With that thought, her leg was swept out from under her and she fell back with a thud. She looked up at her sparring partner and grimaced.

“That’s enough for today, Melanie,” Tobias announced. “You really need to pay attention. You continue to make the same mistakes.” Tobias was tough and had very little tolerance for careless mistakes. She understood why he was being hard on her.

He turned to the other girl. “Nice take down, Penny.”

“Sorry, Tobias. I’ll do better next time,” Melanie said. The problem was, Melanie didn’t know how to do better. She had been watching her brother train for years and knew exactly what it took to be successful in the cage. However, every time she would apply her knowledge to her actions, Tobias told her she was doing some aspect of it incorrectly.

She wanted this so badly, not only for herself, but to show her father he was wrong. Women could compete in this sport. She was going to work on letting go of her past and focus solely on what Tobias told her to do.

She was going to prove her father wrong, even if she had to put up with bitches like Macey, and a body that was constantly bruised and battered. It would be worth it all when she was holding that trophy in her hand. She was putting all her faith in Tobias that he could make her into the fighter she needed to be to successful in the cage.

She sucked up the pain coming from her cheekbone, going to shower and then change before driving home.

As Melanie walked into her apartment, she heard a crash in the living room. She immediately grabbed the taser she kept in her bag and ran into the living room.

As she pointed the taser in the direction of the noise, she saw a man’s bare ass and her roommate’s purple glitter toenail polished feet on the floor beneath him.

Melanie laughed. She never knew what she was going to walk in on with her roommate, Trish. It was the best remedy for the bad training session she’d just came from.

She dropped the taser down to her side. “Hey guys, what’s up?” She asked casually as if it was no big deal to see two naked people lying on the floor between the couch and coffee table.

“Melanie!! What the hell are you doing home so early?” Trish yelled as she looked around the man lying on top of her and saw the taser in Melanie’s hand. Trish rolled her eyes; she knew Melanie was always in attack mode.

“I’m having dinner with dad and Nick tonight; I left practice early.” Melanie set the taser down on the table. She noticed the man on top of Trish was actually trying to be polite and keep Trish covered. She also noticed he had a very nice ass. She asked again, “What’s up with you?”

Once Trish realized Melanie was just messing with them, she laughed. “Okay, you’ve seen enough. Turn around so we can get up!”

“Do I have to? I’d like to see the front view, too,” she teased as she turned to walk into her bedroom. She picked up the bag she had dropped and the taser, dodging a throw pillow as she walked away.

Melanie was studying kinesiology with plans to apply to physical therapy school. She would always be an athlete and this degree would keep her in the field she loved. She’d worked hard in high school to qualify for as many scholarships as she could get. That helped with being able to get an off campus apartment. She could have lived by herself, but Trish and she had hit it off immediately. Where Melanie tended to be focused on school and training, Trish lived for the moment. Melanie needed someone like Trish to keep her life balanced.

Trish had opened her eyes to a whole new world of parties and living on the wild side. Melanie didn’t let herself get out of control, but it was nice to let loose sometimes, and Trish was the perfect best friend and roommate to pull her out of her shell.

As she started getting ready for dinner, she heard the head board banging against the wall in the next room. Melanie sighed. It had been too long since her own headboard had hit the wall. Once she started doing better in training, she might have to take care of that bit of business…

* * *

Melanie arrived at the local Italian restaurant and eagerly looked for her brother Nicholas. Nicholas was everything to her and she was so proud of his accomplishments—he was currently ranked the light heavyweight champion.

She spotted him across the room as he was about to sit at the table. When she walked towards him, she noticed he received several looks from the women in the restaurant. She was used to it. Her brother was tall and dark, with an athlete’s build. Once women knew he was her brother, they would beg for her to hook them up, but Nicholas was too busy for a meaningful relationship and she hated to throw any more women his way to use and discard.

The waitress seemed to be struggling with getting her feet to move away from the table. When she saw Melanie, her smile disappeared.

“There’s my favorite sister!”

With that statement, the waitress was all smiles again, taking their drink order while they waited for their father. She damn sure needed a strong drink to numb her before she had to face him.

Nicholas looked hard at Melanie. “Dammit, Melanie, when are you going to learn to protect your face? What are they teaching you, to stand still and learn how to take a beating?”

Melanie growled, “It was just one mistake.” She didn’t want to tell him that she was making a lot of mistakes. He loved and supported her, but he was too busy with his own career and they both understood he didn’t have the time to train her at this point in his life.

“Where’s Dad?” she asked to change the subject.

Nicholas gave her a knowing look with his piercing blue eyes. Melanie always changed the subject when the conversation was too focused on her.

“He should be here in five. He had to work late.”

Their dad owned a training facility. Nicholas worked with him, but he spent most of his time training for his own fights, receiving money from both fights and endorsements. It provided a nice income, and lucky for her, he was very generous with his little sister. In addition, her dad would not train anyone in the same weight class as Nicholas. He always grew close to the men he trained and didn’t want to ever have to watch a fight between one of his students and his own son. Melanie had long ago buried the resentment of knowing her father could train and grow fond of strangers, but wouldn’t have anything to do with her dreams.

“So how’s your week been?” she asked.

“Still training for my next fight. I’ve been watching Conner’s tapes; I think it will be a good match, but I’ve seen some of his moves when he’s starting to feel fatigued. I think I’ll be able to wear him down and anticipate his next moves.” Nicholas exuded so much confidence in his abilities—not because he was cocky, but because he worked hard and knew what he was capable of in the cage. “I won’t be able to do dinner next week, I’m flying out to Denver to do a Hooter’s commercial.” Nicholas grinned. “It will probably take me several takes before I get it right.”

“Oh, please.” Melanie rolled her eyes. “Their outfits aren’t even that cute; what does everyone see in them?”

“We see ass and we like it. Most men do—if they tell you anything else, they’re lying, for your information. As your brother, I feel I should warn you about men’s weaknesses,” Nicholas taunted her. “Of course, since you have no ass, I can understand your hostility.”