Letting Lox In Read online

  I shove his arm, “Marco would kill you.”

  They both laugh and Sly shuts off the TV. “So what are we going to do tonight?”

  I shrug, “I have no plans.”

  Huck smiles. “That little shit, Gibbs, said that there is a new band playing at Green’s tonight. He says they’re pretty good. We could ride down and check them out. Celebrate beginning our new lives.”

  Sly slaps the couch before he gets up. “Sounds like a plan to me. I’m gonna go change.”

  I sigh, glancing back at a black TV screen, “Sure, let’s go.” I go to change.

  An hour and a half later, we are getting out of my truck and headed inside.

  “Hey, don’t forget we have lunch at Mom’s tomorrow,” I tell them as we go in the door.

  We each grab a beer from the bar and settle in for the show that’s about to start. As we talk about some of the ideas for the gym, Huck lets out a low whistle. “Damn, those two girls that just walked in are fucking hot.”

  I look over and see the girls from Doc’s office. “Yeah, the brunette is my massage therapist. The cute short one works the front desk.” I try to shrug it off. I don’t want them to know that Sloan is so fucking hot and that as much as I don’t want to admit it, she’s been the star of my wet dreams for the past few nights. I watch them walk over, grabbing a shot each and then some kind of drink from the bar.

  “Holy fuck, man, I’d get naked and let that little brunette rub all over me,” Huck blurts out.

  Sly glances over at me, “Seriously, man, how does it feel having a hard-on pressed into a massage table?”

  “Shut up you two, she’s a nice girl. Now the little one, she’s a spit fire,” I say as I see the cute little blonde making her way over to us and dragging Sloan behind her.

  She grins approaching us, “Well, hey there, Lox.”

  “Hey, y’all.” I spend a few minutes introducing the guys and girls to each other.

  Kara, the little short one, laughs looking over at Huck and Sly as she sizes them up. “So, God saw fit to make two of you that look like sex on a stick. Well, praise Jesus.”

  Sloan shushes her. “Kara.”

  She looks back at her with a duh look. “What? They know they are eye candy.”

  Huck leans back in his chair while Sly is laughing. Sly grins at her, “Yes, we know we are eye candy. Don’t be embarrassed, Sloan. If you feel that way about us, too, feel free to say so.”

  She laughs, “That’s okay, I think I’ll pass.”

  Kara laughs, “So do you guys get all hot and sweaty fighting in a ring, too?”

  Huck takes a big sip of his beer. “Yep, we sure do, sexy.”

  I look over at them, but then more to Sloan. “What are you girls up to tonight?”

  Sloan smiles. “Well, Kara wanted me to come hear this new band, she even lined me up a sitter so-” She shrugs, “Who am I to turn down an adult night?”

  The guys glance back and forth at her and I. Huck smiles, “You have a kid?”

  She nods shyly. “Yep, he’s five.”

  He nods, obviously shocked. “You don’t look old enough to have a five year old.”

  She laughs, “I’m not. I was twenty when I had him.”

  Sly looks over at her carefully, “So where is his dad?”

  I could kill him. “Sly!”

  Sloan motions that it’s okay. “He’s not in the picture. Well, really he made it clear that he didn’t want to be in the picture so I’ve never really asked him.”

  This hits close to home for the three of us. Sly looks up from his beer. “What a dick.”

  I look at her trying to steer away from this conversation. I chime in, “So why don’t we all go dance a little before the band starts? Sloan here is out to have a good time. Let’s make sure she has one.”

  Kara pipes in, “Now we are talking.” She swallows the rest of her drink and slams her glass down.

  We head out to the dance floor and several men around us take notice of the girls.

  Sloan has such a natural beauty, and she moves so gracefully with her long hair swishing around. Whoever that stupid dick is that let her go is just that - a stupid dick. I can tell so much more of her shape since she’s not in her scrubs.

  All of a sudden, a squeal breaks me from my trance of looking at her body.

  “THIS IS OUR FREAKIN’ SONG!” Kara screams.

  Meghan Trainor’s song “Title” booms around the room.

  I watch Kara and Sloan sing along.

  Baby, don't call me your friend

  If I hear that word again

  You might never get a chance to see me naked in your bed

  And I know girls ain't hard to find

  But if you think you wanna try

  Then consider this an invitation to kiss my ass goodbye…

  I watch Kara dance around the twins, just having fun. Seeing Sloan’s smile is wonderful and suddenly I know I can’t wait to see her again on Monday for my massage.

  As the song ends, we head back to our table and get ready for the band to start.

  The little shit Gibbs was right about the band, they are awesome. I can see them doing great things. Maybe we could get them to play at the grand re-opening of the gym.

  Speaking of that, “Hey Kara, Sloan, how would you girls feel about helping us out with something?”

  Everyone at the table looks at me confused. I put my hands out to signal that I’m going to explain.

  “Our manager/coach/father figure/gym owner has approached us with the prospect of working at the gym full-time and sort of being owners. He would like for us to start offering self-defense classes. We are going to be doing some training to be certified, but we are going to need women to practice with. I was thinking you guys could come down and you would get something out of it as well.”

  The guys started nodding as soon as I started talking. Sly perks up when I finish. “Yes, that would be great. We can practice on each other all day long, but it just escalates into us sparring. We could use people with smaller frames.”

  Huck chimes in, “Plus, it would be something good for both of you girls to know,” he says with a deadpanned face. I’ve never seen him act this way toward girls.

  Kara smiles, “Sounds like fun, plus a great work out.”

  Sloan nods, “Yeah, that would be good to know.” She glances at her watch. “But right now we need to go so I can relieve my sitter. You guys, I had a great night. Thanks so much.” She turns to walk away. “Lox, I’ll see you Monday and we can talk more about it.”

  I nod. “Sure. See you Monday.”

  As she walks away, Sly and Huck both chuckle. Sly chimes in, “So just exactly how over the moon are you for this girl?”

  I look at them like they’re stupid, trying to blow them off. “What? She’s cool, it’s not like that.”

  Huck laughs, “Whatever, you could not take your eyes off her ass or rack all freakin’ night. I kinda feel sorry for you.”

  I shake my head. “Dude, she’s got a kid. She doesn’t need me in her life causing confusion.”

  They both shake their heads and go back to sipping on their beers.

  CHAPTER 6

  SLOAN

  “See, you had a really good time. I knew you would.” Kara says as we are headed back to my house.

  I nod. “Yes, I did. Thanks for making me come out. That band was really good.”

  “The company wasn’t too bad either.”

  I laugh. “Yeah, the guys were fun.”

  She smirks. “Not bad to look at either. Those twins could be double the fun!”

  “Oh my God, you are too freakin’ much.” Thoughts of Lox run through my head. “So what do you think about taking the self-defense classes?”

  She shrugs, “I think it’s a great idea. Not only will we get to spend some one on one, hands on time with the hotties, but it would be good to know. Especially for you being alone with Sage.”

  “That’s what I was thinking. Well, the part abo
ut it being good to know.”

  We laugh and make jokes all the way back to my house. As we pull up, I look over to her. “Thanks again, Kara. I mean it. I haven’t had the opportunity to act my age in a long time. As much as I love Sage with all of my heart, sometimes-”

  She smiles thoughtfully. “I know what you are saying, sometimes it’s nice to have a break from reality. Why haven’t you ever contacted his dad?”

  “He’s a jerk. He was about to make it big when I found out was pregnant and he basically blew me off. Wrote me a check and told me to go away. The worst part is that we are from the same hometown, he is kind of the hero of our town. So, I decided I didn’t need him and I moved on. My parents and my brother had helped me until I moved here.”

  “Why did you move here if your support system was there?”

  I shake my head. “It’s a long story for another day. Let’s get inside and make sure Jade has survived.”

  The rest of the weekend seems to fly by. I take Sage to the park to play on Saturday. Sunday, my parents and my brother come over to take us to lunch. They also bring me a bunch of the vegetables my mom put up to go in my freezer, which is very nice. It’ll certainly help out with my grocery bill for a while. It’s times like this that I realize how much I hate Lucas Smith. I hate the fact that he doesn’t have to worry about money and here I am worrying about making sure his son eats.

  Monday morning finds me a little nervous, but excited, about seeing Lox. He’ll be in at nine. Kara smiles as I walk through the door. “Hey girl, ready for another week at it?”

  “Yep. Oh and I think Sage may have fallen even further in love with Jade. All weekend it was, ‘Jade did this. Jade did that’.”

  She laughs, “Yeah, she thought he was super cute, too.”

  “Well I’m gonna go get my room set up, I need to turn on my warmers and stuff.”

  She winks. “Yep, gotta be ready for your nine o’clock.”

  I just shake my head and walk away.

  Soon, I’m walking out to the lobby. “Lox, are you ready?”

  He stands up, placing his phone in his pocket. “Sure.”

  He follows me to my room. “Okay, same as last time. I’ll step out and let you get ready.”

  He nods and I close the door. I tap on the door and step back in a few moments later. “Are you warm enough? I can place a blanket over you.”

  “No, I’m fine. I’m pretty hot natured.”

  You are pretty hot, I’ll give you that. I shake my head, trying to clear out those thoughts. He’s a patient and I’m a professional.

  He speaks again. “So how was the rest of your weekend?”

  “It was good, I took Sage to the park on Saturday and my family came to visit on Sunday. How was yours?”

  “Pretty good. We had dinner at my mom’s Saturday night, then made some more plans for the gym on Sunday.”

  “You guys are pretty tight, huh? I mean you and the twins.”

  He nods his head as much as he can while he’s face down. I’m massaging his leg. “Yeah, we’ve been best friends since elementary school.”

  “Wow. That is a long time. How does Marco fit in the picture? I’m guessing you guys are pretty close with him.”

  He sighs. “Marco has been a mentor to us since we were in middle school. The twins had a pretty rough life and me, well, my dad is a piece of shit. Marco is friends with my mom, so he took us under his wing.”

  After finishing his second leg, I move to his back. “That sounds pretty cool.”

  “So does your family live nearby? You said they came over Sunday.”

  “They live over in Hagans so it takes them about an hour and a half to get here.”

  He moans as I hit a tight knot in his shoulder. “That is tight right there. Is that too much?”

  “No, it’s fine. It’s a good pain, you know?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What made you move from one small town to another one?”

  Yeah, not going there. “Um, I just needed a change.”

  He’s quiet for a few minutes and I realize he’s dozed off. I keep working and a few minutes later, it’s time for him to turn over. “Lox,” I say softly.”

  “Hmm.”

  “It’s time to turn over.” I hold the towel to shield him as he turns. He’s still half asleep. Once he’s on his back and I’ve laid the towel back down, his erection is very noticeable. I’m a professional and men get erections during massages, it happens. His is magnificent, though. Holy Shit. Look away, Sloan. Keep it professional. Once he starts waking up more, I sense that he realizes the erection because he starts talking more, trying to move his mind elsewhere.

  “So, did you and Kara talk about helping us with our class?”

  “Yes, we did. We are both excited about it. I wanted to ask you about something else.”

  He nods and I move around, working on his arms. “Sure. Ask away.”

  “Well, the other day while I was at the park with Sage, I was watching all the kids play. I mean, I keep my eyes on Sage like a hawk, but it’s always my fear that someone will try to take him. I think that’s every parent’s fear. Have you guys thought about a kid’s class on Saturdays that goes past Stranger Danger? Maybe talk to them about how to possibly get away from an abductor?”

  “No, we haven’t, but that is a great idea. Maybe it could coincide with the female class so it would encourage more moms to come. They wouldn’t have to find childcare.”

  I’m a little excited. “Yes, that would be an awesome idea. I mean especially for someone like me as a single mom. I was already trying to plan in my head what I would do with Sage while I took the class.”

  “I’m glad you brought this up. Now I can’t wait to talk to the guys about it. As far as Sage goes, while it’s just us at the gym, he can come hang out. It’s not like he can break anything in there.” He chuckles.

  As I finish his shoulders, I say, “Okay. Sounds good. Just let Kara and I know when you guys are ready.”

  “Okay, well we are going to have some renovations going on at the gym, but we are taking our classes during that time to be certified. When we do the grand re-opening, it’ll be all new and shiny. But you guys can come while they are doing the renovations since you’re going to be helping us out.”

  “Sounds good,” I turn for the door. “See you out front.”

  CHAPTER 7

  LOX

  Huck and Sly are practically pissing themselves laughing at me right now. Sly puts his hand up. “Wait, so let me get this straight. You fall asleep during the massage. Then, you wake up when she gets you to roll over with a raging hard on and she goes on like she hasn’t noticed anything?”

  Huck chimes in, “Must not have been that impressive.”

  I roll my eyes at him, “Fuck you, man. My shit is impressive, but she’s a professional. You know her, she’s not like that. She was trying not to embarrass my dumb ass.”

  Sly shakes his head, still trying to reign in his laughing. “Look man, I told you the other night I would have a hard time controlling it. Sloan’s a very pretty girl, she’s the whole package. You know?”

  I nod. “Look guys, what I wanted to talk about was a serious idea Sloan brought up. What about doing a class on Saturday’s geared towards small kids? Like teaching them about fighting off attackers. It could be done at the same time the moms are doing self-defense.”

  Huck looks deep in thought over the idea while Sly nods. “Sounds like a good plan. Give the moms and kids that sign up a discount price for the set of lessons.”

  Huck shakes his head. “No, I don’t want to charge for the kid classes. As much time as the three of us had to spend taking care of ourselves when we were little, we could’ve been snatched up at any time.”

  “You’re right, Huck.” I sit there and think for a minute about Sloan, about her being a single mom. “Actually, why don’t we do the opposite?”

  Sly looks confused. “What do you mean?”

  “I was thinking ab
out Sloan.” They both smirk. “Stop, what I’m saying is single moms like Sloan. We could offer moms who bring their kids a discount on their class.”

  The both nod. Huck smiles. “That’s a great idea.”

  “All right, we’ll run it all by Marco tomorrow.” Sly says as he turns to the TV. “Okay, let’s catch up some more on Grey’s, I mean we have to see if they all survive the plane crash.”

  ~*~*~

  We’re sitting in Marco’s office running the ideas we’ve come up with by him. “I’m glad you guys have put so much thought into this. This means a lot to me. The contractors said they could be done in about a month.”

  “Yeah, that sounds great.”

  Sly pipes in. “Now, how about the fights we have coming up?”

  Marco looks on the books. “Lox, you are going up against Langley next week. You know he’s a punk, he thinks he’s got you. Don’t let him get in your head. I found some of his videos you need to watch.” He points to the twins. “You guys need to decide who is going to change weight classes. It would serve you both better to be in different weight classes. Sergio just moved up and Huck, he wants you.” He pulls out some charts and points to Huck. “Now, I’m going to suggest you move up to middleweight. Last weigh in you were 182 and Sly was 178. Not only are you closer to 186, your arms are a couple of inches longer. What do you two think about the moving around?”

  Huck shrugs. “I can do it, sounds good to me. I’ve been wanting to put Sergio’s ass in his place anyway.”

  Sly laughs. “Then I can call you fat ass.”

  He shoves Sly, “Then I can call you needle dick.”

  I stand up. “Shut up, both of you. We knew you two couldn’t stay in the same class forever.”

  Sly slumps. “Fine.”

  Huck and Marco start talking about the changes he’s going to be making to gain the few pounds he needs to.

  I put my hand on his shoulder. “Come on man, help me look at something in what’s going to be the classroom.” He nods and follows me out.

  I look at him. “So what’s really wrong? Did you really want to jump up to the next weight class?”

  “It’s just, I don’t know. Huck and I have always been together on everything.”