“That’s great, Harper. You’ve got to tell him. Does he feel the same way about you?”
“I think he does,” I whispered. I hadn’t realized it until that moment, but I did believe that Crash loved me.
Suddenly, a well of emotion burst in my chest and I had to see him. I had to find him and tell him.
I stood from the table.
“I’ve got to find him,” I said.
Ava stood up and wrapped me in her arms.
“Where do you think he is?”
“I have no idea.”
“Do you know the name of his gym?”
“No. I don’t know any of this stuff. I never asked.”
“You’re going to just have to wait for him to come home. When he does, don’t let that boy out of your sight again.”
She giggled and squeezed my hand.
“I’m glad we had this talk, babe. But I’ve got to get going. My boyfriend is waiting.”
I hugged her again, grateful that she’d come through in the end.
“Thank you, Ava.”
She walked to her car, and I waved as she pulled away.
Chapter Twenty-One
I woke up in the desert covered in sand with the bright sun glaring down into my eyes. The acrid taste of alcohol filled my mouth, and I pulled myself up to sitting, squinting into the red desert sand.
I told myself I’d never let myself get to this place again. My mother’s death, falling for Harper, finding out she was carrying my baby, these were not reasons for me to spiral downward. These were reasons for me to step up and be a man.
I had to get my head clear. I had to clean myself up and get to the gym pronto and sweat the toxins out of my system. I told myself this would be the last time I let myself get into this kind of trouble. Drinking and picking fights was not the kind of man I wanted to be for Harper and our baby.
I climbed down the dune and pulled off my boot to pour the sand out onto the pavement. A moment later, I was driving back to LA, ready to get myself cleaned up and back on track. I pulled up to the gym at about noon and met my trainer inside. I hadn’t been to the gym in a few days, and he looked at me knowingly with a deep frown on his face.
“You look like shit, Crash.”
“I got into some shit last night,” I said.
“Go get washed off and get to work.”
I went to the locker room, stripped out of my dirty clothes and took a shower. After I washed off, I went to my locker and pulled my workout gear from inside. I’d left everything else back at Don’s house, including my cell phone. I knew that Harper would try to get a hold of me.
My heart ached to call her, but I knew it was better if I left it alone. I needed to get the booze out of my system and work out my muscles. I needed to get my head clear before I talked to her again.
I went out into the gym and started going through the paces my trainer set out for me. First, I sprinted five miles on the treadmill, followed by stretches and training with the bag. I sparred with some of the other guys, working on my foot work, my wrestling holds, and my judo technique.
After a brief lunch and a quick rest, I got back at it again. I knew my muscles would be screaming at me the next day for spending an entire day working out, but I knew that’s what I needed to do. Alcohol had been my crutch for too long. I let it take over every time there was a problem that I didn’t want to face. I was tired of being that guy. It was time to be something else. Something better.
Knowing that Harper was going to have my baby required me to become a new man, someone I could be proud of. I wanted to be a real father, the kind of father that I had always wanted. I was determined to be that guy. I knew Harper would come around eventually.
She was overstressed with her working hours and the pregnancy hormones. Holding all of that inside had to be getting to her. She wasn’t thinking clearly. Tonight, I’d go back to Don’s house and have a long talk with her. I knew we could work things out.
As I punched the bag and felt my muscles work as hard as they could, one thing became crystal clear to me. I wanted to marry that woman. I wanted to make her mine in every way, and I wanted us to raise our child together. If Don disowned me, it didn’t make any difference. That wasn’t what mattered to me.
I’d rather be a good husband and a good father than a billionaire. I knew how to make a living. I knew that with Harper by my side, I would always stick to the straight and narrow. There were things in this life that mattered a hell of a lot more than money. Harper and my baby were those things.
I knew I could convince her. We could tell the parents when they got back and deal with whatever the repercussions were then. We couldn’t keep lying. I refused to let my child be a lie. I loved Harper. I’d do anything for her. I knew once she got past her fear and exhaustion, she really loved me, too. I could see it in her eyes when I made love to her. I could feel it in her embrace when she held me in the night.
I knew things wouldn’t be so simple. But we had to start somewhere. We had to make a stand for what was right and what really mattered. Together we could be a family. I knew that was the most important thing in the world.
After I finished my workout, I took another shower and put on a clean outfit from my locker. It had already been dark for a few hours, and I was starving. I planned to stop and get some Chinese take-out and bring it home for Harper. The parking lot was already empty. All the other fighters had gone home.
I approached my motorcycle. Out of nowhere, a steel rod hit me across the back and sent me reeling down towards the concrete. Sore from a full day of working out, I wasn’t as fast as usual. I sprang to my feet and faced my assailant. What faced me shocked me to the core.
Jeremy stood flanked by several huge men who looked like practiced fighters.
“What’s this about?” I asked. Hoping I could reason with these people.
“You’re taking my girlfriend,” Jeremy sneered.
“Harper isn’t your girlfriend anymore,” I said as calmly as possible. Rage was building in my gut, and I wanted to punch that rat-like little face of his.
“She’s carrying my baby, you asshole. How dare you touch her? How dare you even look at her?” Jeremey growled.
“It’s not your baby,” I said, clenching my fists.
“It is my baby,” he said. “She told me at the hospital two days ago.”
At that point, I lost control and lunged forward, punching the little man in the face. I felt the crack of his bone under my fist, and he reeled backwards, falling on his ass in a thud. I kicked him in the gut and in the ribs. He screamed for his thugs to take me down.
The men he’d brought with him were strong and skilled and their punches and kicks were all around me, on all sides, everywhere. I tried to defend myself, but it was four to one. If it had been one other skilled fighter, I would have had a chance. If it had been four unskilled fighters, I would have prevailed without question. But these men knew what they were doing, and there was no way that I could defend myself against that kind of muscle.
Before I knew it, I was down on the ground with boots slamming again and again into my ribs. The last thing I remember seeing was a boot slamming down into my temple. The world went black and all that I knew was pain.
The next thing I remember was the smell of disinfectant and the glaring fluorescent lights above me in the emergency room. I was disoriented and dazed. I couldn’t think straight and didn’t really know what was going on. They wheeled me into an X-ray room and bandaged up my wounds.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a doctor holding up an X-ray to a lighted wall.
“He’s got a couple broken ribs and a concussion,” the doctor said. My sight was still so fuzzy. I couldn’t see who the doctor was talking to. But then her face came into view as she stepped forward.
I could see the tears in her eyes as she touched my cheek.
“Who did this to you?” she said.
“Jeremy,” I said, my voice hoarse and distant.
&
nbsp; “Jeremy?” she asked. “Jeremy couldn’t do this to you.”
“Hired thugs,” I explained.
“He hired men to beat you up? Why?”
“He thinks the baby’s his,” I whispered.
“Oh my God,” she said, kneeling down to take my hand in hers. She held it softly in her warm hands, caressing my skin with her fingertips. “I’ve messed up so badly. I’m so sorry, Crash. I’ve made so many mistakes since I got home from Brazil. Will you ever be able to forgive me?”
“Of course,” I said. “I can always forgive you for anything.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Crash was released from the hospital right at the end of my shift. I wheeled him through the front doors of the hospital, then we walked together to my car. With a few doses of pain pills and some bandages, Crash was already on the mend. A man that strong couldn’t be kept down from a beating, especially since taking a beating was what he did for a living.
I got into the driver’s seat and gripped the steering wheel. I gazed over at Crash in the darkness. Anger was bubbling inside me.
“We need to do something about Jeremy,” I said to Crash. “He can’t get away with what he did to you.”
“It’s not going to make any difference once the truth comes out. He will know the kid is mine, and he’ll leave you alone for good. Or I can beat him down when I get better.”
I sighed, still not knowing what to do. “We’ll talk about it when we get home, okay?”
“You’re still not thinking of lying to our parents about the baby, are you?” he said as I pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road.
I didn’t respond.
We drove back to the mansion in silence. We walked in the front door and down the hall to his bedroom. Crash had changed rooms since he’d first moved in because he liked the view on the other side of the house.
I helped him take off his shoes, and he laid down on the bed. I sat beside him, staring at the wall. Crash rubbed my back and pulled me down beside him.
I wanted to lie against his chest, but I knew that it would hurt. I turned toward him with my head on the pillow.
“I don’t want to lie anymore,” I whispered.
“We need to tell the truth. That’s all there is to it.”
“Are you ready for what might happen if our parents disapprove?”
“I don’t care about the money or the fancy cars. I hate the idea of losing the dad I just found, but if he’s the kind of man who would hold our love against us, then I don’t want to call him father.”
My eyes grew wide and I leaned up on my elbow, looking deeply into Crash’s face. “You love me?”
He reached up and caressed my cheek with the soft skin on the back of his fingers. “I’ve loved you from the first moment I laid eyes on you. You’ve got my heart. You’ve got my soul and my body and my mind all wrapped around your finger. I’d do anything for you.”
“Oh, Crash, I love you, too.”
I leaned down and brushed my lips over his, not wanting to press hard against the bruises on his face. He lifted his arms and held my head in his hands, pulling me closer to him.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” I whispered.
“You’re not going to hurt me. You could never hurt me.”
His hands caressed down my body and cupped my breast, feeling for my erect nipple through the layers of fabric. He kissed me more deeply and dipped his hand under the hem of my shirt, scooping my breast inside my bra. He squeezed, telling me he wanted more than just a kiss.
“What about your ribs?” I asked. He had been badly injured, but apparently not that badly.
“I’ve had worse.”
With a little moaning sigh, I kissed gently down his chest and proceeded to pull the scuffed pants down his legs. Crash pulled the shirt up off of his chest, and I could see the bandages around his ribs and the bruises and gashes that Jeremy’s hired thugs had left on Crash’s beautiful skin.
His erection pressed against his underwear. When I pulled the hem of his boxers down, it popped up. I caught it in my mouth. Crash growled and ran his fingers through my hair.
I pulled off my own shirt, kicked off my shoes and pulled off my pants, wanting him to see my body as I sucked him. He reached down and flicked open my bra, and it fell forward over my breasts as I licked up his shaft.
I threw the bra on the floor, then circled my tongue around the tip of Crash’s member. I could taste the salty bead of pre-cum oozing from his slit. Crash gripped my hair, encouraging me to take him. I opened my mouth and sucked the head of his cock into my mouth, using my hand to stroke his shaft. He was so big, there was no way I’d get the whole thing in my mouth.
I flicked my tongue up and down his hood as I sucked and stroked. My pussy gushed into my panties, and I stopped for a second to peel them off. With his cock in my hand, I sank over his hood and took him as deeply as I could. My mouth and throat were full before I even got halfway to the base. Using my hand and mouth in tandem, I moved up and down his thick shaft, driving him crazy with the slow rhythm.
He sucked a sharp breath and groaned, gripping my hair more tightly. It excited me to have him in my hands like that. The power I felt as he lay on the bed and I took him in my mouth made me gush wetness for him. He pulled me up off his cock and looked me in the eye.
Reaching forward, he played with my pussy, feeling my wetness. He flicked my clit, rubbing it in little circles with his deft fingers.
I groaned and straddled him, ready to ride him to our mutual release. Holding his cock in my hand I angled it under me until it pressed against my slick opening. I looked him in the eye as he continued to play with my clit. I lowered myself on him, the width of his thick hood stretching me open.
My mouth dropped. His size always took me by surprise. Slowly I sank down, taking him deeper and deeper as he continued to play with my clit. I groaned as I took him all the way inside. His eyes were bright with desire as he stared into mine. He reached up and grasped my breasts and ran his other hand along my thigh and hip.
“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he said.
I leaned forward and kissed him, trembling with the fullness of his cock inside me. He thrust hard, letting me know he was still in control. I gasped and felt my orgasm ready to roll over me like a thundering storm cloud. He gripped my hips, thrusting again. I sat up, wanting to ride the wave that was Crash.
He used his fingers on my clit as he thrust into me, and I came. Throwing my head back, I moaned out loud. Crash began to bounce me on his cock, making my breasts bounce in time with the rhythm of his hips. He pulled me back and forth on his lap as he drove into me, making me come over and over again.
Overcome by the rise and fall of cascading climaxes, I fell forward and held myself over him as he took me from below.
“Crash,” I whispered. “I love you so much.”
“I love you, Harper. I always will. Always.”
With one last driving thrust, he came inside me. Deep, hot, and wet, his semen pumped into my womb as it had the first night we’d been together.
I gasped and rolled over on my back, spent. Crash leaned over to kiss my forehead before he turned off the lamp on the bedside table. We fell right to sleep in the darkness with the sound of the waves crashing outside our window.
I woke to the sound of screaming. A housemaid was backing out the bedroom door with a bundle of sheets in her arms. Crash looked dazed. He lay naked in the bed with the sheets pushed away to reveal his morning wood. I was only half covered by a sheet.
What the hell? The house staff wasn’t supposed to be back until my parents… Oh shit. What day was it?
I looked around and hastily pulled my t-shirt off the floor. I pulled it on just before Mom and Don came charging into the room. Don’s face fell in shock. My mother covered her mouth with her hands. They stood there briefly, then turned away and out of sight. Oh God. This was not how I wanted this to go!
“Mom!” I called after her. Shit, shit, shit.
I did not want my mother to be disgusted with me. She’d just got back from her honeymoon to find this. I looked over at Crash. He was having a hard time waking up. It must have been the pain pills. He was still barely covered by a sheet.
“We have to explain it to them!” I said.
He rubbed his face, groaning. “I know, babe, don’t freak out, okay? It’s fine. Everything will be fine.”
I didn’t say anything because I knew I would just snap at him. With the bruises on his face and chest and what we’d shared the night before, yelling at him was the last thing I wanted to do. I pulled my clothes on and shut the door, allowing Crash to dress in peace. He slowly pulled on a clean outfit, and we stood by the bedroom door, holding each other.
“Whatever happens out there, I want you to know, I’m ready to take care of you.”
“We’ll take care of each other. I’m still a doctor. Even if I’m going to be a mom.”
“I know, babe. I’d never expect you to give that up. But a woman needs a man who will stand by her. Keep her safe. I’m ready to do what it takes to give our kid a good life.”
“Oh, Crash. How could I have ever doubted you?” I hugged him close but not too tight. He kissed the top of my head and gripped the doorknob.
“Let’s do this,” he said.
He opened the door and we walked down the hallway, smelling the scent of breakfast in the dining room. We entered, and I sheepishly looked at our parents. Their expressions were outraged.
“What the hell is going on here?” Don said, slapping his newspaper on the table.
“Harper?”
“Mom.”
Crash took charge and said, “before this becomes a big confrontation, just let us explain what happened. If you can’t understand, we are prepared for that. But you should know, Harper and I are in love and we are willing to accept the repercussions.”
Crash: A Bad Boy MMA Romance Page 14
