Touched by the Music Read online

  I listened to the announcer go through his spiel with no clue what he said other than weight and height of Lucio and Lance Jackson, his opponent.

  The fight started, and I watched and listened as my dad made comments. I made a mental note to check on Amazon for an introductory book to the MMA. I was a good student, and I would learn the ins and outs before Lucio had another fight.

  “That round was Jackson’s,” my dad said, and I looked over at him.

  “Lucio did well. He knocked him down twice,” I replied, and my dad chuckled.

  The next round started, and my dad yelled, “You got this, Lucio. You’ve got the time in. Look at him. He didn’t have to work out six days a week for five weeks straight to be here. You want it more. Now show him!”

  “So, he’s doing good?” I asked.

  “Yes, sweetie. Lucio is holding his own.”

  I smiled and turned back to watch. Sometime between rounds, my nervousness left. I still understood nothing, but I felt I was improving when I didn’t flinch when Lucio took a hit.

  Lucio nodded at something Walt said in the corner, then he moved to the center of the ring. I watched Lucio charge the other man and wrap his arms around him, then he threw him to the mat.

  “You’ve got him, Lucio. Keep his arms pinned.”

  When I knew what to look for, it made it easy to watch. Lucio had Jackson’s arms pinned beside him while Lucio was on his knees, straddling him. I moved to the edge of my seat when Lucio threw a forearm to Jackson’s throat.

  “You know they move with a lot of finesse.”

  “Yes, that’s what everyone likes about the sport. The finesse,” my dad said, and I hadn’t missed the sarcasm.

  Lucio leaned forward with his forearm still across Jackson’s throat. No way the man wasn’t hurting. He had to feel almost choked.

  “Put some shoulder strength into it. Don’t give Jackson any room to move those hips, he’ll roll you off!” my dad yelled and stood.

  The crowd got louder when the referee bent down to get a better view. With Jackson’s arms pinned and Lucio’s legs on each side, it was hard for me to tell what was going on and exactly what the referee was looking so closely at.

  The referee said something no one could hear. And as I stood to ask my dad. The referee grabbed Lucio’s arm and held it up.

  I knew what that meant—Lucio had won.

  Lucio

  I GROANED AS LIVI STOOD naked in front of me. “Turn around and put your hands on the bed, Livi. And you might want to hold on.”

  After the bout ended and the congratulations were over, I’d wanted nothing more than to get Livi to my place. Still riding the adrenaline, I stripped her down as soon as the door closed, then I dragged her to the bedroom at least.

  Livi visibly shuddered as she did what I asked. Her pert little ass had my hands reaching out to give her globes a squeeze. I ran one hand over her ass while I reached around with the other to flick her nub.

  Damn, it was already hard and pushed out from its hood.

  “Spread your legs wider, Livi. I want you to show me how wet you are for me.” As I worked my finger in circles, she began to moan.

  She laid her cheek on the mattress as her hips started rotating. I moved the hand from her ass to the inside of one thigh, then ran it up until it reached her entrance. I could feel the heat coming from her. She was already getting wet. I smiled and ran a finger across the opening and watched as she continued to grow wetter before my eyes.

  I slid the finger through her folds, and she sucked in a breath. She wiggled a little more, trying to get my finger where she wanted it. I pushed it into her heat, giving her what she desired.

  “You like that, huh?” I asked, and she nodded. “Well, I hope you like this as well, ‘cause I’m rock hard and ready to burst, and I want to be inside you when I do.

  “Just do it, Lucio. I’m ready.”

  “I’ll always give you what you need.” I stepped closer. Centered my shaft at her opening and pushed in. “Don’t fight it, Livi. Relax and let me all the way in.”

  I worked myself in and out until she’d taken all of me. Pumped from my win and fueled by adrenaline, I set a pace to bring us both over.

  Holding her hips, listening to her moans drew me closer to the brink. I wanted to hold off as long as possible because I knew once I released, every drop of energy would drain out of me, along with emptying my sac.

  As the tingling started, I knew I didn’t have long. Holding on to one hip, as I continued to pound into Livi, I used my other hand to reach around to work her nub. It didn’t take long for Livi to yell out my name. I rode her tremors and gave one more thrust, then emptied into her.

  I pulled out and went to the bathroom to get a warm cloth to clean her. I knew I’d been harder on her than usual.

  Once I had her cleaned up and tucked in the bed, I slid in beside her. Laid down on my back and stretched.

  “Now that is how to take care of adrenaline. Actually, I think it should be listed as a cure-all.”

  “Works for me,” Livi said, then scooted closer, laying her head on my shoulder and curling into me.

  “You going to come to the next fight?” I asked and yawned.

  She bent her head back so she could see my face. “They already notified Walt?”

  “Yeah. Guess someone from Marco’s camp was there. Came by the locker room while I was taking a shower. Three months. I’m going to get my shot at the belt. Walt thought they’d delay it as long as they could. It seems Marco is getting a lot of questions about being able to hold onto the belt. He’s thirty-six and thinks his experience will keep the young fighters from his door. So, he’s figuring, go for it now. I just came off two big fights. My body’s been abused. He’ll try to take me down fast to prove I’m too young and not ready for his caliber of fighter.”

  “That’s bullshit. Your body is in great shape.”

  I grinned. Livi never failed to have my back if she thought someone wronged me.

  “Livi?”

  “Hmm.”

  “I love you.” She didn’t answer back right away, and I glanced down to find her staring at me.

  “I wanted to tell you first.” She smacked my chest.

  “It’s not a competition. Are you going to say it?”

  “I love you, Lucio. I do have something to tell you, and this I know you won’t be able to say first.”

  “What? Your pregnant,” I said, then laughed. I felt the smack on my chest and knew. I immediately sat us both up in bed.

  “I don’t believe you. You took my thunder again!”

  “When did you find out?”

  “I went to the doctor one morning after I realized I missed a couple days of my birth control pills in a row. I wanted to be sure. I’m sorry. We’ve only been together a short time, and we’ve never talked about kids.”

  My girl could get on a roll, so I laid her back and started kissing her. I must have had some reserve energy because I hardened. I slipped into her gently and celebrated the news.

  I SAT IN THE CONCERT hall and watched as Livi worked the violin in her hands. Her face showed how much she loved playing it. I don’t think I ever grasped how talented she was until then.

  I might have gone to support her as she’d done with me. But I actually enjoyed myself.

  We were like a coin—two sides and each different, but they went together.

  After the symphony was over, I waited for her. When she saw me, I opened my arms and she walked into them.

  “You’re the flawless side of the coin,” I said as I held her under one arm and took her violin case with the other.

  “Is this where I say, I see a whole other side of you?”

  “Nah, I only got one side. What you see is what you get.”

  “You do not just have one side. Trust me. You have a front that I love and a backside to die for.”

  “I’m glad you approve,” I said as we walked out.

  “You know how you say that after a fi
ght, you ride the adrenaline?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I have some adrenaline I need to work off.”

  I laughed and dropped the arm I had around her and grabbed her hand. Then I prayed there wasn’t a shit ton of traffic heading to my place.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Lucio

  ALMOST A YEAR IT’D taken me to get to this last one that would put me on top. I listened as the only sound in the room came from the tape Tao pulled from the roll before he wrapped it around my hands. There were only three of us in the room, it was how I liked it. The quiet before the storm. I sat on the table with my focus set. Then ran through every move I would use, either to advance on my opponent or block the assault on me, along with everything else I had learned along the way. I reminded myself where I came from, where I wanted to go, and how I had gotten to this point. Hard work and the aspiration to be better led me on this path. Still, I wasn’t sure without the support of others and their belief in me, if skill would have been enough.

  The knock on the door signaled it was almost showtime. It brought me out of my head and back to everything going on around me. Tao tossed the tape to the side and picked up my gloves.

  “You’re ready, Lucio. It’s your time, man. I can feel it. You only have to grab it.”

  I nodded as Tao placed the gloves on my hands and tightened them at my wrist. He and Walt had been the ones to help me get to this level. It hadn’t been easy. But from where I was sitting now, it proved with the right mindset and the motivation to strive to be the best. Anything was possible.

  With the gloves on, I rotated my wrist, then brought my fingers in tight to make sure they were fitted and comfortable. As we exited the room and headed down the hall, the quietness followed until we pushed through the doors. The sold out crowd stomped, clapped, cheered, and some even booed. It made no difference to me; I was where I was meant to be. I could only hope that when the final bell rang, there would be a new champion. Me.

  The walk to the ring was different this time because it meant my effort and time climbing the ranks had paid off. I would never forget what this walk stood for.

  Tao moved and held the ropes apart, and I leaned between them to enter the ring. The lights were bright, and the sound in the arena was deafening. I’d worked hard and long, spent countless hours training, and a few years to get to this point.

  I shifted from foot to foot and punched the air in front of me while I waited for the current champion to make his appearance. When the crowd became louder, I didn’t even have to look to know he was making his way to the ring, they gave that away as they cheered and chanted his name.

  Once Marco Turner arrived in the ring with his trainer and manager at his side, it was the first time I looked directly at him. The man wore what I had come for, the MMA heavyweight championship belt. I’d let him enjoy the moment as he unhooked the belt and turned circles while he held it over his head. He worked the crowd, and I worked to reach the peaceful place in my mind. I knew when I reached it, I felt it wash over my body.

  The referee entered the ring and stepped to the center with the announcer. As the stats were given on both my opponent and me, I took that time to scan the seats. My eyes stopped on the woman who was seated off to the side. Livi sat with her dad and my mom. Her hand rested on her shirt, covering her still flat stomach. Her brown eyes met mine, and she smiled. The woman was my life. Because of her, I stood with my dream in reach. She was my motivation. She made me strive to be better. For Livi, I would do anything.

  Her lips moved, and though I couldn’t hear the words, I knew exactly what she mouthed as she moved her hand and placed it over her heart, “My light.” It was what she called me after she realized I had been the one to collide with her and the first one she saw when her eyesight came back. Fate had worked hard over the years to bring us together, and our story was still being written.

  What Livi didn’t realize, but what I tried to show her every day, was that she was my light and had been the moment I’d been touched by the music she made and brought me out of the darkness. Where would either of us be if our paths hadn’t crossed?

  She was now what drove me to make it to the top.

  Called to the center of the ring, I touched fists with the man in front of me, and then we broke apart. It was time. My time. With the calm settled over me, I placed my focus on the man in front of me.

  I had a dream to obtain. The course of my life had brought me to this point, and I had no plans to let anyone keep it from me.

  The only thing standing between me and the belt I wanted to covet was Marco Turner and five rounds, five minutes each. The arm of the referee dropped, and my single goal of being the champion started.

  I charged Marco, coming in low to gain an advantage. When I was close, I reached out, wrapped my arms around him, dumping him to the mat, then landing on top of him. Marco’s hips lifted, and his back arched as he rolled from side to side until finally with a buck of his hips, he’d knocked me off.

  Back on our feet, we circled one another until Marco threw a couple of punches. He landed consecutive blows to my body, one to my cheek and the other on my side. I adjusted my stance and was able to block the next punch he threw, minimizing the effect as it grazed my shoulder.

  I countered with my own set of punches and followed with a kick to Marco’s ribs. Before I knew it, round one was over as quickly as it started, and I moved to my corner.

  “You’re doing great, Lucio. He’s feeling that kick to the ribs,” Walt spoke while I drank water from the bottle Tao had handed me.

  I took the rag Walt offered and wiped my face down before I said, “He would have cut my cheek wide open if that blow had landed full force. I can still feel the sting from the fucker.” I took another big gulp and let the water slide down my parched throat.

  Five minutes may not sound like a long time, but in the ring as your body absorbed blow after blow and with the exertion put forth, takes an unmeasurable toll on the body.

  “Just a scratch,” Tao said as he leaned in to look the area over, and before I could reply to him, it was time for round two. I stood and moved back to the center with my desire and adrenaline leading the way.

  Marco led the next round off with a kick that was going to leave a nice sized bruise on my thigh. I kept my balance, though it stung like a motherfucker, then I swung my leg and returned the favor. My kick landed on Marco’s hip and threw him enough off balance that he had to battle to gain it back before he went down. Taking advantage, I shifted to the side and kicked out, landing the blow to the center of his chest. He hit the ropes and bounced back, then fell to his knees onto the mat. As I moved in, he pushed up to his feet and tried to sweep my feet in the process. When I jumped back, he moved forward. We both threw punches, each of us trying to gain the advantage until the second round ended.

  “I’d say that round was yours, Lucio. You’re better than him. Quicker. I’d even give you the first round. Focus on getting the job done and stop dancing around with him. He isn’t some chump. He wants to hold on to that belt as much as you want to take it,” Walt said as Tao handed me the bottle of water and I drank, then gave it back.

  “He might want to keep the belt, but tough shit. It’s mine.” I bounced to my feet, ready to get round three started.

  “Then quit playing and finish him,” Walt said and stepped away.

  During round three, Marco and I took turns hitting the mat. He kicked, and I performed a single leg sweep, catching him off guard and took him down. I landed on top of him and followed up with a few decent blows before he worked his hips and tossed me off.

  I stepped back to prepare for a roundhouse I’d set up for my next move, but before I could complete it, Marco grabbed me from behind and placed us both onto the mat. I knocked him off before he administered more than one blow. But the blow had caught my already abused cheek, and I knew the skin had split open that time.

  Back on our feet, I rushed Marco, taking away his opportunity to get
set. I threw one punch after another, driving him back as he blocked the blows. Finally, I caught an opening when he dropped his hand, and with my swing, I came in contact with the brow above his left eye, and the skin opened wide. Other than bleeding from different areas of our faces, the rest of the round, we stayed relatively even. Punches and kicks, some landing, some only reaching air.

  Tomorrow our bodies would be sore. But for now, the adrenaline kept us going and kept the blood pumping through our veins. The third round ended, and there was no way to call it. Our performances were equal. Marco and I had each spent ample time on the mat. We landed approximately the same amount of punches and kicks. When the round ended, we walked to our corners, each with blood on our faces.

  “Cut’s not bad. Barely bleeding,” Tao said as he patted my cheek with a towel. “But the bruising around the split is going to be nasty as it goes through the colors.”

  For the first time since the fight started, I glanced to the side and found Livi’s eyes on me. She smiled, then blew me a kiss. I winked, then grimaced when the move wrenched the skin on my bruised cheek.

  “Can you put your attention back on the task at hand and off your girl? You can flirt with her later. Still can’t believe you caught that young woman. You’d be smart to keep her and lock her down before she comes to her senses,” Walt said as he grabbed my chin and moved my face back and forth.

  “Neither can I. I know I’m a lucky bastard, and I’m not ashamed to admit it. I’m not going to let her go.”

  “Then you better do something about it,” he answered as he fingered the skin around the ‘scratch’ as Tao called it. If it hadn’t hurt, I would have chuckled. She was already tied to me. She’d been worried when she told me she was pregnant that I would be upset. Not a chance. It was as if the next chapter of our lives was starting, and the baby was part of it. We hadn’t shared the news with anyone yet. I wanted to wait. Or until tomorrow because hopefully by the end of the night, I’d have everything, and our story would finish with a happy ending if she agreed to marry me.