Then from behind them an angry voice yelled into the entire bullpen, “You BITCH!”
Aaron Mercer had just come back from the tenth floor conference room and was in a rage directed at Erin. He was walking angrily toward her, and Marcus snapped. Any control that Marcus had was lost the minute he heard Aaron yell.
He strode over, pulled Aaron in by the shoulders and landed his knee squarely into his abdomen. Aaron had the wind completely knocked out of him but Marcus wasn’t done.
Erin was screaming for him to stop, but Marcus had fallen into his fighting rage against the asshole that had tried to take advantage of her. Now the advantage belonged to Marcus.
He hit Aaron in the jaw which almost knocked him down, but Marcus held him up just so he could sweep his leg behind Aaron’s knees and pull his feet out from under him. Aaron was flat on his back and Marcus was instantly on top of him, still enraged.
Scott was suddenly pulling back at one of Marcus’s arms while another guy from the department did the same with the other. Marcus yelled at them to let him go but Scott was almost as strong as Marcus and he managed to hold on to him through his thrashing and pull him staggering back a few steps.
Erin ran over and stood between Marcus and Aaron while the other men still held him back, straining against his strength. She looked him squarely in the eyes and said loudly, “Stop it, Marcus!”
He looked from Aaron to her eyes and saw the reason he needed to stop. He shook off his escorts and clenched his fists and jaws, trying to come out of his rage, for her. She wanted him to stop, and that was the only reason he could.
Aaron had regained a fraction of his breath and said weakly through his wheezing, “You’re going to jail…charges for assault…you’re going to rot…”
Marcus was about to fly into a rage again until he saw Erin spin around, angry like a spitting cat. She hissed through her teeth.
“Go ahead. Do it. And I’ll have every woman in this office press sexual harassment charges against you. I’ll be leading the lynch mob straight to the court house.
You’re
going to rot. So instead, why don’t you just tuck your pathetic little tail between your legs and never show your face here again.”
Cheers erupted from the women of the eighth floor and even a few of the men who supported them. Marcus walked to stand behind her, proving to Aaron Mercer that between the two of them, they could completely destroy him if they wanted to. There was nothing stronger than the two of them together.
“You’re not worth the hassle,” he grumbled, rubbing his jaw. He pulled himself to his feet but still wasn’t able to stand straight from the force of Marcus’s assault. He whispered the word “bitch” under his breath one more time before he walked out of the office.
Erin knew Marcus heard that last insult and held his hand to keep him calm. Marcus, still a step behind Erin, put his hand on her shoulder and felt her shaking.
“I think you’re done here today. Let me take you home.”
She nodded. Very politely, Marcus turned to Scott. “It was nice to meet you. But if you ever see someone treating people like that here again, speak up about it, regardless of who he’s related to.”
Scott nodded, ashamed that he hadn’t done it before. “I didn’t know it was that bad,” he tried to explain.
Marcus’s voice was flat when he said, “Any of it is that bad.”
He was still the consummate protector, and tried to get others to do the same. He put his arm around the still-trembling Erin and led her out of the office.
By the time they pulled up to Erin’s apartment, she was close to crying again out of relief from her fear. Aaron was gone, and she had dealt with her ordeal without running away or shutting down.
“Are you ok?” he asked when he shut off the car. “You were really quiet on the ride back here.”
“Yeah. Just been a crazy couple of days. Are you coming in?”
“Only if you want me to.”
“I always want you to,” she said, leaning her head on his shoulder. “I couldn’t have done that today without you.”
“Yes, you could have. I didn’t do anything but beat the snot out of him. The rest was all you. And as much as I loved pounding my fist in his face, that isn’t what made the difference. You were scarier than I was.” Marcus said that last bit with a smile. “Badass.”
She laughed and kissed him for his faith in her. They got out of her car and into her apartment. It wasn’t even noon yet by the time they crashed on the couch together, still dressed in their business clothes. Erin wasn’t shaking any more.
“Did I scare you today?” Marcus asked quietly.
“No,” Erin said honestly. “Truthfully I kind of liked watching that jerk get what he deserved. You’re very impressive when you fight.”
“Speaking of that, have you decided if you’re coming to my match? I’d love you to see me fight if you want to. I want my woman in my corner,” he smiled at her.
“I can do that, but it’s going to kill me seeing someone go against you who knows what they’re doing. Aaron didn’t stand a chance. What’s it going to be like with someone who’s had training?”
“I’ll be honest, I’ll probably get my ass kicked a little, but that’s not what it’s about. It’s not the violence, it’s the control. I fight on my terms, not anyone else’s. The people I go against need my permission to go after me. Plus, it’s pure release.”
Erin nodded and spoke to him softly. “Marcus, will you come upstairs and be with me? I need you after this morning. I know you keep saying I’m strong, and I guess I’m starting to believe you, but I still don’t always feel it. When I’m with you I do. Take me upstairs?”
He kissed her, first sweetly for her words then deeply for her need. They walked upstairs hand-in-hand to her room. He pulled her into his arms again and began kissing her slowly and lovingly.
“Tell me what you want again, baby,” he whispered in her ear. “Tell me what you need right now and it’s yours.”
“I need to
not think
. I just want to feel you. I want to get lost…”
His hands moved to unbutton her blouse. “Hmm. I think I can do that…”
He undressed her tenderly and led her over to the bed. “Close your eyes. Close them and don’t open them. The only thing in the world is me touching you. Just let yourself feel it.”
Marcus spread her arms out beside her and gently moved each knee up and out. Silently and deliberately he kissed and teased all over her body, wanting her to get lost in the sensations. She kept her eyes closed for him like he asked.
He understood her need to get away from the ugliness of that moment at the office and the memories the situation brought back. He needed to keep her mind so focused on the gentleness of his touch that she couldn’t remember anything else. Every sensation needed to keep her body softly tingling and guessing.
He moved from sucking at her nipple to massaging her forearm. He licked her inner thigh while he gently pinched the pad of her big toe. Every sensation he offered her was sweetly opposite from the previous.
Within minutes she was slowly writhing through heavy breaths, completely lost in the sensation and body-confusion of his touch. He played along her skin for as long as he could stand. He saw the pleasured smile on her face and knew she was as lost as she wanted to be.
Without a sound he entered her slowly and she let out a soft moan. He kept his hand moving in varied, soft pinches and caresses while the rest of his body melded into hers. He changed position frequently, grinding slowly on her from different angles. He stroked, kissed, pinched and licked across every surface of her.
Marcus closed his eyes and lost himself in the heat right along with her. When she finally reached the edge of pleasure, he traced her lips with his thumb. She breathed his name through her orgasm. He followed shortly after her and rested over top of her lightly and completely motionless.
She finally opened her eyes and looked at him with a dreamy smile on her face. “Baby…”
“You called me baby,” he smiled at her. The stress was gone from her eyes.
The two of them laid down together holding and caressing for nearly an hour before Marcus had to leave. “If I don’t get to the gym today, Bill’s going to have my ass. Hopefully I’ll still have time to sleep before work.”
“Thanks for staying with me last night,” Erin said quietly.
“Are you kidding? I got to skip work, hold my girl, and watch her bust out her inner badass. That was thanks enough,” he said smiling. “Are you going to be ok?”
“Yep. Get to the gym. I’ll probably get in a run at the rec and then just let myself relax for the rest of the day. I’m
not
going to let myself shut down. Maybe I’ll call Cassie. Do you think she’d like to come over for coffee or something? I haven’t had ‘girl time’ in years and your sister is great.”
Marcus grinned so happily. “That’s a great idea. I hope you two have fun. I love you.”
“You, too.”
He kissed her one last time before he pulled his sweats and t-shirt on and left.
A loving, sweet Marcus left Erin’s apartment, but as he drove to his neighborhood, the scene from Erin’s office played out over and over in his head. Erin was scared. Erin cried. Some evil bastard tried to intimidate and harass her. By the time he got to the gym, his rage was back in full force.
He found staying calm so easy with Erin, but the minute he got to his car, all he could think about was Aaron Mercer’s sweaty hands on the wall trapping Erin’s terrified face close to his. Hitting that asshole once had not been enough. The unfinished beating vibrated in his arms.
He managed to keep himself focused enough to drive, but when he reached the door of the gym, he smacked it open and walked straight toward the mat where two fighters were sparring.
Bill didn’t see the look on his face. He walked over to give Marcus the traditional smack upside the head for being late and Marcus blocked him by instinct before he even realized who was next to him. He started to take a swing but Bill blocked right back.
“Marcus!” Bill barked.
Marcus blinked into focus and then glared. He spoke in a frighteningly calm voice. “Get me a spar.”
Bill narrowed his eyes and didn’t back down at all. “No. Go hit the bag.”
“I need a fight! Who’s got this?” he screamed to the other fighters.
“You’re not breaking one of my guys because you’re pissed off! Now go hit the damn bag!”
Bill got in his face and glared at him hard enough that Marcus finally backed down. “Fuck this!”
He walked over to the heavy bag and knocked into the canvas hard. Bill motioned for one of the other guys to stand behind the bag and steady it so Marcus could connect harder.
With his arms crossed and his jaw set, Bill watched Marcus devolve into the raging wild animal he always used to be. Any sense of focus was gone and he used no strategy or precision in his rage. Bill shook his head.
Marcus finally started to slow down and Bill nodded for the other trainee to back off. Marcus wasn’t fought out yet, that much was obvious, but Bill was done indulging his hissy-fit. The rest of the guys in the gym had their eyes glued to the scene.
Bill walked directly over to Marcus and twisted the collar of his shirt up into his fist and pulled his face close. “Tell me what the hell is going on. Get in my office. Now.”
Marcus glared back, hit the bag one more time, and followed him with his hands on his head. The other fighters reluctantly went back to their workouts. Bill shut the door hard and forced Marcus to sit down. The fighters outside could only see into the office long enough for Bill to shut the blinds.
“Marcus, damn it, we’re done with these tantrums of yours! You’ve got the gym when you need to blow off steam, but if you ever walk in here again and try to take down one of my fighters, you’ll have me to answer to. And I’m not as nice as you are.”
Marcus took a deep breath and glared at the floor. “Got it.”
“You’re my partner now. You are the example and the boss.
They
don’t know it yet, but
you
damn well do. Act like it. Now what the hell is wrong with you?”
Marcus told Bill the whole story, going all the way back to the first hard look from Erin’s dad. He told him about Aaron Mercer and how easily he could have put him in the hospital. If Marcus had expected sympathy or understanding, he was wrong. Bill was only angry.
“Do you think you’re doing Erin any good if you land yourself in jail? Damn it, Marc, it’s time to grow up!”
“You think I don’t know that?! I’m so fucked up! I can take care of her, Bill, I know I can. But I swear sometimes I can’t take care of myself.” Marcus dropped his head into his hands and actually started to cry. Very quietly he said, “If she hadn’t told me to stop, I could have killed the guy and not cared.”
Bill walked over and put a fatherly hand on his shoulder. He waited a few moments while Marcus broke down before he spoke to him again. As fatherly as he was, Bill was still angry.
“Alright, listen. You’ve done a lot of changing in the past few months. I know it’s a lot to take. But I also know you can handle it. Today, you felt that rage coming on and you gave in. You let it get in your head and control you…Don’t. Do that. Again. You know how to focus, so fucking do it. You’ve got a lot of good in your life. Let
that
get in.”
“Yes, sir.”
“As for worrying about Erin, you always will. But maybe you can help do something about it,” Bill offered, his tone moving from
hard
to
hard-but-encouraging
.
Marcus wiped his nose on the back of his hand. “Like what.”
“You’re a man now. Figure it out. In the mean time, change your clothes and get your ass on the free weights. Have Trip spot you. We done now?”