Chapter Twenty-Six

Vince and Crossbody’s First Therapy Session

Crossbody

Vince and I sat in stiff silence at either end of the couch as Corey jotted something in his notebook, adjusted his useless glasses and looked up with another demure smile.

“I was thinking we could start at the beginning,” he said in that overly soothing tone. “Go back and recall your very first meeting. Crossbody, you’d been with us for a year when Vince joined the team. What do you both remember about the first time you spoke?”

“What?” Vince said in disbelief. “That was, like, five years ago. How are we supposed to remember that?”

“I certainly can’t,” I drawled, which was a lie. I did remember the first time I’d seen Vince, the day he’d walked into the backstage area and Holt had introduced him to everyone.

I remembered thinking nothing of note at first. He’d just been a stranger, an unfamiliar ghoul wearing ripped jeans and a faded T-shirt. As he’d confidently introduced himself to everyone, I’d approached with a polite smile and held out my hand.

“High Lord Crossbody,” I’d told him. “Royal fae. Pleasure to meet you.”

I remembered, clearly, the way he’d hunched up a little after hearing my clipped, refined accent. He’d briefly shaken my hand, keeping his eyes averted, and muttered his name back before moving on.

Not long after that, he’d started making his disdain for me apparent.

Corey sighed and crossed something out in his notebook. “Alright. Let’s move on. Vince, tell me about your childhood.”

Vince grew so stiff and tense that I could practically feel the couch vibrating beneath me. “I’m not talking about that, Corey. And it has nothing to do with whatever the fuck this is.”

The orc gave me a hopeful look. I shook my head.

He sighed again and crossed something else out. “Then let’s discuss the argument that prompted our recent court session, when things between you took a turn for the worse. Vince, would you like to begin?”

“No.”

“Would you like to share what Crossbody did that elicited such an… explosive reaction from you?”

Vince scrubbed his face with an exasperated huff. “Corey, I don’t even care about that anymore. I’m over it.”

I stiffened, looking away and watching my fingers pick restlessly at the armrest of the couch. Yes, he’d made it quite clear that he was ‘over it.’ All of it.

“But where did the anger come from?” Corey asked passionately, undeterred by Vince’s reticence.

“I was just having a bad day,” Vince snapped. “And I could hear Crossbody laughing every time I fucked up this one move. Which was a dick thing to do.”

“You don’t react that way when Dan or any of the others tease you for mistakes,” I said stiffly. From the corner of my eye, I saw him look over at me.

“We’re not friends,” he said, almost hesitantly.

I pursed my lips and coolly responded, “I’m aware.”

“Crossbody, do you think it was appropriate to do that?” Corey asked, writing something in his notebook.

“I didn’t even realise I was doing it,” I drawled, which was another lie. I’d been trying to goad him. Trying to get a reaction. Because he always did the same to me.

Well, he used to.

“Yes, you did,” Vince muttered, crossing his arms again and slouching low on the couch. “You were trying to piss me off.”

I managed a curt huff of amusement. “I don’t spend every moment at work fixating on you , Vince.”

That felt like a lie too.

“And how does that make you feel, Vince?” Corey asked in his therapist voice, making a note.

“What?” Vince spluttered. I glanced over quickly to see a flush rising in his cheeks. “It—Nothing. It doesn’t make me—I don’t think about him either.”

“Well, you must,” Corey countered, which made Vince’s whole face turn pinkish-purple. “You both must, for you to harbour such animosity toward each other. I want to get to the root of why .”

“We just don’t get along,” Vince gritted out, sounding embarrassed and angry about it. “Sometimes people just don’t like each other, Corey.”

“I refuse to believe it,” he declared. “I can fix this. I have the utmost confidence in myself. And you two,” he added as an afterthought, settling back in his chair and bobbing his stiletto languidly. “Why don’t we discuss your recent matches together? When you worked together very well. Let’s focus on the positives.”

We both stayed silent. Vince’s jaw was clenched, and I was just as tense, part of me wondering if he was going to change his mind and tell Corey the truth about what I’d done. Let me take the fall for my foolish actions.

“You worked so well together that you made the… questionable decision to change the outcome of your match without consulting Holt or Coach Boris.” Corey raised a brow at us. “Which in turn prompted Holt to schedule a second ‘redemption’ match for you. Does that mean you enjoyed working together?”

Again, neither of us spoke. All I could think about was that night in the arena when we’d tried to rehearse. Being tied to the corner post and spread out naked. Vince’s long tongue sliding over my aching cock. His finger pumping inside me.

I was growing warm, a little flustered, and I reflexively uncrossed and recrossed my legs. I sensed Vince’s gaze flicker over to me.

“Your redemption match was a wonderful performance,” Corey continued. “Seamless and technically outstanding, but still electrifying to watch. Holt has floated the idea of giving you two a running feud storyline. How would each of you feel about that? Crossbody?”

I pursed my lips and, after a pause, stiffly said, “It’s our job. So we’d do it.”

“Vince?”

“Like he said, it’s our job,” he muttered.

“Yes, but how do you feel about it? Do you like the idea of fighting Crossbody again?”

For some reason, the question made my pulse begin to race, skin prickling with awareness. Vince was stiff and silent on the couch beside me for a moment that stretched.

“Why don’t you ask Crossbody that question?” he eventually grated.

“I will. But I’m asking you first.”

“Crossbody can answer first.”

Corey went to pinch the bridge of his nose, forgetting about his glasses and knocking them with his fingers. “Vince, please.”

Vince exhaled a forceful breath through his nose, still hunched with his arms crossed, and I sensed him look over at me.

“Well, since I fought Crossbody, he hasn’t said a fucking word to me.”

I blinked and slowly turned my head to meet his gaze. His black eyes narrowed, cheeks still flushed.

I got the sense that he… perhaps wasn’t actually talking about wrestling or our match. Which confused me. I’d done what he wanted. I’d left him alone after our night at the motel.

“You haven’t said a word to me either.”

“This is good,” Corey whispered. “We’re getting somewhere.”

“You asked me to fight you,” Vince said tightly, hands clenching repeatedly into fists. “I fought you all fucking night.”

“All night?” Corey asked with a hint of confusion, then pointed his pen at Vince with a knowing nod. “Ah. Hyperbole, yes. True emotion . This is good. Keep going.”

Heat was flooding my cheeks, because I now knew without a doubt that Vince was definitely not referring to our wrestling matches.

“ You were the one who kept saying that it was a one-time thing,” I snapped at him unsteadily, because I didn’t understand why he was angry. He was the one who’d been acting like nothing had happened between us.

Corey let out a tinkling laugh. “Well, I don’t know about one-time thing. That’s not really something in your control. Holt, actually, is the one who decides—”

“Does that mean you didn’t want it to be?” Vince interrupted, breathing faster, still staring at me with burning black eyes. “You wanted it again? You want me to fight you again?”

“Do you want to fight me again?” I shot back, trying to keep my breaths calm as my heart started to pound.

“Answer the question, Crossbody.”

“What difference does it make?” I snapped. “We agreed—”

“Fuck what we agreed. Just tell me.”

I stared at him, breathing hard. We were both breathing hard. In my peripheral vision, I could see Corey leaning forward in his seat and watching avidly.

“If you want me to fight you again, I’ll fucking fight you again,” Vince rasped, making my breath catch.

“I…” My voice trembled, skin growing warm again. “I don’t want a pity fu—fight from you.”

“It wouldn’t be a pity fight,” Vince gritted out, like he was reluctant to admit it.

“So you want to?” I asked, my voice small and uncertain and wobbly. “You want to fight me again?”

Vince clenched his jaw, a flush spreading over his cheeks. At length, he throatily admitted, “Yes. Okay? I fucking want to fight you again.”

We stared at each other in silence from opposite ends of the couch. His gaze darted down to my lips for a split second and grew darker, fingers flexing in his lap.

My breaths shallow, I hoarsely said, “I want you to fight me again too.”

His eyes shot back up to meet mine and flared with heat. We were both breathing fast. I’d almost forgotten that Corey was in the room until he exhaled slowly and pointed his pen at us.

“I think we just had a breakthrough, people.” He scrawled something in his notebook, smiling to himself in satisfaction. “Tell me how you’re both feeling right now, in this moment.”

Very, very horny . And desperate. Unbearably desperate.

I stayed silent, still staring at Vince as he stared back at me. His gaze wandered down my tense frame while Corey was distracted.

“Better,” he eventually rasped. “I’ve been in a shit mood for the last two weeks.”

“Me too,” I said breathlessly.

“I think one more fight will help.” His tongue darted out to wet his lips. “Get it out of our systems for good this time.”

“Yes,” I said faintly, my heart pounding. “One more time.”

“Again”—Corey let out a tinkling laugh—“you don’t really get a say in that, if Holt decides to pair you up in the future. Regardless, I’m very proud of the progress you’ve made in admitting that you both enjoy working together. And do you know what I think that means?”

He leaned forward, and Vince and I finally, reluctantly tore our gazes from each other to look at him. He took the ridiculous glasses off to point between us with them.

“I think this… very intense eagerness to have another match together means you both really want to be friends.” He smiled wide, as if he’d figured it all out. “You’re looking for excuses to grow closer, and it’s…” Sitting back again, he placed a hand over his heart and shook his head. “It’s beautiful to witness. It’s beautiful to be a part of it. I mean, really, I’m the catalyst for it.”

Vince cleared his throat and dryly said, “Sure.”

“Let’s end there for today.” Corey put the glasses he didn’t need back on to write something in his notebook. “I want to end each session on a good note. A positive.”

“Do we really need another one?” I asked warily.

“Oh yes. Several more. We’re just getting started.” Corey looked up and smiled. “But really, fabulous progress today, you two. A rocky start, but we got there in the end. I could really feel you connecting .”

A flush crawled up my neck as Vince shifted awkwardly on the couch.

“So we’re done?” he asked.

“Until next week,” Corey replied airily. “Same time and place. And in the meantime, I want you both to really think about what you achieved today. Together . And bring that open and willing mindset with you next week.”

Vince was already standing up and rounding the couch to head for the door. “Yeah, okay.”

“Maybe you could even start trying small interactions each day,” Corey hurriedly said before he could leave. “Just saying good morning to each other. Nothing more. Just to really foster that new connection.”

“Yep.” Vince pulled open the door and strode out of the room.

Swallowing thickly, I wiped my clammy palms down my thighs and stood, legs a little shaky. My voice was husky when I said, “I appreciate your time, Corey.”

“It’s absolutely my pleasure, darling.” He beamed up at me, looking exhilarated. “Honestly, I’m thrilled by the breakthrough we made today.”

I coughed awkwardly and turned for the door. “Yes.”

When I got into the corridor, Vince was already gone. I felt flushed as I started making my way down the hall, and my stomach was fluttering with breathless anticipation.

Vince wanted to fuck me again.

He was going to fuck me again.

Before I’d even made it to the end of the corridor, my phone vibrated in my pocket. Fingers trembling slightly, I pulled it out and tapped to open the message the moment I saw it was from him.

One more time. 8 p.m. tonight, same place. Make sure you’re prepped and ready again. Don’t be late this time.

My breath shuddered out of me as I clutched my phone, staring down at it. Slowly, my mouth stretched into a tiny smile.

I jumped and hurriedly stuffed it into my pocket when I heard a door open behind me. Whirling around, I tried to compose myself when I saw Taylor leaving his office holding a coffee cup.

He blinked at the sight of me. “Oh. Hi, Crossbody.”

I gave him a polite nod. “Hello, Taylor.”

He walked closer, glancing back at the door furthest down the corridor, and gave me an encouraging smile. “How was the session with Corey?”

“It was… fine.”

Vince is going to fuck me tonight .

“Did you manage to… get anywhere?” Taylor asked with concern. “You and Vince?”

“In a sense.”

He’s going to fuck me again tonight, which is probably the worst thing we can do, but I can’t think about anything else. I want it.

I need it.

“Well, that’s promising.” Taylor nodded at me encouragingly. “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

I wasn’t all that familiar with the expression, so I just gave him a polite smile. “Yes. Quite. Well, I’d better get back to work.”

“Sure. Good to see you.”

“And you,” I replied absently, checking my phone again as I walked away.

2.45 p.m.

I just had to wait a little over five hours. Just five more hours, and I would have Vince’s cock back inside me, pounding into me so hard I felt it all through my body.

Just five more hours and I would get to hear him call me his little slut again in that low, throaty voice. Feel his hands on me, rough and demanding, and his lithe body pressed tight against mine.

Just five more hours. I could last five more hours.

Maybe.