“So, we meet again.”

John walked out of his shop, shirtless, his ripped and tanned muscles coated in spots by black grease. Even with the grease he still looked like a stud out of a sexy biker calendar. Kelly had to forcefully overt her eyes to keep from drooling.

John’s shop was basically a converted garage that was attached to his house. He appeared to be the only person who ran his business. It was a nice little setup. It struck Kelly as being the type of environment she would expect to see John thrive in; he was a self-employed man who worked alone with his hands all day.

“Hey, there. I haven’t heard from you lately,” Kelly said. She tried to keep her words from sounding too eager. She felt enough like a tool coming to meet him on his turf when she hadn’t heard from him in a week.

“I’ve been kind of busy. My little brother’s in training again, so I got to help get his ass into shape.”

“You work in his corner? So, you’re like his trainer?”

“Something like that. I got to keep the boy focused. He tends to get distracted with partying too much. So I got to put my boot in his ass every now and then.”

“I wanted to talk to you about the fight, actually.”

“Oh, yeah? Your boy ain’t getting nervous now is he?”

“No, he is training hard. I wanted to talk about us, actually. Aaron and I have gotten pretty close and he needs to stay focused, so if you could make sure and not tell him about us, then I would appreciate it.”

“What? You think I would do something like that?” John smiled. His smile was wicked and sexy all at once. She found herself lusting after his sexy swagger. The way he carried himself was just so unapologetically masculine and dominant that she just couldn’t help but be overwhelmingly turned on by him.

“This isn’t funny. He could get really hurt if he isn’t focused on this. Besides, do you want your brother to fight a man who is at a disadvantage? If his mind isn’t sharp then it’s going to be a lousy fight.”

“My brother doesn’t need that kind of help. Your boy is at a disadvantage because he thinks he won that last fight and he thinks he is a better fighter than Jack. That is what’s going to get him hurt. He doesn’t need my help for that.”

“Then you have nothing to gain by telling him. It would just hurt me,” Kelly said.

John walked around behind her, getting close, and taking a big sniff of her hair. His breath on the back of her neck and his dominant position behind her sent small goosebumps up and down her back. She wanted him to rip her damn dress off and do her right there. The same thought was running through his mind also.

He grabbed her hand and led her through the garage and into his house. Leading her through the kitchen and into the living room he threw her down on the couch. In an instant he had pulled her panties from her body, and pulled himself free from his pants.

He rammed deep inside of her and their bodies began to sync up in perfect harmony.

Kelly thought about Aaron and how much this might hurt him if he were to know about this. She was so confused. She knew that she should choose one or the other, but it was impossible to know which one to choose. Which one would make her happy? Did she even have a choice? John was not a man to be tied to any woman, but did that make her want him more? In the back of her mind was she secretly thinking about how many other women he was probably having casual liaisons with on a daily basis? She would have been stupid to think it was just her, but he was so damn good. The way he touched her and dominated her was what she needed sometimes. But she also needed a more tender touch like she had with Aaron and someone who respected her and listened to her. She saw a future with him, but the thing with John was like a drug that she lusted for daily. Once she had sampled it, she had to have more and more.

She left John’s shop feeling both exhilarated and dirty. It was almost a blur and she found herself almost wondering what had just happened. She had gone there to ask the man a simple question, and had ended up naked on his couch. She needed a good hot shower, to wash away the dirt—both physical and emotional. She could feel patches of grease on her body and she found this somehow turned her on. The man was able to just at the drop of a hat have her submit to his every need.

She didn’t know what to do. She wanted to stop this thing, but she knew that if she were in that situation again she would allow it to happen. A part of her needed it, but she couldn’t continue to have both. Could she?

* * *

The night of the fight came faster than she anticipated and somehow she suddenly found herself at ringside watching the fight. Her friend Amy had decided to come along and surprisingly she had ditched her poor excuse for a boyfriend, so it was just a girl’s night out which they had not had in quite a while.

She had waited through two other fights, before the main event, which was Aaron and Jack. She heard his entrance music, “The Sickness” by Disturbed blasting through the speakers and the crowd was suddenly on its feet. Aaron came into the ring and removed his robe. He looked great and the look on his face showed the kind of determination and raw aggression that Kelly had seen in him when they first met.

Jack entered a few minutes later. John was trailing right behind him working his corner. John spotted her in the front row and smiled at her. She really hoped that he didn’t do anything stupid, but with that man you couldn’t tell.

The fight started off with a bang. Jack ran right at Aaron releasing a flurry of kicks and punches. Aaron was ready for him and he easily side stepped it all. He went for a takedown tackling Jack’s legs and pulling him down. In an instant Jack was back on his feet. He grabbed Aaron in a clench and began to use knees and elbows to his ribs and chest. Aaron took a few hits, pushed Jack back releasing the clench. Then Aaron let loose a hard kick to Jack’s leg. Jack’s face clenched in pain as his leg buckled.

Aaron seized the opportunity and tackled Jack again, this time gaining a half guard position on top of him. Jack struggled to get loose, but Aaron kept his position. From there he began to let loose on Jack, raining down punches upon him. Jack managed to block a few but some hard shots were getting through. There was blood spewing from Jack’s nose now and Aaron showed no signs of letting up on his attack.

Jack struggled and managed to get a leg up across Aaron’s chest and he quickly went for the arm bar. He had it about halfway sunk in when Aaron stepped against Jack and twisted away from him pulling his arm out of danger. Jack tried to quickly get to his feet, but he no sooner stood on his feet then he caught a round house kick from Aaron right to the jaw.

The blow was devastating and dropped Jack to the ground.

“Go Aaron!” Kelly yelled.

John turned and looked at her. His face was stone for a moment, but then he smirked at her and turned his attention back to the fight.

Aaron leapt on Jack, pounding punch upon punch down upon him. Jack quickly turned his back, grabbing Aaron’s leg and pulling him off balance, offering relief from the onslaught of vicious blows pouring on Jack’s head and face.

Aaron steadied himself and pulled his leg free. He instantly hit Jack hard on the shoulder blades, causing him to drop his guard from his face. Aaron wrapped him up, with both arms wrapped tightly around Jack’s neck, cutting off the air. He jerked and pulled harder, locking the rear naked choke tighter. Jack was in trouble. He was passing out. After a few seconds of being unresponsive the ref called the fight.

Aaron had won.

“Yes!” Kelly screamed. Amy gave her a hug and high five.

Aaron stood in the ring victorious as crowds from both parties began to invade the ring and the announcers all clamored to interview the winner.

Kelly smiled. She knew what her choice was.

It had been clear all along.