Fighting Dirty. Lori Foster

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ now, those long, slim legs hugged around him, hear the catch in her breathing, feel the wet slickness...

      “Ready to spar?”

      Drawing a deep breath, he turned to Leese and saw he wore headgear and had his mouthpiece handy.

      Leese grinned. “We played paper/scissors/rock and I lost.”

      Not understanding, Armie shook his head.

      “Not sure if it’s for Jude’s benefit or if you’re pissed about something, but you’re really pounding out the workout today.”

      Armie frowned, glanced out at the room and saw a whole lot of people watching. What the hell? He wasn’t a Hollywood star like Jamison so they could all just go about their business.

      To Leese, he said, “You can take whatever I throw at you.”

      Leese grunted. “Going to be one of those days, huh?” He followed Armie to the corner where he had his gear. “Truthfully, though, I like it. Better opportunity for me to learn.”

      Since the improved attitude was still a somewhat new turnaround for Leese, who had, at one point, been something of a dick, Armie always enjoyed working with him. He learned fast, put his heart into it and was proving to be a better fighter than any of them had expected. Armie wasn’t sure if Leese had what it took to be a champion, but he could put on one hell of a fight.

      After wedging in his mouth guard and fastening on his headgear, Armie said, “Let’s go.”

      For another hour they sparred. Armie alternately put it to Leese, and then instructed him. That was all well and good, but then Jude wanted to see Cannon with him.

      “You too tired?” Jamison asked him.

      Cannon spoke for him, saying, “Armie has more energy than any fighter I’ve ever seen. He doesn’t gas out, ever.”

      Rolling his eyes over that effusive praise, Armie said, “If you were a chick I wouldn’t mind getting stroked, but from another dude it’s getting weird.”

      Cannon laughed. “So you are tired?”

      “I’m fine.”

      Jamison studied him. “I’d say by those bloodshot eyes you had a night of it.”

      New heat joined that from exertion. Again he said, “I’m fine.”

      Jamison looked at Cannon, who smirked, and they both laughed.

      “Yuck it up.” Armie flexed his shoulders. “We’ll see who wears down.”

      Cannon joined him on the mat. “Challenging me?”

      He sent his friend a mean grin. “You won’t be any good to Yvette tonight.”

      “Boys, boys,” Jamison said, but Armie could tell he loved this shit. “I don’t want anyone mangled. Just spar so I can see the moves, okay?”

      Cannon said, “Yeah, Yvette prefers me physically available.”

      They all laughed over that.

      Apparently Jude Jamison didn’t realize that he and Cannon were like brothers and one would never hurt the other. Of course, it was possible Cannon might drop down a weight class one day. If he did and the SBC set them up to actually compete against each other, they’d both give it their all. But that was for sport, without an ounce of animosity involved.

      Armie and Cannon engaged, and pretty soon everyone stood alongside the mat watching. Most of the ladies had finally cleared out; they didn’t really hang at the rec center all day the way many of the athletes did.

      His friends, Gage and Justice, Brand and Miles, Leese, Denver and Stack, all called out different submissions. Armie went through each one. Of course, Cannon was resisting but, for the sake of giving Jamison a demonstration, he didn’t really fight back. If he had, it wouldn’t have been so easy.

      By the time they finished it was pushing four o’clock and sweat covered Armie’s entire body. He’d had a few quick breaks and wolfed down the lunch Harper put together for him, but otherwise, he’d been busy.

      Stack did him a solid by helping him get his gloves and headgear off. “You have really sick speed.”

      “I agree,” Jamison said as he joined them. “And you honestly don’t look tired.”

      “Getting there,” Armie said. Sometimes his overabundance of energy was a problem. Like the times he tried to screw himself into exhaustion so he could sleep. Usually the woman wore out first, and then he had a hell of a time getting her up and out of his apartment.

      “He and my wife are both endless sources of energy,” Stack said. “Although it pisses her off when I compare her to Armie, given his rep and all.”

      “It’d piss me off, too,” Justice told him. “That is, if I was a sweet lady like Vanity.”

      “You’re jealous,” Denver accused. And then to Jude, “Armie racks up conquests left and right.”

      “Usually,” Miles added, “it’s the ladies chasing him.”

      “So I’ve heard.” Jamison clapped Armie on the shoulder. “Get your shower and change, and then we can talk business.”

      “Sure. Be back in ten.” After drying off his face, Armie slung the towel around his neck and grabbed up his gym bag. Chatting together, Leese and Justice followed him toward the showers. Cannon had paused to talk to some of the newer fighters hanging out.

      The tepid water of the shower felt good and helped Armie to clear his thoughts a little. He scrubbed off the sweat, and then just soaked his head for a few minutes under the spray.

      Merissa would be over again tonight and he honestly didn’t know if he’d be able to keep his hands off her. He wouldn’t drink. He’d be crystal clear. But that might not help when put up against the force of her appeal.

      For so damned long he’d been hankering for her. When she hankered back... Yeah. He had knockout blows, but he wasn’t strong enough to resist that.

      Knowing he shouldn’t keep Jamison waiting, he turned off the water and quickly dried, then stepped out of the shower.

      “Holy shit.”

      He turned, saw Leese looking stunned and asked, “What’s your problem?”

      “Whoa!”

      He turned again and saw Justice standing there slack-jawed.

      Quickly getting irked, Armie scowled. “What?”

      Cannon strode in, his cell phone to his ear, and suddenly Leese was at his back, way too damn close for two naked dudes. Armie was ready to shove him away when Justice stepped in front of him. Crowded between a lot of naked muscle, Armie said, “What the hell?”

      In a low whisper, Justice told him, “Hold up a second.”

      “Dude, we’re a hair from crossing СКАЧАТЬ