Fuck. Did she know what she was doing to me? If I thought I was any ounce of good enough for her, I’d show her how I take care of business.

I took a deep breath. There was no way I could be reading her right; after all, she was dating Chris. I needed to back off.

“Yeah,” I said. “With my arm all messed up, I’m not planning any big rendezvous anytime soon.”

MacKenzie took a deep breath. “Right, so let’s start on your stretches.”

Fourteen

MacKenzie

The deal was that I would spend two hours a day twice a week with Ian, working on his physical therapy exercises and stretches. And apparently that was all he wanted to work on.

I couldn’t believe I’d flat-out asked him why he didn’t have sex before a fight. So much for being “professional.” I hated what happened after that, though. I’d basically baited him by reminding him he didn’t have an upcoming fight, and he still wouldn’t go near me.

So that was it. I was done throwing myself at him. In fact, if I wasn’t behind in rent, I might have even quit. But I still needed the job, so I would make the best of it.

The new guy Chris brought in to train with Ian arrived at the gym the next morning. Evidently he didn’t get the memo that Ian was temporarily benched. The new guy’s name was Jonah, which made me laugh, because he seriously was the size of a freaking whale. He kept himself busy by coaching the other guys at the gym on what they called “ground and pound,” which also made me laugh. Who in the world thought that was a good fighting term?

Jonah didn’t bother taking it easy on the guys, which kept me busy. I was working on one of his latest victims when Chris called me into his office. I put a Band-Aid on a guy’s chin, which had already stopped bleeding, then assured him that he didn’t need stitches before following Chris to see what he needed.

“What’s up, boss?” I asked as he took a seat at his desk. I sat down on the couch across from him. He’d surprised me by actually managing to keep it all business at work. Maybe not all guys were cavemen.

“I just wanted to check how things were going with you.”

“Fine,” I said. “Jonah’s keeping me busy.”

He laughed, then leaned forward, folding his arms on his desk. “How are things with Ian? The little twerp has been refusing to go to the doctor to get a checkup, so while he’s out of the gym, you’re my only source.” He winked.

The fact that Ian was refusing to go to the doctor was news to me. I would have to get on him for that. We’d only just started working together one-on-one.

“He’s doing okay,” I said. “I would like to see him improve a little faster, but he’ll get there.” I hope.

Chris nodded. “Good. I don’t want to see him miss out on his first big fight.” He leaned back in his chair and opened a drawer, pulling out an envelope. “I know this is early, but I was writing out the payroll checks today, so I figured I might as well give this to you now.”

“Thank you.” I reached out and took the envelope. He had no idea how close I’d been to asking for an advance on my paycheck. This would be just enough to get my rent up-to-date. Thank God.

He pushed up from the desk and sauntered over to the couch, taking a seat next to me. “So, MacKenzie, can we pretend we aren’t at work long enough for me to ask you to dinner tonight?” He took my hand in his and wove his fingers through mine.

Chris was sweet sometimes. I had been warming up to him, but still wanted to take it slow. He seemed eager to move forward to the next level, whatever that was, but I wasn’t ready yet. Thank God he’d been patient with me.

“I have girls’ night tonight, remember?”

He gave me a big smile. “I do, but I was hoping it was canceled or something. A guy can dream, right?” He kissed the back of my hand. “We’re still on for Friday night, though, aren’t we?”

“Yeah.” He’d begun to refer to Friday as our “date night,” a phrase that for some reason had my stomach twisting in knots. But I tried not to think about it.

Fifteen

Ian

The first one-on-one session with MacKenzie had nearly killed me. Not because of the pain—I could handle that—but having her bounce around me in that low-cut tank top was torture. I had to use every trick I knew to keep my dick from giving her a constant personal salute.

I decided today would be different, which was why I took an extra-long shower before our next appointment, soaping myself up to take care of business. I would never make it through another session with her without a release.

All I had to do was think of her—her round ass, her heavy tits, or her long, slender legs—and I got hard. It was always her. I’d tried thinking about other women, but I always came back to MacKenzie.

We hadn’t gone very far that night she still hated me for, but I hadn’t forgotten the sweet taste of her soft mouth. I imagined her lips sucking my cock as I stroked it, her skillful tongue and lips massaging my shaft. It was hardly any time before I was brought to the edge.

As I came, I imagined all the ways I wanted her—riding me on the bench in my gym, against the wall just out of sight of the window, or finishing what we started in the back of my car. Most of all, I wanted to have her in my bed. I imagined thrusting into her hot, wet cunt with her tight little ass in the air, and I came so fucking hard.

• • •

Downstairs in the gym, MacKenzie helped me through each of the exercises. This time I could actually concentrate on the different stretches and movements—for the most part.