Takedown (3 page)

“Anyway,” Mitchell said, his tone even again, the momentary anger gone. “You got another job and housing lined up, or are you dependent on this?”

It was Luke’s turn to feel the deep bite to his pride, his chest swelling with anger as he bit his nails into his palms. He made it sound like Luke was trapped there like some broke-ass farm hand.

Mitch would have been right. He was one short step up from that.

“This is it,” Luke growled under his breath, his jaw clenched. “This is—all I’ve got. I do the best fucking job at it, too.” He’d better not be thinking of replacing him.

Mitchell nodded slowly, not fazed by his aggression. That was rare: most people got freaked out and backed down, even when Luke wasn’t
that
pissed. But they’d always been the kind of guys who could go toe-to-toe with each other and then be best buddies three minutes later. “I’m here for two weeks. I’m either going to clean up the gym and sell it, or arrange for a management transfer and keep owning it. I can’t stay here and run it, obviously.”

“Obviously. You don’t know the first thing about the place.”

Mitchell didn’t rise to the bait. He just half-smiled, the expression infuriating. “Exactly. But this gym has to pay for itself, and profits have been dwindling since…”

Neither of them wanted to say it, and neither quite looked at the other. Luke fixed his eyes on the coffee table for a minute, then looked back at Mitchell. His former friend was looking out the window toward the dusty parking lot. “Right,” Luke answered. “He pulled a lot of people in.”

“My parents were saying things have changed around here.”

Luke’s hackles went up, but he stayed silent.

“They want me to ditch the place, but I haven’t decided yet.” Mitchell rose to his feet. “So that’s where I’m at right now. Anyway, I have to check out the office. There’s a lot of work to be done no matter what happens.”

Luke grabbed his glass with the rest of the protein shake and downed it, then pushed it away again. He scratched his head and nodded, staying on the couch. “See you down there.”

When the door closed after Mitchell, Luke leaned back in the silence. The faint creaking and thumps of equipment in use, the hint of voices echoing up through the floor, the smell of the gym…

He couldn’t lose this. Especially not so close to a fight, when routine was key.

But Mitchell…

Shit. Mitchell got
hot
while he was away. Confidence looked good on him.

Luke had a few minutes before he had to be back on the floor. He tried not to think of how damn fucked-up it was that his libido kicked in when one of his oldest ex-friends walked back into his life. The same friend he’d outed and driven out of town.

But it wasn’t just Mitchell. It was the post-fight adrenaline and the stress about the gym’s future getting to him. Jerking off always helped settle that.

Luke rose to his feet and headed for the bathroom, his fists still curled into tight balls.

H
ugh leaned back
in his chair, his hands folded behind his head. He was probably a decade older than Mitchell, but fighting took its toll on the body. He looked over forty now.

“Way I see it, we need prestige,” Hugh told Mitchell. “Toby was passionate about the sport. If he’d had enough coordination, he’d have been in the cage himself.”

“Right. So you need a fan to own it?”

“Not just any fan. Someone who’ll find bright young talents, who’ll work with local groups and the Midwest state associations. We need to promote tiny little Beatrice as the perfect place to train. That’s gonna take work.”

Mitchell nodded. It sounded like Hugh had aspirations to lead a pro gym, not a community recreation center. “And you think they’ll come?”

“They’ll come if the right name’s on the building.”

Mitchell raised his eyebrows. That made sense. “So who do you want to bring in? How does that work?”

“Luke, for starters. He’s a huge talent and he
has
to stay here.” The way Hugh spoke, warily yet firmly, had Mitchell’s attention. It was like he expected Mitchell to put up a fight and resist the idea.

People sure thought he was a dick.

“I know,” Mitchell said, his voice a little sharp. “It was in the will.”

Hugh paused, then raised his eyebrows.

Mitchell clarified, “Toby… put in the will that he should be looked after.” When Hugh let out a sigh of relief, he added, “And I wasn’t going to ditch him anyway.”

“Right. I just thought…”

Mitchell shook his head. “You got it wrong.”
Everyone does,
he added with a wry smile to himself, then pushed papers around the desk. “So if I sell…”

“It’d be stupid to sell right now.”

Mitchell wasn’t expecting that bluntness. “Pardon?”

“It’s stupid to sell now. Not with Luke poised to win, and wanting to buy it.”

“Buy it?”

Hugh leaned back in his chair to pull open the office door and glance down the hall. “Hey, Luke.”

Luke paused mid-pushup and scrambled to his feet to stride over toward them both. “Yeah?”

“Come here.”

Luke nodded to Hugh, but his eyes were on Mitchell as he approached. With Mitchell sitting behind the desk, the muscled man prowling down the hall toward them felt like a panther stalking his prey.

Mitchell resisted the urge to shiver.

Once Luke was in the office, Hugh shut the door again. “Tell him about the plan.”

“Which… oh, to buy?” Luke glanced between the two of them. “I wanted to buy out this place, but I need more money… and more of a name. I have to win the East Coast—never mind. A big match.”

Mitchell noted the patronizing tone, but it was fair enough. All he knew about fight nights were that guys went to bars, drank a stupid amount, and cheered over blood being spilled. He couldn’t figure out how Luke, of all the guys he’d once have trusted with his life, had gotten so far into it.

“If I can win that, the club will be fine. We’ll get business, believe me,” Luke said while Hugh nodded. “But it’s another three weeks until the big day.”

Mitchell leaned back, running numbers in his head for a minute while they all stayed silent. The clock ticked on the wall. Thumps and grunts faintly echoed through the door from the guys who were still working out.

They were right: the club wasn’t losing money yet. He could afford to run the place for another two months easily before he made a decision. And if Luke won big and bought it out, everyone would be happy.

“Okay. Sounds reasonable,” Mitchell nodded. “I’ll still have to prepare the place for sale—to you or someone else—and deal with the remaining estate issues.”

“Of course,” Hugh nodded, sitting up straight. His eyes were gleaming with hope while Luke still looked guarded. “You move ahead with the legalities. We’ll keep the place running. That’s how it always worked before.”

“And it worked well,” Mitchell nodded. He felt like he ought to give them this much acknowledgment. After all, he’d left them alone for almost a month.

Luke nodded as if he already knew that. “It did. Right, I’d better get back out there before someone hurts himself.”

“Thanks.” Mitchell reached over the desk to shake hands with both men. He was going to have to work with them both for a while now—especially with Luke, his brain reminded him.

This was going to be a hell of a fortnight.

T
he last machines
were wiped down and reset, and Luke was wiped too. Three demo fights—all easy, but the adrenaline rush was exhausting.

Just before he pulled open the door to the apartment, Luke heard shuffling in the office. Maybe Toby was pulling a late night.

It took Luke a second to remember, and then his stomach twisted. Every time he was sure he was through it, something else would happen. Something small, like thinking it was Toby in the office instead of Mitch.

Did Mitch miss him, too? He’d hit a nerve earlier, that was for sure.

He turned and headed for the open office door. As he paused in the doorway, his heart dropped once more.

Mitchell was sitting in the office chair and glancing around the walls. The office was a kitschy, cluttered little space. There were photos, old medals, a pinned-up t-shirt, training schedules and papers, a bottle of store-brand lemonade still unopened in the corner…

It was Toby in a nutshell.

Then Mitchell spun around, sensing Luke’s gaze, his expression upbeat again. “Hello! What’s up?” His voice was brisk, but his cheeks were pink with embarrassment.

Luke let him keep his pride for the moment. “Are you taking care of all that paperwork?”

“Yeah. Everything’s kind of a mess.”

“We’ve been opening the bills, but that’s about it.” Luke leaned in the doorframe, giving Mitch his space. It was so goddamn weird to see him back in this town, let alone behind the desk of Luke’s gym. Now that he was here, though, Luke couldn’t tear his eyes off him.

“Right.” Mitchell nudged a plastic bin into view with his foot. It was full of torn envelopes. “This is just the first day’s work.” There were still papers spread all over the desk.

Luke winced. “That looks ugly. Do you want help?”

“No,” Mitchell shook his head, but he smiled despite the rejection. “You should rest up for training tomorrow. Besides…” He rose to his feet, languidly stretching like a cat. Luke noticed the little flash of belly—and a treasure trail—from his now-untucked shirt.

Oh, fuck, don’t go there.

He kept his eyes fixed on Mitchell’s face. “Hm?”

“Oh. Sorry. That was a good stretch,” Mitchell laughed, rolling his shoulders as he stepped out from behind the desk. “Besides, I’m heading to bed now.”

“Right.” Luke stepped backward to amble down the hallway toward the door to the apartments. “So you’re staying here while you’re in town?”

“I’m sure as hell not staying with my parents.” Mitchell’s voice had a bitter edge that drew a sympathetic frown from Luke.

“Of course. Did they leave behind furniture for you? I’ve got the futon,” Luke offered.

Mitchell looked startled for a moment, then gave a brief, grateful smile and shook his head. “Nah, they left all the basic furniture and cookware, and I picked up linens at the store today.”

“Okay.”

“But thanks, man.” Mitchell was watching him now as they wandered toward the apartment doors.

“Course, bro.” It was almost casual like old times again. Luke pulled open the apartment door and headed up the stairs. He was suddenly self-conscious that his ass was right at Mitchell’s eye level. When he glanced back, Mitchell was watching his own hand on the railing.

That was more confirmation than anything that Mitchell
did
feel something between them.

When he reached the top of the stairs, Luke turned to watch Mitchell head to his door. He tried not to think about late nights training and talking with Toby before they went their separate ways in this exact spot. “Hey, if you want, you can go through my training routine with me tomorrow.”

Mitchell’s dark gaze was drawn to his face, and then that pink tongue ran along his lower lip as he considered it.

Luke swallowed hard, resisting the urge to mirror the subtle move.

“Sure,” Mitchell agreed after a moment, his face relaxing into another cautious smile. “See you tomorrow morning, then?”

“Tomorrow. Don’t be late,” Luke raised a hand in a quick wave. He stepped inside the apartment, closing the door fast to ward off any stupid impulses.

Jesus Christ.

What was he thinking, inviting Mitchell to be around him even more? It was hard enough to focus just knowing he was in the building, let alone with him watching his training routine. He’d have to jerk off twice before he got up, just to make sure.

He still never told me why he didn’t defend himself. That must mean he’s gay. But he never said a word either way.

Luke shook his head hard. It didn’t matter. Mitchell was probably gonna stay pissed at him forever. Why would he want to fuck him? He hadn’t been laid in way too long. He had to fix that soon, so he could get Mitch out of his head.

And he had to get some sleep. Training would come at dawn every morning, no matter how horny he’d been the night before.

The fight meant more than anything.

T
he dawn light
was faint through the curtains, but Mitchell felt like he’d been up for hours. He had no idea why he was so suddenly wide awake. He was used to dragging himself out of bed for stupid morning paperwork or meetings.

Maybe it was the fresh country air.

Mitchell sat up and rubbed a hand down his face as everything came back to him. The twin bed and cheap Walmart sheets weren’t his usual, but he’d slept like the dead last night anyway.

Then his stomach lurched as he looked around the apartment.

He remembered a little from visiting Toby here over the years. He’d had a double bed with a beautiful quilt, some art, and a glass case for memorabilia in the corner. His dishes had been a mix of bright colors, lending the kitchen a Mediterranean feeling.

The place was perfectly dusted, looking like a minimalist showroom. Why hadn’t they left the double bed, at least?

Mitchell sighed as his feet hit the hardwood floor. At least this place had that much. He padded over to the bathroom, squinting at the mirror. He had to shower and shave before he headed downstairs.

His chest was heavy at first, but remembering why he was going downstairs made him smile, at least. Maybe he could be buddies again with Luke. As impossible as it had once seemed, he was weirdly grateful to Luke for what he’d done all those years ago. Luke definitely expected Mitchell to hate him, but Mitchell just felt resigned when he thought about his past.

Mostly, he tried not to.

Mitchell started the shower and scrubbed his hair once it was wet, closing his eyes to bask in the hot water. God, how Luke had changed in the last few years. He was broader and heavier now, but not in a gross bodybuilding way. He was lean and cut like a fighting machine.

And despite how brutal and horrific Mitchell wanted to find it, there was a part of him that was
so
fucking into that. Watching Luke’s tattooed muscles rippling as he pulled his shirt on… Mitchell could do that all day.

Was he still gay? He had to be. Was he seeing anyone? The way he’d looked at him as he came down from the cage to greet him, those dark eyes intent on him like he wanted to grab him and…

“Nope.” Mitchell turned off the water before his thoughts wandered. He couldn’t chase Luke, of all people. The town rumor mill was gonna have a field day, even if they stayed five feet apart for the next two weeks.

He made himself coffee as he checked his emails and answered them. He couldn’t get away from his job completely, after all. Once he’d dealt with them all, he grabbed toast and poured another coffee. He could already hear noise from downstairs, so he was late to start watching Luke. He left his glasses on instead of fiddling with his contacts. He hated how they made him look, but it wasn’t like Luke hadn’t seen him in them before.

It wasn’t hard to find Luke: the only guy in the gym, shirtless, punching one of the bags. It was a rapid-fire series of blows. Then he spun and kicked it, shoved his elbow and his knee into it. He punched it once more for good measure, all in the span of maybe five seconds.

Every time he moved, his muscles rippled, his pecs and biceps and abs rippling fluidly. When he turned, the muscles along his stomach rippled, the gorgeous v-lines disappearing into his waistband. It was easy to see the strength of his leg muscles with each kick.

That
really
shouldn’t have made Mitchell feel so fucking hot. Luke moved with deadly skill and precision, his eyes utterly focused on his target and weight easily balanced between his feet.

Then Luke turned and grinned. He sprinted toward Mitchell, covering ground rapidly.

Mitchell froze for a second, his eyes widening. He leaped to one side, clutching his coffee cup to his chest.

Luke had to stop and double over laughing, bracing his hands on his thighs.

“Shut up,” Mitchell laughed, ignoring the adrenaline pounding through his veins. He honestly hadn’t known if Luke was about to punch him instead, or shove him up against the wall and kiss him—

“That was the gayest dodge ever,” Luke gasped through his laughter.

Mitchell burst out laughing and shoved his mug onto the table with leaflets next to the door. He grabbed Luke by the forearms, trying to wrestle him away and shove him a little.

Luke twisted away from his hold and grabbed him around the shoulders instead to haul him in. Luke hooked his foot around the back of his leg. He was slightly too slow, though; Mitchell stepped free and pushed him backward. It was like shoving a brick wall.

Really, Mitchell wanted to do the opposite: hook his arms around Luke’s waist and shoulder and pull him
in
. He wanted to grind against that lightly glistening, sculpted torso…

He needed to let go
now
. His body was going to react to this very soon. He already felt the distinctive twitches of his libido kicking his body into gear.

He couldn’t seem to push Luke away yet, though. It took him a few more seconds to realize why: Luke was humouring him by not pinning him down. He was letting him feel like he had half a chance.

He groaned and pulled away, trying to ruffle Luke’s hair and shove his head away. “Fuck off.”

Luke let him and laughed, slapping at his hand. “You start a fight, you be ready to end it.”

“I didn’t know you were all macho asshole now on me,” Mitchell protested, grinning.

Luke snorted and picked up Mitchell’s cup to steal a sip before Mitchell could grab the coffee back from him. “You ready to watch and learn?”

“Ready,” Mitchell confirmed with one more shove against Luke’s shoulder. He sipped his coffee, not caring if Luke had just been drinking from the same spot. Actually, if he were
really
honest, the thought of the touch of their lips had heat crawling up his spine. He adjusted himself as Luke turned his back, then followed him over to the punching bags to lean nearby and watch him warm up.

Honestly, watching him was a treat.

Luke chatted about this and that, explaining what he was doing and what muscle groups these exercises worked up. He put his body through more than Mitchell could picture himself doing in a week. Even his goddamn pushups weren’t normal ones—he clapped his hands together or raised one hand to make it harder on himself.

I could ask him to train me.

That totally wasn’t an excuse to have Luke touch him.

Mitchell shook his head, bringing his attention back to Luke as he walked away, instinctively tailing him. “What?”

“I’m going to shower. You need to, too?” Luke grinned cheekily. “Watching me is such hard work.”

Mitchell blushed and stopped dead before he could follow Luke into the locker rooms. “Oh, fuck off.” It was nice to be able to banter with Luke again and share laughter, even if the joke was on him right now.

He turned for the stairs again to head upstairs and put in his contacts. He tried to ignore the thought of Luke in the showers, water streaming over his bare skin…

Oh, shit.

He was glad the staircase up to his apartment was private as he fumbled to let himself into the apartment.

Mitchell couldn’t remember the last time a man had gotten under his skin so fucking bad, or so fucking
fast
. Not even a day later, he wanted Luke to throw him against one of those workout benches and fuck him like an animal?

When he made it to the bathroom, Mitchell leaned heavily on the wall next to the sink. He fumbled to pull his throbbing cock out from his pants. It was flushed and swollen, demanding rough attention. He ran water over his hand, his head spinning already with the mix of fantasies he wanted to live out.

Every fucking one of them centered on Luke.

The thought of Luke’s muscles rippling away under the workout, the way he walked with the quiet, certain grace of a skilled fighter, the way those dark eyes had focused on him when Luke had been rushing toward him…

Mitchell groaned and thumped his head to the wall, his hips stuttering forward in his hand. His balls drew tight and heat pulsed in the base of his cock.

And then he was coming into the sink with firm thrusts, wringing every drop of pleasure out. He opened his mouth in a silent gasp. Mitchell stared into the mirror at his own flushed cheeks and hazy eyes. His lips were moving… silently forming Luke’s name.

He wanted to scream Luke’s name into a pillow while that man fucked him from behind. Luke could ride him like an animal with those burly arms pushing him into the mattress…

“Christ,” Mitchell whispered, his head spinning as his hips shuddered a few last times. His cock started to soften. He leaned there for a few moments, his cheeks burning at his own shameful thoughts.

Control yourself.

He turned on the sink to rinse it out and rinsed off his hands, then dried them off and tucked his cock back into his pants.

By the time Mitchell had his contacts in and walked back downstairs, there were a couple other guys in. Hugh was talking to Luke and gesturing toward the cage.

Mitchell quietly walked to the office, wrapped up in his own thoughts.

Two weeks of being in close proximity to Luke while every inch of him wanted his former friend’s cock inside him was going to be hell.