Malone
This reporter has just stuck the microphone in my face, and I’m freezing, not sure what to do, but then I do realize I want to say something. Now is the time for me to let Slade know how much I love him, and how proud I am of him.
I grin up at him, shaking my head in awe of him. “He’s the hardest worker of anyone I know. He’s loved me for over half my life, even when I probably didn’t deserve it. Slade is the best man I know, and I’m so proud to stand here beside him. I’m so thankful this town has embraced me the way it has, and even though there’s been some really stressful moments-” I smile up at Slade, remembering some of our arguments, “I’ve made friends that I know will last a lifetime, and I truly feel as if I’m home.”
Those words aren’t forced, they aren’t what I think people expect to hear me say. They come from my heart, and I want everyone to know it.
“I think I speak for us all when I say we’re glad to have you,” Jax inserts himself in the middle of us, speaking directly to the camera. “And ladies, after seeing my man Savage so happy, I’m on the market. Slide into my DMs.”
We laugh as we push him away, the reporter not sure what to do, so she sends it to another of her announcer friends. And then we’re left alone.
“Let’s go celebrate with the team.” Slade reaches for my hand, helping me down off the platform that’s been erected.
I look around, loving what’s happening around us. Players are celebrating with friends and family, the lucky fans that were able to get good seats are getting high-fives and selfies with players. I hear a scream, and look up seeing Caleb, Ruby, Kelsea, Mason, and Karina headed toward us. I don’t know how the father and son managed to get off for this game, but they did, and I’m so excited they were here to see it. The guys all greet each other, while I’m hugged by the women.
“I got something for you, Kels.” Slade bends down so that he’s eye level with her. She’s going to be a tall girl, so he doesn’t have to bend too far.
“What?” she asks, wearing her Savage shirt, looking at him in awe.
“One of the game balls.” He takes it out of his pocket and hands it to her. “Want me to sign it?”
She nods enthusiastically as she hands him a Sharpie. I love to watch the two of them interact. It’s almost like looking into the future, seeing what he might be like with children we could have. He does as she asks, then tosses it to her.
“Can we take a selfie?” she asks quietly.
This also melts my heart. In all the time I’ve known her, she’s never asked him for a picture, as far as I know she’s never talked to anyone about how she knows him, never thrown it in someone’s face that he’s her brother’s friend. To hear her quietly ask for something for herself is beyond cute.
“We can totally take a selfie.” He laughs as he takes a knee, grabs her phone, and puts their faces together. They smile widely as he presses the button to initiate the picture. “How’s it look?”
“It’s the best selfie I’ve ever taken.” She’s grinning so hard, I’m pretty sure her face is going to break in half.
“We should let y’all go celebrate,” Caleb says after a few minutes. “We just wanted to say thank you for the tickets and to let you know how proud we are of you.”
Felicity stops by as she and JD are making their way to the locker room. “Hey, why don’t you all get together? Get a family shot.”
It strikes me as odd that she calls us a family, but in this moment, I realize we do have a family here. It includes Susie, who stands to the side, Jax, JD and Felicity, along with the Harrison clan who’s taken us in, whether we wanted to be taken in or not.
“Excuse me,” I say to someone passing by. “Can you take a family picture for us? Get in there, Felicity, you too JD, and Jax, I’m gonna need you over here for a few minutes.”
“Scoot together,” the unsuspecting person I’ve stopped tells us.
I feel Slade behind me, his arm wrapped around my neck. Felicity and I are holding arms with one another while Karina and Ruby stand flanking us. Kelsea is front in center in the middle, sitting in Jax’s lap, while the rest of the guys stand behind their respective spouse.
“Say Champion!”
We all yell Champion at the top of our lungs. When the phone is handed back to me, and I take a look at the picture that was just taken, I feel more at home than I ever have. Sad that our parents couldn’t make the trip, but we have the family we need. The ones who stand beside us no matter what, and above all, we have each other.
Slade hooks his arm around my waist. “C’mon, babe, let’s go down to the locker room and celebrate with the team.”
As he pulls me away, I take one last look at the stadium. Wanting to remember this moment for the rest of my life.
Epilogue
Malone
Lying on a beach has never felt as good as it does right now. A fruity drink in my hand, my husband at my side. I’ve never been out of the country, but after the World Series win, Slade had a surprise for me. A trip to our own little paradise in the Turks and Caicos.
We’re on a private beach, with nothing to look at except each other for the next seven days. “This is the life.” I stretch out on the double lounger, under the umbrella. I hadn’t quite believed him when he told me we would be on our own here, but he hasn’t lied. The only other people who have been around have been staff, and they’ve been very discreet.
“It is, especially after the whirlwind year we had, sweetness.” He reaches over, grabbing my hand.
“Would you change any of it?” I turn to him, shielding my eyes with my hand.
“No.” He shakes his head, a grin forming on that beautiful face of his. It’s more relaxed than I’ve seen it in months, and he still hasn’t gotten rid of the playoff beard, which I’m loving. “Well, I take that back, I would change those few weeks of arguments we had. That was pretty fuckin’ shitty, but other than that, it was a great year. Hectic, but great.”
“I agree. I look forward to next year, I won’t be the newbie on the team anymore, and I’ll feel more comfortable in my role.” I turn to face him. “And I think I might go on some road trips.” I give him a smile.
His hand runs down my back, cupping my ass in his palm. “Yes, I think you should. See what really goes on, satisfy your curiosity.”
“There’s lots of things I’m curious about.” I look up into those eyes of his, moving both his and my sunglasses back from where they cover our gazes.
“Oh really?” He grins down at me. “Like what?”
“Like if a World Series MVP fucks better than just a regular MVP. And if he can get the job done. Ya know, with nature taking its course and all?”
We’ve only been here for around sixteen hours, and we haven’t had time to put that theory to the test yet. He groans, deep in his throat, a flash of surprise in his eyes.
“Guess we’ll have to see, huh? How long have you been off birth control? For some reason I assumed you would wait until after we got back from this trip.” His voice is dark in my ear.
“There was an opening right before we left for Austin. You guys had already left with the team. Felicity dropped me off, I went in, got it taken out, and then the two of us made the trip. It was easy peasy, so now, I guess it’s game on.” I hook my leg over the top of his, pressing my body into his strength. “I’m up for the challenge if you are.”
He moves my hand down to his crotch, where I feel his length hardening. “Think I’m up for the challenge too, sweetness. Maybe we should take this back to the house.”
“But what about the veranda, Savage? Can we at least do it on the veranda?”
He nips at my neck, sneaking his hand into the top of my bikini, his palm cupping the heavy weight there.
“We can. Your MVP will make all your dreams come true.”
As he picks me up, carrying me back to the house, I know what he’s spoken is the truth. With Slater Harlow, nothing is impossible, and that includes a second chance at a
once in a lifetime love.
The End
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Sneak Peek of Renegade
Do you like hot cops?
What about marriage-of-convenience? Surprise babies? A single-dad that will have you melting into a puddle?
Then this is the series for you! It features it all! Read the first chapter and then click to start the series!
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Renegade
Whitney
Late March
“Ryan, I’m tellin’ you, I need my hair pulled, a red handprint across my ass, someone licking my nipples, a dick in my treasure cove. I need it all.”
Drunk. I am drunk. Like way past the legal limit – otherwise I wouldn’t be sitting here spilling all my secrets to my baby brother’s best friend. The baby brother who had been totally unplanned by my parents. Ten years my junior, baby brother. He and Ryan are the same age; twenty-five to my thirty-five. Makes me feel so much older just thinking about it. Not only by age, but by life experience, too, although they’ve probably got me beat. They’re cops and have served overseas in the military. Dear Lord, I think I sound like Julia Sugarbaker from Designing Women. I’m three sheets to the wind, and nobody stopped me.
I see him try to suppress a grin as he brings his beer up to his lips, taking a nice long pull off the wide mouth. I am mesmerized by the way his throat muscles move when he swallows, pushing the liquid down his throat. No denying he’s all man. None of the boyhood shyness he always had with me is anywhere near us tonight. The palm of his hand completely covers the label, the one drink he takes drains half the bottle. For a second he focuses on my face, squinting as he watches me. “How many of those have you had to drink?” He points the neck of his beer to the wine glass in my hand.
His voice is as smooth as the red liquid I swirl in my glass. I tilt my head to the side, realizing the whole room goes right along with it. Counting back, I try to think how many I had before he took the seat next to mine, and I can’t remember. “Five or six?” I ask him, like he should know. “What’s it to you, Ren-e-gade,” I sound out his name by syllables. My words sound slightly slurred to my own ears. “Renegade,” I grin. “Anybody ever tell you, you little boys and your nicknames are cute? Just like playing cops and robbers…you with your Renegade, Trevor with his Tank,” I’m giggling for real now. “Pew, pew!” I fake shoot him with my finger gun, thinking how pissed off my brother would be if he were here right now. Not Ryan, though, he’s patient. God bless him.
“You think maybe it’s time you quit for the night?” He gently moves to take what I have left away from me.
His fingers are soft as they try to pry mine from around the stem, but I resist his attempts and pull it closer to my chest. The liquid sloshes and I inhale deeply, hoping not to lose any of it. I’m like a two-year-old with my blankie. This glass of wine is my security and at this moment I’ll protect it with everything I have. Once the security is gone, I’m left with nothing. I can’t be transparent tonight, I need something shielding me from my reality. I’m a woman on the prowl, and a woman on the prowl is confident in her abilities.
“Quit?” I ask, running my tongue over my dry lips, trying to moisten them so I can form words more easily. “Quitting is not something I do. That’s what my ex-husband did. My mama did. That’s what my former boss did,” I shake my head and try to stand on four-inch stilettos. He reaches out and grabs my elbow, steadying me, being a rock when I haven’t had one in a very long time. “Whitney Trumbolt is not a fuckin’ quitter.” I make my voice as strong and as clear as possible, I fear though that it comes out a slurred mess.
I can see Ryan try again to keep the smile from his face. The corners of his lips twitch, and it pisses me off. Not because I’m mad, but because he thinks it’s funny. He thinks this is a joke, and it’s not. It’s my life. The life I’ve been trying so desperately to get out from under or save. I’m not sure which yet. All I know is I haven’t been living and I’m damn sick of the in-between.
“You think this is funny?” I take another drink from my wine glass. It’s a big one this time, I drain it. There’s not one drop left when I set it back down on the bar, slapping my lips together with a satisfied pop.
“No, Whit, I think you’re having a bad night.” His tone is one someone would use with a kindergartner, talking them down from a temper tantrum. It pisses me off too.
A bad night? Try a bad decade. If I could do anything, it would go back to the night I turned twenty-five and be the age that Ryan is again. I would do so many things differently, I would change so much about the choices I made back then. “You know nothing about me, other than the fact that I’m Tank’s older sister.”
He grabs me by the wrist, locking his hand around the flesh. I feel his fingers lightly touch the skin and bone. It’s more of a caress than a warning. I never realized until this moment how much bigger he is than me. Never really paid any kind of attention to it – oh I’ve paid attention to him off and on through-out the years, but never like this.
Ryan “Renegade” Kepler rises to his full height, towering over me as I do my best to keep my footing and ignore the way my skin tingles where he grips my wrist. He leans in close – so close I can feel his breath on my skin.
“I know a lot of things about you that you don’t think I know.”
His voice is hard and soft at the same time. I close my eyes to savor it, to try and figure out how he’s able to do both. Maybe it’s my drunken mind, but he’s magic to me in this instant. The deep timbre rushes over me as I try to understand his words, but I’m having a hard time. This is the closest I’ve been to a man in a very long time. My body is at attention, as is my libido. I press my thighs together as I dig my heels in deeper, not because I don’t want him to move me, because I ache. It’s an ache that’s never been fulfilled, if I’m honest.
“I know that you love your mama’s fried chicken, your grandmother’s homemade mac and cheese, Alabama football, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. I know that you have a soft heart. Hallmark movies make you cry, you pick up strays on the side of the road, and you always buy that homeless man near the Starbucks a morning coffee,” he lulls me into a sense of security. Making me want to believe there is someone out there who listens when I talk, someone who looks at me and sees a brain behind my blonde hair.
I’m wrapped up in his voice, in the things he does know about me. Things I never knew he paid attention to. I’m swaying, but it’s because his voice is doing weird things to my equilibrium. His other hand cups my hip and I can feel the heat of his body through the material of my skirt. My thighs burn as they’re pressed against his where we stand.
“I know that your ex-husband was a
piece of shit. I know that your ex-boss didn’t know what the hell to do with the creative genius that is your mind, and I know that your mama will never forgive you for giving up pageants, but she’ll never forgive herself for pushing you that damn hard,” he stops and pulls back, giving me his eyes and face to stare at.
Our eyes meet – his brown to my blue - and I realize with clarity that I’m breathing hard, hard enough that it feels as if I’ve run a marathon. The loss of his strong body against mine makes me want to cry. I want to grasp at his clothing, pull him back in, and let him heat up parts of me that have been cold for so long.
“You wanna know what else I know?” The question is asked in a way that says he’s not sure if he wants an answer. The way his face closes off and he withdraws slightly into himself make me think this is a secret he’s not shared with anyone. Tonight, I want him to share it with me; I want to be the person he confides in. He knows so much about me, I want to know everything about him too. There’s a string of awareness stretched between us, and it’s pulling me closer.
I’m captivated by the way the dim lights of the bar make his brown eyes darker, I’m enthralled by the fact that it looks like it’s been a few days since he shaved, and I’m even more fascinated by the cut he has on his cheek. He and Tank went out on a call last night, and I can’t help but wonder if that cut is the result of a dangerous night doing a dangerous job.
I shake my head and then nod, because I’m conflicted in my drunkenness, but I do want to find out what else he knows. I step forward, put my arms around his neck, and lean up so that now I’m the one in his ear. The truth of the matter is I need to feel close to him, I want the heat back he’s taken away from me. I’m cold without it, and I’m sick to death of being cold. “Tell me what else you know.”
MVP (The MVP Duet Book 2) Page 14
