by Marie James
Table of Contents
Samson
Copyright
Acknowledgments
Synopsis
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Social Media Links
OTHER BOOKS FROM MARIE JAMES
Samson
Cerberus MC Book 9
Copyright
Samson: Cerberus MC Book 9
Copyright © 2019 Marie James
Editing by Marie James Betas
EBooks are not transferrable. All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded, or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale, or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Acknowledgments
Huge shout out this time around to the #1 man in my life! My dear, sweet husband, you are amazing! Thank you for making my dreams come true and supporting me relentlessly from day one. This wouldn’t be possible it is wasn’t for your support!
Dory V! You lady are a rock star! Thank you for making sure I didn’t jack up the medical stuff!
My amazing BETAs, you ladies are the absolute best! Laura, MaRanda, Brenda, Jamie, Michelle, and Jo thank you so much for the help on this book! Mary, you amaze me each and every time we work together! Thank you for your help and all of your support through this process!
Laura Watson! Thank you! You keep my head on right. I couldn’t do this without you!
Another shout out to RRR Promotions and Natasha for helping get this book out into the world. As always you nailed it!
Readers, I can’t even begin to tell you what you mean to me. Without you, I’d have no reason to write these books. Thanks for your continued support of the Cerberus MC!
Until next time!
~Marie James
Synopsis
Who says you can’t fall in love at seven years old?
I know I did.
The love I felt for my babysitter, Camryn Davison at such a young age transformed over time.
By the time I was a teen that love turned into fantasies I knew would never come true.
By the time I saw her again at twenty-one I was determined to make those fantasies a reality.
If only she’d see me as the man I am now and not the little boy she used to soothe when I had nightmares as a child.
She’s the only one that has an issue with our seven-year age difference, but I’m determined to prove to her that a younger man is exactly what she needs.
Prologue
Camryn
“Mommy!”
I’m off the couch and up the stairs with the first yell. By the time Samson screams the second time, I’m in his room and lunging for his bed. He doesn’t have time to scream a third time because I’ve got him in my arms, and I’m soothing him against my chest.
“Shh,” I repeat over and over as the seven-year-old sobs. “You’re safe.”
His tears soak the front of my shirt, but I can’t be bothered with caring. His little fists tangle in my shirt as if he’s terrified I’ll leave him while he’s scared.
“M-monsters,” he stammers after the tears have calmed some.
“There are no monsters here, Samson.” I hold his tiny frame as I rise from the bed and flip on the light. “Look.”
Just like I’ve done the numerous times he’s had night terrors while I’m babysitting, I carry him around the room to show him that each and every corner, including the closet, is monster free.
“It’s just you and me up here, buddy. Delilah is asleep in her room. Your dads will be home soon.”
“I’m so glad you’re here, Mommy.” His words are spoken in a whisper as he fights going back to sleep.
Long lashes flutter against his cheeks repeatedly as if they weigh a ton while I brush my hand over his head. The first time he called me mommy, I corrected him, but it seemed to cause more problems than it solved. He’s not easy to reason with when he’s upset. After talking to my dad, he assured me it was normal for children to be disoriented when they wake from a nightmare. So long as he didn’t call me mommy while he was awake and fully aware, there is no harm done.
“I’m going to marry you when I’m ten,” he mumbles, half asleep. His eyes don’t even open when he continues, “So you’ll hold me every night.”
My lips turn up in a smile as sleep finally pulls him under. I’m not going to argue with a seven-year-old about my plans of never getting married. I’m too focused on myself and my own goals to have to worry about taking care of a man, but hearing the sureness in his voice at such a young age is comical.
I stay beside him in his tiny bed. Even at fifteen, I wouldn’t want to be left alone after waking up so frightened. I don’t leave his side until I hear Jaxon and Rob return from their evening out. Even still, I take one last look to make sure he’s okay before I go to greet them.
“Uh oh,” Rob says as he watches me come down the stairs. “Another nightmare?”
I nod. “He went right back to sleep after, though. I wouldn’t wait to call Dad. Every time this happens, it’s because he’s starting to get sick.”
My father, Dr. Randall Davison, is a local general practitioner. My mother, Angelica Davison, is a pediatric nurse, so it’s easy to say medicine is in my blood. I’ve set my goal much higher, and I won’t be satisfied until I have the title of surgeon after my name.
“You’ll be an amazing mother one day,” Jaxon praises as he hands over my babysitting fee.
“Nope,” I tell them both as I turn toward the door. “I’m not going to be a mother. I’m going to be a doctor.”
Chapter 1
Samson
“I don’t believe you,” Griffin says, but his smile is wide as he shakes his head.
“I’m telling you, man. Twins.”
“If I had known college was so much fun, I would’ve given it more consideration before joining the Corps.” His words are light and filled with humor, but the dark shadows under his eyes speak his truth.
I just got back from Denver last night, deciding that although I had loads of fun my first three years in college, that lifestyle was taking its toll on me. After waking up three days ago in an abandoned warehouse where I’d attended a rave the night before, I came to the realization that I’d taken things too far, and I w
as in desperate need of a change. So, I did what any man who was raised in a loving family surrounded by nothing but support would do; I came home.
“So,” I begin before I can let my head wander back to all of the things I did in Denver that I shouldn’t have. “You and Ivy?”
His grin still plastered in place, now seems to reach his eyes. “I’m not talking to you about Ivy. Tell me more about Denver.”
I’m tempted to razz him about our childhood friend since I used to do it all the time. Ivy thought she was being secretive about her huge crush on Griffin, but it was the worst kept secret around. We didn’t give her shit for it, because we weren’t raised to treat women like that, but you better believe we gave Griffin a hard time when she wasn’t around. He took it in stride, never saying a negative word about her school-girl crush. Must’ve not been such a crush considering she slept in his bed last night.
“I can tell you Gus is nothing like his father. He’s more like Garrett Hale in every aspect.”
“Garret Hale? The one who owns—”
“The sex club,” I interrupt. “You should go sometime and take Ivy with you.”
Griffin releases a huff, the laugh coming a quick second after. “Ivy would never go to a sex club.”
His hands clench on his thighs.
“I’d never take her to one even if she wanted to go,” he says through clenched teeth.
“Possessive,” I observe. “I love it. Anyway, Gus is a cop just like his dad, but in his off-time, the man pulls in women like he’s Don Juan. There’s just something women like about an accent, dark hair, and green eyes.”
“It’s the same for a man in uniform,” Griffin adds with another smile that doesn’t reach his eyes.
“He’s the one who took me to the club the first time.” My friend’s nose crinkles. “It’s a lot classier than you’d think. I was shocked when I first got there, and people weren’t hanging from the rafters getting beaten. That was my take on BDSM stuff, anyway. I mean, that happens, but they keep the hardcore stuff downstairs. I’m not really into sadism, but the women wear bands on their wrists to let people know what they’re down for. It was an amazing experience.”
“How many times have you gone?” There’s no curiosity in his tone. He’s merely making small talk, and I can tell he’s getting more nervous with each mile we get closer to the hospital. He’s being polite, using my stories as a distraction, and I’m okay with it. The man has been through hell, and I’ll do anything to help him.
“Only a handful,” I tell him with a quick shrug. “As fun as it is, I like the chase. The women at the club are there to get laid or played with or whatever depending on their focus of the night. I have more fun when I’m able to convince a woman that choosing me for the night is what she needs.”
“Different strokes for different folks, I guess,” Griffin says as I pull into the parking lot.
“Exactly.” I keep my tone light because I don’t want him nervous, and also because I don’t have the full story on what’s going on with him. He may decide he doesn’t want to go to this appointment, and I don’t have the information I’d need to convince him otherwise if that’s the case.
We both climb out and make our way to the front entrance of the hospital. He looks determined, and I realize that my thoughts just moments ago about his bolting won’t happen.
“So, Kennedy Farmer is just a ghost from your past?” he asks as we near the elevator bank.
I dated Kennedy my senior year in high school. I honestly thought I was in love with the girl even though I never said it to her. She chose California over me, and I’m certain her breaking it off to join a band rather than going to college is the main reason I went so wild when I first arrived in Denver three years ago.
“Kennedy who?” I ask with a quick grin, slapping him on the back when the elevator doors slide open.
“Camryn?” I blink my eyes furiously as I stare into the metal box.
Surely the woman of nearly every fantasy I’ve had since my very first erection isn’t standing inside the elevator frowning at me.
“It’s Dr. Davison,” she corrects, and I’m struck stupid by the sight of her pale skin and the shimmery sheen of her golden-brown hair.
What I wouldn’t give to run my fingers through it just once.
“Y-you… h-hi,” I stammer like a love-struck idiot.
I feel a shove at my back, and I know it’s Griffin urging me inside, but inside with her doesn’t leave enough room for all of us if you include the weight of the crush I’ve had on this woman since my early teens.
“Hi, Griffin.” Her voice is like a balm to my soul even if she isn’t looking at or directing her words toward me.
“Dr. Davison.” Her lips twitch at the greeting, and I’m seconds away from punching my friend just to prove to her that I’m the man she should be paying attention to, not him. Am I invisible or something?
Needing to get him away from her quickly so she can focus solely on me, I pull his appointment info from my pocket and press the button for the fourth floor.
A heavy silence fills the elevator as we ascend, but in my mind, I’m counting down the seconds until we’re alone. I’ve dreamed of this day a million times. Okay, it’s been more like a fantasy since it happens mostly when I’m awake and alone in my bed, but an elevator is a new location I never imagined and gives me a ton of new material. Only this time, I won’t have my eyes closed when I whisper to her exactly what I’ve wanted to say for years. Now that she’s right in front of me, I plan to say everything I’ve wanted to since I was thirteen. I’m no longer that young, naïve kid. I have tons of experience and convincing women has never been hard for me. This is going to be a cakewalk.
Why are my palms sweating? Why is my heart trying to beat out of my chest? It’s like I’m a teen all over again.
“Samson?” Griffin says when he steps off, and I remain in the car.
“I’ll see you after your appointment,” I assure him as the doors close with him on the other side.
Camryn sighs when I turn to face her. I’d press the emergency stop button on the elevator, but I’m pretty sure it’s against the law, and I can’t woo her from inside a jail cell.
“What brings you here?” Inwardly I cringe at the stupid pickup line, but I lean with one arm on the cool metal of the elevator wall, grinning when she rolls her eyes. She can play hard to get all she wants. The chase is fun but catching her will be even better.
“Work.” Her answer is short and clipped, but it still has enough attitude in it to make me feel like an idiot.
She’s a doctor, of course, she’s at the hospital in an official capacity. The white lab coat she’s wearing makes me thicken in my jeans. I’ve only ever seen her in it in my fantasies.
“What do you say you take the rest of the day off, and we go back to my place? We can play doctor there.”
She snorts a laugh before she can stop herself, and I watch her lip twitch as she tries to regain control of her reaction.
“You mean you want to go back to your parents’ house?”
My smile falters, but I’m in control enough not to rub my chest since it feels like she just landed a blow right over my heart.
“Look, I’m an obstetrician,” she says with annoyance lacing her tone. “That means I deal with pregnant women and babies all day. Why would I want to play with little boys when I get off work?”
At first, I think she’s toying with me, but when she turns her head and looks me dead in the eye, I can tell how serious she is.
“I’m not a little boy,” I assure her, but my bravado is slipping. I hate the feeling. I never had this sort of rejection at college. The attention I’m paying her right now has worked with many girls in the past.
“Really? When I look at you, I see the eleven-year-old who stuck a crayon so far up his nose he had to be taken to the emergency room to get it removed.”
“Great memory,” I tell her. “I have a few more things we can play with to s
ee if they get stuck.”
“Grow up,” she says as she sidesteps me and walks out of the elevator.
I stand there, embarrassed but awestruck at the same time as the sway of her hips keep me mesmerized until the doors close once again.
Chapter 2
Camryn
Almost like a tangible thing, I feel the relief the second Samson’s eyes disappear behind the closed elevator doors. My skin is flushed, and the tremble in my normally steady hands is cause for concern. I don’t think I’ve ever had a reaction to someone like that before. I blame the late-night studying, and the lack of caffeine this morning, because even opening my mind to the idea that I reacted that way to him isn’t something I’ll allow.
“Who was that hunk?” my friend and fellow surgical resident, Charli asks as I draw closer to the nurse’s station.
The normally bustling obstetrics floor is somehow quiet momentarily, and it gives my friend the perfect opening to keep talking when I ignore her question.
“He sure watched you like he wanted to eat you alive.” The purr in her voice isn’t surprising. Charli loves men, and she’s a sucker for a tall, dark, and mysterious stranger, but more than looking for herself, she’s always trying to drag me along with her. She doesn’t think I get out enough, and she’s the first one to speak up when she sees someone with potential.
“I used to babysit him,” I mutter as I reach for one of the medical tablets we use to chart patients’ progress on.
“He doesn’t look like a baby to me.”
I can hear the smile in her voice without even looking up at her as I try and fail to log into the software to check on my patients from yesterday. I attempt three more times, thankfully getting it right on the fourth since I only had one attempt left. The last time I got locked out, I had to go to administration for a new password. Delores was not impressed with having to take two minutes to issue me another, and the warning about not ever doing it again still infiltrates my dreams.
