Chapter 24

Rory made his way downstairs at 4:30 in the morning in order to be at the gym by 5:00. If he hadn’t been dedicated to his MMA training, Rory would have had his head examined for being up so early. He found Tyler sitting at the kitchen counter, drinking orange juice. His dad was in a robe, making Rory think he planned to go back to bed.

“Just the young man I wanted to talk to,” Tyler said as Rory grabbed some cereal and milk.

“Thank you again for the gifts for Colonel Campbell. I probably should have shown you what I was taking because I was told the scotch and cigars were expensive.”

Tyler waved him off.

“That stuff was just sitting there gathering dust,” Tyler said to alleviate his concerns. “What I wanted to talk to you about is Gary Simonian, Marcus’s trainer and manager. Chris knows of him. I guess he’s trained some big-name MMA fighters in the past, but there was a problem a few years ago. One of his fighters killed a sparring partner.

“Gary has been out of the fight game for the past four years. Marcus is the first fighter he’s signed since coming back.”

“That’s not good,” Rory worried.

“It was reported that Gary let a training session go too far. Chris called around and discovered it wasn’t so cut and dried. He said that Gary has his fighters train hard, but people in the know said it was an accident. With that in mind, Chris will meet you in Reno and observe the training for a few days. If he says he isn’t happy with the way it’s going, you’ll be coming home,” Tyler warned.

“So, that means I get to go?”

“It’s like you only hear what you want to,” Tyler said as he shook his head. “But, yes, you get to go.”

“I’ll let Marcus know so he can arrange travel and lodging.”

“I’ve taken care of that. They were going to have you stay at a motel that only got one star on the travel websites. Crystal worried you would catch something because they offer rooms by the hour,” Tyler said.

“Yeah, that’s not ideal.”

“Crystal used the company’s reward points to book both you and Marcus into a nice hotel on the Reno strip. Gary plans to rent rooms there as well with the money he’ll save by not having to put you and Marcus up,” Tyler shared.

“Thanks for letting me know, and please thank Crystal for the hotel upgrade. Right now, I have to jet to the gym so I can spar,” Rory said as he put his bowl in the dishwasher.

Clare had sent Rory a message that she wanted to talk to him before he took off for Lake Mead. In response, he’d invited her over for lunch at his house. Summer had said he was an okay cook, so she agreed.

When she arrived, Rory answered the door. Something smelled fantastic.

“We got a new chef, and she makes these lunches that are way better than going to a restaurant. Let me introduce you to her, and then we’ll go to the solarium to eat.”

“Look at you, embracing the lifestyle,” Clare teased.

“Wait till you try Paula’s food before you make fun. The Whitmans are looking for a chef, too, after Gigi ate here earlier this week,” Rory said.

He was right. The main course was slow-roasted salmon with fennel, citrus, and chilies. Clare hadn’t realized she liked salmon until she tasted Paula’s creation.

After a dessert of apple tart, she finally told Rory what she’d come over to say.

“First, I want you to know that I love my sister, and if you hurt her, I will track you down.”

“Hurting her is the last thing on my mind,” he said.

“She told me she’s thinking about dating you, so I figured I’d better warn you about some stuff. My sister is a brat at times. You probably thought I was the bad guy when she and I were fighting, but this has been going on for years. She has to get her way, or else. If you date her, it’ll be the same.”

“Give me an example,” Rory said.

“Everything has to be on her terms. Last Christmas, I was invited to go on a ski trip with Gretchen’s family. Summer decided they had to invite her too and started making demands, like she wanted her own hotel room. Thankfully, my mom put a stop to it, but Summer threw a fit and made my life miserable for weeks.

“If you decide to date my sister, you’ll have to put in the effort to make it work. She also won’t want to come right out and call you her boyfriend. Summer will worry that she might miss out on some rando future guy.

“I guess what I’m saying is Summer is selfish,” Clare said.

“What do you suggest?” Rory asked.

“If I were you, I’d make it clear up front what you want in a relationship. If she tries to change your mind by negotiating, I would recommend you move on. Decide what your deal-breakers are before you talk to her.”

“I hadn’t really put it together like that, but I can see what you’re talking about. I have no interest in being her prize bull, being led around by his nose ring,” he said.

“That paints a picture,” Clare said with a chuckle. “I don’t want to totally throw my sister under the bus; Summer can be both loyal and loving. If you can get her to treat you like an equal, then it might be okay.”

“We were planning on talking about dating over the weekend. I guess you’ll know how it turns out when we get back,” Rory said.

Rory didn’t bother ringing the doorbell at Elise’s house. As he’d guessed, he found Jace and Kierra in the living room, having sex. Sean and Elise were in the main bedroom.

When everyone had showered and dressed, they met him in the dining room.

“How did my boys do?” Rory asked.

“They’re both much better than they were, and they’ll make some girl very happy,” Elise predicted.

“I had fun,” Kierra volunteered.

“How about you, Kierra? Do you feel the class was worth it?” Rory asked.

“I’m glad I didn’t listen to Rena. She’s always complaining about sex not lasting long enough. That may be why she hooks up with a couple of water polo players in a night.

“I still have a lot to learn. Maybe you and I can have some one-on-one training sessions,” Kierra said.

They all laughed at the face Rory made.

“We’ll see,” he lamely said.

Then he gathered himself and asked, “Is there anything else you want to know before we end the class?”

“I’ve noticed that you manscape down there. Is that something Jace and I should do, or is that just something for porn?” Sean asked.

“They do it in porn to make the actor’s dick look bigger. That doesn’t mean you have to shave it all off like I have. But seriously, Sean, you should take a pair of beard clippers to the Chia Pet you have growing down there,” Rory joked.

“Thanks,” Sean said when everyone smirked at his discomfort.

“One place every guy should groom is his balls. Ball hair grabs stinky germs. Think about how your crotch reeks after riding your dirt bikes. Your balls will smell better with less hair. I recommend you either wax or shave them clean,” Rory taught.

“I’d be nervous doing that myself,” Jace worried.

“Then ask a girl to help you. I’ve heard that shaving each other can be a fun shower activity,” Rory suggested.

“I personally like blowing Rory because he doesn’t have hair. It’s a turnoff when you’re doing oral and get stray pubic hair in your mouth. It ruins the mood,” Kierra said.

“If we’re going to get better at sex, what should we do?” Jace asked.

“Like any skill, you need to practice. If possible, daily,” Rory said with a smile. “For example, Kierra might want to work on giving blowjobs.”

She stuck her tongue out at him in response.

“I have a question,” Rory said. “What do girls look for in a guy?”

“I like men who are confident, successful, and high-performing,” Elise said.

“Tell us about this perfect guy,” Rory said.

Elise thought about what to say.

“Maybe most important is they have to know who the heck they are and accept themselves for who they are. I hate when guys try to reinvent themselves because they think it’ll make them look cooler. No guy is the star quarterback, movie star, and model. So, why even go there?” Elise asked.

“I think this mythical guy knows his shortcomings and works to become better,” Kierra added.

“The key is that he does it to improve himself and not to try to change who he is,” Elise reiterated.

“How do you know who you are?” Sean asked.

“It all starts with asking yourself what you want out of life. Then do some self-reflecting on who you are, what’s working, and what isn’t. This is hard because you might find you don’t actually like something about yourself. Confronting that is the first step toward becoming the best possible you,” Elise coached.

“If you have no clue, you should listen to the people around you,” Kierra said. “True friends will be honest and tell you what they think. Remember that you asked, and try not to dismiss it because you think they’re being dicks.”

“I want to add that you have to have the mindset of a winner,” Rory added. “My MMA coach taught me that I had to change the way I thought because every time I failed, I looked at it as a loss. He told me that successful fighters view failure as a learning experience that’ll get you to your wins. I think that applies to more than just fighting.”

“I like that,” Elise said. “One of the sexiest things a guy can do is to know what he wants and go after it. Nothing is a bigger turnoff than a man who can’t make a move. We know they’re interested, but they sit on their hands until we give up and move on. If guys could just tell us they’re interested, we can take it from there.”

“It can get downright disturbing when they stare at you and sneak around to watch you,” Kierra said.

“I’ve got another one,” Rory said. “Guys need to have clear boundaries and speak up when they’re crossed.”

“Like what?” Elise asked.

“Like your girl just assumes you’ll want to do whatever she wants. For example, your girl buys two tickets to that beaver guy’s concert. She would have a much better time taking a friend who loves the beaves instead of getting pissed off when I don’t sing along and want to leave,” Rory said.

“That goes both ways,” Elise agreed.

Rory turned to his boys.

“See what you can learn if you listen to girls?”

“I don’t want the classes to stop,” Sean said.

“I can’t continue to host them. My husband will find out,” Elise said.

“And I need to slow down some, or I’ll become like Rena,” Kierra said.

“Sounds like you boys need girlfriends,” Rory suggested.

“Just don’t be weird about it. Ask them,” Elise suggested.

“I wonder where you might find them?” Rory asked himself as he tapped his index finger on his lip. “Maybe there are two girls who like you guys, who’ll be at Lake Mead, and might even ride over with us.”

“But that’ll mess up the group hangs,” Sean worried.

“I don’t know; maybe Rory’s right. Especially if he starts dating Summer. That’ll change the group relationships for sure. We might as well take our shot,” Jace said.

Sean didn’t seem convinced, but Rory had a feeling Sean would come around to his and Jace’s way of thinking.

Jace had driven his mom’s van so all six of them could ride together. Sophie was driving his jeep over with the trailer later that day. Once they’d made their way through Vegas, they stopped at a gas station to pick up drinks and snacks.

As they got back on the road, Summer pointed.

“Pull over for a second in that park.”

Rory saw that the parking lot was empty. Once Jace had parked, Summer announced, “Okay, girls, let’s get this party started right!”

“Oh, yeah!” “Let’s do this!” Julie and Alice said in chorus.

Rory had no idea what was happening until Summer got down and the floor and began to undo his pants.

“Lift your butt,” she ordered.

Rory found his pants and underwear around his ankles.

“The best parties always start with a blow job,” Sean said.

Rory glanced back and saw Julie suck the head of Sean’s cock into her mouth. Rory’s attention was diverted to his own dick as Summer began to aggressively suck him.

“She’s doing it so hard that it almost hurts,” Jace said from the driver’s seat.

“Am I doing it too hard?” Alice asked.

“No, you’re doing fine, baby,” Jace said.