He left a life he loved to go to a life he didn’t want. For me. To save me. And all this time I thought I was the one trying to save him.
Goosebumps scatter across my skin. He’s making it hard to breathe, much less form words. “And now?”
“Now, I’m being a little fucking selfish.” He reaches around with both hands and squeezes my ass.
I smile and bite my bottom lip. “I like it when you’re selfish.”
He rolls onto his back then slides his hands to my hips and pulls me on top of him. “Well, I did have some help from Levi. He came up with a way to cut Dad out—a fundraiser, an auction actually. He had to pull a shit ton of strings, but the highest bid won the chance to drive the lap car at his next race. I couldn’t have done this—I wouldn’t be here now—without his help. He raised one hundred thousand dollars. The rest we hope to get back with tonight’s event.”
My heart soars at the thought of the two of them working together as brothers again.
“Which was also Levi’s idea?”
“Oh no. Tonight was all me.” He smiles proudly. “I walked into Kai’s office with a cashier’s check for a hundred grand, told him I had a way to match it, if not beat it. I used the connections I made working with Dad to pull in some big names for the gala. He wanted to know what was going on, so I told him everything.”
“Everything?”
His hard cock moves along my slick folds. I need him inside. I need it like a sinner needs forgiveness, like my soul won’t survive without it.
His eyes glint with mischief. “Everything.” He moves his hips again, and I moan.
“Now here we are.”
“Yes. Here we fucking are,” he says then lifts me up and eases himself inside.
The condom. He forgot the condom again. I’m on the pill, but I know how important it is to him to be sure.
I hold myself steady with my palms on his chest, making sure neither one of us moves. “We aren’t being very careful.”
His fingers dig into the flesh of my hips, pulling me back down as he pushes himself deeper. “I’m done being careful with you.”
The next morning over breakfast, Kai lets us know the fundraiser was a huge success. Not only were we able to match the other one hundred thousand, we doubled it. Chase Abbott can take his threats and go suck balls.
The restaurant is buzzing with early morning risers drinking coffee and chatting about their plans for the day. Servers carry carafes of orange juice on trays, and there’s a table off to the side with watermelons and cantaloupes cut in the shapes of baskets and flowers. It’s all very fancy, and I feel completely out of place.
“I didn’t get a chance to say thank you,” Kai says as he pours creamer into his coffee. “It took a lot of courage to do what you did.” The haunted expression on his face jars me. “I knew you grew up in foster care, but I had no idea…” He lets his words trail off with his thoughts.
I put my hand on his and give him a reassuring smile. “It’s okay. No one knew.”
“I know the numbers, Adrienne. It’s what I do. You beat the odds.”
Yes. Yes, I did. And I’ll make it my life’s mission to make sure to help as many kids as I can beat the same odds.
Blaze places a hand on my thigh and squeezes. Two men walk past our table, stopping to say good morning with a smile.
“Was that Henry Kissinger?”
Blaze nods and smiles. “And Morie.” I lift a brow in question, and he chuckles. “I’ll tell you about him when we get home.”
Home. For some it’s an address, the place you rest your head. For some it’s a sense of belonging. For me, home is so much more than a place. For me, home is a person. For me, Blaze is home.
Six months later…
Life with Blaze is like a hot bubble bath after a long day or a good book and a glass of wine. He is my escape. He is my peace when the world feels like chaos, which seems to be all the time lately.
It’s like a glitch in the matrix. The world has gone mad. The only thing that makes any sense is us. We’d barely escaped World War III by the skin of our teeth when a pandemic hit. The population can’t decide if it’s some kind of conspiracy or if it’s the end of the world. All I know is that if the world truly is ending, there’s no one else I want to watch it end with.
The one thing everyone does seem to agree on is that toilet paper will save us all. The government has shut everything down and locked us in our houses to stop the spread of the virus. No school. No socializing. No sporting events, which means no NASCAR for Levi. No bars, which means The Taproom has been empty for weeks now. In their spare time, Levi and Blaze have been volunteering with Corporate Cares, brainstorming ideas to raise money to open more houses. Kai loves the extra help since it takes two counselors at HoH every day now to help with the homeschooling. One person helps the two younger kids with their schoolwork and one person helps the three older kids. We’re a well-oiled machine because we have to be.
Blaze still distributes his beer, but with everything closed, business has slowed down. Thankfully, the government still allows takeout, and Blaze has built a strong, loyal, and loving fan base. When I’m not at HoH, I’m here helping him with to-go orders, filling plastic containers with hot wings and fries while Blaze pours his craft beer into growlers. Hector usually helps, and when Haley isn’t working, she’s right by his side. We put the TV on ESPN and mute it while music plays on the sound system. Once in a while, we’ll move the tables to the side and dance when a good song comes on. It’s not a packed house on a Saturday night, but Blaze still pours his heart and soul into every ounce of it all. He ended up not selling the brewery to Hector but offering him part ownership instead. Honestly, I can’t picture The Taproom without seeing the two of them together, so it works.
I walk in and find him behind the bar where he always is, wiping down the taps and watching TV without listening to it. I will never stop losing my breath at the sight of him, all loose jeans, T-shirt, and beanie. That freaking beanie. God.
This man is all mine.
“Hey,” I say, leaning over the bar.
“Hey.” His whiskey eyes focus on mine as he takes my face in his hands and presses his lips against mine.
I reach up and hook my arms around his neck and he sweeps his tongue over the seam of my lips, parting them and making his way inside. I moan against his mouth.
He pulls away and smiles. “Keep making that noise, and I’ll have you butt naked on this bar.”
I smirk. “Isn’t that against the health code or something?”
He moves my hair off my shoulder and brings his mouth to my neck. “Health codes are for pussies.” Then he bites my flesh and growls. He raises his head and stares at me, into me, the way he does when he’s either about to bend me over and fuck me stupid or tell me something super important.
His thumb moves across my bottom lip. “Have I ever told you how fucking beautiful you are?”
“You made me a T-shirt. Remember?”
He did. He made me a freaking T-shirt that literally says, Fucking Beautiful. It’s pink with black writing, and I wear it to bed until it starts to smell and I have to wash it. This man. God, this man. He doesn’t just tell me I’m beautiful. He makes me feel it. He makes me feel beautiful and loved and treasured.
When I met Blaze, I never thought a love like this was even possible. Happiness was for other people. I wasn’t even sure I knew what love was. Now, I am consumed by him, overwhelmed with happiness, and completely in love.
I cradle his cheek in my hand, letting each of his whiskers pass beneath my fingertips. “Tell me this is real.”
He grips the back of my neck and brings his mouth to mine. His lips brush my lips, making my eyes flutter shut. “This is real, babygirl. This is real as fuck.” He kisses my lips. Then my forehead. “Open your eyes.” I do. God, he’s perfect. Perfect and strong and mine. “I want you to try something.” He lets go of my neck and takes a step back.
He grabs a frosted mug
from the cooler then puts it under a tap. “It’s new. Something I’ve been working on for a very long time.” There’s a red string hanging over the side of the mug.
I eye the string. “Starting a new ritual?”
He smiles. “Something like that.” He presses the nozzle down and angles the glass, tipping it when the foam starts to run over the top. He hands me the mug.
I inhale the scent. “It smells like apples.”
“And Hector said I was crazy.” He laughs.
I bring the mug to my lips for the first drink, but he stops me. “You have to pull the string first.”
“Oh, right. The ritual.” I smile and tug on the thin red string. It’s heavy. Like it’s holding something. I hear my heartbeat pulsing in my ears, feel it slamming against my chest. My hand starts to tremble. My breath begins to shake. Then I pull it out—the ring.
He makes his way around to my side of the bar. Standing in front of me, he takes my hand, making me look up from the gorgeous square diamond surround by a halo of smaller diamonds. I soak in the smile on his face, the joy in his eyes, the hopefulness. I can’t look away.
“I love beer on tap and waking up to watch you sleep.” He takes the ring and begins untying it from the string. “I love picnics in the middle of the living room floor. I love lying in bed with you naked in my arms and watching the fucking Golden Girls. I love brown sugar Pop Tarts and the scent of coconut body wash.” He holds the ring in a bucket of clean water for a second then brings it back out. “And I love you, Adrienne. I love you so goddamn much.”
I don’t know if he’s finished talking or where this is all going, but I can’t wait another second. I lean forward and press my lips to his. “Yes,” I say because whatever it is…yes. God yes.
He laughs. “I wasn’t finished.”
I lick my lips and swallow hard, blinking back the tears forming in my eyes. “Sorry.” I bite my lip and fight a smile. “Go ahead.”
“I once told you the world would crumble when we were together and fuck me if we aren’t watching it fall down around us, but that’s the thing about us. The entire world could disappear, and I wouldn’t care because all I need is you. All I want is you. With everything going on, it’s hard not to feel like our days are numbered, but whether it’s one or one-hundred-thousand, one thing I do know is that I want to spend all of them with you. I want to be your husband. I want to make babies with you…” He smirks. “…or die trying. I want forever, and I want it with you.”
The tears I was fighting cascade down my cheeks, and I don’t even care. “Can I say yes now?”
He wipes my tears with his thumb. “Fuck yes. Say it. Scream it. Tattoo it on your fine ass. I don’t care.” He slides the ring onto my finger then latches his arms around my waist. “You are my everything, babygirl. You’ve always been everything.”
There’s a legend called the twin flames. They say it’s a divine connection of the soul, one energy existing in two bodies, and that once the flames recognize each other they are eternally connected unlike any other connection. It’s the only love that isn’t eroded by time or troubles. It’s a fiery passion that nothing will ever change.
Blaze is my flame. He is the other part of my soul. We found each other through sorrow and pain until sorrow and pain no longer existed. That’s what love does. It warms you from the inside out, burning through everything else.
The road here wasn’t easy, but I’d travel it a hundred times as long as it led to him.
I was broken.
He was broken.
We were broken.
And it wasn’t tragic. It was beautiful. Because we took our broken pieces and we put them back together the way we wanted to. We made each other whole. For the first time in my life, I am whole.
The End
Want to keep up with all of the other books in K. Bromberg’s Driven World? You can visit us anytime at http://www.kbworlds.com/ and the best way to stay up to date on all of our latest releases and sales, is to sign up for our official KB Worlds newsletter HERE.
Are you interested in reading the bestselling books that inspired the Driven World? You can find them HERE.
ALSO BY DELANEY FOSTER
A Woman’s Touch:
A Woman’s Touch
A Man’s World
Ever After
The Perfect Gentleman
Sin with Me:
Sin with Me
Penance
Absolution
Salvation (coming Summer 2021)
Resurrection (coming late 2021)
Sweet Southern Heat:
Sterling
Kane
Hayes (coming early 2021)
Standalones:
The Secrets you Keep
Crown of Thornes
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, it goes without saying that I need to thank the amazingly generous and talented Kristy Bromberg for opening her world and sharing her wonderful characters with all of us. Kristy, you are a true and rare gem in the book community, and I am honored to have worked with you.
Next, my betas. You guys are rockstars! Sarah Nicole Phillips, Bailey Boughton, Kelli Harper, Nicole Woodford, Jenny Lesko, Bec Bax, and Serena Worker- you are my lifelines. Thank you for all you do.
Speaking of Serena Worker, you are the best PA a girl could ask for. You go above and beyond every single day. You put up with my forgetfulness and completely nurture my weird OCD. You are awesome and I love you.
Susie Poole Anderson, as always have the most amazing way of making me look like I know what I’m doing. I would be a mess without you. Seriously. Don’t ever leave me.
Thank you to all the blogs who took the time to read, review, and share the news about my book baby. You guys are the backbone of this industry and I couldn’t do it without you.
Amanda Hernandez, my beautiful spunky, unfiltered little pumpkin. I LOVE YOU! Thank you for the laughs, the inspiration, and the brutally honest feedback.
Thank you to my hookahs, Roux Cantrell and Lee Ann Bigaj. You keep me sane and listen to my ramblings. You’re my very best friends in the world and I love you both.
And there’s no way I could ever do any of this without the support of my boys and my baby daddy. You guys are my biggest cheerleaders, even though you’re the ones who suffer through the mood swings- You know, when authors go from loving their craft to wanting to throw the laptop in the garbage because they truly believe they suck- and the cereal for dinner nights because I’m too deep in a chapter to quit writing now. You are my heart and soul. I love you.
Thank you to all the readers- yep that’s YOU. Without you, my life would just be empty pages. Thank you for reading, and supporting, and loving, and following my words. I love you guys. Hard.
About the Author
Delaney Foster is a native of the deep bayous of sweet Louisiana, not far from New Orleans- where eating, drinking, and dancing are pretty much a requirement for citizenship. She loves all things romance, a good glass of wine, and Saturdays at the baseball park. She does believe leggings are pants and is a bit of a book whore. In her heart Mr. Darcy will always be the ultimate book boyfriend. And in her books, you will find sexy alpha males and the strong women who love them.
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ALSO WRITTEN BY K. BROMBERG
Driven
Fueled
Crashed
Raced
Aced
Slow Burn
Sweet Ache
Hard Beat
Down Shift
UnRaveled
Sweet Cheeks
Sweet Rivalry
The Player
The Catch
Cuffed
Combust
Cockpit
Control
Faking It
Resist
Reveal
Then You Happened
Flirting with 40
Hard to Hold
Hard to Score
Hard to Lose
Blaze: A Driven World Novel (The Driven World) Page 19
