“And now?” I ask when he doesn’t continue.
His eyes meet mine, they darken and his nostrils flare. I watch as he balls his hands into fists, his knuckles turning white with the force. I wait. I watch and I wait. He’s waging a war in his head, but it isn’t my war to fight. It’s his.
I wait him out. I will always wait him out, just like he will always rescue me from my demons. Always.
“I fucking love you, sugar,” he rasps. “I hate myself, but goddamn do I love you.”
As quickly as my feet will carry me, I launch myself into his chest. He wraps his arms around me, pulling me against his body. The rough fabric of his shirt rubs against my stiff nipples and I can’t stop the whimper from escaping my lips.
Wyatt’s hands wrap around my waist, they squeeze, and I let my head fall back as my gaze connects with his. “I love you, Wyatt. Don’t hate yourself, never hate yourself, especially over me.”
His fingers flex against my waist, his chin dips and he rests his forehead against mine. “I should have been here,” he rasps. “They could have hurt you.”
“You leaving me would have killed me,” I exhale.
His entire body jerks, then before I realize what’s happening, he swings me up into his grasp. Sliding his arm beneath my knees, he carries me like a bride toward our bedroom. Slowly, he lowers me down on the bed, then he strips himself out of his clothes and climbs up beside me.
“Nobody is leaving anyone. I was a fucking idiot. I got scared,” he confesses.
Rolling to my side to face him, I lift my hand and place my palm at the center of his chest. “Don’t ignore me like that again,” I whisper.
Wyatt wraps his fingers around my wrist, holding me to him. Slowly, I lift my eyes to meet his and I let out a long breath as my eyes search his. “Never. This is new for me. You could have been hurt, and I wasn’t here. I felt like a failure, again.”
“You’ve never failed me, Wyatt. You couldn’t. You’re my hero,” I admit.
He shakes his head once. “I’m nobody’s hero, sugar. I failed Sammi. I failed my child. I’ve failed plenty,” he whispers.
Shaking my head, I push my hand against his chest. He rolls onto his back easily. Climbing across his hips, I straddle him and look down, my hand still pressed against his chest, his fingers still wrapped around my wrist.
“You. Are. My. Hero,” I snap.
His eyes widen and he presses his lips together, looking as if he’s trying to keep from laughing at my irritation.
“You did not fail Sammi or that child. Both of you were young. You have to forgive yourself. You have to forgive her. You have to move on,” I practically beg.
Wyatt’s hand releases my wrist and I feel it wrap around my hip, his other hand doing the same. He holds me still, his eyes focused on mine. He’s thinking, I can see it in his eyes, they’re working, but I can’t read him. I don’t know what he’s thinking, and I have no clue what he’s about to say.
“I forgive her. I forgive myself. I am ready for a new life. With you,” he rasps. “But I am nobody’s hero, sugar. I’m just a man.”
“You’re my man.”
His lips turn up into a small smile. “Fuck yes I am. I am your man,” he growls before he flips me onto my back. Without another word, he drives himself deep inside of me.
He makes love to me.
It’s slow and sweet.
It’s perfect.
No matter what he says. He’s a hero. My hero. He saved me, not from my father and uncle, but from myself.
He saves me every day.
WYATT
Rolling to my side, I wrap my arm around Exeter’s middle and tug her against the front of my chest. She wiggles her ass against my dick, and I can’t stop the horny fucker from twitching. We had sex one more time last night. Three times in a six-hour period. I’m too old for that shit. My dick didn’t get the memo that I need a goddamn break, though.
“Wyatt,” she murmurs.
I hum, pressing my lips to her shoulder, then gently bite her there. “Yeah, sugar?”
She rolls over in my arms, her eyes meeting mine and I watch as a lazy smile appears on her lips. She’s never looked more beautiful than she does right now. Her dark hair is a mess, her blue eyes tired and her lips curved in a satisfied smile.
This is my woman.
Mine.
This is who I am meant to have.
“I’m happy you’re home,” she breathes.
I grunt. Fuck. She gets better. Every time she opens her pretty full lips, something even more beautiful spills from them.
“Get dressed, promised my parents we’d come on by the house for lunch. We’ll pick up MawMaw too,” I say.
“But you were going to break up with me, now we’re going to lunch?” she asks, blinking her eyes.
Rolling on top of her, I pin her body to the mattress. “Enough of that shit. Do you really think I could have spent a moment without you?” I ask.
She doesn’t say anything; she just stares up at me. “Love you more than I love myself, Exeter. There’s only you for me. I was lost inside myself for days. It wasn’t a good place to be, but as soon as Ford told me your shit was packed, I fucking panicked. Can’t live without you.”
Sliding my nose alongside her own, I slant my head to the side and take her lips with mine. I taste her. I slip my tongue inside of her warm waiting mouth and I fuck her there. My cock hardens against her belly and I let out a groan when her legs shift, opening for me.
Words are lost to us, our bodies doing our talking—again. I show her with my body that she’s mine, that I love her. Then I whisper those words of love over and over again until we’re both panting and on edge. Only when we topple over, when our bodies find their release, am I quiet again.
We hold one another, neither of us speaking. That is until she finally breaks the silence between us.
“I won’t bring it up again. As long as you never bring up the fact that you weren’t here when my dad and uncle showed up,” she murmurs.
I grunt. It’s a promise I really fucking don’t want to make, but I still do. I make that promise. A clean slate, so to speak. It is for her, her demons are now locked behind prison bars, and hopefully they’ll stay there for a good long while.
For me, I forgive Sammi and I finally forgive myself. It’s been a long road, but it was worth it. If it meant that I was supposed to travel that road to have this woman in my arms, a lifetime with her at my side, then it was all fucking worth the pain, the heartache, and the loneliness.
Worth every fucking second of it all.
Epilogue
WYATT
FOUR MONTHS LATER
I look down at my phone. The text message says read, but I haven’t received a response. Beaumont is going to rehab, he has a drinking problem. Closing my eyes, I think about the past, about the way he is when he comes to town. He seems relaxed, happy, and just fucking calm when he’s here. He doesn’t seem like he has a care in the world.
“Wyatt?” a sweet voice calls out.
Opening my eyes, I lift my gaze to find Exeter’s. The light in the room makes the diamond on her finger glitter. I slipped it on last week. I’ve had it for months, waiting for the perfect time to give it to her. I was going to plan a whole evening, then something came over me and I suddenly couldn’t wait. Buried deep inside of her, I slid it onto her finger and asked her to be my wife.
“Just thinking about Beau,” I admit.
“I watched the interview,” she says as she lifts her hand to cover her yawn. She worked all day, her body exhausted, but as always, she makes time for me. Her feet carry her over toward my chair and she sinks down on my lap. “You smell like baby,” she rasps when she inhales my neck.
“So do you,” I grunt.
“Rylan, Channing, and Reese come by?” she asks, sitting up a bit.
I lift my chin, my eyes searching hers as I wrap my hand around her hip to hold her against me. “They did.”
“And y
ou were a baby hog?”
I snort. “He’s my cousin, more like a nephew,” I explain.
She hums, lowering her face and brushes her lips across mine. “You look so sexy with a baby in your arms, I’m sorry I missed it,” she breathes against my mouth.
My fingers flex against her thigh, then I slide my hand up her scrub shirt, up her spine and wrap my fingers around the back of her neck to hold her against me.
“Let me put one inside of you and you can see me hold our baby anytime your heart desires,” I murmur against her lips.
She moans, her hands sliding up my arms to wrap around the back of my neck, tangling in the strands of my hair. Her mouth touches mine, her tongue slipping inside and tastes me, all of me, just the way she knows that I fucking love.
Slowly she breaks the kiss, panting as she licks her lips and looks down at me. “We aren’t even married yet,” she points out.
I grunt. “Don’t want nothin’ big. Beaumont’s indisposed, Rylan and Channing can’t go anywhere with the baby. Louis is fighting this weekend, but after that, he’ll take a little time off. Let’s just fuckin’ do it,” I suggest.
She blinks. “Okay,” she says, her lips curving up into a smile.
“Okay?”
Exeter nods. “Yeah, okay. Mrs. Exeter Johnson has the most gorgeous sound, I’ve been dying to finally be her,” she admits.
I grunt, tossing my phone to the side and I pick her up. Slowly, I carry her upstairs. This is a moment where she should be cherished, slowly. I know she’s tired from a long shift, that she wants nothing more than to fall asleep. First, she’s going to enjoy a few orgasms, then she can drift off to sleep, and hopefully dream of a wedding in a few weeks.
BEAUMONT
RYLAN: GOT YOUR BACK. HERE FOR YOU.
LOUIS: CALL ME.
FORD: WHATEVER YOU NEED. GOT YOU.
WYATT: COME HOME. WE’RE HERE.
Four text messages from four people who genuinely care for me are sitting on my phone. Unread. Not because I don’t give a fuck about them, I do, but because I’m a piece of shit fraud. I hid myself from them, from the world. I’ve been doing nothing but hiding.
Rehab is what I need. I know it’s what I need. Unfortunately, nobody else on my team thinks it’s a good idea. Good thing I take care of their shit so they can’t really fight me on this. It’s a need right now, not a want.
I feel completely out of control.
I need help.
Closing my eyes, I let out a sigh. I imagine all of my friends, gathered around Wyatt’s living room getting ready to watch Louis box. It’s what they’ll be doing in a few days. Wyatt invited me, says he wants me to officially meet his girl, officially meet Rylan’s baby.
I should go to that before I check myself in. It’s important, spending time with family. That’s what they are, too. My family. Shaking my head, I let out a hiss. If I go, then I’ll just be putting this shit off. Which is exactly what I don’t need to do.
I need to get better.
Get back to basics.
Get back to my fucking self.
EXETER
Lying in bed, I watch the fight. Wyatt is across the field at Ford’s along with Rylan. I didn’t want to disrupt fight night, but I really wanted to watch Louis beat the absolute shit out of this guy. They’ve been taunting one another for weeks. Louis’ smile appears in my mind. He has been on full-force cocky mode since this match began. I’ve never seen the public side of him, and I absolutely love it.
I watch as Louis slams his fist against the other guy’s cheek. His head thrashes to the side and his mouthpiece goes flying. The opponent stumbles to the side, then straightens and I watch as a demon possesses him.
“Oh shit,” I whisper.
My phone buzzes and I look down for split second, grabbing it in my hand and answering it. I’m on my knees, leaning forward in the middle of the bed.
“Did you see that?” Channing screeches.
“Oh my God. That guy is possessed,” I state.
She hums her agreement. That’s how we spend our evening, on the phone with one another while we watch Louis fight in Vegas. When the fight is finally finished, we both let out a breath and start to talk about something else, well, I share my news.
“Wyatt wants to get married, in a couple of weeks,” I state.
Channing laughs, her voice sweet as sugar. “Rylan couldn’t wait even a couple of weeks. Honestly, I’m surprised Wyatt was willing to wait this long.”
“I should probably put him off, plan a real wedding for his parents and my MawMaw’s sake,” I say. Channing doesn’t respond, she waits, knowing that I’m working through everything in my head. “But I want to marry him yesterday. He’s my hero, you know?”
I can practically see her smile through the phone. “I know he is. I can tell in the way you look at him, because it’s the same way I look at Rylan. He’s my hero too. All of these men are completely swoon-worthy,” she says.
“They really are,” I agree. I pause at the sound of the front door opening then closing. “I better go, Wyatt just walked in the door.”
“Come over tomorrow if you’re off and we’ll do wedding planning stuff, maybe take the baby over to see MawMaw, you know she’s been calling me wanting to know when he’s had his first round of shots so she can love up on him.”
“You don’t mind taking him over before he’s had them?” I ask.
Channing makes a noise. “We take him everywhere. Rylan refuses to let us stay home, if he has somewhere to go on his day off, we go together,” she says.
“He’s so in love with both of you.”
“He is,” she sighs.
I feel someone’s eyes on me, and I look up to see Wyatt standing in the doorway of our bedroom. “I better get going. I’m off tomorrow, I’ll come by and I’m bringing coffee and breakfast,” I announce, ending the call before she can protest.
“You watch the fight with Channing?” he asks, a smirk tipping his lips.
Tossing my phone onto the nightstand lightly, I nod as I shift to my knees in the center of the bed. Wyatt’s nostrils flare. He doesn’t move, his shoulder leaning against the doorframe, his eyes darkening slightly and his arms crossed over his wide chest.
“Take it all off for me, sugar,” he gently demands.
I bite the corner of my lip. “All of it?” I ask as I teasingly play with the bottom of my short baby doll nightie.
He grunts, his eyes flicking down to where my hands are still sliding over the lace trim. I lift it slightly, showing him the matching panties. His breath inhales sharply, then before I can tease him even a second longer, he’s on me.
Wyatt reaches out, his hands wrapping around the backs of my thighs and with one quick tug, he pulls me until I land on my back in the center of the bed. His long fingers glide up the inside of my thighs until they reach the center of my panties.
“Fuck,” he hisses as soon as he connects with my damp center.
Shifting the center of my panties to the side, my eyes close as his fingers slip through my folds. When he comes into contact with my clit, my hips jerk and a moan escapes my throat. Wyatt hovers over me, his soft breath fanning my face. His eyes focused nowhere but my own.
“I love you, sugar,” he murmurs. “Can’t wait ‘til you wear my ring.”
Without allowing me to respond his mouth is on mine. His tongue slides between my lips at the same time two fingers fill me. My eyes fall closed as his fingers curl inside of me. He moves inside of me, though I wish his cock would replace his fingers, there’s nothing better than the feeling of him sliding deep inside of me—nothing. Except, maybe when he comes, that low roar that escapes his lips. I shiver at the thought. Needing to hear it again, needing to be the one that pulls it from deep inside of him.
“Wyatt,” I whimper.
He must know what I’m craving. He gently slips his hand from inside of me and then I hear the rustling of his jeans. Opening my eyes, I tip my chin just in time to watch him gui
de himself inside of me. He’s shifted my panties to the side, burying himself to the hilt in one fluid motion. It’s perfection.
“I love you, too,” I murmur.
He pauses, buried deep, his eyes finding mine, then he lowers his head and his lips brush against my own. Without breaking our kiss, he makes love to me. It doesn’t matter that we’re still mostly dressed, it’s just as intimate as if we were lying naked with one another.
Wyatt’s heart is what I long for, and he’s given it to me wholly. When we’re alone, when we’re in a crowded room, I feel like the only woman on the planet. He makes me feel that way. He makes me feel beautiful, cherished, and loved.
Never in my life did I think that I would find a man like him. A man who would be my hero, my champion the way that he is. It’s not just me, it’s Rylan and Channing, Ford and Louis, even MawMaw, he’s their champion, too.
Wyatt is an overall hero, and he’s mine, all mine.
I’m never letting him go.
I’m never walking away.
With him at my side, I have everything I could ever need.
Anything I could ever want.
SAVIOR: An Unfit Hero Short Story
Chapter One
EMILY
I watch as he walks up the front porch steps. He’s made this trek once a week, every week, since I came to this place. Which means, he drives an hour to see me, walks up the porch steps and knocks on the door.
I used to ignore his visits. Even now, my legs twitch to turn and run. This man has seen me at my absolute worst. I’m embarrassed to even make eye contact with him.
Lifting my hand, I turn the front door knob, open and slip out onto the porch. He’s there, wearing jeans and a tight white cotton shirt that stretches across his broad chest. He’s holding a white straw cowboy hat in his hand, his fingers working the brim as his eyes connect to mine.
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