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Covertly Me & You

By JD Hurst

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Late January
Hadley Morris slowly shifted her big truck into park and plopped back against the leather seat. She sucked in another fortifying breath as she stared through the rain splattered windshield at the former furniture store turned mixed martial arts gym.
‘Protect MMA Training’ the understated black lettering read on the front facia of the building. The furniture store had closed its doors 3 years prior, and the new owner had opened the doors of the gym 2 years ago, Hadley remembered. She’d barely noticed it the times she had come to this part of Memphis before her husband had passed away. Had it already been a year since last she’d held him close? She subconsciously rubbed at the ache in her chest. She didn’t cry as much anymore, but she never stopped missing him.
Hadley firmed her jaw at the thought of the tears she’d shed in the last year. She hated crying. It gave her a headache and made her nauseous. Because she’d cried so much in the months following Allen’s loss in his fight against cancer, she’d made major changes in her life. When she’d met Allen, she had been set on a career path that would have eventually led her into the CIA if she’d had her way. She’d fallen in love with Allen who had been a successful businessman when they met and married him a few months later. She had still intended to follow her dream, but pregnancy and motherhood had taken her down an entirely different path altogether. She’d stayed home to raise two kids into really neat adult contributing members of society. When they had both moved into their own lives, she’d thought she was too old to revisit her dreams of the past. But when Allen died, she couldn’t stomach the thought of continuing on status quo. She couldn’t force herself to keep moving in the same parenting and church circles she had always moved in as Mrs. Allen Morris. The first thing she did was insist on being called Lee instead of Hadley. It made no sense, and she didn’t have the energy to care. She then signed up for a multi-language college course and ballroom dance lessons. She told her kids it was for exercise. She lied. She had her 45-year-old body tucked and lifted and dropped off her “Mom Jeans” at the local thrift store. Replacing them with Wranglers and boots when she bought her 450-acre horse farm in the hills of Tennessee outside of Memphis with the life insurance that Allen had faithfully ensured she would receive when he passed. Her friends thought that she had lost her mind with grief. Maybe she had. Didn’t most people who lost their entire world lose their minds a little?
What no one suspected was that she had been plodding through the mire of grief toward this moment for nearly a year now. Sitting outside of the subtle MMA gym in the jacked-up truck that had also been part of her “mid-life” crisis, she was nervous that she really was too old to keep going down this path, that her plan wouldn’t pan out because of her age, but she felt her resolve solidify in her belly. She wouldn’t take no for an answer today, tomorrow, or ever. She knew that she was good at the things she’d been setting her hand to because she practiced constantly. What else did she have to do? Other than running her prosperous horse farm of course. Sleep wasn’t really a thing for her, so if she weren’t balancing the farm’s ledgers in the middle of the night, she was practicing high society conversations in whichever language suited the moment, along with what she hoped would translate as sultry and flirtatious mannerisms. Not because she intended to find a new man to replace Allen, but because she intended to use her curvy femineity as a key to open doors that normally would not be opened to a housewife from rural Tennessee.
Lee pulled the truck’s door open and dropped to the asphalt of the parking lot, water splashing up onto her jeans and chilly rain pelting her head. She was grateful for the beat-up ball cap she wore all the time. The Atlanta Braves cap had been the only one that Allen owned and now, she felt naked without it nestled snugly over her dark chocolate-colored wavy locks.
She dashed to the entrance and yanked the glass door open. The smell of sweat and antibacterial cleaner assaulted her senses as she stopped at the unmanned check-in desk that sat to the side of the opening to the wide-open gym floor. Free weights and workout equipment lined the window wall and the back wall, but only mats and a small octagon ring were in the center of the room. The sound of voices drew her attention to the far side of the octagon, and she could just make out a group of people watching the action inside their circle. She started in that direction. Her movement must have caught the eye of someone in the group because a giant man with raven black hair headed toward her.
“Hi ma’am. Sorry, we’re currently closed for a private training session. We’re getting ready for the National Championships right now.” The man smiled kindly down at her as he extended a handshake toward her. “I can take your name though and have the boss call you back. I presume you want to sign your kid up for MMA instruction?”
At five foot four, Lee had to tilt her head back to look up at this man who was already trying to tell her no. She barely controlled her response to an eye-twitching cringe as she squeezed his hand hard. She couldn’t deny the little twinge of satisfaction when his blue eyes gave away his startled response.
“Lee Morris and I’m not interested in signing my kid up.” She growled through gritted teeth. “I’m looking to sign myself up. My cousin, Randy Dane recommended I connect with Mack McElroy?” She raised her eyebrows at him in question of his name.
He shook his head, his black curls bouncing over his shoulders.
“Not me. I’m Dallas. Mack is in the back with his students.” He hooked a thumb over his shoulder, indicating the group.
Lee was ashamed to feel her lips pursed petulantly as she pushed past the giant. She’d failed the first test. Everyone she met would be trying to derail her efforts and she could not show her annoyance when she met resistance.
She pushed into the ring of people watching the two sparring in the middle and stopped short. A broad, thickly muscled back was turned to her and a smaller younger man, maybe a teen, was locked in a grappling grasp as the man with his back to her spoke to the teens gathered around. The teen was struggling to break the hold, which the man was holding seemingly without effort.
Sandy colored waves also brushed the wide shoulders of whom she guessed must be Mack. It seemed to be a theme with adult men in the group, as she counted four more well-built men with shoulder length hair. She absently wondered if it was an enforced dress code for the instructors at this gym. Her gaze, however, zeroed in on the man’s legs. Or rather right leg and left prosthetic that was protruding from the basketball shorts the man was wearing. She shouldn’t have been shocked to see it, but she was and knew she hadn’t hidden yet another unsatisfactory response when the man turned, and his face fell flat when he saw hers. Dangit! He’d caught her staring and she had failed to hide her thoughts. Not that she was thinking anything derogatory about his missing limb, but she should have been projecting that she wasn’t thinking anything at all about it. She couldn’t stop the hitch in her thoughts though. How could she ask him to train her with only one leg? Of course, he was literally standing in front of her, training a young man for competition. Why would he not be able to train an “old” lady who was half the size of the teen?
“Miss Morris would like to speak with you about becoming a student.” Dallas announced unceremoniously.
Mack’s eyebrows bounced up in surprise. He was either surprised that Dallas had interrupted his instruction session or that this little woman wanted to become an MMA student. Probably both.
“Okay, guys, Dallas and Erik will take over for today. Remember to work on your escapes.” Mack extricated himself from the boy in front of him and stepped toward Lee, motioning toward the office in the back wall that was partially obscured by a leg press machine.
She couldn’t help but notice how smooth his gait was as he walked next to her with only the slightest hitch in his step.
“Miss Morris, we are a championship producing MMA gym because we are dedicated to personally training our students.” Mack stated as he closed the office door behind them. He was all business, not wasting time on idle pleasantries. “In order to do so, we have to keep our client pool small so that we can give individual attention to each one. We simply cannot take on any new students at this time.” He sat heavily behind the desk and leveled a somewhat annoyed glare on her.
A quick and accommodating acceptance jumped to Lee’s lips, but she forced herself to bite it back. Her cousin, Randy, had been adamant that she procures Mack’s instruction since Randy couldn’t be here to teach her himself.
‘If you’re going to go through with this cockamamy plan, you have to promise me you’ll get the best training possible. Mack is the best and I wouldn’t trust your future to anyone else.’ Randy’s insistent urging rang in her ears.
“Randy Dane sent me to you.” Lee blurted.
Mack blinked at her, surprised once again. He squinted at her to try and cover his reaction.
“Randy is good people but I’m sure he wasn’t aware that my schedule is too full right now with the National Championship tournament coming up.” Mack stated decidedly.
“I’d be happy to train alongside your other students until after the championship. I’m not looking to compete, just gain some unexpected self defense mechanisms.” Lee sounded desperate, even to her own ears. “I know I’m older than your regular students, but I could function as a chaperone for those two females I saw out there as we travel to competitions.”
Mack was shaking his head before she’d finished, so she rushed on before he could speak. “I’ll pay my own way. I could write it off as volunteer work.”
“Ma’am, we as a team don’t have time for a newbie. Maybe we can revisit this in May.” Mack started to push up from the desk dismissively.
“No one said I was a newbie.” Lee stated coolly. She glared up at him, silently asking herself why she was pushing so hard to be trained by someone who clearly wanted nothing to do with her.
He leaned over the desk, eyeing her suspiciously. “You have MMA experience?” He asked in disbelief.
She wished she could honestly say yes. But she wouldn’t lie to this man whom her cousin, her hero, held in such high esteem. “Not MMA as a whole, just Jujitsu.” She allowed a small, yet smug smile. “I studied Jujitsu for about a decade alongside my kids as they were growing up. It’s a great workout regimen.” She admitted a little sheepishly, a flush stealing over her cheeks. “I always fell asleep in yoga. Couldn’t stand it.” She added unnecessarily. She stifled a groan but couldn’t stop the eye roll.
Mack hesitated, his desire to send her away warring with his relationship to Randy.
“Randy is my cousin.” Lee stated quietly.
Mack straightened abruptly. Resignation washed over his rugged features. “And he sent you to me.” It wasn’t a question. “If Randy is calling in the favor I owe him, it must be vitally important that you receive the best ‘self-defense’ tactics available.” He sighed. “You sure you can travel with us to all the tournaments leading up to Nationals? It’s just about every weekend from here on out and I’ll expect you in the gym at least 3 days a week.” He warned sternly.
Lee nodded with relieved enthusiasm. The horse farm had been turn-key when she’d purchased it, complete with an established clientele and quality staff. She knew her foreman and head trainer would be able to manage things in her absence, even if it did make her heartrate increase at the thought of literally turning over the reins of her operation to someone other than herself. Of course, if her plans came to fruition, she’d have to get used to Juan Delgado, the foreman, running her farm.
Mack steepled his fingers in front of him for a moment as he regarded her solemnly.
Lee could see that he really didn’t want to take on her training, but whatever he owed Randy for, she was grateful. She watched as he accepted the situation despite his personal feelings on the matter. And tried to ignore how intriguing he was, even with a frown marring his features. She tried to ignore the depth of his character showing in his eyes.
“Welcome to Protect MMA Training, Miss Morris.” Mack grimaced and held out his hand.
She surged to her feet and grasped his massive palm. “Thank you, Mack. I’ll work hard to make sure you don’t regret this.” She ignored the jolt that zapped between them and seared her skin. She was just excited to be taking the next step in her journey. That was all. She hadn’t noticed how devastatingly handsome this solid heap of muscle, tan skin and hazel eyes was. She was not curious about the jagged scar that ran from his earlobe to the corner of his mouth. She didn’t want to know how he’d lost his leg. The sound of his deep voice didn’t send little shivers racing up and down her spine. Certainly not. He was to be her instructor in the hand-to-hand combat skills that she would need in her new life. That was all there was or ever would be.
“Can you be here at 0600 tomorrow? We’ll meet early to assess your current skill level so that we can build a specialized instruction plan for you.” Mack’s voice forced her thoughts to focus on the task at hand.
She did the math in her head. She’d have to leave her farm at 5 a.m. to get here on time. It wasn’t like she would be asleep at that time anyway. Might as well get started on the rest of her tomorrows.
“I’ll be here.” She smiled.

Mack drifted to the large plate glass windows on the parking lot side of the gym as Randy Dane’s cousin, Miss Morris, sprinted through the frigid winter rain across the wet pavement toward a huge black truck that couldn’t possibly be hers. He sensed the other instructors sidling up on either side of him but kept his gaze on the tiny woman who couldn’t possibly be his newest student. Right? Wait. What had just happened? Had he really been steamrolled by the quiet and refined little lady who was even now clambering up into the impossibly high truck and starting the engine that he could hear even through the glass? And why did he instinctively describe the baseball hat wearing country girl as refined? She’d spoken only as much as needed saying and her voice spoke of a lifetime Tennessee resident. There was no denying the determination that ran through her like a ribbon of steel, but he could see plainly that she had ulterior motives. She wasn’t afraid. If she had recently been attacked, he doubted that her attacker had survived. Her brown eyes seemed to hold the depths of the ocean and she had made no effort to mask either the pain or the conviction that shimmered just beneath the surface.
“So, we’re training her?” Dallas asked drily.
“Guess so.” Mack answered, a little dazed.
“Guess she didn’t like it when you told her no.” Dallas stated.
“No, she did not.” Mack flattened his lips.
“So, you mentioned that this is your gym?” Dallas asked.
“I did not get a chance. She knew who I was when she walked in. Randy sent her.” Mack answered quietly.
A hush fell over the group as understanding dawned on his friends. He knew they’d been gearing up to give him a hard time, but he also knew that they wouldn’t after hearing that. They knew that he could not turn away Randy Dane’s cousin. The debt he owed the man was too great to refuse him any request.
“Well, I guess toss day won’t be too painful with this one.” Dallas finally quipped.
A chuckle rippled through the men. Mack could only concede to that truth. She was so small. She made the teenagers drifting out of the locker rooms look oversized. Not only was her stature dainty but her ivory skin and dark hair added to her delicateness. He really wasn’t sure if he could bring himself to demonstrate defensive moves to her. The boots and jeans coupled with the truck and hat should have had him thinking she was strong and tough, but he could only think of the rawness he saw in her eyes. No, he didn’t want to instruct her. He wanted to pick her up and tuck her away in a safe place where the evil she seemed ready to fight against could not touch her. Which was downright dumb. He didn’t think she would welcome being tossed over his shoulder and spirited away. And he didn’t even know her so why was the warrior within that he’d thought long dead, lumbering to his feet, and shaking off a long winter slumber?
Mack cleared his throat as the truck roared out of the parking lot. He was already in trouble, and they hadn’t even begun to train. This was going to be a long year.

True to her word, Lee showed up 10 minutes before 6 a.m. Dressed in capris workout pants and a sunny yellow tank top, she kicked off her shoes at the edge of the mat and turned to face Mack, ready to work. He tried not to notice the chiseled muscle tone in her little arms or the lack of belly bulge that typically showed up in women her age. Every muscle in her body seemed finely honed and coiled, ready for action. He decided to try and disarm her with conversation.
“So, Miss Lee Morris, why are you interested in studying MMA?” He asked mildly. He noticed that her eyes never left his face, which was proving to disarm him too. Not good. It felt as though she were looking straight through to his soul with her direct and intense stare.
“I don’t want to study MMA. As I mentioned yesterday, I’m looking for superior self-defense that no one would expect to find in a woman like me.” She stated quietly.
“Why me then? Why this gym? Couldn’t a police officer have taught you what you need to know?”
“Randy has his doubts about the calling I’ve felt drawing me since I was a little girl, but he was quite insistent that I learn the skills I need to survive from someone who has used them and knows the value of the unexpected.” She air quoted with her fingers.
Mack bit back a retort about her still being a little girl. He forced himself to focus on what she wasn’t saying. “What do you mean, ‘calling’?” He asked.
Her dark eyes continued to track him as he subconsciously circled her slowly. He hadn’t even realized he’d begun to move.
She drew herself up and tipped her chin, looking as if she wouldn’t answer the question. He braced himself to begin subtle interrogation tactics that he’d thought he’d left behind on the battlefield.
Lee sighed. “I’ve always felt that I was meant to be more than a housewife and mother. When I met my husband, I was in college, working toward a degree in foreign language and political science. I intended to join the CIA when I graduated but I married Allen instead. I thought I would still pursue my career, but I got pregnant with our first child a few months after our wedding. I figured God had set me on a different path and I learned how to be content.” She swallowed hard before continuing. “When Allen passed last year…” she seemed to struggle to say the words aloud. “I couldn’t ignore my purpose anymore. I started to recreate myself…I’m trying to go from soccer mom to…well, the opposite of that…” she finished uncomfortably.
Mack was shocked that she had been blatantly honest, but he was still skeptical. “Don’t get me wrong, you look fantastic, like you’re in your thirties, but for you to have a close relationship with your cousin, Randy, you would have to be at least in your forties, since he’s retired from the Marine Corps. I know he was gone for most of his career…” Mack was trying to tread lightly on the subject of age. He didn’t know much about women, but he was acutely aware of how much they disliked discussing their age. He was trying to point out that she might be beyond the typical recruitment age for the CIA.
Lee laughed at his discomfort but still did not take her eyes off of Mack.
He struck anyway, fully expecting to catch her off guard. He knew he had a way of moving so quickly, even when someone was staring right at him, they didn’t catch the movement until it was too late. He reached out to wrap his hands around her neck but stumbled when he caught nothing but air. She too was quick and had catlike reflexes. His body tacked left without him giving it a thought and he planted his leg behind hers, twisting to hook an arm around her shoulders to pull her backwards to the mat. She spun away easily, and Mack tried to decide if he was miffed or impressed. He whirled to face her before she could strike, but she didn’t even try to come at him. She simply fluttered out of his reach. Okay. He was miffed. She should have struck. She should have used the millisecond of imbalance against him. Was she taking it easy on him because he had only one leg? He hated when people did that.
“Why didn’t you use that?” He demanded hotly as he stalked toward her.
“I only need to be able to avoid capture.” She stated simply as she stilled.
Mack struck again and this time caught her full on and slammed her to the mat. Their breath huffed out simultaneously with the impact as they landed in a heap. He glared down at her as she lay trapped beneath him, staring up at him with too-big eyes. He clung to his anger, desperately trying to ignore the awareness that sizzled through him and her soft pink lips that were far too close to his own.
“Wrong! You’re a fool if you think you’ll never have to finish a fight!” He growled. He pushed up and away from her, plopping heavily onto his rear with his back slightly to her. He was giving her another chance and he hoped that she took it.
Lee didn’t disappoint him. Her little arms slid around his neck from behind, her corded muscles tight against his throat and her knees dug into his back. Mack tried not to smile.
“Lee, if you’re looking to infiltrate criminal organizations, you might even have to kill someone to save yourself.” He ignored her warm breath on his ear. “Do you understand that?”
Lee’s grip loosened and she slid away from him but sunk to a sitting position next to him on the mat.
“I didn’t want to kill you, Mack. I’d like to think of you as a friend now if that’s okay with you.” Her voice was soft and solemn.
“Everyone around you will seem like a friend when you’re on an undercover operation. Until they’re not.” He heaved to standing, ignoring the little ache that sprouted in his chest at her soft words. He reached down and hauled her to her feet with one hand. She was too light, and he accidentally flung her up into his chest. His free arm automatically circled her back, holding her too close again, with her feet dangling at his knees.
“Remember that.” He breathed. For a moment, he forgot to set her down, just submitted to the soul-searching look she fixed on him. He hoped she wouldn’t be disappointed in the man she found there.
A throat clearing nearby shook him from the spell he’d found himself under and he turned to see Dallas and Erik weakly trying to contain their laughter.
Lee Morris was going to be exceptionally good at disarming any red-blooded males that would be sorry to find themselves one of her targets. And Mack really hated that.

As that first session bled into a routine, Mack tried to ignore Lee’s magnetism. He tried to make sure that the other instructors at the gym were the demonstrators for new techniques, tried to keep his relationship with her professional, tried to pretend like it wasn’t excruciatingly difficult to make it look like every part of his being wasn’t leaning toward her. Judging by the smirks his friends shot his way, he wasn’t fooling anyone. And though he refused to acknowledge it, it was entirely possible that Lee was fighting the same battle. It was dumb really. They were exhausting themselves, flitting around each other, pretending to ignore the attraction, the pull they had on each other. But for whatever reason, they both kept up the charade. She probably because of the recent loss of her husband and he because he’d already burned a relationship to the ground and was determined not to wreak so much havoc on himself or another human again.
But he couldn’t deny, in the dark of night, when he was supposed to be sleeping but wasn’t, that Lee drew him to her. He sensed when she walked into the gym, and she always seemed to be looking in his direction when he sought her out at a crowded competition. His heart warned him that he was fighting a losing battle, but he stubbornly stood his ground. This couldn’t work. She was heading off into the unknown and he had his students and his gym. She was still in love with her late husband and Mack never wanted to love again. They both had good reasons to keep their distance. Now if they could just get themselves to abide by the rules.

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