel where they directed me. Apparently, it was unorthodox to have any kind of press questions the day of the actual weigh-in, but since I was a last minute addition to the card and neither of us were cutting weight, they changed things up a bit. I didn’t know any better and didn’t really care.