Chapter 5 #2
Three men with an obvious law enforcement swagger headed to the establishment. Like him, they were wearing shorts and T-shirts, so he quickly jumped out of his vehicle and locked it before he followed them in.
The reception area was extremely crowded as mothers pressed against windows on the right watching elementary-age children swing nunchucks. Some of the kids were very good. They had obviously been taking lessons for years. He would have loved to be involved in something like this at their age.
Unfortunately, his single mother could barely afford to feed him and his two brothers.
He had to be happy with school sports. Recreational leagues were even out of their price range.
When other kids were playing Little League baseball all summer, he was mowing neighborhood lawns while his brothers weeded landscaping to earn a few bucks.
After working in the sun all day, they would ride their bikes down to the lake and jump into the cool refreshing water.
He’d learned to swim in that spring-fed lake.
His mother saved enough money to put all three boys in the class taught annually by the Red Cross.
She was adamant that they learned to swim well.
She couldn’t have known where that skill would eventually take him.
Thanks, Mom. His eyes moved heavenward. She had tried so hard to give them a good base for their lives…before she was suddenly taken from them.
When his eyes dropped down, yells and thumps from the class on his right caught his attention.
A dozen men who looked like they spent a great deal of time at a gym, sparred in headgear against the man in the middle of the circle, tapping in and out.
The two wearing all black loose-fitting gi-style clothes, obviously the instructors, took on challenger after challenger.
They were fast, never repeating the same combination of kicks.
They could all easily be mixed martial arts competitors.
At the far end of the lobby, several women browsed through the small store while others sat on benches taking their shoes off and chatting.
He could no longer hear grunts and groans from the adult class as they went through several stretches in what Mike thought of as cool-down exercises. The kids, on the other hand, invaded the small lobby, quickly finding their parents who shuffled them out the door.
A man dressed in black with the school emblem embroidered on the right side of his chest emerged from the store. “The Brazilian jujitsu class will be taught in Gym A. Tonight, kickboxing will be in Gym B. Please enter the gym now so classes can get started on time.”
The large room reeked of sweaty men. That was nothing new for Mike. Navy SEALs were pushed to their physical limits every day. It was actually kind of comforting in its familiarity. But when several women entered, light fragrances intertwined with the dirty jock smell, disturbing his chill.
Mike took off his shoes and set them along the side wall with the others then sauntered his way in to find a spot in the middle of the floor.
As he glanced at the two instructors, he realized how slight the one was, yet they had both been throwing around huge men easily weighing fifty to a hundred pounds more.
When the smaller of the two removed the headgear, Mike gasped.
Kam Hood slid off the rubber band holding her hair and massaged her scalp before she scraped her hair up into a high bun. She wiped the sweat from her face and neck with a black terrycloth towel before grabbing a light purple water bottle.
Mike almost laughed. It looked so feminine and incongruous with the kickass woman holding it. Wouldn’t that be great if she were staying for the Brazilian jujitsu class? He glanced to his side and saw there was room for her next to him.
When the tall man with broad shoulders and ponytail grabbed his gear and started to leave, Mike scanned the lobby for the instructor.
“Everybody, find a place on the floor where you have room to move. We’ll begin with warm-ups before we pair off and practice the basic moves and counter moves.
” Kam stood at the front of the class facing the two dozen students, who were an interesting mix, from petite women to the large men he’d followed into the facility.
From the tiny bit of conversation he caught, many were in law enforcement.
Mike knew the moment she saw him. Their gazes held a bit too long before she gave him what he thought was a small smile. It could also have been a devilish grin. He certainly didn’t know her well enough to tell.
Ten minutes later, though, he was positive.
“Comman—" she stopped mid-word and corrected herself. “Mr. Mike Gallagher, would you be my partner tonight?”
He couldn’t say no. Instead, he gave her one of his most panty-dropping smiles as he made his way to the front of the classroom. Although he was used to balls-to-the-wall hand-to-hand with his SEALs, he’d go easy on her.
For the next forty minutes, he was her test dummy.
She had taken him down from a standing position to the ground so many times, in different ways, he’d forgotten the count.
The fascinating part was, she always ended up on top.
He wondered if that was her preferred sexual position, but since she was wired with a microphone, he didn’t dare ask.
What he disliked most was that she had forced him to submit by tapping out every time.
When the class was over, Mike was sure he’d never spent so much time on his ass in the arms of a woman without getting laid.
As soon as the microphone was shut off, she asked, “What the hell are you doing here?”
After the torture she’d just put him through, he decided to play with her. “Why, Kam, fancy meeting you here. How have you been?”
She glared at him.
He smiled. “How’s the investigation going?”
Her gaze swept the room as a few of the women approached her. “We’re not done with this conversation, Commander Mike Gallagher.” She glanced at the approaching women. “I want to know why you’re here.”
“Are you free after this class?” he whispered.
“Yes.” Then she looked shocked as though she hadn’t meant to say that out loud.
“Good. When you’re done here, there’s a nice little Italian restaurant around the corner.
I’m starved and I’m sure you’ve burned enough calories to eat, too.
I’ll wait for you over here.” Without letting her disagree, he walked away and took an inordinate amount of time putting on his shoes.
After the last woman left, Mike waited for her at the only door.
“I don’t date my students,” she announced as she stepped into the lobby.
“Good thing I’m not one of your students, and this is not a date.” He grinned, enjoying the light banter. “Think of it as a business meeting with food involved.”
She stopped on the sidewalk a few feet from the door. “Did someone find out more information that you need to pass along to me?”
“No.” Then he thought better about that answer. “Not that I’ve been told. But when it comes to this case, we are all mushrooms.”
Kam’s laugh was light and feminine, catching him completely off-guard.
“I haven’t heard that saying in years.” She smiled as though lost in a memory. “My dad used to—" She flicked her hand as though to brush away the thought.
He heard her inhale deeply and groan. “Donatello’s smells delicious. The only reason I’m going with you is because I do need to eat. I also need to go grocery shopping because I don’t have hardly anything in my refrigerator.”
Mike didn’t care why she was going with him, just that she was. He’d been impressed with the class and even though he’d ended up on his ass all too often, the fact she could put him there was reason enough to talk to her.
He held the door open for her and she stood there and glared at him.
“Go ahead.” She signaled with her hand. “Remember, this is not a date.”
“I’m a gentleman. I hold the door for all women.”
“Fine.” Kam practically stomped into the restaurant and went straight to the hostess. “Table for two.” As an afterthought, she added, “Please.”
“You look familiar.” The hostess glanced over her shoulder at Kam. “Oh, I know. You’re Ms. Hood.” The perky young girl with dark curly hair broadened her smile. “It’s very nice that you’re dining with us tonight rather than takeout.”
Kam cringed as though the young girl had just blurted out her deepest secret. Her forced smile didn’t fool Mike. “I love your food. I’m just usually in a hurry to get home.”
Yeah. Right . Mike was well aware of how he felt when dining alone; it must be even worse for women.
Like him, takeout food was easier than sitting in a nice restaurant all by himself.
At that moment, he realized how often he sat in front of the television watching the History Channel, eating whatever was in the box or pan in front of him.
“Well, we’re extremely glad that you decided to dine in tonight.” She handed them both menus. “Antonio will be your server. He’ll be with you in just a few minutes.”
Kam held the menu in front of her face, studying it as though there would be a test in the morning.
“So, what’s good here?” Although he knew what he wanted because he’d had it there before.
“I’ve liked everything I’ve ever gotten here,” she announced from behind the large, laminated menu.
Antonio appeared and set two glasses of water on the table.
“Ms. Hood, will it be your usual chicken marsala?” He smiled at her encouragingly.
“Or can I entice you with tonight’s special of veal parmesan?
That comes with salad and spaghetti Bolognese on the side.
” Then he named the price which was considerably higher than most of the dishes on the menu.
She slowly lowered her menu looking as though she’d been caught again. “The veal sounds very good but?—”
“Then veal it shall be.” Mike handed his menu to the waiter and snatched hers as well. “Make that two, please. Kam is right, the veal sounds very good.”
“And what can I get you to drink?” Before they could answer, Antonio continued. “The chef suggests pairing this meal with an Amarone. Would you like to taste?”
Mike saw the flash of interest in Kam’s eyes. “We’ll take a bottle.”
“Excellent. I’ll be back in just a few minutes with your wine.” Antonio disappeared into the back.
Kam crossed her arms over her black gi. “You don’t need to wine and dine me. This is not a date, remember?”
He gave her what he thought of as his evil grin. “Who said I was going to share the wine with you?”
When her jaw fell slightly, Mike had to laugh. “Damn, I enjoy teasing you.”
She dropped her hands to the table. “You’d better share that wine with me. I can hurt you. I went easy on you today in class.”
“I know. I watched you kick ass in the class before mine.” Mike remembered he was there for a purpose and jumped in. “That’s why I invited you to supper.”
“And here I thought it was my overwhelming sweat smell that made me irresistible.” She pulled the gi to the side and took a whiff. Cringing, her eyes met his. “I’m sorry. I do stink.”
“Kam, I spend my days around men who believe they are not working out hard enough unless they soak through every piece of clothing.” He purposefully inhaled deeply.
He could smell her from across the table.
Although it registered as sweat, it was so different from what he experienced every day. It was lighter. Fragrant. Female.
Mike’s body took notice and his cock started to harden.
Fuck. This is not a good time or place to stand up and salute . It hadn’t been that long since he’d been balls-deep in a woman. And Kam wasn’t his type. “Actually, I like the way you smell. You’re not doused in perfume. You are simply…you, and only you.”