Stealing the Bad Boy
Page 19
Even when they were announced as man and wife, it wasn’t until Sy pressed his lips to hers in a kiss that made her knees weak that the world came back into focus. Sound rushed into her ears, and Amy could hear the clapping and cheers of their guests.
And then just as suddenly, the sounds of celebration were drowned out by a loud thunderclap. The rain, which had held up just long enough for the ceremony, descended on them with a vengeance.
The cheers turned to screams and laughter as the guests ran for the house.
Sy and Amy didn’t move, not at first, but they smiled against each other’s lips. Because it didn’t matter if her dress had grass stains or if she started treatment next week or if they were totally soaked.
As Sy pulled back to gaze at her with love warming his honey eyes, Amy knew that she had everything she needed.
For as long as they both shall live.
Epilogue
Pax - six years ago
Though his vision was hazy and his knuckles bloody and sore, Pax managed to bring Cilla’s hand to the center of his chest. “You’re right here, Cilla. Always.” Then he grinned and brought her fingers up to his lips and kissed them.
“Right back at you, you big idiot. What did I tell you about the fighting?”
But Pax could feel the wad of cash in the back pocket of his jeans. It wasn’t a ton, but more than he made at any of the part-time jobs he’d tried. His mom was too high all the time to be counted on for things like grocery shopping for him and his little sister, Jazz. He grinned and tried to pat his back pocket with one hand. Cilla’s face seemed to tilt then, and hands grabbed at his body before he hit the ground.
“Whoa there, sailor.”
That was Elton. Easton held him on the other side, and Sy jogged ahead to open the car door.
“I’m driving,” Pax said. His voice sounded funny.
“Shut up,” Elton said. “And don’t damage your skull any more on the way in.”
Pax couldn’t really fight the other big guys as they lowered him into the passenger seat. Someone’s big palm on the top of his head kept him from bumping it. Smaller hands slid across his chest and buckled his seatbelt. Cilla. He would have known her scent anywhere, even with his eyes shut.
“Cills,” he said, grasping for her hand. But his fingers felt strangely detached, and she slipped away.
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll be in here to yell at you in a minute. Don’t go to sleep.”
The car door stayed open, and no one lowered their voices. He might be a little fuzzy right now, but Pax heard every word.
“You think I should take him to the hospital?” Cilla asked. “I know his mom doesn’t have insurance, but I can pay it. It’s a concussion, right?”
“Probably,” Easton said.
“He’s out of it, but he didn’t lose consciousness or anything. You need to keep an eye on him, but he should be fine.” That was Elton.
Sy spoke up next, quieter than everyone else had been. “I don’t know about his scholarship or any of that, but this could get him in trouble. He could get benched or miss training camp or something else if he’s got a doctor saying he has a concussion. Or if they find out that he was fighting for money.”
Cilla’s voice held the note of anger that he always found so hot. “Y’all are all a bunch of idiots. These fights aren’t high school shenanigans anymore. You’re all eighteen. A lot more is at risk than missing training camp or getting in trouble with a coach.”
“This was the last one, Cilla. I swear.”
“I don’t believe you for one second, Elton Boyd.”
Pax’s car door shut then, and he heard the crunch of boots on gravel before the driver’s side door opened. The ceiling light of the car made him squint. “Ow, baby. Bright.”
“I bet. Here.” Cilla carefully placed her pink sunglasses on his face.
“You’re the best, Cills.”
She sighed. “I’m really not. And if you weren’t feeling so bad, you better believe I’d be ripping you a new one about how we spent our last night together before you left.”
“I’m sorry, Cills.”
He really was. This isn’t how he planned to spend their last night. But he was worried about leaving Jazz alone with his mom. And though he had a full ride for football, it wasn’t the pros. He wouldn’t get paid, and he wouldn’t have time for a job. He simply had to trust that Jazz would be okay.
Pax tried to lean closer to give her a kiss, but kind of tipped over and sank over the middle console. Cilla giggled. “No, no. Stay on your side. I can’t drive with you falling on my lap.”
With a firm hand, she gave him a shove until his shoulder rested on the door. Pax groaned. He might have fallen asleep for a few seconds or a few minutes. Headlights passing them woke him up. Cilla was holding his hand.
When did that happen?
He squeezed her fingers. Cilla was his everything. He hated that he disappointed her tonight.
“I’m so sorry, Cilla. I shouldn’t have agreed to the fight.”
She blew out a long breath. “I understand, Pax. I do. I just wish you’d let me help. You know I can.”
Even with his brain fog, the comment hit him hard. This was a sore spot for him, and a point of contention between them. Maybe her money wouldn’t have mattered so much if it didn’t matter to her parents. They hated that Pax came from a single-parent family. If they only knew the whole of it—that his mom spent most of her time and any money she got from her barely-above-minimum-wage job getting high. They never would have let him near their precious Priscilla.
And as much as Pax didn’t want to think of himself as prideful, it stung to think of Cilla paying for him. Or for Jazz. That’s something he should be doing for his family. Not having his girlfriend sneak money from her fully padded checking account to help buy groceries or clothes or Pax’s gas.
“No,” he almost growled.
“Fine. I get it. But you taking my money is far better than your brain taking a beating in that thick skull of yours. We shouldn’t talk about it now anyway. I’m going to put on some music.”
The last thing that Pax was aware of before the car lurched off the road was his crushing guilt. Guilt for not having enough, not doing enough, not being enough. He didn’t deserve the girl behind the steering wheel. Not even a little bit. The shame of his history, his family, and his own choices made his throat burn with acid.
But then the car was off the road, bumping as it went much too fast over a curb and rough ground. Pax was thrown forward as the airbag deployed and the crunch and screech of metal filled his ears. He heard a sharp scream, and he shouted, or his mind thought to shout Cilla’s name.
Then … darkness.
Read more about Pax and Cilla in Forgiving the Football Player!
This series has very interconnected characters, so you’ll get to read later about Elton and Easton, plus see Amy and Sy again later in the series to get an update on them!
A NOTE FROM EMMA
This book was originally titled Her Second Chance Dream Groom, and it was a part of a multi-author series. It was a LOT shorter and had a very different setup. That series has been disbanded, and all the books went their separate ways.
While I enjoyed the first version, I LOVED being able to bring more into Sy & Amy’s sweet story. This feels like what it should have been all along.
It’s very strange to put this book out as book #1 when books 2-4 have already been out for some time. This WAS the first one I wrote, though I wrote Pax and Cilla’s at about the same time, which is why they both start essentially on the same day.
If this is the FIRST in the series you’re reading, I hope you fall in love with this group of characters the way I did.
You’ll get updates on Sy & Amy in the fourth book, and more in the fifth. You will get to see what Elton and Easton get up to (hint: trouble) and meet some new characters that may grow on you.
Some might grow on you more like a fungus.
Though not every
book gets a HEA that’s months or years down the line, you’ll get to watch all the relationships progress through each book.
If you like this style, you may also enjoy my Sandover Island Sweet Romance series, which features interrelated characters as well.
Thank you SO much for reading. I am extremely grateful for every reader, every email, every Facebook group member, every sale and page read.
YOU GUYS KEEP ME GOING!
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WHAT TO READ NEXT
The Billionaire Surprise Series
The Billionaire Love Match
The Billionaire Benefactor
The Billionaire Land Baron
The Billionaire’s Masquerade Ball
The Billionaire’s Secret Heir
Sandover Island Sweet Romance Series
Sandover Beach Memories
Sandover Beach Week
Sandover Beach Melodies
Sandover Beach Christmas
Not So Bad Boy Sweet Romance Series
Stealing the Bad Boy
Forgiving the Football Player
Winning the Cowboy
Taming the Cowboy’s Twin
Managing the Rock Star (related to the series, but more loosely)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I have some of the BEST readers in the world. I really do. A big thank you to Patty, Marsha, Valerie, Rita, Valerie, Andi, Bernie, Kathy, and the rest of my crew.
If you aren’t named, it simply means your feedback came AFTER I wrote this part of the book. I still <3 you.