16
The large conference room in the MGM Grand buzzed with the energy of over a thousand fans who’d turned out for the first WFC Fan Appreciation Day. Two hours into the event and Jules was ready to call it a success. People streamed through the rows of tables where nearly fifty fighters signed posters and posed for photos. Music played in the background, and a big screen on the wall at the far end of the room played a highlight reel of recent fights.
Jules’ dad had just announced that the first live fighting demo was about to start in the next room, so many of the fans began to head off in that direction. But the die-hard fans were still lined up twenty deep to meet the champions who were sitting up on a stage in front of the big screen. From her vantage point on the side of the stage, she could see that across the room Nick still had a queue of his own. A bubble of pride swelled in her chest as she watched him arm wrestle a ten-year-old girl and lose, shaking his arm as if she’d put up a tough fight.
“Dad?” She waited for him to hand the microphone to the A/V guy and turn back around. “I don’t know if you noticed, but Nick still has a fairly long line, and most of them are wearing his shirt from Imperial,” she said, nodding toward Nick’s line of fans.
“Yeah?” It was more of a grunt than a distinct word and his mouth turned up at the corner in distaste. She only barely managed not to roll her eyes. He’d been irritable and short with everyone all day. For a guy who was seeing his dream of the WFC making it to the next level come true, he was behaving like an ass. She should’ve known better than to talk to him about Nick, but she charged ahead anyway.
“That proves you were right. His fans followed him to the WFC like you wanted.” Her dad hadn’t said one kind word about Nick’s performance in the commercial they’d produced, though he had told Jules he liked the ad, and he’d said the giant billboard with Nick’s face above the WFC building was “a good idea,” but he’d yet to thank Nick for his help. It was as if he refused to acknowledge Nick’s contributions to the success of the league. As much as she hated keeping her relationship with Nick a secret—and it had been so much harder than she’d thought—they had no choice. She’d hoped that given a little time, she’d be able to convince her dad that Nick was a great guy. Then she could gently broach the subject of the nonfraternization clause. But it was becoming clear that nothing Nick did would be good enough for her dad. Bringing up their relationship now would only give her dad another reason to dislike him, while ending Nick’s chances of winning the tournament.
So they were stuck sneaking around like teenagers.
He nodded before completely changing the subject. “Maddox is up first with the demo, but make sure Johnson and Oliveira are ready to go. Everyone wants to see the new guy in action. I still can’t believe the signing bonus Oliveira talked us into. And it’s not like he needs the money. Christ.”
“Already on it.” She nodded to where the intern she’d snagged from the University of Nevada was leaning over to tell Colby Johnson, the bantamweight champion, that he was up in twenty minutes.
“Thanks, Julian,” her dad called as he rushed off to the demo room to officially announce Maddox to the crowd.
Jules sighed and figured she was lucky that he’d at least tossed a thanks in her direction. With the way her day had been going, she needed it. Though everything seemed to be running smoothly now, her morning had been one catastrophe short of a disaster. The audio hadn’t been working and it had taken two hours to fix the wiring issue. Two of the screens the venue had provided had been ripped. Luckily they’d found a spare, but the other had been taped up with duct tape from the back, and she hoped the fans were too awestruck by the fighters to notice. Then her intern had forgotten to bring the flyers for the heavyweights, so after getting chewed out by her dad, she’d had to make a last-minute dash back to the office to find them. The day wasn’t even half over and her feet hurt, she had dust on her skirt, she’d scraped her hands moving all those boxes by herself, and she could feel the beginnings of a tension headache.
Her gaze drifted back over to Nick, who was now shadowboxing with a group of boys. He feinted left and then right, pretending to dodge their punches, but then stumbled back as if one had gotten him on the chin. She covered a laugh with her hand at his overly dramatic expression. Acting was not one of his talents, but the boys howled with laughter.
As she watched him with them, she realized he’d make a good father one day.
Whoa! Where had that come from? She could almost hear the record scratch of her thoughts clumsily stopping and then restarting. God, did she even want kids? And what about marriage? She’d never seriously considered either one because she’d never thought she’d find anyone who’d make risking her heart worth it. For the first time ever, she thought maybe she could see that future for herself. A wedding with a pretty white dress and flowers. Kids and dinner around the kitchen table.
With Nick, anything seemed possible. He was worth the risk. A catch in her throat made her smile stupidly.
Get it together, Darcy. This is not the time, and definitely not the place.
As the kids gathered around him for a photo, he looked over at her and gave her a wink, sending flutters through her belly. She smiled back before turning toward the camera crew to go over the type of video she wanted for the WFC website and social media channels. She planned to upload short videos of some of the fighter demonstrations along with candid fan reactions and sound bites to help build momentum for the tournament.
When she was finished, she glanced back at Nick to see that the kids had moved on and he was now posing for pictures with Chelsea, one of the ring-card girls who was dressed in her skimpy WFC-issued sports bra and boy shorts. A guy stood between them, grinning at the camera, but when they were finished, Chelsea leaned over, her hand pressed to Nick’s shoulder as she whispered something that made him laugh. His fingers skimmed over her upper arm when he said something back. Chelsea nodded and pushed her long blond hair over her shoulder as they parted for the next fan to take a selfie with them.
Jealousy churned in Jules’ stomach and left a bitter taste in her mouth. Logically, she knew that Nick hadn’t meant anything by the gesture. But knowing that didn’t stop her heart from twisting in her chest. She wanted to walk over there and stake her claim, but she couldn’t, because Craig Darcy had to make everything difficult. Story of her damn life.
Fighting back her annoyance, she took a breath and followed the camera crew to the demo room and watched Gabe demonstrate a few holds with a sparring partner. “Make sure you get footage of Johnson before he takes the stage,” she instructed Sam, the cameraman. He gave a thumbs-up and went over to talk to the bantamweight champ, who’d just walked into the room. She stayed through the end of Gabe’s demo to thank him for his participation, and then went back to the meet-and-greet room.
She couldn’t help but look over at Nick. His line had died down a little, but he was still laughing with Chelsea. Jules sighed and tried to extinguish the unreasonable flare of jealousy that came to life in her chest. She walked over to the small meeting room off of the larger conference room, where she sorted through the extra boxes of photographs, flyers, and posters, grabbing a handful of the ones she’d had made for Nick, and then took them to his table. She might not be able to kiss him in front of Chelsea like she wanted, but she could go over and assure herself that nothing was going on.
“Hi, Chelsea,” Jules said, and smiled, trying to tame her jealousy with kindness. The woman said hello and went back to talking to a group of obvious admirers. One of the guys was asking her to sign a poster of herself.
“It’s going great, don’t you think?” Nick smiled at Jules, and she only barely managed to stop herself from touching him. It had become instinctual to reach for his hand or to lean in and kiss his cheek. It was so damn frustrating that even those simple things were off-limits for them. Just another reason not being able to tell people about their relationship was grating on her nerves.
“It is.” She nodded, setting the stack of headshots down on his table harder than she’d intended. “You certainly look like you’re having a good time.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she wanted to call them back, because her anger and jealousy weren’t entirely his fault. Everything was grating on her nerves today.
He picked up on her mood, because the smile slid from his face and he stared at her for a second. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
She shook her head, knowing it was ridiculous to talk about it now while they were working. She shouldn’t have said anything. “I’m fine.”
“You don’t sound fine.” He raised a brow.
Despite herself, she glanced over at Chelsea, who’d just thrown her head back to laugh at something the man taking a selfie with her had said. Her toned legs seemed to go on for miles.
Nick stepped closer and lowered his voice. “Is this about Chelsea?”
She tried to bite her tongue, but her jealousy and frustration couldn’t be contained. “You’ve been really friendly with her.”
“Yeah, part of my job is to be friendly and talk to the fans and staff.”
“Is it? Because you were talking to her, not the fans, for a long time. And it looked a lot more like flirting from where I was standing.”
He sighed and ran a hand over the back of his neck. “Are you serious right now?”
Jules exhaled slowly and shook her head. She knew he hadn’t been flirting, not really, but it sure felt like he had been. “Look, we’ll talk later. I have to get the Johnson posters out for him to sign after the demo.” She turned to leave and almost ran into another fan approaching them.
The woman had bottle-blond hair and was wearing an Imperial MMA T-shirt with Nick’s face and the championship belt from his former league on it. The shirt was tied at the waist and slit down the front so her boobs were nearly falling out, and she had eyes only for Nick. “Nick! Could I get your autograph?” She held a Sharpie out to him, and when he took it, she tugged her shirt down even farther, clearly wanting the autograph on her cleavage. Nick pulled the cap off the Sharpie, and Jules barely restrained a growl as she stormed off to get herself together before her Darcy temper exploded in front of everyone.
“Jules.” Nick called out to her, but she ignored him, walking as fast as she could without actually running to get to the meeting room so that she could calm down.
Fuck! She didn’t know how much longer she could keep their relationship a secret. Between women coming on to Nick and her dad being so damned unreasonable about everything, she was coming apart at the seams. It didn’t seem fair that she couldn’t hold Nick’s hand in public without worrying about who would see them, or getting them both fired when her dad found out. She wanted to kick a stack of boxes when she walked into the room, but managed to restrain herself. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew her anger was simply a mix of frustration at the entire situation combined with her bad day, but that didn’t seem to help. Burying her face in her hands, she counted to ten to try to calm down.
“Jules?” Nick’s voice sounded way too close, and she whirled to see him standing in the open doorway. “What the hell was that?”
His appearance was just the spark the kindling of her anger needed. “Self-preservation. That’s what the hell that was.”
He crossed the room to stand in front of her, anger practically vibrating from him as he narrowed his eyes. “I was talking to Chelsea, yes. She was standing right next to me for photos. Did you want me to just ignore her?”
“Of course not, but you didn’t have to be so . . . so . . . God, so Nick about it.” He was nice and he made jokes, and while that didn’t mean he was flirting, that’s how it came off sometimes. “You didn’t have to touch her.”
“What are you talking about?” He looked at her as if she’d lost her mind, and maybe she had. She knew her nerves were frayed and her temper was short because of her hellish day.
Glancing to the open door, she saw people crowded around a fighter’s table, but it was far enough away that no one noticed them. She moved to the side of the room anyway so no one could see them without walking into the room. “I bet she gave you her number.” She hated how petulant she sounded, and yet she couldn’t stop the waves of frustration and jealousy from rising up and pushing out of her. Nick was hers, and it physically hurt to watch other women try to claim him while she stood in the shadows. A part of her wanted to scream, to pull him close, to hold on to him and never let go. To say fuck being in the shadows. But Nick had too much to lose, and she couldn’t.
Exhaling through his nose, he looked down at the floor before closing his eyes, and her heart sank because she knew she was right. “Yeah. She did.” His voice was softer.
“Well . . . there you have it.”
His head shot back up and his eyes pierced hers. “I didn’t take it, Jules, and I told her I have a girlfriend. Isn’t that the important part? I didn’t take it because I’m with you.”
Even though she knew he’d be faithful to her, the weight of the anxiety leaving her body made her knees weak. He must have seen the relief on her face, because his expression softened and he stepped forward, crowding her so that the backs of her thighs touched the table along the wall. “Sometimes women give me their numbers. It’s part of the job,” he explained as his fingers ghosted over her hips.
His scent filled her nose and her nerve endings responded because her whole body was tuned in to him. Every part of her woke up and urged her to press herself against him. She blinked and reminded herself they were at work. In a very public place. “I know that fans give you their numbers. But Chelsea’s not a fan.”
“You’re right. But I bet Chelsea wouldn’t have tried to give me her number if she knew about us. You wanted to keep it quiet, remember? If it bothers you so much, then let’s tell everyone,” he said softly, his breath rustling the hair at her temple. His fingertips pressed into her hips and she swayed closer to him. Before she could think better of it, her hands moved up the front of his shirt and she took a deep breath. He smelled so good. “Problem solved.”
“That’s not fair. It’s the contract.” Even as she spoke, she shut her eyes and breathed him in again, pressing her face to the warm crook of his neck.
“I wanted to talk to your dad. Get things out in the open. Do you really think he’d fire you?”
She did, but it was Nick’s future that she was worried about. “We can’t, Nick. I’d never forgive myself if you got kicked out of the WFC and missed out on the tournament because of me.”
“Then you have to trust me, sweetheart.”
“I know, and it’s not that I don’t trust you. It’s been an awful day. Between equipment breakdowns and my dad being an ass, I’m just wound too tight and I overreacted.” This felt good. She was in his arms and everything felt right again. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to take my bad day out on you.”
He put one arm around her waist while his hand moved up to cup the back of her head so he could look at her. “I’ve got you, Jules.”
“I love to hear you say that.” She groaned and raised up to kiss him. Running her tongue along his bottom lip, he parted them slightly and she touched the tip of his tongue with hers. “You taste so good,” she whispered. The familiarity reassured her that he was hers and she was his. That her jealousy wasn’t necessary. She could do this for a few more weeks until the tournament was over.
“Funny you should mention that.” He smiled, and his hands slid down over her hips to settle in the crease where her ass met her thighs. The tips of his fingers pressed between her thighs. She was dressed in a knee-length A-line skirt, and the heat of his touch nearly scorched her through the fabric. “I’ve been thinking about how you taste all day.” As he spoke, he began to hitch up her skirt. She glanced to the door to make sure no one was coming, but couldn’t bring herself to stop him. Her clit was already throbbing in anticipation of his touch and she’d soaked her panties. “I want to lay you out on this table, just like I did in your office, and lick you until you come, but I won’t because I’m pretty sure that’d get us caught, what with you screaming my name. So instead . . .” His voice trailed off when his fingers touched her bare thighs. “I’ll have to settle for just a taste to tide me over until later.” She sucked in a breath and held it, wanting his touch so badly that the chance of getting caught was worth it.
“Spread your legs,” he whispered.
She throbbed at Nick’s gentle command. Biting her bottom lip, she spread her legs a little farther apart. He gave her a wolfish grin as his fingers dipped under her panties. Footsteps made her gasp, but it was just someone rushing by. Close, but not close enough for her tell him to stop, though her heart pounded in her ears. He wasn’t even fazed.
“Mmm,” he moaned softly when his fingertips found her wet. Her body ached for him already. When he gently parted her lips and pressed his middle finger inside her, she nearly cried out at the touch, closing her eyes against the intense pleasure as her body clenched at him. It was always this way with him. She was gasoline, and he was a match, setting her on fire with the tiniest spark.
“Oh God, Nick,” she whispered, holding on to his shoulders.
“No problem!” Someone called out, and the voice was so much closer than it should’ve been. It jarred Jules out of her haze of pleasure. “Let me find some extras, and I’ll be right over.”
Nick jerked away from her just before her intern came inside their hideaway. “Oh, Jules, hey.”
Her legs were weak and she had to grip the edge of the table so tightly she was certain the strain showed on her face. She’d barely managed to push her skirt down and hadn’t even had time to check if her WFC T-shirt was creased from being pressed against Nick. Shit, that was close. “Tyler.” She smiled and tried to muster some authority in her voice.
Tyler looked at Nick, who was standing behind a stack of boxes in the corner, hiding what she knew was a very impressive erection. Tyler’s brow furrowed as though he was starting to wonder about the odd scene, so she racked her brain to think of something to distract him.
“I’m glad you’re here.” She gave him her best smile and pushed away from the table. She hoped to God her erect nipples weren’t showing through her cotton shirt. “I need to get this box of posters over to the demo room right away, but Nick needs more flyers, and they’re buried in one of these boxes. Can you take the box over while I help him out?”
“Of course.” Tyler smiled, taking the bait. “I came for the Johnson posters anyway.”
“Great. Thank you.”
Tyler took the box and left, and Jules nearly collapsed against the table. Her heart was threatening to beat out of her chest, but instead of her arousal abating, her clit was throbbing right along to the beat. It was like the nightclub all over again. The thought of getting caught scared the hell out of her, but it did nothing to stop her from wanting to do bad things with Nick.
Nick let out a breath and turned around, the front of his pants doing nothing to hide his massive erection. She met his gaze and saw that his eyes were dilated and almost predatory in the way they looked at her, like he could devour her. A fresh wave of arousal moved through her, making her body tremble.
“Nick.” She whispered his name, and tension caused by the thrill of almost getting caught shimmered in the air between them. With a low growl, he moved across the room to close the door.
“Damn, no lock.”
She nearly whimpered in frustration, but he pushed a stack of boxes laden with reams of paper in front of the door. It wouldn’t stop anyone from coming in, but it’d slow them down.
“Turn around.” His tone left no room for argument as he came toward her. As soon as she turned toward the table, he took her jaw in his hand and lifted her face to his for a searing openmouthed kiss. She arched, pressing her ass into him and rubbing against his cock. He groaned and let go of her face, yanking her skirt up as he broke the kiss. “Lean forward. We only have a minute, and I need to be inside you.”
Her heart nearly tripped over itself as she realized what he intended. He was going to have sex with her here. They were going to do this. Fuck, yes!
She reached behind her and cupped him through his pants, stroking him once, twice, before letting him go and leaning forward, one hand braced on the wall. His fingers brushed against her ass as he unfastened his belt and then his pants. The plump head of his cock dragged across her cheek, making her jump in anticipation. “Hurry.”
Pushing her panties to the side, he pulled them out of the way with the thumb of one hand and then grabbed her below the hips to angle her body for him. In one ruthless stroke, he buried his entire length inside her. “Fuck,” he groaned into her hair as she cried out, pleasure radiating from where they were joined.
She sucked in a deep breath as her body adjusted to his size. She throbbed around him, greedily clenching at him for more, but they stayed motionless for a moment.
“God, I love being inside you,” Nick whispered, his breath hot against her ear.
A voice outside as someone walked past the door seemed to remind him they only had mere moments for this, and he withdrew only to roughly push back in. “You feel so good, baby,” he whispered, his voice harsh and uneven.
She couldn’t get much leverage in her position, and she was already on her toes to give him the angle he needed, but she pressed back into him as much as she could. “Hurry. Before we get caught.” It was all the encouragement he needed. With another ragged groan, he grabbed her hips in a bruising grip and fucked her, hard and deep. The only sounds in the room were the table softly thumping against the wall and their strangled moans as he thrust in and out of her. The heavy drag of his cock inside her had her seeing stars, and she did her best to clench around him before he pulled out again. The coarse fabric of his pants brushed against her legs, reminding her that he was fully clothed, and that they were in public. Excitement and arousal churned together into one dizzying emotion that took her over.
She bit her bottom lip to keep from crying out as he pounded into her, each thrust punctuated by a soft grunt near her ear. Goose bumps tickled across her skin, and her legs trembled as the first wave of her orgasm loomed. Before she realized he’d moved, the fingertips of his right hand came down over her clit and then rubbed a rough circle over her swollen nub. “Fuck, Jules, gonna come.” His fingers combined with his hoarse, broken words were all she needed to send her soaring over the edge. She couldn’t help but release a cry as the orgasm washed over her. She clenched around him so tightly that he gave a jagged groan that he muffled against her neck as he came inside her with several long, hard pulses. His hips gave two more halting thrusts before he came to rest against her back, breathing as if he’d just run five miles.
After a minute, his hands fell to the table on either side of her. He pressed a kiss to the back of her head before slipping free of her body and smoothing her panties back into place. Still in a daze, part of her unable to believe what had just happened, she turned to watch him fastening his pants. When he was finished, he pulled her against him for a long, rough kiss before letting her go. Pushing the boxes to the side, he grabbed the doorknob and gave her a devilish grin. “If you feel jealous later, remember whose come is soaking your panties.”