Hard Impact: An Alpha Billionaire Romance Novel

by Grey, Helen

  I felt my heart twist with sympathy for him. He had tried to save his father’s reputation. He had tried to protect his mother. He had nearly sacrificed himself, gone to prison, could have gone to prison for something he didn’t do. “And your mom… did she ever find out the truth?”

  He offered a short laugh, but there was no humor in it. He glanced at me again, his gaze filled with pain. Regret.

  “You want to know something? She knew all along. I didn’t find out until a couple of years later, after we’d left Topeka and the scandal behind. For a while at least. But then the rumors, the innuendo, the gossip caught up to us. She ignored it and bought the nursery here in Jackson Hole. We started over. I lived here for a couple of years until I went off to college.” He shook his head. “They left my mom alone, and she made a comfortable life for herself here.”

  “But the rumors followed you, didn’t they?”

  “Yes.” He sighed. “Then, just after college, my mom told me the truth. She knew my father had committed suicide. She told me he’d been having issues, didn’t get into details, but knew that he was troubled. She had never believed I had anything to do with his death. She knew that I was just trying to protect her from the truth. Funny thing, what mothers know, isn’t it?”

  I nodded. “They know everything, Blake. Even our deepest, darkest secrets.”

  He said nothing.

  “I’ll keep your secret, Blake,” I promised. “I want you to know that.” I took a deep breath. “I understand if you want me to leave, but I want you to know before I do that I’ve come to truly admire you… I can’t claim to know you well, but I do know that you couldn’t have done anything to hurt anyone.” I paused, needing to get it all out. The truth will set you free… “I’m attracted to you, Blake, I can’t deny it, but I don’t—”

  My words were silenced as his lips pressed against mine, his arms wrapped tightly around me, pulling me close. I felt not only a great sense of relief, but satisfaction and pride in myself. I had done the right thing. It felt so right. I was glad I made the decision to quit the magazine. Yes, my future was uncertain at the moment, but I didn’t regret my decision, not one bit.

  The kiss deepened and his tongue slid between my lips and probed my mouth. I surrendered myself to it, groaning softly, the sound coming from deep inside me. I didn’t know where to go from here, but while I was in Blake’s arms, I would revel in the moment. Live in the moment. My hands caressed his chest, then slowly made their way toward his thigh. I felt his erection and thrilled with the knowledge that I could elicit such a passionate response from him.

  Ready to relinquish my burgeoning passion, Blake lifted his head, staring down at me, his eyes filled with questions.

  “What is it about you that attracts me so?” he asked, not really speaking to me, but perhaps to himself.

  I smiled up at him. “My winning personality?”

  He grinned. “Let’s head back, shall we? And I’ll show you exactly what it is that attracts me so much to you.”

  I sidled back to my side of the truck as Blake reached for the ignition and turned the key. I fastened my seatbelt as he pulled the truck off the side of the road and back onto the highway, heading back to the Camp Robber, where I was sure that pleasure awaited.

  What would happen next, I had no idea. I had no expectations but I realized that that was okay. For now, I would live in the moment.

  The future would bring what the future would bring.

  EPILOGUE

  Misty

  The next few weeks passed in a whirlwind for me. Blake and I had spent several more days at the Camp Robber, indulging in each other’s company. Every day I felt my affection for him growing. Now that the pressure was off, at least in regard to the magazine, I could truly relax around him.

  He had told me the truth about his father’s death. Trusted me with his most painful secret. I couldn’t explain how good that made me feel. I knew I would keep his revelation to myself. If Blake wanted to tell others, that was up to him. It was his story to tell. I was satisfied with that.

  I had fallen in love with him. I admitted that to myself on the way back to the ranch from his mother’s nursery. I had loved him before that, I realized. Maybe I had fallen in love with him after I’d fallen off the four-wheeler and he kissed me for the first time. Maybe when we were falling from the sky together. I couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment, and it didn’t really matter.

  I loved him.

  I couldn’t help but feel that he was experiencing many of the same emotions. Even though we’d only known each other a short time, we connected on a deep, personal level. Now that the magazine and my assignment was out of the way, we both relaxed. With every passing day, I felt like we had been kindred spirits forever.

  We spent many hours together with Eileen. On my second day in Jackson Hole, Eileen had pulled me aside and given me a hug. I was surprised by the gesture.

  “I don’t know what you did, Misty,” she said, “but I can sense a change in my son. No matter what happens, I want to thank you for that.”

  I said nothing more. I knew I had Eileen’s blessing.

  The following day, I fielded a call from Melanie, asking me what the hell was going on. I quit? Why? I told her the truth. Not about Blake of course, that was his story to tell. But that I wasn’t cut out to be an investigative reporter. When I told Melanie that I would be staying with Blake for a while, my friend had squealed with pleasure. Told me to enjoy myself, that I deserved it.

  And you know what? I did. For the first time in a long while, I was happy. Truly and honestly happy. Blake and I weren’t rushing anything. We were just enjoying our time together, learning about each other, taking the time to enjoy each other’s company and enjoy our burgeoning relationship. We learned so much about one another.

  One night, after a rather extended and passionate lovemaking session, Blake said that I’d literally ridden him to exhaustion. I’d laughed then, and confessed that I had experience riding… in the arena.

  He had gazed up at me in question. “What do you mean you have experience in the arena?”

  “Maybe I’ll show you some time,” I’d teased, before telling him, “I used to be a barrel racer.”

  “Seriously?” Blake asked, eyebrows lifted in surprise.

  “Seriously,” I replied. “There’s a lot about me that you don’t know.”

  My comment had made him smile as he traced his finger around my nipple. “Mysteries that I’m going to be more than happy to unveil,” he teased.

  And unveil he did.

  Over the following month, we traveled from Jackson Hole to Aspen, and from there up into the Alaskan wilderness. We were having a blast, the gossip magazines were going nuts, and I found it all rather amusing. Before long, I found myself the object of curiosity, and for the first time, I understood how Blake felt.

  I didn’t care though. Let everyone think what they would. Because they would, no matter the truth. I didn’t care. Let them gossip. I realized that people would always think what they wanted, no matter whether it was the truth or not. I knew that now. Magazines like Sweet Success could pretend to be serious, but when the foundation of any article was based on gossip, as in Blake’s case, nothing he could say would change that. He was keeping his silence about the entire matter, and I understood now why he had been so stubborn.

  Nothing he said would sway public opinion. “Let them think what they will,” he told me. He didn’t care. His properties spoke for themselves. With summer under way, he held grand openings for the Rocking J and the Camp Robber. Both were a swimming success, with more on the horizon.

  I was excited for him. His company stocks had risen. His divorce to Celine finalized. He was happy, and that counted most of all.

  For me, I planned on going back to Texas one of these days. Blake had helped me break my lease on the room I’d rented in San Francisco. I didn’t even go back to Sweet Success to gather my few things. Not that I was avoiding Angela, I didn’t car
e what she said anyway. Maybe I was better cut out for a local paper. Maybe I would try to syndicate my own column one of these days. Maybe I’d try my hand writing a novel. But for now, all that could wait.

  I was having too much fun with Blake. Tomorrow we were going river rafting and I couldn’t wait. Every moment I spent with him was an adventure, one that definitely left an impression.

  At the moment, we laid side by side on a wooden framed bed just outside of Deadwood, South Dakota, inspecting yet another property. Darkness had fallen long ago. We had just made love, my body still tingling from the sensations thrumming through it. Just as I felt like I was about to doze off, Blake grasped my hand. He leaned over onto his side, his head resting on an uplifted arm.

  “Misty?”

  “Hmmm?” I replied sleepily.

  “You having fun?”

  I smiled, even though I knew he couldn’t see it in the darkness. But he didn’t have to. He leaned down and kissed first one dimple, then the other. He could tell I was smiling. He claimed that every time he saw my dimples, he got a hard on.

  “Are you?” he asked again.

  I opened my eyes and gazed up at him, barely able to make out his features in the moonlight shining through the window. So handsome. So strong. So earnest. “Yes, Blake, I am.”

  “Care to take it to the next level?”

  I was jolted wide awake then, staring up at him with curiosity. “The next level?”

  He shifted in the bed, and I felt something cold and hard pressed against the tip of my ring finger, slowly sliding toward my knuckle. My heart stopped, then resumed beating at a rapid pace as my cheeks grew warm with a flush that had nothing to do with the lovemaking session we’d just indulged in. Tears warmed my eyes. Was that what I thought—?

  “Misty, I love you…” His fingers paused, the thumb gently caressing the back of my hand. “I hope you feel the same way about me. What do you say? Ready to go all the way?”

  I made a sound that came out as a half cry, half laugh, the sound choking on the emotion rising in my throat. I swallowed and he wiped away the tears sliding down my face.

  “Yes, Blake, I’m ready. Whenever you are.”

  I thrilled at the sensation of the ring passing over my knuckle until it nestled against the base of my finger. Oh God, I couldn’t believe this was happening. I reveled in it, thrilled beyond expectations.

  His lips lowered to mine, and I accepted his mouth as quickly as I accepted his proposal.

  Blake was right.

  When he did something, he definitely left an impact. And he had left a hard impact on my heart; one that would endure forever.

  The End

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  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Helen Grey is the author of the hot alpha military romance series “Serving the Soldier.” Her passion is to write steamy erotic romance and she loves hot billionaire bad boys. Lucky for her, these two go perfectly together… Find out how in her books!

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  COPYRIGHT AND DISCLAIMER

  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, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2016 Helen Grey

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of the trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.